Requirements for Advanced Degrees

Home > Graduate Education > Requirements for Advanced Degrees

Candidates for Master’s Degrees

Advising and Guidance From the Graduate Committee

At the beginning of a student's work toward the master’s degree, the chair of the student’s graduate program, in consultation with the student, designates a primary advisor. The primary advisor may be the chair of the graduate program or another faculty member. This advisor also may serve as chair of the student’s graduate committee. The graduate committee, when required by the program, will consist of a minimum of three members who meet periodically with the student to discuss his or her progress.

Requirements for a Master’s Degree

The Catalog stipulates the specific requirements for a master’s degree in each program of the University. The minimum requirements include the following:

Students must maintain continuous registration, including the semester in which the degree is awarded.
Students must complete at least 24 credit hours of graduate coursework in residence. A minimum total of 30 credit hours of graduate coursework is required for all master’s degrees. A maximum of six hours of transfer credit is allowed for programs requiring 30 credit hours; additional credit hours may be accepted for transfer in programs that require more than 30 credit hours, as long as the 24 credit minimum in residence is maintained.
Graduate students must maintain at least a B average in courses approved by the program or graduate committee and presented for the degree.
Students must fulfill all departmental or school course requirements. (No credit is granted for graduate courses in which a grade lower than a B- has been received).
Students must complete all other requirements as listed by the specific graduate program.
Students must complete all requirements, including thesis if required by the program, within five years after admission to the Graduate Division.

Examination

If a general examination is required for the student's master’s degree, the examination may be written, oral, or a combination of both. The decision for pass or fail shall be by majority vote of the graduate committee in programs that utilize a graduate committee. In programs that do not use graduate committees, the program faculty by majority vote shall determine whether the student has passed or failed.

Thesis

Evaluation

If a thesis is required for the student's master’s degree, the graduate committee, or the program faculty in programs that do not use graduate committees, will supervise and approve the thesis. Programs may designate additional examiners for the master's thesis beyond the student's graduate committee. Students must receive approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for theses involving human subjects or from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for theses involving use of vertebrate animals. Approval from these institutional committees, where appropriate, must be sought at the time of approval of the thesis topic, and research on the thesis may not commence until after IRB approval is granted. Where appropriate, permission from other entities, such as the Institutional Biosafety Committee, may be required.

Preparation and Typing

Master’s theses should conform to Style and Policy Manual for Theses and Dissertations available at the following web site: http://www.hawaii.edu/graduate/download/manuals/tdstylepolicy.pdf

Submission and Binding

The student should obtain “Requirements and Guidelines for Graduate Theses and Dissertations” from the UH Hilo Library for detailed instructions. Two print copies of the dissertation must be presented by the student to the Library by the due date listed on the University calendar. One copy will be bound and returned to the student; the other will be bound and added to the Library's collection. There is a fee for binding of the student's copy and for copyright.

Annual Review Form

The primary academic advisor will submit an annual review form for each graduate student under her or his charge to the chair of the graduate program, using the form provided by their graduate program. This form will include data concerning number of credits earned; progress toward meeting other requirements such as papers, projects or theses; GPA; and other specific requirements for the graduate degree.

Awarding of the Degree

When a student has satisfied the requirements for a master’s degree, the chair of the student's graduate program submits a “Recommendation for Award of Doctoral/Master’s Degree” form to the Graduate Division by the required deadline. If submitting a thesis, this form should be submitted with the thesis when possible.

Deadlines

Degree completion dates will be posted on the university calendar. Those who have not completed all degree requirements by the established deadlines will be required to register the following semester.

Degree Conferral and Commencement

Degrees are conferred three times each year: December, May, and July. Students who complete degree requirements late in the summer or in the fall semester are awarded degrees in December. Students who complete degree requirements in the spring semester are awarded degrees in May. Students who complete degree requirements in early summer are awarded degrees in July.

To participate in the commencement ceremony, the student's graduate program must submit the “Recommendation for Award of Master’s Degree” form to the Graduate Division by the required deadline. Commencement exercises are held only in December and May.

Completion Letter

Students who complete all requirements for the degree well in advance of the award of the degree may, upon request, receive a statement from the VCAA or designee certifying that all requirements for the degree have been completed.

