Why can a faculty member or other person from another school or industry serve as a full voting member?
In some limited cases, another faculty member or industry member may serve as a member of the committee. A memorandum to the Graduate Dean is necessary in justifying why this person should be on the committee. Careful consideration is necessary, especially if the proposed person is a member of industry, and might hold up the dissertation due to nonacademic reasons. At the discretion of the Dean, these persons can be appointed as “Consulting Members” and sign off on the dissertation. A “Consulting Member” does not have voting privileges.
