Section One
ACADEMIC PROGRAMS, REQUIREMENTS AND POLICIES

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

This section includes discussion of:

• Registration Requirements
• Residency Policy
• Policy on Minimum Progress Requirements

Office of the University Registrar
(Graduate Degree Progress)
630 Serra Street,
723-2041

Responsibility for monitoring the progress of students towards graduate degrees is shared between the academic departments and the Office of the University Registrar. Departments monitor completion of all department-specific requirements, ongoing academic progress, and several degree-specific University requirements like candidacy.

Key duties of the Office of the University Registrar include:

• monitoring completion of University requirements, e.g., residency and registration requirements
  
  
• making TGR and Graduation Quarter tuition adjustments
  
  
• evaluating and granting transfer credit
  
  
• reviewing submitted dissertations for compliance with University publication standards and distributing the dissertation copies, once bound
  
  
• receiving applications for degree conferral and managing the conferral process
  
  
• providing uniform University forms for graduate students and departments to use in charting degree progress.
  
  

Relevant forms from the Office of the University Registrar are available online at: http://registrar.stanford.edu.

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Registration Requirements

Graduate students must enroll in courses for all terms of each academic year (Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters or, for Law students, Autumn and Spring semesters), from the admission term until conferral of the degree. The only exception to this requirement occurs when the student is granted an official leave of absence. Failure to enroll in courses for a term during the academic year without taking a leave of absence results in denial of further enrollment privileges unless and until reinstatement to the degree program is granted and the reinstatement fee paid. Registration in Summer Quarter is not required and does not substitute for registration during the academic year. Students possessing an F1 or J1 student visa may be subject to additional course enrollment requirements in order to retain their student visas.

In addition to the above requirement for continuous registration during the academic year, all graduate students are required by the University to be registered:

1. in each term during which any official department or University requirement is fulfilled, including qualifying exams or the University oral exam
   
   
2. in any term in which a University dissertation/thesis is submitted or at the end of which a graduate degree is conferred, unless the student was registered the prior term
   
   
3. normally, in any term in which the student receives financial support from the University
   
   
4. in any term for which the student needs to use University facilities
   
   
5. for international students, in any term of the academic year (summer may be excluded) for which they have non-immigrant status (i.e., a J-1 or F-1 visa).
   
   

Individual students may also find themselves subject to the registration requirements of other agencies (for example, external funding sources such as federal financial aid). Course work and research are expected to be done on campus unless the department gives prior approval for study in absentia and a petition for in absentia registration is approved by the Office of the University Registrar.

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Residency Policy for Graduate Students

Each type of graduate degree offered at Stanford (for example, Master of Science, Doctor of Philosophy) has a residency requirement based on the number of academic units required for the degree. These residency requirements and the maximum allowable transfer units for each degree type are listed in the Stanford Bulletin.

The unit requirements for degrees can represent solely course work required for the degree or a combination of course work, research, and a thesis or dissertation. Academic departments and schools offering degrees may establish unit requirements that are higher than the minimum University residency requirement, but they may not have a residency requirement that is lower than the University standard. In addition to the University's residency requirement based on a minimum number of units for each degree, the School of Medicine and the Graduate School of Business may establish residency requirements based on the number of quarters of full-time registration in which students are enrolled to earn a degree. However, in no case may a student earn fewer units than the University minimum for each degree. All residency requirements are published in the Stanford Bulletin. Students should consult the Stanford Bulletin or their academic department to determine if their degree program has residency requirements that exceed the minimum.

It continues to be Stanford University's general policy that units are applicable toward only one degree. Units may not normally be duplicated or double-counted toward the residency requirement for more than one degree. Exceptions to this general policy for specified combinations of degree types may be approved by agreement of the Vice Provost and Dean of Research and Graduate Policy and the deans of the schools affected, with review by the Committee on Graduate Studies.

Only completed course units are counted toward the residency requirement. Courses with missing, incomplete, in progress, or failing grades do not count toward the residency requirement.

Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) is available to graduate students who have met all of the following criteria:

1. completion of the University's residency requirement;
2. completion of all course work required for the degree with grades recorded in all courses;
3. completion of any qualifying examinations or research work required by the school or department;
4. establishment of a reading committee for the dissertation; and
5. completion of any other requirements stipulated by the students' academic department.
   
   

This policy is effective for students who enter graduate programs beginning in the Autumn Quarter of the 2001-02 academic year. (For information about the residency policy in effect for students who entered prior to Autumn Quarter 2001, see the Stanford Bulletin 2000-01.)

Transfer Credit for Graduate Work Done Elsewhere

After at least one quarter of enrollment, students pursuing an Engineer, Ed.S., D.M.A., Ed.D., or Ph.D. may apply for transfer credit for graduate work done at another institution. Engineer or Ed.S. candidates who also earned their master's at Stanford are not eligible for transfer residency credit, nor are any master's degree students.

Students enrolled at Stanford who are going to study elsewhere during their degree program should obtain prior approval of any transfer credit sought before their departure. (One semester unit or hour equals 1.5 quarter units.)

The following criteria are used by the department in determining whether, in its discretion, it will award transfer credit for graduate-level work done at another institution:

1. Courses should have comparable Stanford counterparts that are approved by the student's department. A maximum of 12 units of courses with no Stanford counterparts and/or research units may be granted transfer credit.
2. The student must have been enrolled in a student category which yields graduate credit. The maximum amount of credit given for extension and nonmatriculated (non-degree) courses is one quarter. No transfer credit is given for correspondence work.
3. Courses must have been taken after the conferral of the bachelor's degree. The only exception is for work taken through programs structured like the Stanford coterminal bachelor's/master's program.
4. Courses must have been completed with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) or better. Pass grades are accepted only for courses for which letter grades were not an option and for which the standard of passing is 'B' quality work.
5. Courses must have been taken at a regionally accredited institution in the US or at an officially recognized institution in a foreign country. Courses taken at foreign universities must be at the level of study comparable to a US graduate program.

The Application for Transfer Credit for Graduate Work Done Elsewhere is reviewed by the department and the Office of the University Registrar.

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Policy on Minimum Progress Requirements for Graduate Students

The academic requirements for graduate students include timely completion of University, department, and program requirements, such as admission to candidacy, successful completion of qualifying exams, and so on. Graduate students must also meet the following standards of minimum progress as indicated by units and grades. (These standards apply to all advanced degree programs except the School of Business Ph.D., and the M.B.A., M.L.S., J.D., L.L.M., J.S.M., J.S.D., M.D., and M.L.A., which follow guidelines issued by the respective schools and are described in their respective school bulletins.)

Graduate students enrolled for 11 or more units must pass at least 8 units per term by the end of each term. Those registered for fewer than 11 units must pass at least 6 units per term by the end of each term, unless other requirements are specified in a particular case or for a particular program.

In addition, graduate students must maintain a 3.0 (B) grade point average overall in courses applicable to the degree.

Department requirements for minimum progress that set a higher standard for units to be completed, or a higher or lower standard for grade point average to be maintained, take precedence over the University policy; any such different standards must be published in the Stanford Bulletin.

Students identified as not meeting the requirements for minimum progress are reviewed by their departments to determine whether the problem lies with administrative matters, such as reporting of grades, or with academic performance. Students have the opportunity to explain any special circumstances. Approval for continuation in the degree program is contingent on agreement by the student and department to a suitable plan to maintain appropriate progress in subsequent quarters. Dismissal of graduate students is addressed in separate guidelines.

Graduate students who have been granted Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) status must enroll each term in the TGR course (801 for master's and Engineer programs or 802 for doctoral programs) in their department in the section appropriate for the adviser. An 'N' grade signifying satisfactory progress must be received each quarter to maintain registration privileges. An 'N-' grade indicates unsatisfactory progress. The first 'N-' grade constitutes a warning. A second consecutive 'N-' grade will normally cause the department to deny the student further registration until a written plan for completion of degree requirements has been approved by the department. Subsequent 'N-' grades are grounds for dismissal from the program.

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