Selected Graduate Studies, MA

Under a carefully administered program, students may develop a proposal for a master’s degree that is not available in any one existing program, but combines elements of two or more existing master’s degree programs. One-of-a-kind programs are possible in certain circumstances, and may be pursued in one of the following ways:

A new student may develop a proposal for a master’s degree that is not available in any one existing program. The proposal must be approved by an Advisory Committee comprised of three or more members of the graduate faculty from two or more programs. The proposal must be presented to the dean of the Graduate School, who will forward it to the Policies Committee of the Graduate Council for review and approval. The proposal must be signed by the student and the faculty member who is to serve as chair of the student’s Advisory Committee; it must also be countersigned by the other faculty members of the Advisory Committee. The members of the Advisory Committee must be graduate faculty from programs that currently offer master’s degrees.
A student in an existing Wright State University master’s program may, before having completed 18 credit hours of work, develop a proposal and follow the procedure as indicated above.

Admissions Requirements:

Regular Status

Regular graduate status requires an overall undergraduate GPA of at least 2.7 (based on a 4.0 system) or an overall undergraduate GPA of at least 2.5, but with a 3.0, or better for the last 90 quarter hours or 60 semester hours earned toward the undergraduate degree.

Conditional Status

Students who have an undergraduate grade point average criterion less than that required for regular status and/or need to complete prerequisite coursework may be admitted in conditional status. Conditionally admitted students must achieve a 3.0 cumulative graduate grade point average the term in which they complete twelve or more quarter hours or eight or more semester hours since being admitted in this status. Students who have achieved the 3.0 grade point requirement, completed prerequisite courses, and have the approval of their graduate program will automatically be granted regular degree status. Graduate credit earned while in this status will apply toward degree requirements. Students in this category who do not meet the 3.0 grade point average requirement within the required time period will be dismissed from the Graduate School.

Conditional graduate status requires an undergraduate GPA of at least 2.5 (based on a 4.0 system) or an undergraduate GPA of less than 2.5 but above 2.3 but with a 2.7 or better in the last half of undergraduate work.

Program Requirements:

To guarantee the integrity of one-of-a-kind programs, the Graduate School will require that proposals follow these general guidelines:

All Graduate School requirements for degrees must be observed, such as the minimum number of credits to be earned, time limits and deadlines, the necessity of graduate faculty status for all Advisory Committee members, etc. The proposal must indicate whether the degree will be a Master of Arts or a Master of Science degree.
The written proposal must include three essential elements: a definition of the program, its rationale, and a list of required courses and additional suggested courses.
The proposed program may not be a patent device for escaping either the rigor or the specific requirements of already existing programs. The proposed program must have its own integrity and focus; it is not to be merely a survey of general knowledge in several fields of learning.
5000-level courses for graduate credit will be permitted in one-of-a-kind programs only in exceptional cases. If a substantial amount of lower-level work is required, it must be taken without graduate credit.
The program of study will contain a reasonable number of formal courses other than independent readings or independent studies from one or several departments. All required independent study courses must be outlined in the proposal.
A one-of-a-kind program will be approved only when the same objective cannot be accomplished by adding 9 or fewer credit hours to an existing degree program.
A proposal for a one-of-a-kind program that has been approved by the Graduate School will constitute the student’s graduate program from which departures will be permitted only with the approval of the chair of the student’s Advisory Committee. Those courses designated by the student’s Advisory Committee as required in the program can be altered only with the approval of the Policies Committee of the Graduate Council. Upon application for admission to candidacy for the degree, the Graduate School will monitor the courses completed against those in the approved program. Departures from the required program of courses that have not had prior approval in writing cannot be credited toward the degree.
All one-of-a-kind master’s degree programs must have a thesis or exit examination requirement. A Graduate School representative shall be appointed on all one-of-a-kind master’s degree thesis defenses or exit examinations. This person shall be a member of the Policies Committee of the Graduate Council. The Policies Committee serves as the graduate program committee for one-of-a-kind degree programs.
The student’s Advisory Committee shall meet no less than once each quarter. Students pursuing these degrees will have “Selected Graduate Studies” listed on their transcripts as their major. Upon completion of the degree, the student may add a subtitle following “Selected Graduate Studies” which specifies the exact nature or title of the program undertaken.
Students interested in such a one-of-a-kind degree should contact the Graduate School for further information.

Dept Core and Electives