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Role of the Graduate Director

The graduate director oversees all aspects of graduate education within a department or program. While the specific responsibilities of the graduate director may differ from program to program, generally it is the graduate director who is responsible for the recruitment, admission, advising and monitoring of the progress of students within that program. In addition, graduate directors

• Request approval and provide justification for any exceptions to policy from the Graduate Dean.
• Review and approve the composition of all student advisory committees and programs of study.
• Review and approve the acceptance of transfer credits.
• Resolve conflicts between faculty mentors and students.
• Advise faculty regarding student progression, problems, academic integrity issues, etc.

The graduate program director must be a member of the graduate faculty of the graduate program for which they serve as a program director.

Admission

University minimum admission requirements:

• Baccalaureate (or equivalent) from a regionally accredited institution, as evidenced by official transcripts.
• Cumulative undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 for admissions to master’s programs; 3.0 in both undergraduate and graduate coursework for admission to doctoral programs.
• Students who have taken graduate-level courses at the University in Graduate Special status must also have a minimum graduate GPA of 3.0.
• Standardized test scores: If a program requires applicants to submit standardized test scores (GRE, GMAT, or MCAT, etc.), then all applicants must submit test scores. This requirement cannot be waived for individuals regardless of their qualifications or circumstances. This is a fundamental “equality in admissions” issue and violations of this policy open the institution up to charges of unfair, discriminatory admissions practices.

DISCUSSION: Sometimes students en route to admission to a graduate degree program achieve poor grades as a graduate special due to declining interest in the course and either submitting poor quality work or simply ceasing to attend class. If the student’s cumulative GPA in courses taken as a graduate special is below 3.0, the Graduate School will not admit the student “on probation.” The problem is that the student could complete an entire course of study without ever achieving a graduate GPA of 3.0 and would therefore be ineligible to receive an advanced degree. If a student is offered Fall admission and takes summer courses, they must earn a cumulative 3.0 GPA or fall admission could be revoked.

If a domestic prospective master’s student does not meet the University's minimum GPA requirement, the applicant may be admitted to a Prescribed Program (form available on the Graduate School website). This is a specified curriculum of courses consisting of either 9 credits in the first semester of admission or 12 credits over two consecutive semesters. The courses may be graduate level or undergraduate level (provided the minimum enrollment requirement of 3 graduate credits is met) and all courses must be completed with a “B” or better. Students on prescribed programs are ineligible to hold assistantships. International students are ineligible for prescribed programs.

International students

In addition to the academic criteria required by all students for admission to an advanced degree program, international applicants must have one of the following to be admitted into an advanced degree program:

• A Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score of at least 79 IBT (including Home Edition and Paper Edition) or 8.5 (Essentials), or
• The International Language Testing System (IELTS) (academic version) with an equivalency score of 6.5.
• A Duolingo score of at least 115.
• A Pearson (PTE) score of at least 59.
•  A Cambridge score of at least 176.

International students who have received a baccalaureate or advanced degree from a regionally accredited United States university or college or from an accredited college or university from a country in which English is the native language are EXEMPT from the English score requirement. See a list of English-speaking countries exempt from testing.

Student handbooks

All graduate programs must have a graduate student handbook that is posted online, either as a link to a fully accessible PDF document or as a component of the graduate program’s website. Ideally, the Graduate School would like programs to have both online and fully accessible PDF versions of their handbook. All changes to the graduate student handbook must be approved by the Graduate School.

Leave of absence

Students in good standing may request a leave of absence (form available on the Graduate School website) during which time they are not required to maintain continuous registration. Usually, a leave of absence is approved for one or two semesters. Leave may be extended by the student filing an additional leave of absence form. Students applying for a leave of absence should not have any “incomplete” grades which could be changed to “F” and have a detrimental impact on their cumulative grade point average. Requests for a leave of absence must be received by the Graduate School no later than the last day of enrollment for the semester the leave is to begin.

Reinstatement

When a student has been absent for one semester or more without an approved leave of absence, he or she may request reinstatement via the Reinstatement Form available on the Graduate School website. This form allows the program the option to recommend the student be re-admitted to their graduate program based on their previous admission OR require the student to re-apply for admission which would require students to submit a new application for admission and pay the application fee. The Notice of Reinstatement to Graduate Standing must be received by the Graduate School no later than the last day of enrollment for the semester the reinstatement is to begin.

