General Requirements for a Master’s Degree
Planning the Graduate Program
In general, the graduate student is expected to be enrolled each semester until completion of the degree program and award of the degree. The graduate student who is not enrolled should not expect the facilities of the university to be available. Such facilities include (but are not limited to) office and classroom space, laboratories, faculty resources and administration of oral or written examination. Exceptions to this requirement may be granted upon petition.
The graduate student should consult the program’s graduate advisor before each registration. The student is required to fulfill the special requirements of that particular degree program in addition to the general requirements stipulated for graduate studies.
Additional requirements are listed with the appropriate degree programs in this catalog.
Applicable Graduate Credit
Graduate credit is not granted for courses taken prior to a student’s admission to any institutionally accredited graduate school. The ‘Time Limitation’ section specifies additional restrictions.
Second Master’s Degree
With the advisor’s approval, a maximum of 50% of credit required for a master’s degree earned at this institution may be applied to a second master’s degree. Regulations concerning time limitations apply to transfer credit as well as to credit earned at UHVictoria.
Level of Credit
Effective Fall 2013, undergraduate courses cannot be applied to graduate degree plans.
The graduate student who does not wish to earn graduate credit in a course must first file a Course Credit Petition with the student’s academic college for processing. The Course Credit Petition may be obtained from either the Admissions or Student Records forms list on the website (www.uhv.edu/student-records/forms/).
Continuing Graduate Study Beyond the Master’s Level
The student who completes a master’s degree program at this institution will have the degree status changed to that of a non-degree seeking graduate student. If the student wishes to change plans and/or pursue another master’s degree, a Course Credit Petition must be completed. This petition is available on the Admissions or Student Records forms list on the website (www.uhv.edu/student-records/forms/).
Time Limitation
For graduate programs requiring 36 or fewer credit hours to fulfill the degree requirements, the student must complete the requirements within 5 years after formal admission to the program.
For graduate programs requiring more than 36 credit hours to fulfill the degree requirements, the student must complete the program within 7 years after formal admission.
Course credit, either transfer or from UHV, may not apply to any graduate degree if at graduation the course credit is more than 10 years old.
With the exception of programs for which another termination date has been specified, no degree shall be granted for a graduate program not completed within five years of its deletion from this catalog.
Termination of Enrollment
A satisfactory rate of progress toward the degree is required throughout the student’s enrollment. The dean of the college may terminate a student’s enrollment at any time if the rate of progress is not satisfactory. A student whose enrollment is terminated should be so notified with an explanation in writing by the dean of the student’s plan. A copy of this notice and explanation will be made part of the student’s permanent file.
Graduate Program Semester Hour Requirements
The semester hour requirements for graduate programs may vary, but all master’s degree programs require at least 30 semester credit hours. At the discretion of the Dean of the academic program, the student may receive up to 25% credit for graduate work taken at another institution that has recognition in some form from the U.S. Department of Education or the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. If transferring from a UH System institution, the student may receive up to 50% credit at the discretion of the Dean of the academic program.
Application for Candidacy
Students should refer to respective colleges for requirements and procedures for candidacy.
Students failing to fulfill school requirements by the appropriate deadline will have their application for graduation disapproved.
Candidacy applications for graduate students are available in the college offices.
Academic Standards for Graduate Students
- Graduate students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (B) overall graduate courses attempted at UH-Victoria, regardless of whether the courses are counted toward degree requirements.
- No more than two courses with earned C’s may be applied toward graduate degree plan requirements.
- Failure to maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (B) may result in warning, probation or suspension.
- Graduate students must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (B) on all courses that appear on the student’s degree plan, including transferred courses.
- No credit toward a graduate degree is allowed for courses in which grades of D or F are earned, although the grades are included in the grade point average.
- The thesis grade is not included in the grade point average.
- Certain graduate courses, as specified annually by the academic school, maybe graded as S (satisfactory), U (unsatisfactory) and I (incomplete). Such grades will not be considered in computing a grade point average.
