Academic Policies and Procedures
The following section contains academic policies and procedures that apply to programs across the department; more specific information is provided in each program section in Part 2 of this handbook.
General Registration Information
Students will be given an NU ID number at the time of application through Graduate Studies. Using their NU ID and password, students can register for courses through MyRed.
Effective Spring of 2017, registration in all courses in EDAD will require a permission code. This step will help ensure that admitted students have first priority in course sequences. Students should contact the Graduate Secretary prior to enrolling each term to obtain permission codes; thesis and dissertation credit permission codes can be obtained from each student’s advisor.
Leave of Absence
Students who need to take a break from their academic program for personal or professional reasons, and who do not plan to register for any courses in a particular term should apply for an Academic Leave of Absence to maintain their good standing in the department and the Graduate College. The full Graduate College policy on Academic Leave of Absence, including the necessary form to fill out the request a leave, can be found through the Graduate Studies website. The form should be filled out by the student requesting the leave. Students should also contact their advisors when applying for a Leave of Absence.
Expectations for Continuous Enrollment
In general, students enrolled part-time in EDAD programs (the majority of our students) enroll in 6 credits each term (fall, spring, and summer). It is our expectation that students maintain enrollment in at least one course (3 credits) per term, including the summer. Any student who plans to not enroll for one or more terms should contact their advisor to discuss how to maintain their progress in their program.
Doctoral candidates are expected to enroll in at least one dissertation credit per term in the fall and spring semesters in order to maintain continuous enrollment per Graduate College policy.
Per University policy, any student who fails to enroll for three consecutive terms, including summer, without taking a formal Leave of Absence, will be automatically inactivated by the Registrar’s Office. Once a student is inactive, they will need to re-apply to their program, including submitting all required materials and paying the normal application fee, to be considered for re-admission. The Department will consider the reason for the student’s lack of enrollment, prior academic performance, and program capacity when considering a student’s application for re-admission; we do not guarantee re-admission once a student has been inactive in their program, even if the student has not been formally recommended for dismissal by the Graduate Faculty.
Re-admission after inactivation: If the Department chooses to re-admit a student who has previously been inactive, the student may be re-assigned an advisor, who may or may not be the same as the students’ previous advisor. Doctoral students may need to re-form a supervisory committee, which may or may not be the same as the student’s previous committee. Masters students may need to file a new Memorandum of Courses, and Doctoral students a new Program of Studies. Students’ Memoranda/Programs of Study should be consistent with the program curriculum at the time of re-admission; deviations from that curriculum must be approved following relevant program-specific policies.
Full-time/part-time status
Per University policy, students enrolled in at least 9 credits per semester (6 during the summer) are considered “full time”; you must be enrolled in at least 4-5 credits per semester (3 during the summer) to be considered “half time.” More information on enrollment status, including implications for financial aid and special considerations for doctoral candidates, can be found here.
Transfer between EDAD Programs
In general, degree programs within EDAD function independently of one another and have independent learning outcomes and curricula. As such, typically we do not allow transfers between programs without a separate application. Below are specific policies for common program transfer requests.
Masters Degrees
MA students in the higher education or community colleges specializations may switch their intended specialization by consulting with their advisor. MA students in the student affairs specialization who wish to switch to the higher education or community colleges specialization, or students in the higher education or community college specializations who wish to switch to the student affairs specialization, should consult with their advisor and the MA program coordinators. Transfers between these programs will be considered on a space-available basis.
Doctoral Degrees
Due to differences in program focus and curriculum, there are no automatic or guaranteed transfers across doctoral degree programs (PhD to EdD or the reverse). Students wishing to change from one doctoral degree to another should consult with their advisor, the doctoral program coordinators, and, if applicable, their supervisory committee. The student will then need to apply to the new doctoral program through the Graduate Studies Application Portal. Applications will be reviewed by program faculty during the regular admissions cycle. Program faculty may choose to review the application outside of the standard admissions cycle if program and advising capacity allow. Students who transfer between programs may need to repeat courses that are unique to each program.
Grading System and Requirements
The University uses an A through F grading system. The letter grades with point value (in parentheses) are: A+ (4.0), A (4.0), A- (3.67), B+ (3.33), B (3.0), B- (2.67), C+ (2.33), C (2.0), C- (1.67), D+ (1.33), D (1.0), D- (0.67), and F (0). Grades of W (dropped/withdrew), I (incomplete), P (pass/C or better), and N (no pass) may also be given. W, I, P, and N are not assigned grade points.
All programs in the Department of Educational Administration require that a student receive B- or higher grades for all courses. Grades lower than a B- cannot count towards a student’s degree. Students who receive a grade below a B- will be required to develop an Academic Success Plan with their advisor (described below), which will involve a plan for repeating the course or taking an appropriate substitute.
Incompletes
Students should consult the syllabi of each course regarding policies for incompletes, as these may vary from course to course. Although the University does not have a time limit for graduate students to remove an incomplete, EDAD has a policy that a student may have a maximum of two (2) incompletes at any given time. It is also our expectation that students will resolve incompletes within one year. We recommend that the student develop a plan identifying when outstanding requirements will be completed and ask the instructor to indicate acceptance of the plan and to identify when the work will be evaluated and a grade posted.
Thesis and Dissertation Grades
Thesis and dissertation credit hours are graded IP (in progress) or XP (no progress) until the defense of these projects and are not considered as incompletes, although an I will temporarily appear on a student’s transcript. A letter grade is recorded for the respective semesters of enrollment in thesis or dissertation upon the successful defense of the work.
Please note that grades of incomplete (or XP) may have implications for students’ financial aid. We recommend that students consult with the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid through the Husker Hub if they have questions or concerns about their financial aid status.