Navigating Your Degree

Program of study

Specific courses to be included in a student’s Program of Study are determined as a joint effort between the student, their committee chair, and other members of the advisory committee to meet the needs of the student.  

All incoming master’s students and PhD students who lack prior Graduate School experience must take “SOE 501: Graduate Skills Seminar” during their first fall semester and include this in their program of study. This course introduces students to graduate study at WSU, the scientific method, and research proposals and presentations. The student’s advisory committee and the department chair must approve the Program of Study before it is submitted to the department graduate coordinator and signed off on by the director. 

All other graded graduate-level coursework (with a grade of B or higher) taken as a graduate student, but not taken toward a completed graduate degree, may be used toward a master’s degree at WSU with the approval of the student’s advisory committee and program director. In all transfer cases, the number of such credit hours is limited to half of the total graded course credits required by the program listed on the Program of Study.  PhD students must take 15 graduate credits at WSU, but may transfer additional graduate credits for their program of study (for a total > 15 credits) with the approval of the student’s advisory committee and program director

Courses taken to remove undergraduate deficiencies cannot be taken for a Pass/Fail grade. Any course included in the advanced degree program in which a grade of “C- “or below is earned must be repeated, but not on a Pass/Fail basis. Courses taken for audit or courses graded Pass/Fail may not be used on the program of study. 

Well before finalizing research plans and submitting their program of study, students should consult with their advisors to determine whether they need to seek IRB or IACUC approval. IRB approval is needed for research involving humans, and IACUC approval is required for research including animals. See the WSU IRB page and the WSU IACUC page for more information.  IRB/IACUC paperwork is not required to submit the program of study, but it is required for research and for the student’s final exam (if applicable).

Research Proposal Requirements for SOE Graduate Students 

The research proposal requirement aims to help students develop the best possible plan for their thesis or dissertation, making use of committee input.  Specific goals include: 

1. Ensure that the student’s study design and plan for analysis is adequate to address study objectives 
2. Provide the opportunity for the student’s advisory committee to give suggestions and raise any concerns prior to preliminary exams, substantial data collection, and defense 
3. Ensure students have adequate background knowledge about the research subject and methods before implementing their study  
4. Provide students with additional experience writing a proposal for future grants and projects  

MS students: 

• Research plan is recommended at the discretion of the advisory committee 
• Research plan should ideally be completed before substantial work has been done on the thesis research 

PhD students: 

• Proposal is required 
• Proposal must be approved by advisory committee ideally before signing off on preliminary exam paperwork, or by the end of the semester of the preliminary exam if necessary. 
• Proposal should be completed before substantial work has been done on the dissertation research, although approach may vary as directed by committee. 
• Proposal should be recorded on graduate student annual review for SOE records. 

Content of Proposal 

The length and specific content of the proposal can be decided by the student’s advisory committee, and will vary depending on project logistics, study area, and other factors.  The length of the MS study plan is expected to be shorter than the proposal required for PhD students. 

The recommended content of the proposal includes: 

• Literature review on the dissertation/thesis topic and methods to demonstrate in-depth knowledge 
• Objectives (and hypotheses where applicable) for research 
• Outline of methods for each proposed chapter, with a clear explanation of how methods will address the stated objectives/hypothesis  
• Expected schedule for completion of thesis/dissertation 

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

As one of the purposes of the written portion of the PhD preliminary examinations is to assess the student’s ability to craft comprehensive, reasoned, and effective written answers to questions they are given, the use of generative AI to assist in writing is prohibited. This includes use of AI to write content, rephrase sentences, organize or structure written content, and generate outlines or other content used to answer the questions. AI can still be used to assist in searching for references (if the exam is open book), and for basic spelling/grammar checking that is built into many word processing software packages. Similarly, the thesis or dissertation represents the culmination of a graduate student’s degree program, and should reflect the student’s own ability to conduct a study and communicate the results in written form. Therefore, the use of generative AI to assist in writing of theses or dissertations is also prohibited. 

Preliminary Examination of PhD Students 

Every WSU student must pass a preliminary examination to become a PhD candidate. This examination is taken after most of the required coursework has been completed, as determined by the dissertation committee and graduate policy, and upon submission of a dissertation research proposal, usually after the second year in the program.  

It will consist of a written exam followed by an oral defense, the format of which will be determined by the individual committee. Both will focus on the student’s major area of competency, courses taken, and the subject matter of the proposed research. 

