L. Master's and Doctoral Guide to Filing for Degree Completion

• Completion and Filing of the Thesis or Dissertation
• Master’s and Doctoral Degree Checks
  • Initiating a Degree Check
  • Extending a Degree Deadline
  • Master’s Degree Check
  • Doctoral Degree Check
  • Unfinished Coursework (Incomplete, No Grade, and No Record)
• Status for Graduate Degree Awards
  • Registering and Enrolling the Quarter of Degree Completion
  • Applying for a Filing Fee Leave
• Filing Deadlines and Degree Conferral
  • Degree Verification, Transcripts, and Diplomas
  • Commencement

Completion and Filing of the Thesis or Dissertation

The Graduate Council sets policy governing the preparation, filing, and publication of master's theses and doctoral dissertations. Students and faculty may access the current Guide to Filing of Theses and Dissertations. The same site provides a sample dissertation in PDF and Word for Windows format with complete template preliminary pages as well as formatted examples of body text, figures, references, and appendix.

The entire master's thesis or doctoral dissertation must be submitted to the members of the student's committee for their review and final approval. This includes all preliminary pages (e.g., preface, dedication, and/or acknowledgements), the main body of the text (including any charts or other inserted material), and all additional materials (e.g., notes, bibliography, appendices). It is the responsibility of each committee member to read the manuscript in its entirety before approving. Nothing can be added to the manuscript once the committee has given final approval as indicated by members' signatures on the approval page.

Graduate Council standards are meant to be used in conjunction with disciplinary guidelines and apply largely to matters affecting formatting (e.g., legibility, margins, paper quality). Formatting standards have been adopted to ensure acceptance of manuscripts by the Davidson Library, UC Bindery, and ProQuest/UMI ( NOTE : only dissertations, not theses, are sent to ProQuest).

•  NOTE : When students use material to which they do not hold the copyright, they must seek the written permission of the copyright owner when such usage is beyond "fair use." For additional information on permission to use previously copyrighted material exceeding fair use, see the Guide to Filing of Theses and Dissertations.

Students file completed paper copies of their theses or dissertations at Graduate Division, Cheadle Hall 3117, between the hours of 9:00-12:00 and 1:00-4:00 p.m., Monday-Friday.

• Master's students must take two paper copies of the thesis to the Graduate Division for final review.
• Doctoral students must take one paper copy to the Graduate Division if they have filed an electronic copy through ProQuest, or two paper copies in lieu of electronic filing are submitted to the Graduate Division.

In all cases, paper copies of the final thesis or dissertation must be on 100% cotton bond with original signature pages signed by the student's committee attached. The Graduate Division staff will check the manuscript copies to ensure that the Graduate Council standards have been followed. Students are urged to come to the Graduate Division for a "pre-check" of their manuscript in advance of finalizing it for approval by their committee members.

REQUIREMENT : Doctoral students are required by the Graduate Council to complete and sign an agreement with ProQuest/UMI to permit publication and dissemination of the dissertation on microfilm and through electronic means.

ProQuest/UMI filing requirements:

• Optional: The $65.00 copyright fee to ProQuest for copywriting the dissertation with the Library of Congress.
• Electronic Submission: Students will pay this fee with credit card at the time they complete the online ProQuest form.
• Hardcopy Submission: Student pay copyright fee by either a certified check or money order with an expiration date of at least six months from the date of filing .

•  NOTE: Students who want additional information on the details and merits of copyrighting can visit ProQuest at Copyright Law and Graduate Research or the U.S. Copyright Office.

REQUIREMENT: Graduate Council requires doctoral students to complete two surveys:

1. National Research Council's Survey of Earned Doctorates (students must download the PDF and submit the completed form to the Graduate Division)
2. UCSB Doctoral Exit Survey

Master's and Doctoral Degree Checks

Initiating a Degree Check

Once a department has notified the Graduate Division that a student has completed all degree requirements, the Graduate Division conducts a degree check to ensure that all requirements have been met-residence, units, and academic milestones-within Graduate Council deadlines.

