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Academic Advising
Non-degree seeking students are assigned to the Dean of Continuing and Graduate Studies for admission.Students admitted to a degree program are assigned a departmental advisor at the time of admission to the program. It is essential that students meet early with their advisor to plan their program of study.
Academic Honors
Graduate students who have earned a cumulative grade point average of 4.00 in their degree program at the time of graduation will graduate with the designation Graduate Dean’s Academic Honors. These graduates are distinguished by wearing a double gold cord at the commencement ceremony. The Graduate Dean’s Academic Honors designation will appear on the student's transcript.
Academic Standing
A student who has not maintained a 3.0 grade point average, has earned six hours of C grade work, and/or has failed a course with a grade of D or F can be placed on Academic Alert status. A student who has been placed on Academic Alert can be required to enroll in fewer hours for the following semesters, be required to repeat courses, not be eligible for an assistantship and/or be dismissed from the Graduate School. Students on Academic Alert Status will be monitored each semester to confirm that they are improving their academic standing.
A student who has not maintained a 3.0 grade point average, earned more than six hours of C grade work, and/or has failed a course with a grade of D or F can be dismissed from the Graduate School by the Graduate School Dean. The Graduate School Dean, after consultation with the student’s academic advisor, may terminate a student’s graduate status because of unsatisfactory academic performance. Students who have been Academically Dismissed will not be admitted to a graduate degree program for a period of two years.
Change of Major
Students who would like to change their major, must re apply for admission to the new major by completing a new graduate school application. Courses previously taken will be evaluated as to appropriateness in the new program.
Course Grade Requirements
Degree-seeking graduate students are required to maintain a grade point average of 3.0. A student may earn a maximum of six hours of C grade work. Grades of D or F are considered failing grades and do not count toward a degree. The Letter P is used to indicate participation in a course, in which a passing grade was assigned. With the approval of the academic advisor, a student may use up to six hours of course work with a grade of P for their candidacy.
Students are expected to make academic progress toward the completion of the required coursework. A student who has earned grades of Incomplete might not be allowed to enroll in future courses until previous course work has been completed. Course work graded as Incomplete or In Progress will be changed to F after a year unless the course is part of a thesis or research.
Credit by Transfer
A maximum of nine hours of graduate credit may be transferred from another accredited graduate school and applied to a program of study with the approval of the student’s department. Only work graded B or higher may be transferred.No courses taken for undergraduate credit at Pittsburg State University or from another institution may be transferred to Pittsburg State University to count towards a master’s degree. Pittsburg State University does not accept graduate level credit for life/work experience as transfer graduate credit.For the Specialist in Education degree programs, course work for transfer or waiver must be from an institution offering post-master’s degree study.
Credit Used for a Second Graduate Degree
Students seeking a second graduate degree may be allowed to use a maximum of nine semester credits from a completed graduate degree for courses required in the second degree. If courses from a previous degree are being used to substitute for required courses, the department can assign other courses to be completed or can reduce the number of credit hours required for the degree.
Enrollment in Courses
Courses numbered 700 to 899 are master's level graduate courses. Courses numbered 900 or above are open only to students pursuing a Specialist in Education degree. Courses at 500-, 600- or 700-level may not be applied toward a graduate degree unless graduate fees have been paid.
Courses numbered 500 to 699 may be used on a master’s candidacy with permission from both the student’s academic advisor and the Dean of Continuing and Graduate Studies. A department may require more of these courses in addition to the degree requirements, but no more than six hours may be used toward the degree. No courses below 500 may apply to a master’s degree and no 500 to 699 courses may apply to a Specialist in Education degree.
Incomplete Work/In-Progress
Except for research, incomplete work at the graduate level is subject to the rule that it must be completed in the next enrollment period or, with instructor permission, no later than one year after receiving the incomplete. An incomplete not removed within one year shall be regarded as a failure and the IN grade will be changed to F and included in the computation of the student’s GPA.
A grade of In Progress (IP) may be given when a student is enrolled in a course that requires the student to engage in projects that extend past the end of the semester. Such courses must be legislated and approved by the Graduate Council for use of the IP grade. As with incomplete grades, an In Progress not removed within one year shall be regarded as a failure and the IP grade will be changed to an F and included in the computation of the student’s GPA.
Repeated Courses
Graduate courses in which a C or lower grade has been earned may be repeated for the purpose of raising the grade. A total of six hours may be repeated with no course repeated more than once.
When a repeated course is allowed, the grade earned on the second attempt will be used in computing the GPA. The original grade will remain on the transcript, but will be marked as repeated.
Thesis Requirements
Students choosing to pursue Option I must present and defend a satisfactory thesis according to the Requirements and Guidelines for the Preparation of a Master’s Thesis manual (which may be found under the Thesis Requirements and Guidelines link at http://www.pittstate.edu/cgs/thesis.html). Students should consult this manual for important information throughout the thesis process, as well as the Thesis Manual (at the same link above) for the technical aspects of writing their thesis. Important dates for submission throughout the thesis process can be found at the following link: http://www.pittstate.edu/cgs/importantdates2007.html.
The forms required to complete a thesis are available online through the Graduate System in Gus.The instructions for completing these forms are found in the above mentioned Thesis Requirements and Guidelines web site.
Federal policy requires that all research involving human subjects be approved by an Institutional Review Board to ensure that the rights and welfare of human subjects are properly protected. Information regarding the types of research that will require approval can be found at: http://www.pittstate.edu/cgs/ResearchGrants/rihs.html.
Typical Graduate Academic Loads
The typical load for full-time graduate students is fifteen semester hours. For full-time students who are full-time graduate assistants, the typical load is twelve semester hours and no less than nine semester hours. Students taking seven credits per semester are considered full-time for other purposes. Students enrolling for six semester hours or less are considered part-time graduate students.
Validation of Previous Work
Students requesting to use Pittsburg State University course work completed more than six years from the time of the student’s last semester before graduating must submit the course for review to their academic department. Departments may choose to accept the course; require validation of the course by interview, test, or other means of evaluation; require the student to re-enroll and repeat the course; or deny the course.
During the semester the student petitions to graduate, the advisor must submit final approval for the coursework submitted on the student’s candidacy. Courses taken at Pittsburg State University, that are at that time more than six years old, must be reviewed by the department. Departments may choose to accept the course; require validation of the course by interview, test, or other means of evaluation; require the student to re-enroll and repeat the course; or deny the course. |
