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For Master's Students
Master's Degree Plans
Masters programs in most fields may be taken under two plans: thesis plan (Plan A) or a professional paper or project plan (Plan B).
Thesis (Plan A)
This is the research-oriented master’s degree. It is particularly recommended for the student whose educational and professional goals make early research experience desirable. In some professions, a master’s degree is the terminal degree. In other professions, the master’s is a necessary step to the doctorate.
Conversion of thesis credits to professional paper credits: When a Master’s student changes from a thesis plan to Plan B (professional paper/project plan), a maximum of six credits of thesis (department rubric 590) may be converted to six credits of Professional Paper (department rubric 575). The student must be able to show support of the change from the entire Committee: A memo/letter signed by all committee members would suffice.
Professional Paper or Project (Plan B)
This plan is designed to serve two types of graduate students.
1.)In some study areas, a student needs coursework beyond the baccalaureate before being qualified to do acceptable research. Plan B allows the student to defer original research until enrolled in a doctoral program.
2.) For students in professional or terminal degree programs, thesis research is not necessary. A professional paper or project is substituted for the thesis requirement.
Conversion of professional paper credits to thesis credits: If a student wishes to switch from a Plan B option to a Plan A option, professional paper credits may not be converted to thesis credits.
Second Master's Degrees
A candidate for a second or additional master's degree must fulfill all requirements for a master's degree.
A maximum of nine (9) semester credits completed during a master's degree program may be applied toward the requirements for a second or additional master's degree at MSU, with approval of the Division of Graduate Education and the student’s graduate Committee.
General Credit Requirements for Master's Degrees
1. The minimum credit requirement for master's degrees is thirty (30) credits, individual degree programs may require more.
2. Only those courses listed on a graduate Program of Study are applicable toward graduate degree credit requirements.
3.Non-thesis credits: In all non-thesis programs, at least thirty (30) credits or more as determined by the department) must be for content coursework (not thesis credits).
4. 500-level courses: A minimum of 20 credits (including thesis) must be comprised of 500-level courses. Some degree programs may require a higher number.
5. Conversion of thesis credits to professional paper credits: When a Master’s student changes from a thesis plan to Plan B (professional paper/project plan), a maximum of six credits of thesis (department rubric 590) may be converted to six credits of Professional Paper (department rubric 575). The student must be able to show support of the change from the entire Committee: A memo/letter signed by all committee members would suffice.
6. Conversion of professional paper credits to thesis credits: Professional paper credits may not be converted to thesis credits.
Registration Requirements for Master's Degrees
Students must register for a minimum of (3) credits the semester a comprehensive exam is taken.
Students must register for a minimum of three (3) credits the semester of intended graduation.
Course Limitations for Master's Degrees
General Guidelines
1. Undergraduate (MSU 4XX) courses: Up to 9 credits at the 400-level are allowed on a graduate Program of Study under two circumstances:
- They were taken as a graduate student, or
- They were reserved for graduate credit as a bachelor degree seeking student.
2. Repeating or challenging previously taken courses: Courses taken as an undergraduate or non-degree student may not be later repeated or challenged and then applied toward requirements for a graduate degree.
3. 3XX (or lower numbered) courses are not applicable to master’s degree requirements.
4. A maximum of three pass/fail credits, excluding thesis, may be used toward the minimum credit requirements for the degree.
5. Challenging courses: Master's degree students may challenge no more than six (6) credits for application toward a degree program. (Refer to the section on Petitions, Appeals and Grievances. )
6. Limit on age of courses: The age of courses at the time of graduation may not exceed six (6) years.
7. Once a course is taken, it cannot be removed from a Program of Study.
Limits on Specific Courses
1.Seminar (500), Independent Study (570), Internship (576) and departmental practicum courses may not comprise more than one-third (1/3) of the minimum required credits for a graduate degree.
2.Undergraduate Independent Study (470), Professional Development (588) and Graduate Consultation (589) courses or Undergraduate Seminars (400) are not allowed on a Program of Study and will not count toward requirements for the degree.