Continuous enrollment

To maintain “good standing” all graduate students are required to enroll in a minimum of three (3) graduate credits each Fall and Spring semester until they graduate.

All students holding assistantships (whether teaching or research assistantships) are required to enroll in a minimum of six (6) graduate credits each semester in which they hold the assistantship.

International students on an immigrant visa are required to enroll in nine (9) graduate credits each Fall and Spring semester unless they hold a graduate assistantship.

Enrollment limitations

• Fall and spring semesters: Graduate students may not enroll in more than 16 graduate credits. Wintermester: cannot be enrolled in more than three (3) graduate credits.
• Summer Sessions: Graduate students may not enroll in more than six (6) graduate credits in any single summer session. Students cannot be enrolled in more than three (3) graduate credits mini-term.
• Graduate Assistants: Must enroll in at least six (6) graduate credits; may not enroll in more than 12 graduate credits.

Academic status

Academic Standing/Dismissal Policy

Programs of study

• Students must list those graduate-level courses that fulfill their degree requirements. The list may include courses taken previously; transferred courses; courses in which students are currently enrolled; and courses that students plan on taking in the future. Courses that the student has taken, but which do not meet any requirement of the degree should not be listed.
• There is no need to list every registration of thesis/dissertation credits; simply list the total number of credits to be applied (6 credits for thesis; minimum of 24 credits for doctoral programs. EXCEPTION – 12 credits dissertation for Ed.D. degrees only.) to 6-10 credits for thesis; 12-30 credits for doctoral programs).
• For master’s degree students, programs of study forms are due no later than the end of the student’s third semester.
• For doctoral students, programs of study are due no later than the end of the student’s fifth semester.
• Programs of study must be approved by the Graduate Dean prior to the student applying for graduation.
• Per the Graduate School, each graduate course must be completed with a grade of “C” or better for the credit to be acceptable for an advanced degree. A grade of C- or below is not acceptable for degree completion. Note that some programs have more stringent grade requirements in order for a graduate course to be acceptable for an advanced degree.

Declaration of advisor/major advisor/committee chair

• The declaration form is used to declare a student’s advisor/major advisor/Committee Chair and should be submitted to the Graduate School before the program of study.
• For master’s degree students, declaration forms are due no later than the end of the student’s second semester.
• For MFA and doctoral degree students, declaration forms are due no later than the end of the third semester.

Minimum credit requirements

Master’s degrees

Thesis programs: A total of approximately 30 graduate credits with at least 9 credits at the 700-level or above (not including thesis, XXX-797)

Non-thesis programs: A total of 30 graduate credits with at least 12 credits at the 700-level or above. Some programs have elected to consider the comprehensive exam credits (XXX 795) as part of the 700-level credit requirement and some have decided to regard them as exclusive of the 700-level requirement. 

Master's advisory committees

All master's programs requiring a thesis must have an advisory/examination committee that includes at a minimum:

1. The committee chair;
2. One (1) faculty member with graduate faculty status in the student’s graduate program,
3. One (1) Graduate School representative who does not have a primary appointment in the same department (or another major unit where a department structure does not exist) as the student’s committee chair and cannot have graduate faculty status in the student’s graduate program. In the case of interdisciplinary graduate programs, the Graduate School Representative cannot have a primary appointment in the same department (or other appropriate major unit) as the student’s committee chair but may have graduate faculty status in the student’s graduate program. The director of an interdisciplinary graduate program cannot serve as the Graduate School Representative on advisory/examining committees within the same interdisciplinary graduate program.

For additional details, including the inclusion of additional committee members, the inclusion of faculty from other institutions or relevant professions, or the role of the Graduate School Representative, see the .

Non-thesis/project-based committees consist of at least two (2) faculty members.

Course-based-only committees consist of the graduate program director.

Formal approval of all student advisory/examining committees is made by the Graduate Dean.

Doctoral degrees

Doctoral degrees are conferred for work of distinction in which the student displays original scholarship and achievement.

