Graduate School Bulletin

Spring 2024

Awarding Degrees

Degree candidates must be registered in the semester they intend to graduate. A 3.0 cumulative GPA is required for graduation clearance. Students who intend to graduate in the spring or fall must register for at least one graduate credit. Students who intend to graduate in the summer can register for zero credits, but it still must be a graduate-level course.

When all requirements have been completed, the Graduate Program Director will certify to the Dean of the Graduate School and recommend that the degree be awarded. Degrees are awarded three times a year: May, August, and December. A formal ceremony, however, takes place only at the May commencement. To be eligible for a degree, a student must have completed all University requirements, all program degree requirements, satisfied any provisional admission requirements, submitted the appropriate manuscripts, obtained all University clearances, and have maintained matriculation according to the regulations outlined under the section “Maintaining Matriculated Status,” elsewhere in this Bulletin.

Students may elect to print their preferred/chose name on the diploma.

Degrees Awarded Posthumously

Upon request, the University may award a degree posthumously. Any such request requires the following for consideration:

1. The parent, legal guardian, partner, relative or legal equivalent must provide a written request to the University Registrar.
2. The student must have been enrolled and in good disciplinary and academic standing at the time of passing.
3. Masters students must have been in their last semester; PhD students must have been advanced to candidacy.
4. The graduate program director and the dissertation committee for PhD students must provide a letter of recommendation in support of the request. 

The Vice Provost of Graduate Education will have final authority for the approval and awarding of a posthumous degree.

Degree Revocation  

If a degree is revoked or rescinded, the degree
conferral will be removed  from the academic record and adjusted in the student information system.