3. Graduate Consultation (589): Registration in ‘Graduate Consultation’ (MSU 589) is permitted only for master's degree students who have completed all of their coursework (and the thesis or the professional paper) but who need additional faculty or staff time to complete requirements for the degree. Registration in 589 (Consultation) does not count toward meeting degree credit requirements.
4. Special Topics (580): This course may be included in the graduate Program of Study. The total number of Special Topics courses for which a student may register is not limited.
5. Individual Problems (570): A total of four (4) credits of Individual Problems (570) courses may be included in the master's Program of Study on thesis plans; six (6) credits of Individual Problems may be included in non-thesis plans. Individual Problems (570) courses may NOT be taken as pass/fail.
Foreign Language Requirement
Foreign Language requirements are specific to degree programs.
Master's Graduate Committee
The master’s committee advises the student on academic matters and is the examining committee for the master's comprehensive and/or defense-of-thesis examinations.
Committee composition
A master’s Committee is comprised of 3 to 5 faculty members. The chair must be a PhD, tenure track (or tenured) professor from the degree granting department. The majority of the committee should be made up of faculty from the degree granting department, but due to the interdisciplinary nature of many degrees, is not limited to the degree granting department.
The major professor and the department head recommend the committee which must be approved by the Division of Graduate Education on the “Program of Study” or “Change of Committee” forms found at www.montana.edu/wwwdg/forms.shtml
Faculty affiliates and Non-MSU committee members
Faculty affiliates, faculty of other institutions and nonacademic experts may serve as additional committee members, but not as committee chair. Committee members not holding faculty status at MSU must submit documentation of their qualifications, including a vita. In some cases, faculty affiliates, faculty of other institutions or non-academic experts may act as co-chairs of a student’s committee.
Changes to the committee
The student has the right to make faculty changes in his/her committee. Changes to an existing committee must be made through the “Committee Change” form and approved by the Division of Graduate Education.
Committee appointment deadline
The committee must be appointed by the end of the second semester of graduate study. If the committee is not submitted by the end of the student's second semester of attendance, the student is seen as not making satisfactory academic progress, becomes ineligible for financial aid (including graduate assistantships, student work-study and student labor) and will be placed on college probation.
Program of Study
The graduate committee and the student jointly develop a proposed Program of Study. The Program of Study defines the minimum requirements for the degree. Other requirements as determined by the student's graduate committee may also be listed.
The Program of Study acts as a contract between the student and the University. It may be amended through the course of the student’s graduate education. Changes to a student’s program of study must be made though the “Change of Program of Study” form and approved by the DGE.
Program approval
The Program of Study must be approved by the student’s committee and department head. Final approval rests with the Division of Graduate Education.
Filing deadlines
The Program of Study must be submitted on an official ‘Program of Study’ form to the Division of Graduate Education by the end of the second semester of graduate study. Students failing to submit a program by this date will be seen as failing to achieve satisfactory progress. Consequently, the student becomes ineligible for financial aid (including graduate assistantships, work-study and student labor) and will be placed on college probation. Exceptions to this policy will be granted only for extraordinary reasons.
When filed, attachments to the program must include transcripts of all non-MSU coursework. If the student obtained those required transcripts during the application process, they may be reused for program purposes. Changes in the program must be requested before or during the semester affected. Once a course is taken, it cannot be removed from the program.
Thesis Credit Requirements
1.At least ten (10) thesis credits must be successfully completed for thesis plan programs. An unlimited number of 590 credits may be taken to complete a thesis; however, only ten thesis credits may be applied toward degree requirements. As such, “Plan A” students must include ten thesis credits on the graduate program. The remaining twenty credits (or more as determined by the department) on the graduate Program of Study must be content coursework.
2. Registration in Master's Thesis (590) credits is required during those terms the student is working on the thesis, using faculty time, and or university facilities.