Checklist for Completion of Degree Requirements

Master’s Degree (non-thesis option):

Graduate program: Appoints primary academic advisor and, where appropriate, graduate committee, in consultation with the student.
Student maintains continuous enrollment in program
Student: Completes coursework required for the degree.
Student: Completes any other program requirements.
Student: Registers for semester in which degree requirements will be completed.
Student: Submits “Application for Graduation” form to the Business Office by the required deadline.
Student: Passes final examination, and/or passes requirements for papers or projects as specified by the graduate program.
Student: Completes all other requirements specified by the graduate program
Graduate program: Submits “Recommendation for Award of Master’s Degree” form to the Graduate Division by required deadline.

Master’s Degree (thesis option)

Graduate program: Assigns primary advisor and committee.
Students maintains continuous enrollment in program
Student: Completes coursework required for the degree.
Student: Completes any other program requirements.
Student: Passes general examination if required.
Student: Registers for semester in which degree requirements will be completed.
Student: Submits “Application for Graduation” form to the Business Office by the required deadline.
Student: Completes thesis.
Graduate program: Submits “Recommendation for Award of Master’s Degree” form to the Graduate Division when student submits thesis by required deadline.
Student: Submits original copy of thesis (with signatures) and an electronic version to the Graduate Division by required deadline. [pending specifics from the library]

Candidates for Doctoral Degrees

Admission to Doctoral Work

For masters’ degree candidates intending to continue into the doctoral program in the same graduate program, the student's graduate committee, at a designated time near the completion of the student's masters’ work, decides whether or not to admit the student to the doctoral program. This will be indicated on a form submitted to the Graduate Division by the program. For entry into a UH Hilo doctoral program from a masters’ program at another university, or from a masters’ program in a different discipline at UH Hilo, students follow the regular graduate application and admission procedures.

Beginning the Program

At the beginning of the student's doctoral work, the chair of the graduate program appoints a faculty advisor or graduate committee (whose chair is the principal advisor). The initial advisor assists the student in planning coursework and in understanding the program structure and requirements; the advisor has primary responsibility for monitoring the progress of the student's work. The advisor may or may not become the student's graduate committee chair at a later stage in his or her studies. The initial advisor should meet with the student at least once each semester.

Requirements for a doctoral degree

The Graduate Catalog stipulates the specific requirements for the doctoral degree in each program. The requirements include:

Maintenance of at least a B average in courses approved by the program's graduate committee and presented for the degree.
Fulfillment of all program course requirements (no credit is granted for graduate courses in which a grade lower than “B-” has been received).
Completion of at least 24 credit hours in residence regardless of any previous graduate coursework elsewhere. Students continuing their studies for a doctoral degree in the same UH Hilo program from which they earned their masters’ degree need not fulfill a second residence requirement.
Continuous registration including the semester in which final degree requirements are completed (this does not include summer terms).
Demonstration to the graduate committee by means of a comprehensive examination (written and/or oral) of familiarity with basic hypotheses and techniques of the discipline and competence in applying them.
Fulfillment of any research skills requirements.
Submission of a dissertation on a topic approved by the department or school, embodying the results of original research and giving evidence of high scholarship.
Successful defense of the dissertation at a final oral examination.
Completion of any other requirements specific to the graduate program.

Research Skills Requirements

Each graduate program establishes foreign language reading competency or equivalent research skills for its students. The graduate program determines the method(s) to be used to fulfill these requirements. Graduate students may register for research skills courses that have been established in each program.

Comprehensive Examination

A comprehensive or proficiency examination is used to test candidates' specialized knowledge in the discipline and to demonstrate that they are qualified to undertake advanced-level dissertation work. The comprehensive examination may be written and/or oral.

The student's graduate committee serves as the examination committee, and this body determines the outcome of the examination. The student may repeat all or part of the comprehensive examination only once without prior approval from the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (VCAA) or designee. The student has five years to complete the doctorate after passing the comprehensive examination.

Dissertation Planning

After the student passes the comprehensive examination, the student's graduate committee will oversee the dissertation work. The committee will include an additional member chosen from a field outside the graduate program or from a similar field but from a different university, appointed by the VCAA or designee. Based on the student's recommendations, the committee is appointed by the chair of the student's graduate program. Two of the three regular members of the committee must be full time faculty at UH Hilo. Students must receive approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for theses involving human subjects or from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for dissertations involving use of vertebrate animals. IRB approval, where appropriate, must be sought at the time of approval of the dissertation topic, and research on the dissertation may not commence until after IRB approval is granted. Where appropriate, permission from other entities, such as the Institutional Biosafety Committee, may be required.