It is best practice for graduate committees, including external committee members, to allow students ample time and give their students preparatory materials to prepare for their preliminary exam. All committee members, including external students, should follow the faculty mentorship guidelines and graduate school policies and procedures regarding best practices for exams.  

In the event of a failed first attempt of an exam, a second and final attempt may be scheduled after a period of at least three months, but no longer than two academic semesters (excluding summer). When scheduling a second exam, the scheduling form must be submitted to the SOE graduate academic coordinator at least 16 business days before the exam. A member of the Graduate Mentor Academy will be appointed by the Graduate School and must be present at re-examination. The entire committee must be present and vote.

Thesis, Dissertation, and Final Examination 

The final examination will consist of a defense of the thesis or dissertation. All students must present a seminar to the faculty and public on their research. Graduate students will be required to upload a draft of their thesis/dissertation to ProQuest and provide a digital copy of their thesis to their department graduate academic coordinator.

Committee members, including external committee members, are required to read the student’s dissertation prior to scheduling a defense date to ascertain whether the dissertation is ready to defend. Depending on the dissertation, advisor’s preference and the student’s writing ability, the student should generally allow three to four weeks before their exam to address the rough draft comments. PhD Students should allow a longer period for review, ideally three weeks per chapter or at their committee’s discretion.  

Because a student only has ten working days after defending their dissertation to turn in the final version to the Graduate School, most substantial changes should be addressed prior to defending their written thesis or dissertation during the final exam. Students and committees should work together to ensure that there is ample time prior to a student’s defense to make substantial changes.  

Students submit their thesis following the Graduate School directions listed on Graduate School dissertations and theses web page at least 13 days prior to the proposed exam date, preferably earlier. This draft should be as close to complete as is possible, though revisions are expected after the student’s defense.  

Dissertation submission, revision, and subsequent committee chair signoff is done digitally. If students would like their advisor & committee members to sign a physical signature page printed on cotton paper, they may ask the graduate coordinator at their campus to print their signature page off on 100% cotton paper as a keepsake. However, even if pages are physically printed and signed, all digital exam components must be completed. Please see WSU Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD) Formatting Checklist for a list of post-defense items required by the graduate school. 

All members of the advisory committee must present, participate, and ballot in the final oral presentation and examination (defense). Committee members, especially committee chairs, have final tasks to complete after their student defends. The public and additional members of the WSU community (students, staff, faculty) can attend any oral presentation component of the preliminary examination and ask questions. Only members of the student’s advisory committee and SOE Graduate Faculty can attend and participate in the oral preliminary exam (i.e., ask questions and ballot).  

If any SOE graduate faculty besides the student’s advisory committee is planning to ballot on either a preliminary or final exam, they must notify in writing the SOE Graduate Coordinator (Zoeii Freeman), the Associate Director for Graduate Studies (Dan Thornton), and the Chair of the student’s advisory committee within 3 days of the announcement of the exam, and they must have read the student’s thesis.  

After a successful final exam, the student has ten business days to do the following:

• Email the Hold Harmless form to gradschool@wsu.edu 
• Complete the thesis approval form.
• Complete the survey of earned doctorates (Ph.D. only). 

Degree Extensions 

Students have a set period in which to finish their degree, as outlined by WSU graduate policy. 

All master’s students must request an extension if they have not completed their degree within six years.  

Doctoral students must meet two deadlines:  

1. They must graduate within four years of successful completion of their preliminary qualifying exams 
2. They must complete their degree within 10 years of beginning the program 

If a student cannot complete their degree within the timeframes above, they will need to request an official extension from the graduate school.

Please read the graduate school policies and procedures manual thoroughly before requesting an extension.

Note on Extensions 

We strongly encourage students to adhere to suggested SOE degree completion guidelines whenever possible. However, in cases where it is impossible to adhere to the degree completion guidelines, it is recommended students meet with their advisors as soon as they recognize they may need more time to complete their degree. Students and advisors should discuss funding, workload expectations (following WSU policy), and other potential issues surrounding extended completion so both parties are aware of their responsibilities. If students or advisors have questions about funding or policy, they should contact the departmental graduate coordinator. 

Of specific importance: Students must be enrolled for at least two research credits during the semester in which they complete their degree. If no funding is available to students to cover these credits, advisors should let their students know so the students can prepare for the cost of credits. 

