Concurrent Degree Programs

General Policies

Graduate School policy defines a concurrent degree program as a curriculum established by two participating departments resulting in either two graduate degrees or a graduate and a professional degree. Graduate School policy permits a student to proceed in a coordinated way toward sequential completion of both degrees. The Graduate School encourages such coordination of programs, provided that University academic standards are upheld.

Catalogs, bulletins, news releases, traineeships or fellowships, and other publications which describe concurrent degree programs are to be reviewed prior to their publication by a representative of the Dean of the Graduate School.

Students in Concurrent Degree Programs are designated by unique program codes.

The two types of concurrent degree programs are as follows:

I. Graduate/Professional Degrees

School of Dentistry: D.D.S. / Master's or Doctoral degree

Certificate / Ph.D.

School of Law: J.D. / Master's or Doctoral degree

School of Medicine: M.D. / Master's or Doctoral degree

The Graduate Program Coordinators are the primary representatives of the professional schools and the graduate-degree offering units. They are responsible for providing information and assistance to their students engaged in concurrent programs. Other sources of information may be the Graduate Student Services Division of the Graduate School and the Office of Graduate Admissions.

Admission

- An applicant who is not currently a student at the University must apply for admission to both the professional school and the Graduate School and specify "concurrent" on each application.

- A student currently in a professional program at the University of Washington must submit a Graduate School Application and fee.  Both programs must recommend approval before admission into the current degree program is granted.

- A current graduate student must obtain an "Application to Transfer from One Graduate Program to Another" from Graduate Student Services. Signatures of approval must be obtained from the Professional School Coordinator, the Graduate Program Coordinator and, finally, the Dean of the Graduate School.

Registration

After initial registration, a student must maintain continuous enrollment by registering as a full-time or part-time student each quarter OR by applying for on-leave status.

Requirements

Requirements for the master's degree are those which are in effect at the time the degree is earned.  All Graduate School requirements must be met by appropriate graduate courses.  It is the responsibility of the student to submit a written list of courses which apply toward the graduate degree at the time the student applies for the master's degree.  This list must be approved by both programs.

Requirements for the doctoral degree are those which are in effect at the time the degree is earned with the understanding that only approved graduate courses will be applicable.

II. Graduate/Graduate degrees

The Graduate School also offers concurrent degree programs which lead to the awarding of two graduate degrees. The Graduate Program Coordinators in the two programs involved are the primary representatives and are responsible for providing information and assistance to students engaged in concurrent programs.

Examples:

· Health Services Administration / Business Administration

Master of Health Administration / Master of Business Administration

· International Studies / Epidemiology

Master of Arts in International Studies / Master of Public Health

Admission

- An applicant who is not currently a student at the University of Washington must submit a single Graduate School Application and fee and indicate "concurrent" on the application.  Both programs must recommend approval before admission into the concurrent degree program is granted.

- Students who are currently enrolled must obtain an "Application to Transfer from One Graduate Program to Another" from Graduate Student Services. If approved by both programs, it is returned to the Dean of the Graduate School for action.

Registration

After initial registration, a student must maintain continuous enrollment by registering as a full-time or part-time student each quarter OR applying for on-leave status.

Requirements

To earn two master's degrees, a student must complete the equivalent of two Graduate School degree requirements of 36 credits each for a minimum of 72 credits. If one or both of the participating programs require more than the minimum of 36 credits, those additional credits may be "shared", and applied to both degrees. However, the total number of credits completed must total at least 72 and both programs must approve the credits counted toward both degrees.

Up to 12 credits earned toward a Ph.D. degree may be counted toward a Master's degree in another program with the approval of both degree offering units.

It is the responsibility of the student to submit a written list of courses which apply toward each respective degree at the time he or she files an application for the Master's degree or schedules the general examination. This list must be approved by both programs.