Graduate Degrees

• Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT)

• Master of Education (MEd)

• Master of Public Health (MPH)

• Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT)

• Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)

• Post-Professional Doctorate of Occupational Therapy (DrOT)

• Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

The following prefixes are used to denote course subjects:

Graduate Admission and Degree Candidacy

Students admitted to study beyond the baccalaureate degree are classified either with graduate standing or as graduate degree candidates. Enrollment in graduate degree program courses requires prior acceptance as a degree candidate, except that students applying to the Master of Education program may take two Counseling courses with permission of the School of Education prior to being admitted to the Master of Education program.

To qualify for a graduate degree, the graduate student must be accepted to candidacy in a specific degree program by the Dean of Graduate Affairs.

Transfer credits may be applied toward a degree if requested at the time of application for acceptance as a degree candidate. In an 8.00 unit graduate program, up to 2.00 units of transfer graduate credit may be accepted and, in programs requiring 10.00 or more units, up to 3.00 units of transfer graduate credit may be accepted. Accepted transfer credits are noted in the letter granting degree candidacy.

Extension course credits may be accepted in transfer provided those credits would have applied toward an advanced degree at the institution of original registration. 

A degree candidate may take graduate courses outside the primary field of study, subject to school approval. On occasion, undergraduate courses numbered 300 or above may be included in the graduate program, subject to graduate program approval. No 100 or 200-level courses may be applied toward a graduate degree; however, such courses may be required as prerequisites for a graduate program.

As part of the graduate program, a thesis or a project and/or a comprehensive examination may be required. The comprehensive examination is to be passed at least two weeks prior to graduation.

All degree candidates must file an application for graduation with the Office of the Registrar. Applications are due in the Fall term for graduation at the end of the next Spring, Summer, or Fall terms. 

Graduate Degree Requirements

University policies are minimum standards and each program may maintain higher standards when approved by the faculty.

A degree candidate must complete, for a letter grade, a minimum of 8.00 units of graduate credit. Courses graded on a pass/fail basis may not be applied toward an advanced degree unless a course is graded mandatory pass/fail. Up to 2.00 units of Independent Study may be applied toward the degree, when approved by the program director.

Graduate degrees are integrated programs of study, and are earned by evidence of subject mastery, not by the accumulation of credits. Under normal circumstances, all graduate credit is earned in residence. A maximum of 3.00 units of graduate credit, including any credit transferred from other institutions, may be applied toward a degree at the time of acceptance to degree candidacy.

Academic Standing

Once degree candidacy has been granted, a student is expected to complete all degree requirements within six years. Candidacy ends automatically at the end of six years. All courses to be counted in the degree must be taken within the six-year period prior to granting the degree. The time limitation also applies to accepted graduate transfer credit.

The Academic Standards Committee reviews the record of each degree candidate whose cumulative grade point average is below 3.00 at the end of any term. A student whose average is below 3.00 will be put on academic probation for one term. If the average remains below 3.00 for a second term, the student may be dismissed from the university. A graduate student who earns a grade lower than C in any course may be dismissed immediately without the probationary term.

No more than two courses with C grades, or a maximum of 2.00 units of C grades, may be counted toward a degree, subject to department approval. Grades below C are not used in meeting graduate degree requirements but are computed in the cumulative grade point average.