How to request an extension

First extension

1. The student must petition their committee chair in writing (email preferred). 
2. The chair(s) of the committee must meet with the advisory committee and all members must agree on the student’s extension. 
3. When all are in favor, the advisor should forward a copy of the student’s email request and detailed memo on SOE letterhead explaining why the request is being made, including details about any delays. Please reach out to the graduate coordinator if you need the latest version of the letterhead. 
4. The graduate coordinator will upload these materials to the GRM for review by the Vice Provost of Graduate and Professional Education.  
5. Upon approval by the Vice Provost, the student will have one year to complete their degree.  

Second extension

1. The student must petition their committee chair in writing (email preferred). The student must explain in this request: 
   1.  Why they could not complete their degree during the first extension. 
   2. A detailed plan for completing their degree during the upcoming year extension (if granted) including generalized dates for deliverables
2. The student must schedule and discuss this plan with their committee. 
3. The entire committee must vote positively upon the second extension. 
4. Upon a positive vote from the student’s committee, the committee advisor will email the SOE graduate coordinator to notify them of the results of the committee meeting.  
5. The SOE graduate coordinator will attend the next SOE faculty meeting whereby the Associate Director of Graduate Studies will conduct a vote of the entire SOE graduate faculty. The Graduate coordinator will collect the results of the vote. 
6. After the vote, the chair of the student’s graduate committee will submit a memorandum to the SOE graduate coordinator and director of the SOE explaining the rationale for this extension, providing the details of the timeline, verifying the date of the thesis/dissertation meeting, and indicating that the advisory committee concurs with the decision to request a second extension.

Third extension

1. The student must submit a request for a third extension to the student’s advisory committee chair explaining:
   1.  why the thesis/dissertation was unable to be completed after a second extension.
2. The student must also develop a detailed timeline for completing the thesis/dissertation.
3. The advisory committee chair must evaluate and approve the rationale and timeline for the requested third extension. The student must schedule and complete an advisory committee meeting during which the timeline for completion is discussed.
4. A graduate program faculty meeting must be held during which the student’s request for a third extension is discussed. Once the thesis/dissertation advisor presents the circumstances for this request, the chair or director of the degree-granting unit must ballot the graduate program faculty for their support of the request.
5. The results of this balloting must be reported to the Graduate School as part of the request for a third extension.
6. If the faculty supports the request, the chair or director of the degree-granting unit must write a memo to the vice provost for graduate and professional education explaining the rationale for the request, providing a detailed timeline for completion of the thesis/dissertation within one year, and including any extenuating circumstances that need to be considered.
7. The memo, supported by the materials listed above, should be forwarded to the Graduate School by the program’s graduate coordinator using the GRM.
8. If approved, the vice provost for graduate and professional education will write a letter to the student explaining that this is a third and final extension.
9. The student must acknowledge receipt of this letter in writing to the vice provost for graduate and professional education and the chair, explaining that they understand this is their final opportunity to complete the thesis/dissertation degree.
10. Note: Students must be enrolled for at least two research credits during both the fall and spring semesters of a third extension or until degree completion. 

Important Forms for Navigating Degrees

Please send all completed forms to the SOE Graduate Coordinator for review before submitting at least 36 business hours before the graduate school deadline. (I.e. Grad school says 10 days, please return to the grad coordinator in 13 business days so they have time to get it in by the 10^th day.)

Students should sign and collect all committee signatures before submitting to the graduate coordinator. The graduate coordinator will collect the SOE director’s signature after proofreading the form.

Find all graduate forms at the Graduate School forms web page. 

Common Forms to be Completed:

• All But Dissertation (ABD) waiver: For doctoral students only who have completed their preliminary qualifying exams and are done with all schoolwork.
  • Due: immediately after successful completion of preliminary qualifying exams
• Committee Change Form: For indicating a committee change after a program of study has been approved.
  • Due: Any time your committee changes
• Program of Study Request Form: Graduate school approval for your degree plan & committee
  • Due:
    • Pullman, Tri Cities, and Puyallup:
      • Third semester of study, by the following dates:
        • 8/25 for MS students
        • 9/25 for PhD students
    • Vancouver
      • 2^nd semester of study by the following dates:
        • 9/1 for MS students
        • 10/1 for PhD students
• External Committee Member Request: Any time a student has an external to WSU committee member as their fourth committee member
  • Due: At the same time you pass in your program of study
• Residency Questionnaire: For all students who will be on an assistantship at any point in their graduate career at WSU. Assistants are required to be WA residents after their first year in the program, including those who are on alternate funding their first year (excludes international students).
  • Due: Form is due 1 year from start at WSU. The residency process starts immediately upon arriving at WSU. See the residency page, as well as the next page in the SOE handbook, for more details.