3. When registering for thesis credit, the minimum registration is one (1) credit for a semester.
4. Thesis credits are taken pass/fail only.
Master's Thesis
A thesis, written by the student seeking the degree and based on original research is a requirement for all thesis plan (Plan A) master’s degree programs. The thesis is usually the result of research by the candidate and is an original contribution to knowledge.
Committee composition for thesis plan students
Three members of the student's graduate Committee will be designated to guide the thesis. The graduate advisor is chairperson of the thesis committee.
Submission of the final thesis
The thesis must be submitted in final form to the Division of Graduate Education by published deadlines (usually no later than fourteen (14) working days before the end of the term in which graduate work is completed. )
One-credit extension
If a thesis is submitted after the published deadline and the student is currently registered for three credits, the student may choose to make all corrections/changes before the first day of the following academic term and be eligible for a one-credit extension for the following term (instead of the mandatory three-credit registration the term of graduation). Students who choose and are eligible for this option, will be certified to graduate the following term. If more time is needed beyond the first day of the following term, the student will be required to register for at least three credits to be eligible for graduation that term.
Thesis approval requirements
The thesis must meet all requirements set forth in the Division of Graduate Education ‘Guide for Preparation of Theses, Dissertations and Professional Papers’. Final authority for approval or rejection of a thesis or professional paper rests with the Graduate Vice Provost.
The Division of Graduate Education will require all students to submit the electronic version of their thesis or dissertation to the Division of Graduate Education instead of paper copies. These documents will be placed on the internet for worldwide access. Exceptions for reasons that have not been addressed within the Montana State University ETD initiative will be considered on an individual basis. Internet access allows the student’s work to be viewed freely by anyone on the World Wide Web, restricted to only the MSU campus or a mixed restriction (where parts of the student’s thesis or dissertation may not be seen by the World Wide Web or MSU campus because of patent or publishing issues). Students may view the choices for restricting access by reading the Certificate of Approval form at www.montana.edu/etd/submit/ETDApprovalform.pdf. The ETD initiative also provides students with a unique opportunity to learn more about publishing. Please read about publisher issues at www.montana.edu/etd/PublisherIssues.shtml.
Copy quality, punctuation and spelling, as well as consideration of the subject researched and completeness of the research is the responsibility of the student's department. The Graduate Vice Provost has authority to deny final approval of the thesis on grounds of unsatisfactory grammar, formatting, or overall quality of the thesis.
Submission of the thesis to the MSU Library
MSU has the authority to require graduate students to submit the graduate thesis to the MSU Library. The Division of Graduate Education will transmit all theses and dissertations to the MSU Library following approval of the document by the Graduate Vice Provost. A thesis is considered complete when accepted by the Library.
Thesis Patent Policy
Patent requests should be submitted to the U.S. Patent Office well ahead of submission of the thesis to the Division of Graduate Education. If a patent request is submitted late and the contents of the thesis or any part thereof is still in the process of being patented, the student, major professor and department head may submit a written request to the Division of Graduate Education to request withholding the thesis from the ETD website. This hold may be for a period of not more than six (6) months during which time the patent request may be submitted to the U.S. Patent office. Upon receipt of notice from the Patent Office that the patent request has been received, the department head shall inform the Division of Graduate Education the thesis is to be released for public access on the ETD website.
If the Division of Graduate Education is not notified to release the thesis prior to the expiration of six (6) months, the thesis will automatically be released to the library at that time. Under special circumstances a request for an extension of time may be granted at the discretion of the GraduateVice Provost. The Division of Graduate Education will make every attempt to keep thesis information confidential.
Master’s Qualifying Examination
To test the student’s preparedness, a qualifying examination may be administered by the major department. The student usually takes the examination during the first year of attendance.
Master's Comprehensive Examination
Mandatory comprehensive examination requirement
Each candidate for a master's degree, including professional and/or seamless degrees, must pass a written and/or oral comprehensive examination. The examination covers subject matter included in the graduate program and any other material the examining committee considers pertinent. Comprehensive examinations are structured according to the department’s individual requirements.
Comprehensive examination and thesis defense
On thesis plans, the defense-of-thesis examination is also required. The comprehensive examination and the defense of thesis may be combined and offered at the same time.