*  NOTE : Due to the large number of degrees awarded each quarter, degree checks are not performed the same day that paperwork is turned in to the Graduate Division. Students should inform the Graduate Division if there is an urgent need for a degree check.

Extending a Degree Deadline

Except as authorized by the Graduate Council, each student in a master's program must satisfy all requirements for the degree within four calendar years after admission to the master's program. [Senate Regulation 300A] Each student in a doctoral program must satisfy all requirements for the degree within seven calendar years after admission to graduate study at UC Santa Barbara. [Senate Regulation 350A] The seven-year time limit for completion of a doctorate is distinct from the department's "normative time" (as departmental normative times vary, see "Normative Time for Completing Doctoral Program" chart).

Students who have exceeded the Graduate Council's deadlines must petition to have the deadline for degree completion extended (see Section M for additional information). The nature of the petition depends on the length of time by which the degree deadline has been exceeded.

• If the degree deadline has been exceeded by no more than two years, a Graduate Student Petition requesting the extension, endorsed and signed by the student's department graduate advisor, must be submitted. Approval of such petitions will typically be routine.
• Extension for more than two years, a Graduate Student Petition requesting the extension, endorsed and signed by the department graduate advisor must be submitted to the Graduate Division. The petition must be accompanied by a memo documenting and certifying currency in the field, signed by all members of the thesis or doctoral committee. The Graduate Council has identified continuous registration, teaching or research apprenticeships, or contact with current literature and research in the field as examples of currency. In some cases, students who have been unregistered for a long period of time may be required by their department to be reinstated to graduate status, they must register for one or more quarters to complete their degree. In some instances, a department may require that a student sit for doctoral qualifying examinations following reinstatement to prove currency in the field. If additional information is needed, the Graduate Division will contact the department graduate advisor. Approval of such petitions may be considered by the Chair of the Graduate Council, or referred for inclusion on the Graduate Council agenda as necessary.

Master's Degree Check

The Graduate Division will conduct a master's degree check when notified by the department that the student has completed all degree requirements, including all relevant departmental requirements, coursework, and comprehensive examinations or the master's project. A degree check will also be initiated when a student brings a completed master's thesis to the Graduate Division. Following receipt of a master's thesis, the Graduate Division will check with the department to ensure that all other requirements have been met unless previous notification has been provided. The Graduate Division cannot award a master's degree without a memo signed by the department chair or graduate advisor verifying that the student has completed all requirements for the master's degree.

Occasionally, doctoral students petition to add a master's degree objective (e.g., M.A. or M.S.) and mistakenly believe that this petition is sufficient to initiate a degree check-it is not. Graduate Division requires a signed memo verifying that the student has completed all of the master's degree requirements.

Doctoral Degree Check

The Graduate Division initiates a degree check when the department has submitted the Doctoral Form III that a student has either defended the dissertation or that the defense has been waived by using Doctoral Form III-A to Graduate Division Academic Services, Cheadle Hall 3117, then followed by student filing his/her dissertation.

Unfinished Coursework (Incomplete, No Grade, and No Record)

All Incompletes, No Grades (NG), or No Records (NR) must be removed from the student's record before a master's degree can be awarded. This applies to students who will terminate with the master's degree or continue on for the doctorate.

All grades are final and cannot be changed once a degree is awarded, including Incomplete Grades and No Grades. Students should be warned that they must persist until all Incompletes and No Grades are removed and replaced with grades before a degree is awarded. If coursework is not needed to fulfill degree requirements, a student may petition retroactively to drop the course(s) in which an Incomplete, No Grade, or No Record was originally submitted by the instructor. This option is especially useful when an Incomplete or No Grade is holding up a degree award.

