Timeline for Graduate Study
• After taking at least 6 credits a student is considered for candidacy. All
students accepted into the graduate program are accepted as “conditional
candidates.” During the semester when you complete at least 6 credits of
coursework, you will be asked to submit a candidacy file (which consist of your
coursework papers, exams, etc.) for review by the graduate committee. If that
work is considered acceptable, you will be granted “candidacy” into the graduate
program. If your work shows promise but is not acceptable for candidacy, you
will be given “conditional candidacy” and will be required to resubmit your
candidacy application the following semester. Those students having unacceptable
graduate level work are given “special’ status, which means that the student is
eligible to take graduate courses but is discontinued from the program and thus
is no longer eligible to complete the M.A. degree. An appeal from special status
may be made to the graduate program committee through the graduate director.
• After taking approximately 6-9 credits you should meet with the graduate
director to establish a tentative plan of study. A plan of study outlines which
courses you plan to take in the future and establishes a thesis/project/exam
committee. While the official plan of study is not completed until you form your
graduate committee, it is important to discuss your plans with the graduate
director to ensure that you are making adequate progress toward completing the
degree.
• After taking approximately 18 credits you should complete your formal
plan of study. This includes the selection of a graduate committee to direct
your thesis/project. The plan of study form can be obtained from the graduate
director (this is not formally filed but is available to help you make sure you
are doing everything you need to do to complete the degree). Your graduate
committee consists of a chairperson and two readers. All voting committee
members must have graduate faculty status at UWSP. The most important person on
this committee, the chairperson, is someone you personally choose because you
want to work with him or her in completing your thesis/project. You also choose
the other committee members.
•Students must complete several steps in the process of finishing the
thesis/project (a more detailed description of the thesis/project options can be
obtained from the graduate director). Please note: While the thesis/project can
be similar in their format and topic, a thesis is typically a longer and more
theoretically-driven study while a project is a somewhat shorter and more
applied research project. Below is a brief outline of the process you will
follow to complete a project/thesis:
- Working directly with the chair of your committee, you write a prospectus--a
proposal that outlines the thesis/project topic you will be studying and the
methods you will use to conduct the study. Once this prospectus is deemed
“defendable” by the chair of your committee, you give the other members of your
committee copies to read and set up a time with your committee to defend your
prospectus. You need to plan for a minimum of one week for your committee
members to read your work. You then orally defend the prospectus to the
committee in a one-hour meeting.
- After approval of the prospectus, you conduct your study. Working closely
with the chair of your committee, you take the “results” of your study and
complete the thesis/project. Once you and your chair feel the thesis/project is
ready, you set a “defense date” with your committee. You should plan on a
minimum of 1-2 weeks for your committee to read/review your completed
thesis/project. You then defend the thesis/project to your committee in a
one-hour meeting.
- Upon successful completion of the thesis/project, you must make any final
revisions that are required by the committee. You then must arrange with the
library to have hardbound copies made. You are required to present a hardbound
copy of your work to your committee chair, to the library, and to the Division
of Communication. Including a copy for yourself, this means most people have at
least four hardbound copies of their work made. Once you give the library the
final version of your work, they present you with a form indicating the work is
completed which you take to the registrar.
• Once you have successfully completed the thesis or project, you work with
the graduate director to gain final approval of your degree. The form you get
from the library indicating you have handed in the final copy of your
thesis/project should be given to the graduate director. The registrar and
graduate director will review the following items before approving a student for
graduation: total number of credits taken, GPA, completion of colloquium credit,
no more than 6 credits transferred in from other institutions, no more than 3
credits of independent study counted toward the degree, no more than 6 thesis
credits or 3 project credits counted toward the degree and successful completion
of the culminating experience.
If you have any questions relating to our program, please e-mail Chris
Sadler
csadler@uwsp.edu or call
715.346.3898.