Policies Governing Graduate Students

There are various policies that govern the way graduate students move through the various stages of their degree.
On this page you will find information about some of those.
 

On this page you will find three sections on policies and procedures governing:

• the Grading System for Graduate Students
• Informal Concurrent Degree Programs
• Graduate Program Coordinator
   

 Grading System for Graduate Students

In reporting grades for graduate students, units that offer graduate degrees use the system described herein. Grades are entered as numbers, the possible values being 4.0, 3.9, . . . and decreasing by one-tenth until 1.7 is reached. Grades below 1.7 are recorded as 0.0 by the Registrar and no credit is earned.   A minimum of 2.7 is required in each course that is counted toward a graduate degree.  A minimum GPA of 3.00 is required for graduation.

Correspondence between number grades and letter grades is as follows:

	
        Numeric	         Letter
	grade:  	 grade:


	4.0 ............. A
	3.9	
	3.8 ............. A-
	3.7
	3.6
	3.5
	3.4 ............. B+
	3.3
	3.2
	3.1
	3.0 ............. B
	2.9		                			     
        2.8 ............. B-
        2.7
        2.6
        2.5
        2.4 ............. C+
        2.3
        2.2
        2.1
        2.0 ............. C
        1.9
        1.8
        1.7
        1.6 - 0.0 ....... E

I      Incomplete

An incomplete may be given only when the student has been in attendance and has done satisfactory work to within two weeks of the end of the quarter and has furnished proof satisfactory to the instructor that the work cannot be completed because of illness or other circumstances beyond the student's control.  

To obtain credit for the course, a student must successfully complete the work and the instructor must submit a grade.  In no case may an incomplete be converted into a passing grade after a lapse of two years or more.  An incomplete received by the graduate student does not automatically convert to a grade of 0.0 but will remain a permanent part of the student's record.

N    No grade.

Used only for hyphenated courses and courses numbered 600 (Independent Study or Research), 601 (Internship), 700 (Master's Thesis), 750 (Internship), or 800 Doctoral Dissertation).  An N grade indicates that satisfactory progress is being made, but evaluation depends on completion of the research, thesis, internship, or dissertation, at which time the instructor or supervisory committee chair should change the N grade(s) to one reflecting the final evaluation.

S/NS   Satisfactory/not satisfactory.

A graduate student, with the approval of the Graduate Program Advisor or Supervisory Committee Chairperson, may elect to be graded S/NS in any numerically-graded course for which he or she is eligible.  If a student does not so elect, then he or she will be graded on a numerical basis.  If approval is granted, the student must elect the S/NS option either when registering or no later than the end of the seventh week of the quarter.  Numeric grades will not subsequently be converted to S/NS grades (or vice versa).  The instructor shall submit a numeric grade to the Registrar, who shall convert grades of 2.7 and above to S and numbers lower than 2.7 to NS for graduate students in graduate or undergraduate courses.

CR/NC   Credit/no-credit.

With the approval of the faculty in the academic unit, any course may be designated for grading on the credit/no-credit basis by notice in the appropriate Time Schedule.   For such courses, the instructor submits a grade of CR or NC to be recorded by the Registrar's Office for each student in the course at the end of the quarter.  All courses numbered 600, 601, 700, 750, and 800 may be graded with a decimal grade, CR/NC, or N at the instructor's option.

W   Withdrawal.

Refer to the University of Washington Time Schedule for withdrawal policies or look on the Web at http://www.washington.edu/students/reg/wdoffleave.html

Additional notes.

Unofficial withdrawal from a course shall result in a grade of 0.0.

Of the minimum number of credits required for a graduate degree, a graduate student must show numerical grades in at least 18 quarter hours of course work taken at the UW.   These numerical grades may be earned in approved 400-level courses and 500-level courses.

The student may petition the Dean of the Graduate School to modify the procedures described above.  The petition should be accompanied by comments and recommendations from the graduate program coordinator.

Readmission

A student previously registered in the Graduate School who has failed to maintain graduate student status but who wishes later to resume studies must file an application in person or by mail for readmission to the Graduate School by the regularly published closing dates. If the student is readmitted, registration will occur during the usual registration period. If the student has attended any other institution during the period when not registered at the University of Washington, official transcripts in duplicate of the student's work must be submitted. An application for readmission carries no preference and is treated in the same manner as an application for initial admission, including the requirement of payment of the application fee.

The Graduate School normally allows six years to complete requirements for a master's degree and ten years for a doctoral degree. Periods spent On-Leave or out of status are included.

 Informal Concurrent Degree Programs

Students in these programs pursue two degrees from different departments simultaneously.  These programs have not been approved as formal concurrent programs, but students complete the same requirements as in the formal concurrent programs.

To earn two master's degrees, a student must complete two separate sets of minimum Graduate School degree requirements of 36 credits each for a total of 72 credits.  If a program requires more than 36 credits for the master's degree, a graduate student, with prior approval of both graduate programs, may apply a maximum of 12 credits beyond 36 earned in one program toward the master's degree in the second program.  Thus, the minimum number of additional credits for the second degree, with these 12 approved credits, is 24.  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-granting units.

Students choosing the option must complete an Informal Concurrent Degree Application.  It is available on-line or from the Graduate Student Services Office, G1 Communications.

Graduate School Memorandum No. 35:  Concurrent Degree Programs contains additional information.

 Graduate Program Coordinator

The graduate student's initial work at the University is guided by the Graduate Program Coordinator (GPC) in his or her field. The GPC must be a senior tenured member of the Graduate Faculty and is the official representative of the academic unit that offers the graduate degree program. The GPC maintains familiarity with policies and procedures of the Graduate School and provides overall coordination of graduate activities within the unit.

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