11.99.99.C6.01 Certification of Degrees
Approved April 6, 2006

This document defines the responsibilities of the academic colleges, the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, and the Office of Admissions and Records with regard to the certification of degrees. The guidelines below apply to all of these units, but final responsibility for the accuracy of records resides with the Office of Admissions and Records.
   
1. CERTIFICATION OF A BACHELOR'S DEGREE
  1.1 Each college dean is responsible for monitoring and certifying that a student receiving a baccalaureate degree has satisfactorily completed the requirements of the catalog under which credit was first earned in this university or upon satisfying the requirements of the catalog of any subsequent year in which credit was earned as a student in the University. This provision is subject to the restriction that all program requirements must be completed within six years of the date of the catalog chosen and the University still offers the programs and required curriculum described in the earlier catalog. Exceptions to the six-year rule may be made by the college dean with the approval of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
       
  1.2

The Director of Admissions and Records is responsible for reviewing the records to determine that a student has satisfactorily completed all university-level requirements, as defined in the catalog under which the student will graduate, before a baccalaureate degree is conferred. These requirements may include:
(1)  Total hours
(2)  Upper-division hours
(3)  Grade point average
(4)     University residence requirement (and in some catalogs: “Hours at thisUniversity”)
(5)     University general education requirements, as well as other general education requirements                        established by the State of Texas, such as:
            ·   Core curriculum requirement
            ·   Foreign language requirement
            ·   Computer literacy requirement
            ·   First-year seminar requirement, if applicable
            ·   State statuary requirements in American history and government/political science
(6)      Limits on correspondence and extension credit
       
  1.3

Each college dean is responsible for certifying that a student has met all the specific college and programmatic requirements for the degree, as outlined in the catalog under which a student will graduate.
     
  1.4 The college dean is responsible for certifying that a student who wishes to graduate with a double major has fulfilled all the requirements for each of the majors.
     
  1.5 The Director of Admissions and Records will complete the final degree audit before the bachelor’s degree is conferred.
       
2.

CERTIFICATION OF A MASTER'S DEGREE
  2.1

Each college dean is responsible for monitoring and certifying that a student receiving a master's degree has satisfactorily completed the requirements of the catalog under which the student earned the graduate credit, provided the catalog is no more than seven years old when the degree is conferred.
     
  2.2 For example, the college dean will certify
   
  1. That a student has completed the total number of hours required for a master’s degree.
  2. That a student has met the specific college and programmatic requirements for the degree as outlined
  3. That the total number of hours of transfer work applied toward a master’s degree does not exceed the limit stated in the appropriate catalog.
  4. That no course with a grade of less than “B” has been accepted as transfer credit.
  5. That no correspondence or extension/CEU credit is applied toward a master’s degree.
  6. That no credit that is more than seven years old is counted toward a graduate degree.  (The seven-year period is calculated from the date of the degree conferral.  In rare cases, exceptional conditions allow for relaxing this seven-year policy, but this action will require strong justification in writing from the student requesting the exception, with written approval from both the major department chairperson and the dean of the college from which the degree is offered.)
     
  2.3 The college dean shall have the authority to modify the number of 5000-level or higher courses taken to fulfill degree requirements but not the total number of hours required to complete a degree.
     
  2.4

If a second master’s degree is to be awarded, the dean of the appropriate college will certify that all university and college requirements regarding second master’s degrees have been met, as specified in the catalog under which the student will graduate. The college dean will certify that a student who earns a second master's degree has completed all degree requirements for the specific program.
     
  2.5 The Graduate Dean will review the record to determine that the minimum grade point average required for the master’s degree has been met and that the student has satisfactorily completed all of the university-level requirements specified in the graduate catalog. The method of calculating the grade point average will conform to the guidelines in the catalog under which the student will graduate.
     
  2.6 The Graduate Dean will complete the final degree audit before the master’s degree is conferred.
     
3. CERTIFICATION OF DOCTORAL DEGREES
  3.1 The dean of the appropriate college is responsible for monitoring and certifying that a student receiving a doctoral degree has satisfactorily completed the requirements of the catalog under which the student earned the doctoral credit, provided the catalog is no more than seven years old when the degree is conferred. The college dean will certify that the candidate for a doctoral degree has met all doctoral requirements and all college and program degree requirements.
     
  3.2 The Graduate Dean will determine that the minimum grade point average has been met and that the student has completed all university-level doctoral requirements. The Graduate Dean will complete the final degree audit before the doctoral degree is conferred.
     
4. EXCEPTIONS AND MODIFICATIONS TO DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
  4.1 The appropriate college dean may make exceptions and modifications to college degree requirements if extenuating circumstances exist.  All exceptions and modifications shall be noted in a student’s official degree plan. 
     
  4.2 Any student requesting an exception to a University-level requirement on an undergraduate degree plan must submit the request on the appropriate form and provide written justification.  The exception must be approved by the academic advisor, department chairperson, college dean and, if appropriate, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.  The signed form must be submitted to the Office of Admissions and Records.
     
  4.3 Any exceptions to University-level requirements on a graduate degree plan must be requested by the student on the appropriate form, justified in writing, and approved by the academic advisor, department chair or designee, and college dean.  The signed form must be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies and Research.
     
  4.4 The Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs may make exceptions to University degree requirements if the exceptions are in the best interest of the University.
     
  4.5 State requirements may not be waived by any official of the University.
     
5.

ACCURACY OF RECORDS
To facilitate the certification process and to ensure that degrees are not awarded in error, the Director of Admissions and Records is charged with maintaining timely, accurate, and complete academic records.  The Director of Admissions and Records is also charged with reporting all grade changes and credit changes to the appropriate college immediately after the academic record change is made, especially for students who have applied for graduation.
     
6.

CERTIFICATION PROCEDURES
The Director of Admissions and Records shall document, maintain, and distribute University degree certification procedures to all individuals involved in the certification process. The Director of Admissions and Records shall also make sure that procedures adhere to approved regulations. The academic program shall approve all procedures.

Contact for Interpretation: Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs