E. Graduate Student Responsibilities

• Rights and Responsibilities for Campus Membership
• Expectations for Graduate Student Progress and Performance
• Maintaining Degree Status
• Full-time Status
• Achieving Satisfactory Performance to Levels as Evaluated by Faculty Members
• Academic Good Standing
• Coursework (Incompletes, NGS, and NRS)
• Timely Degree Progress
• Departmental Normative Time
• Normative Time Doctoral Program Chart
• Time-to-Degree (Campus Regulations)
• Graduate Class Level (Registrar Designation)
• Doctoral Degree Timeline and Classifications Chart (P1, P2, P3)

Rights and Responsibilities for Campus Membership

In order to carry on its work of teaching, research, and public service, the University has an obligation to maintain conditions under which the work of the University can go forward freely, in accordance with the highest standards of quality, institutional integrity, and freedom of expression, with full recognition by all concerned of the rights and privileges, as well as the responsibilities, of those who compose the University community. These campus regulations address the rights and responsibilities of members of the University community and provide campus-wide standards for implementing regulations as a means of sustaining this community. Each member of this campus shares the responsibility of maintaining this unique community so that the University's mission of teaching, research, and public service can be achieved (from Campus Regulations Preamble).

•  Graduate Student Bill of Rights
•  Academic Freedom Policy
•  Scholarship Requirements for Graduate Students[Academic Senate270]
•  Standards of Conduct
•  Sustaining Community and Preventing Violence
•  Graduate Student Conflict of Interest Policy

Expectations for Graduate Student Progress and Performance

Graduate students are expected to meet the academic and conduct standards of the University. Academic standards include:

1. Maintaining graduate degree status (full-time enrollment is required for employment and fellowships)
2. Achieving satisfactory performance to levels as evaluated by faculty members
3. Making timely progress through required program milestones

Maintaining Degree Status

Continuous registration is required of all graduate students. The University of California Continuous Enrollment Policy requires that graduate students be continuously enrolled while progressing toward their degree. Graduate students are required to maintain graduate status each quarter by paying fees in full and officially registering in 8 or more units.

Students begin graduate degree status when they are admitted to a degree or certificate program by the Graduate Division, pay the registration fees and enroll in classes. Only coursework taken while a student is in graduate status may be counted toward a graduate degree.

Graduate students who fail to register and are not on an official leave of absence are not considered to be students . When this occurs , they relinquish the right to consult with faculty, and to take advantage of University resources and facilities that are available to registered students.

When students have not been registered for some time, departments may ask them to reinstate to graduate status and register before they resume consultations with faculty. In some cases, when students have exceeded one or more time-to-degree deadlines, they must prove currency in the field. Departments may require students to take classes or re-take their qualifying examinations.

•  NOTE : Reinstatement is not automatic . Departments are asked to think carefully about a decision to reinstate a student. A department may have good reasons for not reinstating a student; for example, a student may have had trouble meeting academic requirements, or the department's resources to support the student's area of interest have diminished over time, or faculty with whom the student previously worked have left UC Santa Barbara. These factors should be taken into account before reinstatement is approved. (See Section M on Reinstatement from Unregistered Status).

Full-time Status

UC Santa Barbara receives instructional and fellowship funding based on the number of students enrolled and the average number of units per student as of the 15th day of instruction. Hence, it is crucial that students enroll on time and register for a full-time course load during each term of study. The normal course load is 12 or more units per quarter, and 8 units is the minimum to remain eligible for important services and benefits, to be appointed as a Teaching Assistant or Graduate Student Researcher, to receive financial aid, to qualify for University-supported student housing, and to be eligible for campus and extramural benefits and services. Other benefits linked to full-time status include student borrowing privileges at the Davidson Library, Student Health Services, Counseling and Career Services, student privileges at the Recreation Center, and discounts for city buses.

There is no part-time status for graduate students. With very few exceptions, there are no reduced fees for a reduced course load. Most lending agencies demand repayment of loans if a student is not registered or is carrying less than a minimum course load. The Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement requires international students to be engaged in a full course of study.