Committees are formed and modified (if necessary) by mutual agreement between the student and the faculty. The principal dissertation supervisor serves as chair of the graduate committee. Faculty are not required to serve on a particular dissertation committee if they do not wish to, and they are entitled to withdraw from a dissertation committee for reasonable cause. Faculty members from outside the student's own department or school may serve on the dissertation committee, but they do not replace the outside examiner, who is appointed by the VCAA before the final oral examination is scheduled.

Visiting, adjunct, and research faculty of UH Hilo (not holding the rank of Professor, Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor) may be appointed to a dissertation committee by the VCAA or designee upon recommendation of the program for a period not to exceed their term appointment at UH Hilo. If such term appointment is renewed, the member may continue to serve on the student's graduate committee.

Prospectus

The prospectus functions to identify the topic to be undertaken in the dissertation and to formalize the approval of the project by a faculty committee. The timing, format, length, and conventions governing the prospectus are set by each graduate program. If the student's program requires a prospectus, the student should submit it within six months after being admitted to candidacy; the prospectus must first be approved by the dissertation committee. In a conventional prospectus, a student is asked to identify a topic, to summarize relevant backgrounds, and to explain the approach. Some programs substitute for the prospectus another means of ensuring that the student's project has been identified clearly and has received written approval by each member of the committee.

Before approving the dissertation project, the chair of the graduate committee is encouraged to arrange a conference with the student and the other committee members for the purpose of discussing the research topic. Each program must inform doctoral students of its expectations, standards, and procedures regarding the prospectus or other approval of dissertation projects and must provide access to samples of accepted proposals or prospectuses. Graduate programs should include specific information about their expectations for a prospectus in advising manuals for graduate students.

Admission to Candidacy

After the student has passed the comprehensive examinations and met all research skills and coursework requirements, as certified by the program's submission of the “Recommendation for Admission to Candidacy for Doctoral Degree” form, he or she will be officially admitted to candidacy for the doctoral degree by the VCAA. Intra- and inter-program majors and minors should be declared at this time where applicable.

At least two semesters normally elapse between admission to candidacy and the granting of the degree. Doctoral candidates must complete all requirements for the degree, including the dissertation, within five years after admission to doctoral candidacy.

Declaration of Candidacy

In the semester that the student plans to complete the dissertation, he or she must submit a “Declaration of Candidacy for a Graduate Degree” form to the Graduate Division by the required deadline.

Preparation and Typing

Doctoral dissertations should conform to Style and Policy Manual for Theses and Dissertations available at: http://www.hawaii.edu/graduate/download/manuals/tdstylepolicy.pdf.

Submission and Binding

The student should obtain "Requirements and Guidelines for Graduate Theses and Dissertations" from the UH Hilo Library for detailed instructions. Two print copies of the dissertation must be presented by the student to the Library by the due date listed on the University calendar. One copy will be bound and returned to the student, the other will be bound and added to the Library's collection. There is a fee for binding (of the student's copy) and copyright.

Dissertation Defense

The graduate committee has direct charge of all matters pertaining to the dissertation. The student's dissertation must have the unanimous approval of his or her dissertation committee and of the chair of the graduate program before arrangements are made for the final examination for the degree. Members of the student's graduate committee serve as the examination committee.

Outside member

In consultation with his or her committee chair, the student will identify a UH Hilo faculty member from outside of the student’s graduate program to serve as an outside voting member of the dissertation committee.
The outside member must possess sufficient familiarity with the student’s research topic to be able to review and comment on the manuscript.
The committee chair must ascertain that the outside member is indeed independent of the faculty in the student’s graduate program and that his or her membership on the committee will not constitute any conflict of interest.
The outside member fulfills the following functions:
1. Represents the University faculty on the committee, ensuring administration of proper procedures and fair treatment of the student;
2. Ensures that the level of research is indeed appropriate to the student’s degree objective; and
3. Provides disciplinary expertise and an academic perspective that may not be possessed by the faculty of the student’s graduate program.
The approval process for the outside member is as follows
1. The student and committee chair will forward the name of the proposed outside committee member to the Graduate Council.
2. If the Graduate Council affirms the selection, the name will be sent forward to the VCAA for final approval.
3. If the Graduate Council does not affirm the selection, the VCAA will determine how to resolve the disagreement; final selection will rest with the VCAA if the disagreement cannot be resolved between the candidate/committee chair and the Graduate Council.