Status for Graduate Degree Awards

UC policy requires graduate students to be in student status with the University the quarter they wish to have a graduate degree awarded. Students may use one of two options, depending on their eligibility or circumstances:

Registering and Enrolling the Quarter of Degree Completion

Quarterly registration maintains a student's graduate status, and a student may enroll in research units if no additional coursework is needed. Students are required to enroll in a minimum of 8 units in fall, winter, and spring, while a minimum of 4 units is required for a six-week summer session.

Registration as a graduate student in any term is valid for filing purposes through the last workday preceding the start of the subsequent quarter. A student who registered in spring may take examinations or file a thesis or dissertation until the last workday before fall quarter officially begins without additional fee payment.

Applying for a Filing Fee Leave

The Filing Fee Quarter of Leave Absence status may be used in lieu of registration to maintain the relationship between the student and the University for the express purpose of completing one final requirement (e.g., filing the thesis or dissertation or completing comprehensive examinations). NOTE: This use of the Filing Fee requires the student to be enrolled in full-time status and paying all required fees for the quarter prior to the filing-fee quarter. The filing fee is to be used only by students who have completed all other requirements for the degree and will not be holding a student appointment title or extensively using University resources or faculty time.

The filing fee is one half the amount of the registration fee. Students should pay the filing fee the day they actually file for a degree and no sooner. Students should be cautioned about unrealistic expectations about finishing. Should the student not, for any reason, file the thesis or dissertation or pass the comprehensive examination during the approved filing fee quarter, the student must register for the quarter during which final degree requirements are met.

Both the student's research advisor and the department graduate advisor must approve the Filing Fee Leave of Absence Petition, verifying that the student will finish during the quarter in question. The petition serves as a contract that commits the student to file that quarter in return for the privileges a leave of absence confers.

*  NOTE: Payment of the Filing Fee terminates one's graduate standing.                 Eligibility, criteria, and restrictions include:

• graduate students who have no other open degree objectives;
• only doctoral students and terminal master's degree students;
• students may not carry forward a filing fee from one quarter to the next; and
• students need to be registered to gain access to University services or hold an academic apprenticeship and may not use filing-fee status.

Filing Deadlines and Degree Conferral

Degrees are officially awarded four times a year. A student must have finished all requirements by the final business day of the quarter to have his/her degree dated that quarter. The degree conferral date is the last day of each quarter and it is this date that will appear on the student's official University of California diploma and transcript.

Deadlines for Degrees Filed Within the Four Academic Quarters

Deadlines for Degrees Filed Between Academic Quarters

Students are advised to consult the Registrar's Schedule of Classes to verify these dates.

Degree Verification, Transcripts, and Diplomas

A diploma will automatically be sent upon degree completion to a student's permanent address as listed in GOLD. A nominal charge will automatically be assessed to the student's BARC account for the mailing cost of the diploma. It takes approximately 3-4 months from the order date for receipt of a diploma. All questions concerning diplomas should be addressed to the Office of the Registrar.

*  NOTE : Transcripts are not automatically sent upon degree completion; rather they must be ordered online via GOLD.

*  NOTE : Transcripts take approximately one month to be received.

Upon request, the Graduate Division will provide a letter certifying the actual date of completion of requirements and guaranteeing that the degree will be awarded the last day of the next quarter. This letter will satisfy many employers and agencies, but not all. Students who have an urgent need for an official transcript should notify both the Graduate Division and the Registrar at the time they file for their degrees.

Commencement

The Graduate Division coordinates a special commencement ceremony each June for graduate degree and credential candidates in all fields. Students are encouraged to go through commencement only if they have completed all degree requirements, or will have before fall quarter officially begins. The Graduate Division's online commencement registration site is usually activated in early February. Spring and summer quarter degree candidates must register on the Graduate Division's commencement Web site by the registration deadline (typically mid-April) to ensure that their names and for doctoral students their dissertation titles appear in the publications printed for commencement.

Doctoral degree candidates planning to participate in commencement exercises should verify with their dissertation chair that their prospective completion date is within a reasonable time frame.