Academic Honesty
To best function and accomplish its objectives, the university expects and encourages all students, faculty, and staff to contribute to an atmosphere of high ethical standards in every way possible and especially by observing all accepted principles of academic honesty. Academic dishonesty may take a variety of forms, ranging from breach of ethics to a criminal offense. The faculty and administration of UH-Victoria view academic dishonesty as a significant breach of ethical conduct which incurs various disciplinary actions. Policies and procedures are outlined in the Academic Honesty policy in the UHV Student Handbook. These policies and procedures are designed to handle these cases in fairness to all concerned: the accused student, the faculty, and the university.
Thesis
Approval of Thesis Proposal
The student may not begin the research prior to the approval of the thesis proposal by the student’s thesis committee (consult particular programs for committee composition). The thesis must present evidence of a mastery of the literature, a significant contribution to knowledge or professional skills and the ability to do independent research.
The final draft of the thesis must be completed and submitted to the committee no later than the following deadlines:
Fall graduation-November 1
Spring graduation-April 1
Summer graduation-July 1
The paragraph regarding “Binding and Distribution of Thesis” on the following pages specifies deadlines for submission of the approved thesis.
Continuous Registration and Credit for Thesis
The student who is working on a thesis is required to be continuously enrolled in the appropriate thesis course for a minimum of 6 semester hours per year (12 months). Advice or assistance from a member of the faculty in the preparation of a thesis may not be expected unless the student is officially enrolled. Failure to enroll in thesis may delay the student’s graduation. Enrollment is required in the semester in which the thesis is completed.
A person who lives in excess of 100 miles from the campus may register in absentia for thesis courses if arrangements are made through the student’s academic advisor at least two weeks before the registration period. Registration for all other students must be completed in the prescribed manner during the announced registration period. The thesis course is considered a part of the student’s current course load.
For acquisition of three thesis credits (6308) a grade of S will be recorded. For completion of the other three credits (6309) a regular grade (A, B, etc.) will be recorded. A grade of I may be assigned in either case to indicate work still in progress. Students are to enroll in 6308 until a grade of S is achieved before registering for 6309. In rare cases where the thesis is likely to be completed in one semester, permission for dual registration may be granted by the dean of the college.
A final grade of B or better is required in the completed thesis. A grade of C indicates that the thesis is not acceptable. Students who are not progressing satisfactorily may be asked to withdraw.
An optional graduate grading system of S (satisfactory), U (unsatisfactory) or I (incomplete) may be elected by any college for a given period, generally the academic year. Grades in the thesis courses whether under the optional or regular grading system, are not considered in computing a student’s grade point average. For the master’s thesis, six semester hours may be earned. Although more than this number may be required of the student, six is the maximum number of hours which may be applied toward the master’s degree.
An oral examination over the research study will be held upon completion of the thesis.
Suggested Format for Thesis
As a general rule, the format and style of presentation should conform to the most acceptable standards of scientific and scholarly writing in the discipline. For example, psychology students should refer to the publication, Manual of the American Psychological Association (available in the Victoria College Bookstore and the Academic Center). The title page must bear the month and year of commencement and the signatures of the thesis committee members.
Before preparing the thesis, the student should obtain a copy of the guide for the preparation and submission of thesis from the advisor.
Distribution and Binding of Thesis
UHV requires 4 copies of completed and approved theses, to be bound and distributed:
1. Original-Library Archives (All signatures on this copy must be originals)
2. One copy-Library circulating copy.
3. One copy-College office of candidate’s plan. (Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Business, Education & Health Professions or Natural & Applied Science)
4. One copy-Chair of candidate’s committee.
An electronic copy of the approved thesis should be submitted to the UHV Library as early as possible, but no later than 4:00pm on the last day of the final exams for the semester or term in which the candidate expects to graduate.
The candidate is responsible for the costs of binding. For detailed instructions on the formatting, printing, binding, and distribution of thesis, visit the UHV Library website.
Copyright
Copyright of your thesis is secured automatically when the thesis is created, and it is “created” when it is fixed in a copy for the first time. However, if you want to register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office, you have two options: (1) you may handle this entirely on your own, or (2) you may submit the appropriate paperwork, along with one copy of your thesis (which may be unbound), and the registration fee of $20 to UH-Victoria by the deadline date shown above. The university will send all of this to the U.S. Copyright Office for you. (The Library has a packet of materials that explain copyright registration in more detail.)
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