Mar 29, 2024  
2020-2021 Graduate Catalog 
    
2020-2021 Graduate Catalog [Not Current Academic Year. Consult with Your Academic Advisor for Your Catalog Year]

Time Limitations


Policies  > Degree Requirements > Time Limitations

Students who are enrolled as graduate students at the University of Houston must complete the usual master’s degree program within five years of the date of enrollment with a master’s degree objective at the University of Houston. Students pursuing a Master of Business Administration may qualify under certain circumstances for a time limit of seven years to complete the degree requirements (See the program page for details).  Any exceptions to this policy will require a petition approved by the department advisor, chair, college dean, and The Graduate School. Transfer credit may not apply to any master’s degree if the course credit is more than five years old at the time of commencement.

Students who enroll as doctoral candidates must complete their degree requirements within 10 years of the date of first enrollment with a doctoral degree objective. Failure to comply will result in the candidate being ineligible for that doctoral degree.

Doctoral students who fail to complete their dissertation within five years after completion of the comprehensive examination must retake the examination.

Students admitted to the university for the purpose of pursuing a graduate certificate must complete the certificate requirements within 3 years of the date of first enrollment with that objective. If a student who is already admitted to a graduate degree program is subsequently also admitted to pursue a graduate certificate, the time limit for completing the certificate requirements shall be the same as the student’s existing degree objective. 

With the exception of programs for which another termination date has been specified, no degree will be granted for a graduate program not completed within five years of its deletion from an issue of the University of Houston catalog.