Academic Policies, Procedures, and Requirements

The Graduate Catalog is the official source of academic policies, procedures, and requirements. Students and faculty are encouraged to access the Graduate Catalog for a comprehensive listing of requirements. 

Registration

Graduate students are able to register on the first day of priority registration. See Registrar's page for up-to-date information. 

Full-Time Study

  • Graduate – 9/9/6 credit hours (max 12 for each term including summer)
  • Course overloads (more than 12 hours per term) require approval by the Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies in CEHD and the Graduate Dean. Please email cehdgss@louisville.edu with the student & class information so that we can provide the override for the overload. 

Course Withdrawal after the Deadline

Student should contact the primary instructor for the course to discuss the late withdrawal request. The faculty member determines if the student’s reason for requesting the late withdrawal is satisfactory and may require written documentation from a physician, employer, etc. 

    • Note: a late withdrawal should not be granted to a student to avoid a poor or failing grade. The reason for the request needs to be extraordinary, such as a death in the family, serious illness, change of job, etc. 

Faculty member then emails their approval for the late withdrawal to the Asst. Dean of Graduate Studies in CEHD who will then facilitate the withdrawal with the Registrar's office. 

Lapsing of Incompletes

An Incomplete Grade ("I") is a non punitive grade given at the discretion of the primary instructor/department if the student (1) is passing the course and (2) has a justifiable and documented reason, beyond the control of the student (such as serious illness or military service), for not completing the work on schedule. The student must arrange with the instructor to finish the course at a later date by completing specific requirements. Incompletes must be updated by the published dates on the Registrar's website otherwise it will lapse into an "F" grade. 

Degree Check/Degree Audit

When graduate student submits their degree application, their record is audited for degree eligibility by a member of the GSS or EPSS offices. However, the faculty advisor should periodically review the student's program of study sheet while the student is enrolled and communicate any degree deficiencies to the student before they apply for their degree. This may occur at the student’s request or the faculty advisor may provide regular updates to the student. Faculty program directors can connect with the GSS office to discuss implementing a more routine degree audit protocol for the entire graduate program to be carried out by GSS staff pending their availability as we don't have technical capabilities at this time to automate this process. 

Transfer of Courses

For a master’s degree, a maximum of 6 hours is allowed to be transferred to graduate degree IF the courses in question are from an accredited institution, are not older than 3 years, have been completed with a B or better, and the student has completed at least one semester of study at UofL. The student and faculty advisor must complete the transfer of credit form/process so the courses are posted to the UofL transcript. Note that an additional 6 credit hours of graduate course work may be petitioned to transfer (through Graduate School variance form) as long as the residency requirement is maintained. 

  • Non-degree programs such as Rank I may allow more than 6 credit hours of transfer credit.
  • Must complete a minimum of 24 credit hours at UofL for residency requirement.
    • Faculty advisor completes “Request for Transfer of Credit” form and submits it to the online portal.
    • The Graduate Student Success Office checks to verify that an official transcript is on file for the course(s) and that the course is not older than 3 years.
    • The Assistant Dean signs the form and submits it to the Graduate Dean for consideration
    • The Graduate Dean notifies the student and the Assistant Dean of the decision (this can take several weeks)
    • Faculty advisor may not add the transfer credit to the student’s official program until it has been accepted by the Graduate Dean

Age of Coursework

  • Course work taken more than 3 years prior to the student’s application to a graduate program will not normally be considered for transfer; however a Graduate Variance form may be submitted with a request for course work exceeding the 3 year limit if sufficient cause can be shown that the coursework is still relevant and current to the disciplinary field
  • Variance Forms with rationale for exceptions and signatures should be submitted to the Assistant Dean
  • The Assistant Dean recommends approval to the Graduate Dean

Time Limitation

Master’s level students are given six consecutive years from the time they begin their programs to finish degree requirements. If a student wishes a time extension, he or she must complete a Graduate School Variance Form to be approved by the faculty advisor, department chair, Dean’s representative, and the Graduate School.  If the student has an unexpected emergency or change of status, a Leave of Absence should be requested by a Graduate School Variance.

Student Standing

Graduate students can earn no more than two C, C+, or C- grades in their graduate program, and must maintain a 3.0 grade point average at all times. Graduate students who do not meet these minimum requirements are subject to probation status and possible dismissal from their programs. A 3.0 GPA is required for good standing and graduation.

Two Year Policy Regarding Enrollment

Students who do not enroll in courses for two or more years must re-apply for admission and are required to follow the program requirements in place at the time of re-application.

Master’s Candidacy

Student must be enrolled in the semester that the student intends to graduate. If the student has completed all course work and has no courses left on the program, the student must enroll in master’s (MAST 600) or doctoral (DOCT 600) candidacy. MAST/DOCT 600 are billed at the rate of 2 graduate hours based on tuition rates for that given academic year: https://louisville.edu/bursar/tuitionfee/undergraduate-graduate-rates-2022-2023.