Satisfactory progress
The progress of each graduate student is evaluated annually by the student’s advisor and/or director of graduate studies. The definition of satisfactory progress and procedures for its verification may vary among departments/programs. If a department/program has instituted guidelines that differ from those applying generally to graduate students, these guidelines should be made available to students from their entrance into the graduate degree program. If a student is authorized to diverge from progress guidelines established by either the department/program or the Graduate School, this fact should be documented in written form and endorsed by the student’s advisor and DGS.
Progress toward degree
Full-time students (those taking 9 hours or more per semester) should follow the time frames associated with degree programs discussed in the graduate catalog under master’s degrees and doctoral degrees. They must submit required forms on time and maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or better. Furthermore, they must successfully undergo their departments’ annual review processes.
Part-time students should file a timeline for successful degree completion with their departments and the Graduate School. This timeline should be endorsed by the director of graduate studies and a prospective advisor by the end of the first calendar year of admission into the department/program. When these timelines conflict with time to degree guidelines laid out in the University Catalog’s policies related to master’s and doctoral degrees, they must receive the endorsement of the dean of the Graduate School.
In addition, master’s, specialist, and doctoral students must comply with policies related to the number of years a student can take in order to complete a degree.
Policy updated on 10/8/2007