- Are you Ready?
- How to Apply for Graduation
- Ask your advisor to submit a Major Check form
- What to Expect from your Master Degree Audit
Are You Ready?
Graduate students are eligible to file for graduation their first term of admission! But should you?!! Quick answer: No. Instead you should wait until the following is true: Will all your coursework (including thesis units) be complete by the semester you intend to graduate? Is the last experiment on your to do list guaranteed to work? Have you started writing your thesis?
Best advice. Discuss it with your advisor. The filing fee for graduation is nonrefundable and the application for graduation is valid for two semester (not counting summer). This may sound like a long time but you will be surprised at the number of people that file too early. And the consequences can be serious. If you fail to graduate within this window of time you will have to re-file for graduation and pay the filing fee. If you realize after the filing deadline that you will not graduate and it is the last semester of your graduation application, you will not be able to graduate in the subsequent term because the filing deadline will have passed!
Original Term of
Graduation
|
Term(s) to Which
Students Can Postpone
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Spring
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Summer or Fall
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Summer
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Fall
|
Fall
|
Spring
|
My recommendation: If you are in your last semester of graduation candidacy and you do not think you will be able to submit your thesis by the format review deadline, then you should cancel your graduation PRIOR to the deadline to file for graduation. This will allow you to file for graduation for the subsequent semester. For more information about the graduation process, go to http://www.csueastbay.edu/registrar/graduation/before-applying-for-graduation.html
How to Apply for Graduation
Early in the semester before you expect to graduate, you must initiate the graduation process:
1. File for graduation on MyCSUEB before the deadline (see below).
2. Pay the “graduation filing” fee.
The deadline to file for graduation and pay your filing fee is in the middle of the semester before you anticipate graduating (and before the format review deadline). For the most accurate deadline, go to "BEFORE APPLYING FOR GRADUATION" site, open on Deadlines.
NOTE: If you are no longer a continuing/active student (discontinued), you will need to file a paper application for graduation.
Ask your Advisor to Submit a Major Check
Ask your advisor to complete a Major Check form. The Major Check form is due soon after (2-3 weeks) the deadline for filing for graduation. It is your responsibility to alert your thesis advisor that you filed for graduation. The University will not send any notice. Do not let this requirement slip off your radar or your graduation date may be delayed!
Again, this form must be completed, signed and submitted by your thesis advisor. Students cannot hand-carry this form. If your thesis advisor submits the Major Check Form in a timely manner, you will receive a "Master Degree Audit" from the graduate evaluator (currently Patricia Koenig) early during the following semester.
What to Expect from a Master Degree Audit.
If your thesis advisor submits a Major Check Form in a timely manner (see above), you will receive a "Master Degree Audit" from the graduate evaluator (currently Patricia Koenig or Michael Huong) early in the semester that you first intend to graduate. The Master’s Degree Audit will indicate degree requirements that are in progress and/or are yet to be completed.
Courses that need to be completed: This section will mention that you still have a grade of "RP" for your Biol 6910/691 and that a completion memo must be sent. This will not change until you pass your oral defense and submit your final thesis. Once this is complete, your thesis advisor needs to submit a change of grade form (please remind them) and the graduate coordinator needs to submit a completion memo (I will receive an email reminder).
Additional degree requirements to be met: The content here will vary. Here are some issues you may have:
- FIVE YEAR RULE WAIVER: If you have course work beyond the five year rule you will be asked to complete a "Five Year Rule" waiver and submit to the graduate coordinator. You can download them here:
- Change of Graduate Status form: Ignore. This is a form that the graduate coordinator will submit on your behalf.
- Non-Residence Coursework: This means that you took more than 9 semester units before you became an M.S. student. You need to complete a "waiver of the maximum non-resident units towards the Biology M.S". You can download this form here:
- 13 Non-resident units Waiver (submit to the graduate coordinator)
