Planning and Completing Your Graduate Program

Initial Planning

Send the following information

After you have been accepted to the Graduate School of Education at UW-Stevens Point, you will receive a formal Letter of Admittance. With this letter, you will receive a “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study. After you have received this letter, send the following information to the School of Education Graduate Advising Office at School of Education – Graduate Advising Office, UW-Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI 54481.

_____ One copy of your Wisconsin teaching license (for Master of Science in Education – Elementary and Master of Science in Education – General degrees).

_____ A letter of recommendation from your employer indicating that you have completed two years of full-time classroom teaching and that you have the ability to complete a graduate program. If you have not completed two years of full-time teaching, substitute teaching can be considered by providing a letter documenting the number of days of substitute teaching with less than five hours per day and the number of days with five or more hours per day (for Master of Science in Education – General degree only).

_____ Your “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study.” You may request a specific School of Education professor to be your graduate advisor. Otherwise, a professor in the School of Education who has expertise in your area of interest will be assigned.

Please note that the “working copy” is NOT the final Program of Study. It is a tool used to assign an advisor whose background most closely parallels your area of interest and/or expertise. The “working copy” will be used at your advising conference to develop a formal Graduate Program of Study which your advisor will approve.

□ Develop your “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study”

In the packet with your Letter of Admittance, you will receive a four-page, “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study” form to plan the courses for your master’s degree. The following is a brief description of the form.

o Page 1 – Explanation of key points associated with your graduate degree program.
o Page 2 – Personal information. Please include your name, address, colleges/universities attended, and other identifying information as requested.
o Pages 3 and 4 – Course planning. Plan the specific courses you wish to include in your graduate degree program. Consider your professional goals as well as course offerings in all departments at UW-Stevens Point when making these decisions.

A seven-year time period is allowed for completion of a master’s degree. The seven-year time line commences with the beginning of the semester in which the oldest course included in your Program of Study is taken. For example, if you were accepted to the graduate degree program in Fall 2006 but part of your Graduate Program of Study includes a course taken in Spring 2001, the commencement of your timeline would begin in Spring 2001. You would have until the beginning of Spring 2008 to complete your degree.

Information Specific to Master’s of Science in Education - General: You must submit a rationale statement with your proposed Graduate Program of Study which explains how the proposed courses will enhance your professional expertise and how they reflect your personal, professional, and academic interests and needs. Generally, you can group courses into categories (curriculum, math, reading, etc.) and write a rationale for each group. You may prepare the rationale statement in paragraph format and attach your proposed Graduate Program of Study (form provided to you).

Tips for planning your program: In planning your program, please note that 15 credits will need to be taken at the 700-level, which includes course numbers starting with 7--. No more than 6 credits total in special topics courses and independent study courses may apply toward a master degree.

Regardless of the master program taken in the School of Education, every graduate student completes one course in foundations, one in curriculum, and one in research (a total of nine credits). There are choices within each of these areas. An additional 21 credits would then be determined by you based on your professional goals to fulfill the 30-credit degree.

□ Schedule an advising conference to finalize your proposed Graduate Program of Study.

Once you have submitted your “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study, you will be officially assigned a graduate advisor. You will receive your advisor’s office number, telephone number, and e-mail address. You must then contact your advisor for an advising conference. This conference can be conducted in person or by telephone. The two of your will review your “Working Copy of your Graduate Program of Study.”

Once your Program of Study has been formally accepted by the Director of Graduate Programs, it becomes your official Program of Study for your master’s degree. At this point, you will have fulfilled the requirements for Admission to Candidacy and you are now a masters candidate.

Completing Your Program

□ Change your Graduate Program of Study (if needed). As you progress through the program, you may wish to change some of the courses originally included in your Graduate Program of Study. You can change your program by completing a Change of Study request form prior to enrollment in the proposed course(s). Your advisor would then need to approve your proposed changes by your advisor.
□ Complete a culminating experience. Choose one of the following:

Nonthesis Option: Complete ED 707or 782 (as approved by your advisor) and complete a comprehensive exam.

Thesis Option: Write a thesis and a comprehensive examination covering liberal arts.

□ Request an Exit Interview. Request an interview with Lori Yonash, Program Assistant with the School of Education Graduate Advising Office to complete a final credit check and receive graduation information.

The credit check must be complete one semester prior to the semester in which you plan to graduate. You then apply for graduation after the credit check is conducted. There are specific deadlines. It is important for you to decide which semester you anticipate receiving your degree. It is important to schedule your credit check, sign up for the comprehensive examination. Apply for graduation by the month indicated below:
• Apply by August 31st for December diploma and graduation ceremony.
• Apply by December 31st for May diploma and graduation ceremony.
• Apply by December 31st for August diploma. There is no ceremony in August, however, candidates may request to participate in either May or December ceremonies.