There are different ways to achieve the normal full-time, 12-unit course load:

•  Students in group studies or special projects should enroll in units designated for these activities-i.e., 594 or 595 in most departments.
•  Students who are doing extensive reading or research under a faculty member's supervision should sign up for 596 units.
•  Students studying for master's comprehensive examinations or doctoral qualifying examinations or working on a thesis or dissertation should be encouraged to sign up for independent-study units typically numbered 596-599.
•  The maximum number of 596 units that may be counted toward the master's degree in most departments is half the required graduate units. Directed reading and research (or 596) courses usually involve a written contract that details the work the student will do and the basis upon which a grade will be assigned.

The Graduate advisor retains authority over individual study plans for the department's graduate students. In advising students about their academic progress, advisors are asked to exercise sensitivity to the diverse circumstances students face (e.g., heavy workload as a TA or GSR, or other extenuating circumstances).

Achieving Satisfactory Performance to Levels as Evaluated by Faculty Members

The essential standards of scholarship required of graduate students and grounds for academic disqualification are set forth in Academic Senate Regulation 270, "Scholarship Requirements for Graduate Students":

Each graduate student must maintain the standards of scholarship established for his or her classification by the Graduate Council.

• A graduate student whose scholarship or whose progress toward the degree is unsatisfactory is subject to dismissal by the Graduate Dean in consultation with the department concerned. Disqualification is at the discretion of the Graduate Dean.

Academic Good Standing

To remain in good academic standing, a graduate student must make timely progress toward degree completion and satisfactorily meet the following standards of scholarship established by University and campus Academic Senate Regulations or Graduate Council rulings. The following Senate Regulations can be read online Senate Regulations 250-525.

• Maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0. [Senate Regulations 300D and 350D];
• Take courses for a letter grade to achieve the minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, since courses graded Pass/No Pass or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory earn 0.0 grade points and do not contribute to good standing;
• Keep the student transcript free of excessive units of unfinished coursework, defined as 12 or more units of Incomplete, No Grade, and/or No Record. [Graduate Council rulings];
• Advance to doctoral candidacy within four years of admission to and enrollment in a doctoral program. [Senate Regulation 350A and Graduate Council rulings];
• Complete the master's degree within the four-year time limit. [Senate Regulations 300A];
• Complete the doctoral degree within the seven-year time limit. [Senate Regulation 350A];
• Meet all departmental degree requirements in accordance with departmental time limits, including satisfactory performance in core courses (grade of B or better required, or a higher departmental stipulation) and on required projects or examinations; pass departmental examinations within the number of attempts permitted by the student's department and Graduate Council. [Senate Regulations 255B, 255C, 265, and 270];
• Form a master's or doctoral committee; present a thesis plan or dissertation research proposal acceptable to the committee; complete a thesis or dissertation acceptable to all committee members; and successfully pass a final defense of the thesis or dissertation when required. [Senate Regulations 300B , 305B , 350.D.2];
• NOTE: Some departments establish GPA and individual course grade standards greater than the Academic Senate B/3.0 GPA. Students should check carefully on departmental requirements for good standing and adequate progress toward degree completion.

Unfinished Coursework (Incompletes, NGS, NRS)

Incomplete Grade : Students must file a petition with the Office of the Registrar prior to the last day of the quarter to receive an Incomplete grade. If this petition is not on file, and the instructor submits an Incomplete, the Registrar will enter the grade as an F or U. Incompletes convert to failing grades at the end of the quarter following the original class, unless the instructor submits a grade to the Registrar. The instructor may extend the Incomplete for additional quarters by requesting an extension from the Office of the Registrar.

No Grades and No Records : Graduate students are allowed to carry No Grades (NG) and No Records (NR) for only one quarter after the course was originally undertaken. Grades of NG or NR from coursework in any previous quarter will automatically revert to failing grades unless a letter grade, S/U or P/NP, is reported to the Registrar by the instructor of record via the E-Grades system. While an NG or NR requires no Registrar's petition, it automatically expires at the end of the next quarter with no possibility of extension.