Outside Examiner

The VCAA or designee, upon recommendation from the graduate program, adds an outside examiner to the examination committee as the representative of the faculty. The outside examiner is either a UH Hilo faculty member from a related area outside the student's graduate program or someone from a related discipline outside the University. Normally, the outside examiner will have no involvement in the supervision of the student's dissertation. The outside examiner's function on the examination committee is to render an independent judgment and to assure that the dissertation satisfies Graduate Division standards. An outside examiner is supposed to serve the Graduate Division and, therefore, must have substantial experience evaluating the scholarship/research of doctoral students (e.g., by being part of a graduate program, on graduate committees, supervising graduate research).

In special circumstances, particularly when a student would benefit from early counsel from a faculty member outside UH Hilo, the department chair or director of graduate studies can petition the VCAA or designee to appoint an outside examiner while the dissertation is still being written. If the nominee is from another institution, the program officer should forward the nominee's academic credentials, including a vita, to the VCAA or designee to be evaluated. The VCAA or designee then invites the nominee or another faculty member to serve as outside examiner.

Final Oral Exam (Dissertation Defense)

After the student's program has been notified of the appointment of an outside examiner, the program director, in conjunction with the chair of the examination committee, may proceed to schedule the final oral examination.

Because of the time required to give adequate consideration to the student's research, the student should submit the dissertation to the graduate committee well in advance of the final oral defense. Normally, two months is recommended; the student should consult the committee.

The final oral examination is open to any person wishing to attend. Members of the graduate committee must be given sufficient time to question the candidate about the dissertation. The final defense is a public examination, however, and the committee chair is responsible for the conduct of an open and impartial examination, including reasonable participation by observers. At the conclusion of the examination, it is customary for the chair to request that everyone except the graduate committee leave the room, so that the members may reach a decision. This procedure should not be invoked at any other time during the examination and should not preclude any questions from either committee members or outside observers.

No member of a graduate committee can be expected to participate in a dissertation defense if that member has not had at least two weeks to read and consider the dissertation beforehand.

At the final examination, the student will be required to respond to examiners’ questions concerning the dissertation and to defend the validity of the dissertation. To pass, the student must receive unanimous approval from the total graduate committee present. All members of the graduate committee who accept the dissertation in partial fulfillment of requirements for the doctorate shall so attest by their signatures on the "Recommendation for Award of Doctoral Degree" form. If the outside examiner does not signify approval in this manner, he or she should give the reason for dissent by submitting a separate memorandum to the VCAA or designee within three days of the examination.

If at the final examination the examiners generally approve of the dissertation but require significant changes and are not yet prepared to sign the "Recommendation for Award of Doctoral Degree" form, the chair of the graduate committee will coordinate with other members of the committee to compile all required changes and will inform the student of the scope and substance of those changes. The committee will establish how the changes will be reviewed and approved.

Following the oral exam and approval of the dissertation, the chair of the graduate program submits to the Graduate Division the signed "Recommendation for Award of Doctoral Degree" form, indicating that the student has now fulfilled all academic requirements for the doctoral degree and has successfully defended the dissertation. Members of the dissertation committee sign the signature page in the original copy of the dissertation; the outside examiner does not sign the signature page.

Remote Participation

Normally, all members of the graduate committee and the outside examiner are present at the defense. At the discretion of the program, with the unanimous consent of all members of the graduate committee and the student, committee members or the outside examiner may participate in the defense via real-time teleconferencing or real-time videoconferencing. In all cases, the chair and at least one other member of the dissertation committee must be physically present.

If in exceptional circumstances one member of the graduate committee cannot be present (either physically or virtually), they may submit questions and comments in writing. Such arrangements must be approved in advance by the program and must have the unanimous consent of all other members of the graduate committee and the student.

Filing the Accepted Dissertation

Submission

By the deadline published for each semester, the student is required to submit the dissertation to the Library along with payment of the appropriate fees. Details on these requirements may be found at the Library.

The dissertation should include the acceptance (signature) page with original signatures indicating approval by the dissertation committee (see sample below).

Abstract (Mandatory)

The acceptable length for an abstract to be published in Dissertation Abstracts International (DAI) is 350 words. An abstract within the dissertation need not be limited. The student may prepare a lengthy abstract for inclusion in the dissertation and a more concise summary for publication in DAI. The abstract is expected to give a succinct account of the student's dissertation so that a reader can quickly learn the essential contents and results. A typical abstract includes a statement of the problem, an account of procedure or methods followed, and an account of main results and conclusions.

Abstracts must be prepared carefully, since they are published in DAI without editing or revision. Abstract copy must be typed on one side of the paper and should be double-spaced. Symbols and foreign words and phrases must be printed clearly and accurately.

To remain within the 350-word limit, the following method for counting is recommended:

There is a maximum of 2,450 typewritten characters per abstract. Count the number of characters, including spaces and punctuation, in a line of average length and multiply by the number of lines. An average abstract will have about 70 characters per line with a maximum of 35 lines.

The original abstract is deposited with University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is listed and indexed in Dissertation Abstracts International. This constitutes publication. However, publication in University Microfilms does not copyright material.

Agreement Form

At the time the student submits the dissertation to the Library, he or she will be asked to complete the required University Microfilms Agreement Form. Students are encouraged to contact the Library for these forms prior to submitting their dissertation. Those students who will be mailing their dissertations should request that this form be mailed to them.

Copyright

To protect the right of authorship by copyright, it is only necessary under current law to affix a notice of copyright to the page following the title page. The copyright notice should give the full legal name of the author, as follows:

Unless a dissertation is copyrighted in this way, it becomes part of the public domain as soon as a copy of it is placed on the library shelves.

The Graduate Division also urges students to register their dissertations with the federal copyright office. The advantage of taking this step could be considerable. In the case of plagiarism, for example, the author may bring an action against the guilty party and recover damages. In the case of scholarly work, proving and recovering damages may be difficult, if not impossible. But if the work bears a notice of copyright and has also been registered with the copyright office, statutory damages may be awarded, and may include attorney's fees incurred in prosecuting the suit. Registration of the dissertation with the copyright office entails signing the appropriate section of the University Microfilms Agreement Form and payment of a $45 fee. However, even without registering the dissertation with the copyright office, the copyright notice on the page following the title page is sufficient to effect a copyright for the author.

Survey of Earned Doctorates

When the student submits the dissertation to the Graduate School, he or she will be asked to complete a "Survey of Earned Doctorates" form, which will be forwarded to the National Opinion Research Center in Chicago, Illinois. Students are encouraged to contact the Graduate Division for this form prior to submitting their dissertation.

Deadlines

Degree completion deadlines are noted in the University Calendar.

Degree Conferral and Commencement

As noted under Master's degree requirements.

Completion Letter

Students who complete all degree requirements well in advance of the awarding of the degree may, upon request, receive a statement from the VCAA or designee certifying that all requirements for the degree have been completed.

Checklist for Completion of Degree Requirements of Doctoral Degree:

Graduate program: Assigns principal advisor and graduate committee.
Student: Satisfies residence and course requirements.
Student: Passes research skills examinations (if required).
Graduate program: Arranges comprehensive examination.
Student: Takes comprehensive examination.
Student: Writes a prospectus.
Graduate program: Submits “Recommendation for Admission to Candidacy for Doctoral Degree” form to the Graduate Division.
Student: Maintains appropriate registration for dissertation credit each semester, including semester in which all degree requirements will be completed.
Student: Submits “Declaration of Candidacy for a Graduate Degree” form to the Graduate Division by the required deadline.
Student: Completes dissertation.
Graduate program: Nominates outside examiner by memo to the VCAA or designee.
VCAA or designee: Appoints outside examiner and so notifies the graduate program.
Student: Passes final oral examination.
Graduate program: Submits “Recommendation for Award of Doctoral Degree” form to the Graduate Division.
Student: Submits dissertation (with fees) to the Library, and completes the “UMI Microfilming Agreement Form” and the “Survey of Earned Doctorates.” [details provided by Library]