MS Graduation Requirements

Graduating Master's Candidates:

Click on PDF Links:

Step 1: If you intend to complete your Master’s degree this Fall 2021 semester, please complete the Program of Work (link above), ask your supervisor to sign the electronic form, then route it to Kathy McWilliams. She will route the POW form to the Graduate Advisor, and upon approval will email you back to say "you can now apply to graduate online."

Step 2: Once the POW is approved, you can submit the Master’s Graduation Application form online.

·        Thesis Option (link) – Select “Thesis” when applying to graduate.
·        Graduate School Report Option (link) – Select “Report” when applying to graduate.
·        Departmental Report Option (link) – For departmental report select “No Thesis/No Report option.
         Note: Departmental Report Clearance Letter is due by December 3, 2021 to the Graduate Coordinator (Kathy McWilliams). De[artmental Report students will not submit their Report               to the Graduate School, instead it resides in the department with your Area/ major.

The graduation application must be completed and submitted during the appropriate time period:

Fall 2021 Graduates - August 31 - November 12, 2021

Students who do not submit the form by the deadline will not be eligible to receive their degree until the subsequent semester.

If you find after filing for graduation that you will not complete your degree requirements, contact the Graduate Coordinator for instructions for rescheduling your graduation. The Master’s Graduation Application form is valid for one semester only; a new application must be submitted if your semester of graduation changes.

Registration Requirement for Final Semester

All students must be registered in their final graduating semester. Thesis Option students must be registered in 698B and Report Option students must be registered in or have taken 398D to submit a graduation application.

Thesis or Report Submission

The University has acquired access to iThenticate by Turnitin that allows you to check your report, thesis, or dissertation to help identify potential textual similarities between your document and other previously published documents. The Graduate School strongly encourages the use of this tool while preparing drafts of your report, thesis, or dissertation, along with discussion of the results of these reviews with your supervisor. You can find information abut using this tool at https://gradschool.utexas.edu/content/ithenticate .

Thesis option ONLY - Students must upload the thesis BEFORE submitting the required pages detailed below via email to Grad Student Services. The Graduate School will not accept a paper copy of the thesis or report, although the student’s graduate department or program may require one. There will be a final format check when the required pages (see below) are submitted.

It is critical that your submission be complete and correct. After submission, no revisions or corrections will be allowed except for those required by the graduate dean.

The upload and required pages are due by 3 p.m. CDT on the deadline:

Fall 2021 Graduates - December 3, 2021

Required Pages for Thesis option:

Please see the Graduate School's COVID-19 policies and resources website for instructions on submitting materials during social distancing.

Thesis/Report Option students are also required to submit a copy of the following pages to the Graduate School at GradStudentSvcs@austin.utexas.edu by 3 p.m. CDT on the relevant deadline listed above. All paperwork must be submitted together in one packet. Incomplete packets will not be accepted:

A master's committee approval form with signatures of your supervising committee. ALL committee members must sign the master's committee approval form - no proxy signatures allowed; and
Any requests to Delay Publication.

December 3, 2021 BEFORE 3:00 p.m. is the due date for submitting your Thesis or Graduate/Master’s Report AND Required Printed Pages for fall graduation.

Notes on the MS Program of Work (POW) List only the courses that you want to count toward your MS degree; there should be exactly 30 hours of coursework listed (including 698A/B Thesis, 398R Master’s Report, or 398D Departmental Report for any Report of Thesis MS options – these courses should be listed under major coursework), with at least 6 hours listed under Supporting Work & reasoning included. Once your supervisor signs the form, please email it to the Graduate Coordinator (Kathy McWilliams) for graduate advisor approval.

Your online graduation application will NOT be approved until you submit the signed Program of Work form to the Graduate Coordinator (Kathy McWilliams).
When your online graduation application is approved by the graduate advisor, the electronic version of your POW will be submitted to the Graduate School and becomes a permanent part of your academic record.
Please contact Kathy McWilliams if you have any questions or concerns about applying to graduate.

In Absentia - https://gradschool.utexas.edu/academics/policies/in-absentia-registration

Current or former M.S. students planning to continue on to the PhD program must complete the PhD Continuation Application
LINK to form - http://www.caee.utexas.edu/images/gradforms/PhD%20Application%20Form%20-%20Typeable%20updated.pdf