At the conclusion of a doctoral student’s first semester, they are required to achieve at least a 3.3 GPA and to have successfully defended and been awarded a Master’s degree. If a doctoral student does not earn a 3.3 GPA in their first semester, then they will be placed on probation and will have the second semester to bring their cumulative GPA to a 3.3. Failure to meet the GPA requirement of the Department’s qualifying examination process automatically prevents candidacy. The Director of Graduate Studies shall notify in writing any student who has failed to meet the first-semester GPA requirement that they will be placed on probation during the second semester. The student will be reminded that for their probationary status to be removed, and to be allowed to continue their doctoral program in the Department, they must achieve a 3.3 cumulative GPA at the end of the second semester. If this does not occur, the student will be notified in writing by the Director of Graduate Studies that failure to satisfy the qualifying examination process terminates their candidacy for the doctoral degree in the Department of Communication.

If a doctoral student has not successfully defended and been awarded a Master’s degree before entering the program, they will enter the program with probationary status. Failure to meet the degree requirements of the Department’s qualifying examination process automatically prevents candidacy. 

The Director of Graduate Studies shall notify in writing any student who begins the program without an MA degree of their probationary status. The student will be reminded that for their probationary status to be removed, and to be allowed to continue their doctoral program in the Department, they must successfully defend and have been awarded a Master’s degree by the end of their first semester. If this does not occur, the student will be notified in writing by the Director of Graduate Studies that failure to satisfy the Master’s degree requirement of the qualifying examination process terminates their candidacy for the doctoral degree in the Department of Communication. 

APPROVED 09-11-2015