Impact of Unfinished Grades on Degree Candidacy : Students having Incompletes or grades of NG and NR on their record are ineligible to advance to candidacy until such notations have been removed. Similarly, students cannot be awarded a master's degree if they have any unfinished grades on their record. However, a doctoral degree may be awarded when a student has Incompletes, NG, or NR in 599 coursework. If the Incomplete is not removed before the doctorate is awarded, it becomes a permanent Fail on the transcript; a transcript cannot be changed after a degree is awarded.

If unfinished coursework is not needed to fulfill degree requirements or to advance to candidacy with instructor approval, students may petition to retroactively drop the course(s) in which the instructor originally assigned an Incomplete or NG.

•  NOTE : Students should be advised that by dropping a course, their total units for the quarter may fall below the minimum level of 8 units. This unit reduction may affect their financial aid, employment, and fellowship awards.
•  NOTE : Maintaining a study load of at least 8 units per quarter is particularly important for international students, as their student visas require they maintain fulltime enrollment status.

Twelve or more units of unfinished coursework are considered excessive by the Graduate Council. The Graduate Division sends students advisory letters when this occurs for the first time. If excessive unfinished coursework continues in the following quarter, students are placed on academic probation and become subject to dismissal. Departments are asked to monitor such instances, since it is usually an indication that students are having trouble making timely degree completion and may need help or advice from faculty or staff.

Timely Degree Progress

      • Departmental Normative Time

Departments have set normative time standards for doctoral degree completion. These time standards have been approved by the Graduate Council. Most fellowship awards require that a graduate student be within normative time standards established by his or her department, see Normative Chart below.

  * Dependent on additional language requirements
** Dependent on whether the student entered with or without a master's degree

      • Time-to-Degree (Campus Regulations)

In establishing time-to-degree requirements for advancement to doctoral candidacy and degree completion, the Graduate Council seeks (1) to incorporate a significant level of faculty input in the decision-making process leading up to academic probation, and (2) to place emphasis on mentoring by requiring students to meet with their research advisors if they exceed one of the time-to-degree standards.

Under the Graduate Council policy, students are given four years to complete a master's degree, four years from beginning graduate study at UC Santa Barbara to advance to doctoral candidacy, and seven years total to complete a doctoral degree. A student who exceed one or more of the time-to-degree requirements should meet with his or her personal or research advisor-usually the chair of the master's or doctoral committee. Both faculty and the student should monitor academic progress and time-to-degree, and be aware of the implications for financial support should the student exceed normative time. A student and his or her advisor should agree on steps to be taken to fulfill the unmet degree requirements (e.g., take qualifying examinations, finish the master's thesis or doctoral dissertation) and a timetable for the completion of each task. When a student has no research advisor, the student should meet with the department graduate advisor for consultation.

Graduate Class Level (Registrar Designation)

In addition to full-time status, the instructional and fellowship funding that UC Santa Barbara receives for graduate education is dependent upon the class level of enrolled graduate students as determined by the Office of the Registrar. For this reason, it is crucial that students and graduate advisors are aware not only of the departmental normative-time and time-to-degree requirements, but also the Registrar's class level designations. The graduate class levels employed by the Registrar are:

•  Post-baccalaureate student holds a baccalaureate degree and the sole degree objective is a teacher education credential.
•  Master's degree objective is academic or professional master's, certification credential, non-doctoral first professional degree (e.g., M.F.A.), or no degree objective. This includes students enrolled in joint master's and teacher education credential programs, but not students whose sole objective is a teacher credential.

Doctoral Levels

•  P1 status degree objective is academic or professional doctorate, but student has not been advanced to candidacy.
•  P2 status degree objective is academic or professional doctorate, and student has been advanced to candidacy (students can maintain P2 status for up to 9 quarters).
•  P3 status after 9 registered quarters as P2 status a student goes into P3 status.
•  These class level designations are of particular importance because they are used by the Graduate Division to determine eligibility for financial support.

Doctoral Degree Timeline and Classifications Chart (P1, P2, P3)

•  NOTE : Employment as a Teaching Assistant or Teaching Associate requires that a graduate student be within time-to-degree standards.