Professional licensure/certification examinations
Examinations for professional licensure or certification may not be used for or in place of the comprehensive examination.
Comprehensive examination deadline
Two-thirds (2/3) of the course work required for a degree must generally be completed prior to sitting for the comprehensive exam.
The last day to take the comprehensive examination or defend a thesis if you plan to graduate during the same semester is on or before the fourteenth (14 th) business day prior to the end of the semester.
Minimum registration to take an examination
A student must be registered for a minimum of three (3) credits at MSU during the term in which an examination is taken.
If a student wishes to sit for the comprehensive exam during the intersession (i.e. , the time between semesters), a student must be registered for a minimum of three (3) credits in the term prior to the intersession or the term immediately following the intersession.
Grading of the comprehensive examination
The comprehensive examination is graded with either a passing or failing grade determined by a majority committee vote. The student officially passes the examination when all concerns and deficiencies have been met and are deemed satisfactory by all Committee members.
Notice of results of the comprehensive examination
The Committee and department head are responsible for submitting written notice of the results of the comprehensive examination to the student and to the Division of Graduate Education no later than one (1) week after the examination is held or after each section is administered. If the written and oral sections are given at separate times, the results of each section must be reported in writing to the student and to the Division of Graduate Education no later than one (1) week after each section is completed by the student.
Failed Examination
A failure on any portion of the examination is considered to be a failed exam. A failed examination may be repeated one (1) time. At least two (2) months must elapse before the second examination may take place. Failure to pass a second examination results in termination of graduate study and dismissal from the academic program. Students who are dismissed from the program due to a failed comprehensive examination are ineligible to reapply to the same degree program at any time.
Invalid Examination
Examinations held in the absence of the chair or both individuals in case of co-chairs will be considered invalid and the exam will have to be rescheduled. The chair and/or co-chairs must be present throughout the entire examination.
All Committee members must be present at the comprehensive: Last minute Committee changes based on scheduling conflicts must be approved by the Division of Graduate Education.
It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all Committee members are available when scheduling an exam. Examinations held with only two Committee members present will be invalidated.
Defense of Thesis
On thesis plans, the defense-of-thesis examination is required. The comprehensive examination and the defense of thesis may be combined and offered at the same time.
Minimum credit registration to defend the thesis
A student must be registered for a minimum of three (3) credits at MSU during the term in which the thesis is defended.
If a student wishes to sit for the thesis defense during the intersession (i.e. , the time between semesters), the student must be registered for a minimum of three (3) credits the term prior to the intersession or the term immediately following the intersession.
Scheduling the thesis defense
The last day to defend a thesis is on or before the published deadline (generally on or before the fourteenth 14 thworking day prior to the end of the semester.)
Advertising the defense
The following information may be published in the Division of Graduate Education “News and Announcements” Bulletin on the DGE website:
a) the name of the candidate;
b) title of the master’s thesis;
c) time and place of defense; and
d) the place where a copy of the thesis may be obtained for inspection.
Posting the above information is not mandatory for Master’s students.
Committee representation at the thesis defense
If a master’s student chooses to have more than the minimum of three members on his/her graduate Committee, all members must be present at the comprehensive and/or the defense of thesis. Last minute committee changes based on scheduling conflicts must be approved by the Division of Graduate Education.
Invalid Defense of Thesis
A defense of thesis held in the absence of the chair (or both individuals in case of co-chairs) will be considered invalid and the exam will have to be rescheduled. The chair and/or co-chairs must be present throughout the entire defense. Examinations held with only two Committee members present will be invalidated.
Grading of the thesis defense
The defense of thesis is graded with either a passing or failing grade—determined by a majority committee vote. The student officially passes the defense when all concerns and deficiencies have been addressed and are deemed satisfactory by all Committee members.
One week notice of results of the thesis defense
The graduate committee and department head are responsible for providing written notice of the results of the defense to the student and to the Division of Graduate Education no later than one (1) week after the defense is held.
Failed defense
A failed defense may be repeated one (1) time. At least two (2) months must elapse before the second defense takes place. Failure to successfully pass the defense of thesis results in termination of graduate study and dismissal from the academic program. Students who are dismissed from the program due to failure to pass the defense are ineligible to reapply to the same degree program at any time.
Application for Advanced Degree
The semester of intended graduation, the student must file an ‘Application for Advanced Degree’ with the Division of Graduate Education. The deadline for filing the application is
September 20 for Fall Semester
February 5 for Spring Semester
June 10 for Summer Semester.
The form is available at www.montana.edu/wwwdg/forms.shtml
“One Credit Registration”
If an ‘Application for Advanced Degree’ is submitted after the published deadline and the student is currently registered for three credits, the student may submit the application for graduation for the next term and be eligible for a one credit registration the following term (instead of the mandatory three-credit registration the term of graduation). To be eligible for the one-credit registration, the student must complete all degree requirements before the first day of the subsequent term. The student will be certified to graduate the following term. If more time is needed beyond the first day of the following term, the student will be required to register for at least three credits to be eligible for graduation that term.
Summary of Procedures for a Master's Degree
What |
When |
Procedure |
1. Pre-application form. |
If required by the academic department, submit before obtaining application packet. |
Send pre-application form to appropriate department. |
2. Graduate Record Examination or alternative |
May be Required for admission. |
Take exam at a testing center in your area and have results sent to MSU-Bozeman (code 4488). |
3. Admission to department and Division of Graduate Education. |
Per departmental and Division of Graduate Education deadlines. |
Request application packet from appropriate department or apply on-line. |
4. Selection of advisor and committee. |
By the end of the second semester of registration. |
See department head; submit the committee form to the Division of Graduate Education. |
5. Graduate Program of Study. |
By the end of the second semester of registration. |
Consult advisor; submit the program in official format to the Division of Graduate Education. |
6. Qualifying Examination |
As required by the department. |
Consult and schedule through the academic advisor. |
7. Thesis outline (if thesis option is chosen) |
As early as possible. |
Submit outline to thesis committee for approval. |
8. Application for Advanced Degree |
Submit on or before the third Friday of the semester of completion of degree requirements. |
Complete form obtained from major department. |
9. Final Changes to the Program of Study. |
Submit on or before the third Friday of the semester of completion of degree requirements |
Submit form to the Division of Graduate Education. |
10. Comprehensive examination. |
Must be passed at least 14 days before the end of semester in which graduate work is completed. |
Make arrangements with advisor. |
11. Defense of thesis. |
At least 14 days before the end of the semester in which graduate work is completed. |
Make arrangements with advisor. This examination may be part of the comprehensive examination. |
12. Approval of thesis or professional paper. |
After the defense-of-thesis examination and at least 14 working days before the end of the semester in which graduate work is completed. |
Approval by the Graduate Vice Provost. |
13. Commencement. |
End of spring semester. |
See Commencement section. |
Commencement
Diplomas are dated the last day of the semester in which the requirements for the degree are completed. Degrees are conferred once a year at May commencement.
Eligibility to participate in commencement
Montana State University allows only those graduate students who have completed all requirements for the degree (including all coursework, examinations, and final papers (including approval of the thesis or dissertation by the Graduate Vice Provost) and who have applied to graduate by the deadline to participate in commencement exercises. Graduate students who will finish the degree the following August may walk through the May ceremonies only if they are utilizing the one credit extension and have documentation from their major advisor of the student’s assured completion of degree requirements by the one credit extension deadline.
Students who are unable to attend commencement must make special arrangements with the Registrar to have their diplomas mailed to them. Students who participate in commencement must purchase academic robes and hoods. These may be purchased from the MSU Bookstore, usually in February.
Students listed in Montana State University’s commencement book are those candidates who have identified themselves as eligible to graduate. The degree will not be awarded until all requirements for the advanced degree are met and the candidate has been certified to graduate by the Division of Graduate Education. Being listed in the commencement book does not imply completion of the degree.
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