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Graduate School Admission
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There are three admission categories designed to meet your graduate needs.
Graduate Regular: If you wish to pursue a master’s
degree at UW-Stevens Point, you will need to be formally
admitted to the university as a graduate regular student.
Submit to the Admissions Office a completed graduate
study application form, the $45 nonrefundable application
fee, and official transcripts from each college you have
attended (both undergraduate and graduate). The transcript
from the college from which you graduated must certify that
you have received your baccalaureate degree. Upon
receipt of your completed application file, the Admissions
Office will forward your application materials to the
coordinator of your intended graduate program. You may
then be asked to submit additional application materials to
the graduate program coordinator.
Graduate Special: If you wish to take graduate courses
but do not wish to pursue a master’s degree at UW-
Stevens Point, you may register as a graduate special. To
attend UW-Stevens Point as a graduate special, you must
hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
You do not need to complete a formal application process.
You will be granted graduate special status when you
register for classes.
As a graduate special student you can enroll in graduate-
level courses and receive graduate credit for teacher
certification requirements or for personal enrichment. A
maximum of 9 credits can apply toward a master’s degree
provided they are approved by your adviser and fit within
the seven-year time period. If you decide to pursue a
master's degree, it is in your best interest to change your
status to graduate regular as soon as possible.
Graduate Guest: If you wish to apply credits taken at
UW-Stevens Point toward a graduate degree at another
institution, you are neither evaluated nor formally admitted
to UW-Stevens Point, but are permitted to enroll in specific
courses with the approval of your graduate adviser at the
other institution. This procedure assures that credits taken
at UW-Stevens Point will transfer properly to another
institution.
Admission Status and Your Specific Degree Program
Successful admission to Graduate Study requires admission to a specific
degree program. Most graduate programs require additional application
criteria such as letters of reference, personal interviews, standardized test
scores, verification of certification, etc. You should contact the graduate
coordinator in your discipline for these additional requirements. The
Admissions Office forwards your graduate study application file to the
graduate coordinator of your designated program area for final
consideration for admission to that particular program.
Admission to Candidacy
Admission to a specific degree program does not automatically make
you a candidate for a master's degree. You must meet residency and
evaluation requirements before you are a degree candidate. The formal
admission to candidacy process varies from one program to another, but
generally you must:
- Earn at least 9 credits in residence at UW-Stevens Point.
- Remove any academic deficiencies and/or complete all subject
matter prerequisites.
- Maintain at least a B grade point average.
- Select a graduate adviser (and a graduate committee if required by
your discipline).
- Complete and get approval for your Program of Study.
Graduate Adviser
When you first enter your graduate program you will probably be
assisted by a departmental graduate adviser who counsels all incoming
graduate students. In some of our graduate programs this person
continues to advise all students in the program until the degree is nearly
completed. In other programs, you will need your own personal adviser
who may also be known as your "major professor." This individual plays
a key role in guiding you through your graduate career. Your graduate
adviser should act as a personal adviser, mentor, advocate, constructive
critic, and friend. Your graduate adviser is the person who should "go to
bat" for you when you encounter problems with your program plan,
courses, and/or research.
Selecting a Graduate Committee
Your graduate adviser may be required to use other graduate faculty to
make final decisions about the acceptability of your program plan and
the quality of your thesis, if you choose to write one. Therefore, give
careful consideration to your choice of these critical advisers who will
form your graduate committee. The graduate coordinator or your
graduate adviser normally assists in this process.
The graduate committee consists of at least three graduate faculty
members including your graduate adviser. Try to ask a person from
outside your major discipline area to serve on your committee. A non-
graduate faculty member who possesses expertise particularly relevant to
your field of study may be appointed as a special extra member.
Your graduate adviser and/or the graduate committee is responsible for
supervising your program of study and should:
- Guide you in an appropriate selection of courses and experiences
to ensure that you are aware of all relevant material necessary for
a complete understanding of your chosen field of study. This not
only includes concentration of coursework in your major area of
interest, but also selecting courses to bridge the gaps you may
have in your previous educational experiences. This may require
you to take some undergraduate courses to make up for deficiencies.
