Failure to Advance
All students are required to complete all requirements of their M.A. program within six years of first enrollment. Students failing to meet this requirement will be dismissed from the program. However, students can withdraw from the program and reapply later. If accepted, their previous coursework will count toward the degree if it meets the requirements of the program at the time of readmission, and the six year timeframe will include both spans of attendance, but not the time during which the student was not in the program.
Students who have not withdrawn from the program, but have been removed from the active status roster will need to complete a readmission form to resume the program and begin taking courses again or to be eligible for the master’s thesis defense or comprehensive exams. Once readmitted, the six-year clock will remain from the date of the original admission.
Failure to Pass Comprehensive Exams
Students have two attempts to pass their comprehensive examination in programs where such examinations exist. Failure of one or all of the exams after the second attempt will result in dismissal from the program.
Failure to Meet the Requierments of Conditional Acceptance
A failure to meet the requirements of Conditional Acceptances results in dismissal from the graduate program.
Special Circumstances
If a student has made good progress toward the degree and has a compelling explanation for the circumstances that caused the dismissal, he or she may petition the graduate board for reinstatement. The graduate board will decide if any exceptions to the dismissal policy are warranted, and the board’s decision requires approval by the Associate Dean of Graduate Programs.