For a Ph.D., the student must prove their ability to design and complete a program of original research and scholarly activity by preparing a dissertation that adds to existing knowledge and defending that work in an oral exam conducted by the student’s advisory committee. A minimum of sixty (60) units is required, including at least forty (40) units in coursework, and at least 12 dissertation units (XXX 799).

For other doctorates, such as the Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA), Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and Education Doctorate (EdD), requirements are commensurate with those applicable for advanced scholar-practitioners within the profession.

Doctoral degrees in the College of Education have different credit requirements.

Doctoral advisory committees

Advisory/examining committees consist of five (5) to six (6) members of the Graduate Faculty. The committee is composed of

1. the committee chair,
2. two (2) faculty members with graduate faculty status in the student’s doctoral program,
3. at least one (1) and a maximum of two (2) faculty members who may hold graduate faculty status in the program of the University, or who may be from another institution; and
4. one (1) Graduate School representative who does not have a primary appointment in the same department (or another major unit where a department structure does not exist) as the student’s committee chair and cannot have graduate faculty status in the student’s doctoral program. In the case of interdisciplinary graduate programs, the Graduate School representative cannot have a primary appointment in the same department (or other appropriate major unit) as the student’s committee chair but may have graduate faculty status in the student’s graduate program. The director of an interdisciplinary graduate program cannot serve as the Graduate School Representative on advisory/examining committees within the same interdisciplinary graduate program.

For additional details, including the inclusion of faculty from other institutions, or the role of the Graduate School Representative, see the .

Formal approval of all student advisory committees is made by the Graduate Dean.

Time limitations

Master’s degrees: All coursework must be completed within six years preceding the awarding of the degree.

Doctoral degrees: All coursework must be completed within eight years preceding the awarding of the degree. Credits from a completed master’s degree are exempt from this eight-year limit.

The “clock” starts with the date of the earliest coursework to be applied toward the degree whether it was taken prior to admission as a graduate special or transferred from another institution.

Extensions

Requests for extension of the course time limits must be made to the Graduate Dean by the director of the graduate program and the appropriate rationale and documentation should be provided. Second extensions will only be granted under rare circumstances. Extensions should not be considered routine.

Transfer credits

These are credits transferred from another institution. Credits completed at the University in another program or as a graduate special do not need to be transferred.

Transfer credit is requested on the Transfer Credit Evaluation Request form available on the Graduate School website and must be signed by the student, major advisor, and graduate director.

Transfer credits applied to a master’s program must comply with the time limitation on master’s work (6 years). Thus, if a student took a course five years prior to admission, he would have to complete the degree within one year for the course to apply to the degree.

Completing two degrees simultaneously

To simultaneously pursue two master’s degrees, the student must be formally admitted to graduate standing in both programs. Two (2) separate advisory committees with different chairs are required with no more than one (1) graduate faculty member belonging to both committees. A maximum of twelve (12) graduate units earned in one master’s program may be applied toward a second master’s degree.

Graduate Faculty

Please see the Graduate Faculty Policy to learn more about who can serve as graduate faculty, how they are nominated and approved, what roles they are eligible to serve in, and more.

Doctoral comprehensive examinations

• To pass the oral/written comprehensive examination the committee must have no more than one negative vote. An absent committee member is an automatic negative vote, unless the committee member has communicated a different vote to the committee chair. If two negative votes are cast – regardless of the total number of committee members – the student fails the exam.
• The Graduate Handbook for the program determines if and under what conditions the student may re-take the doctoral comprehensive exam.

Doctoral dissertation defense

A successful dissertation defense is reflected by no more than one negative committee vote. If two negative votes are cast – regardless of the total number of committee members – the defense is unsuccessful. At the discretion of the committee, the candidate may be permitted one additional attempt to conduct a successful defense.

Commencement

Commencement exercises are held each December and May. Doctoral students are hooded by their academic advisors. Students and advisors process in and are seated together. If a doctoral student’s academic advisor is unable to attend the commencement, the advisor must make arrangements for another member of the doctoral advising/examining committee to hood the student. If no arrangements were made, the graduate director will hood the student. If the graduate director is unable to attend the commencement, the Graduate Dean will hood the student.