- Determine whether you have accumulated and demonstrated
sufficient ability to engage in the analytic process of problem
solving. A graduate degree entails more than just taking additional
courses within a major. You will be expected to demonstrate your
ability to synthesize the new knowledge you have gained in your
graduate courses and apply this knowledge to solve contemporary problems.
- Make certain that if you elect to write a thesis it is consistent with
the degree, confronts the interdisciplinary relationships of your
subject area, and focuses on problem-solving methodology.
- Your graduate committee members, including your graduate
adviser, will be listed on your Program of Study form. They must
sign this form indicating their approval of your graduate program
plan. If you desire a change in the composition of your committee,
it is your responsibility to explain to the current committee
members why the change is desirable or necessary. If the change
is acceptable to the outgoing and incoming professors, you should
then notify the graduate coordinator for your department, school,
or college to complete the transfer of committee members.
Program of Study
You and your graduate adviser jointly develop a Program of Study
which is primarily a listing of courses and other experiences that will be
required for your degree. It is personally designed for you, taking into
account previous academic strengths and weaknesses as well as your
career goals. This plan is outlined on the Program of Study form which,
once approved, becomes a contract-like agreement between you and
the university. It is important that this agreement be made before you
have accumulated 15 credits, since it is intended to be a realistic plan
and defines all requirements necessary to complete your degree.
The Program of Study may include courses, both graduate and
undergraduate, that are designed to add to your expertise or correct
deficiencies. These are in addition to the minimum of 30 graduate
credits required of master's degree candidates. The Program of
Study also lists when courses are to be taken, the tentative title and
completion date of the thesis or product, tentative dates for final
examination and graduation, etc.
You may make minor changes in your approved Program of Study with
the approval of your graduate adviser in consultation with the graduate
committee members. Major changes such as course substitutions,
changing of committee members, changing from thesis to nonthesis, etc.
require formal concurrence of you, your major professor, your graduate
committee, and the graduate coordinator of your department, school, or
college.
General Requirements for All Master's Degrees
- A maximum of 9 credits completed at the time of admission.
- A minimum of 30 credits in graduate courses (Communication, 30
cr + 1 credit colloquium), (Communicative Disorders, 37 cr + 21
cr practicum).
- At least 15 credits must be taken in courses numbered 700 and
above.
- An approved Program of Study must be on file with your adviser
and the graduate coordinator of your department, school, or
college before you complete 15 credit hours toward the degree.
- A minimum overall grade point average of 3.00.
- No more than 6 credits total in special topics courses and
independent study courses may apply toward a master's degree.
- Successfully complete a culminating experience.
All credits accepted toward a degree, including transfer credits, must be
earned within a seven-year period. The time period starts with the
beginning of the term in which the first course approved for your
program of study was taken. For example: You are accepted into a
UWSP graduate program in fall 2001. Part of your approved plan of
study for your master’s degree includes a course taken in spring 1999.
Thus, your seven-year time period to complete the degree starts with the
beginning of the spring 1999 semester, NOT the semester in which you
were accepted into your graduate program.
General Requirements for All Master of Science in Teaching
(MST) Degrees
In addition to the general requirements of all master's degrees, the MST
degree has the following requirements:
- Eligibility for certification for teaching in the area of specialization
(biology, English, history) in the state of Wisconsin or another state.
- Minimum of 30 graduate credits distributed among:
- Group I: Major area of specialization, 18-24 credits.
These courses provide additional depth in your teaching
field and increase familiarity with new knowledge,
problems, and trends.
- Group II: Professional education, 6-9 credits. These
courses enhance your understanding of education and
improve performance in the art of teaching.
- Group III: Liberal studies, 0-6 credits. These courses are
taken outside the content area of your specialization and
broaden your knowledge and outlook.
- A minimum of the equivalent of a major in the area of
specialization at the completion of the graduate program.
- A minimum grade point average of 3.00 in the area of
specialization at the time of graduation.
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