The Program of Study form is required by the Grad School by the end of the second semester after matriculation. A Program of Study tells the School of Graduate Studies how to contact you, what kind of degree you plan to earn, what courses you have taken, what courses you will take, as well as the proposed title(s) of your Plan A thesis or Plan B papers. The Program of Study form must be reviewed and signed by your Supervisory Committee members, in accordance to course acceptability guidelines listed in the General Catalog.
How to fill out the Program of Study Form:
1) Click on the appropriate Program of Study Form (Master’s level Program of Study Master’s level Program of Study here: or Doctoral level Program of Study Doctoral level Program of Study here) on the forms page of the blog.
2) Review degree requirements in general catalogue and guidelines above, paying special attention to the guidelines for “Course-Level Numbering and Acceptability.” In short, you should only list graduate level courses and/or courses that have been approved by your Supervisory committee; do not list language courses or courses that you may have taken for fun (in other words, something like karate cannot be counted on a Program of Study).
3) Fill out the top part of the form.
A) Be sure to use a current email address.
B) Use the dropdown boxes to fill in Department, Degree Sought, Program/Major.
C) In the “Specialization” box, Masters students should list whether they are one of the following: Literature and Writing, American Studies—Standard, or American Studies—Folklore.
D) Check either Plan A, B, or C. The decision for this should be made in consult with your Supervisory Committee. See here for discussion of the difference between these plans:
4) Fill out the coursework that you have already taken that will apply toward your degree. Be sure to enter the grade you received.
5) Continue by filling out the coursework you anticipate taking in order to complete your degree. In this case, you are taking your “best guess” about what will be offered and what you would like to/should take. Check with the blog about upcoming course offerings. Also talk to your Supervisory Committee chair about this and/or the DGS. Although the schedule for your final semester may not be set at the time you are filling out your Program of Study, you can often look at courses offered during the target semester in previous years. (For instance, if you plan to graduate next Spring, look at what is being offered this Spring. Many courses have the same number and just vary depending on faculty. So if this Spring had an “American Literature and Culture” Course or a “Creative Nonfiction Workshop,” then it is more likely a course like that will be offered the following year). At this point, you are merely prediciting what you will take (and showing the School of Graduate Studies that your plan is a viable one); you are not locking yourself into a set of courses. If changes in your Program of Study need to be made before you graduate, they can be done so easily (see step 9 below). To finish filling out this portion of the PoS, be sure to enter course numbers and the number of credit hours; simply leave the grade column blank.
6) On the third page of your Program of Study form, be sure to fill out the“Credit Subtotal” that appears at the bottom of the page. (For Plan A & B students, this number should be 30 or above; for Plan C students, this number should be 33 or above; for PhD students, this number should be 60 or above). Note to Master level students: this will probably be the only thing you fill out on page three; it is nevertheless an important page. Do not throw page three away because it otherwise looks blank!
7) On page 4, fill in the “Title of thesis or report,” if you are doing a Plan A or B thesis. Again, this is a prediction. It is the working title of your project and filling out this form does not lock you into that topic or title. Sign in ink page 4 where it says “Student Signature,” and then have the members of your Supervisory Committee review and sign your form.
8) Submit the completed form to DGS for final departmental review. At this point, you need do nothing more for the time being. The DGS will review the form and be in touch with you and your committee if any changes need to be made. The DGS will also get the Head’s signature and will submit the form to the School of Graduate studies. After it has been received, reviewed and filed at the School of Graduate Studies, you will receive an email that the form has been approved.
9) If you need to make changes to your Program of Study after your form has been submitted to the School of Graduate Studies (e.g., you decide to take different courses or you change the title of your thesis), amendments to the Program of Study form can be made with an e-mail from the major professor to Joan Rudd (joan.rudd@usu.edu) with copies (in the cc: field) to all committee members and the Director of Graduate Studies, Dr. Funda. Submission of a new Program of Study is not necessary.
Additional Information on Course-Level Numbering and Acceptability Guidelines (from catalogue):
7000-7990 are doctorate-level courses. With supervisory committee and instructor approval, they may be used in a master’s program.
6000-6990 are master’s-level courses. With supervisory committee approval, they may be used in a doctoral program.5000-5990 are advanced, upper-division courses and may be used in a graduate program if approved by the supervisory committee (see below).
3000-4990 are junior/senior, upper-division undergraduate courses. Up to 3 semester credits of coursework at this level may be used (see below).
No more than 15 semester credits of 3000-5990 level coursework may be used for a graduate degree, except for a doctorate without a master’s degree, for which a total of 21 semester credits of 3000-5990 level coursework may be used. Up to 3 semester credits of coursework at the 3000-4990 level may be included within the 15 or 21 semester credit limit, upon recommendation by the student’s supervisory committee and approval by the graduate dean. To be approved, such courses must be outside the student’s graduate-degree field. Courses that students entering the graduate program are expected to have taken as undergraduates and prerequisites for graduate courses are not acceptable.
2990 and below are lower-division courses and are not acceptable for graduate degree programs of study.
6990 and 7990 (continuing graduate advisement) credits, INST 7920, and IELI 7920 cannot be used in a degree program; they do not count on a Program of Study.
Audited courses may not be used for a degree program or toward status as a full-time student.
Credits in the following areas are not acceptable in a degree program: foreign languages, continuing graduate advisement, individual home study, military science, and courses numbered below 3000.
No more than 12 workshop credits may be applied to a master’s degree.
Graduate students are required to maintain at least a 3.0 GPA for degree-program courses. B- is the lowest grade that will count towards your degree. Courses for which you recieve a C+ or lower will not count.
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