The University Senate of
Proposal 11-10
(Voting
Units: Academic)
“Amendment of Senate Proposal 20-04,
Graduate Certificates”
Proposal 20-04 is amended by
replacement of the entire text of Proposal 20-04.
Rationale
In the last two years several new graduate certificate
programs have been established and others are in the proposal stage. The amended Graduate Certificate Policy builds
on existing policy and adds the following provisions:
a. Recognize
the student category: graduate certificate-seeking. These students will be admitted to the
b. Establish a
residency policy for graduate certificate-seeking students and degree-seeking
students also pursuing a graduate certificate.
c. Establish a
differential in maximum minimum credits for the certificate: degree-seeking, 12 credits;
certificate-seeking, 15 credits.
Amending
Text: The text replacing
Proposal 20-04 follows.
Graduate Certificates
Graduate
Certificates will be granted to students who have completed the Graduate
Certificate requirements established by academic or research units at
Michigan Tech degree-seeking graduate
students who wish to earn a graduate certificate must complete an application
for the certificate program available through the graduate school.
Individuals who wish to earn a graduate
certificate from Michigan Tech and who are not currently enrolled at Michigan
Tech as degree-seeking students must complete the University’s online graduate
admission application. Applicants
seeking a graduate certificate must meet the same admission standards as
degree-seeking applicants. Upon formal
admission to the
Individuals seeking to earn a graduate
certificate from Michigan Tech should note the following:
1) Applicants to a
Graduate Certificate program must have a Bachelors degree or equivalent. Individual Graduate Certificate programs may
have additional admission requirements. The time limit during which a student
is expected to complete all of the requirements of a Graduate Certificate may
vary, but is not to exceed four years.
2) No
more than 3 credit hours may normally be 3000 or 4000 level courses, however
interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary certificates may have a maximum of 6
credit hours at the 3000 or 4000 level. All other credits must be at the 5000
or higher level, and may include no more than 3 credit hours of research.
3) A
minimum grade of B is required in all course work. Graduate Faculty must teach
all courses required for a Graduate Certificate, except for the allowed 3000 or
4000 level courses.
4) A maximum of 1/3 of the coursework credits
required for a certificate can be transferred in from another university.
Research credits (if required for the certificate) must be earned through
5) Non-degree seeking students who earn Michigan
Tech credits prior to formal admission to a certificate program can apply those
credits to satisfy up to 1/3 of the coursework-credit requirements for the
certificate. Non-degree seeking students should update their enrollment to
certificate-seeking prior to earning more than 1/3 of the coursework credits
required for the certificate. Research credits earned by non-degree seeking
students cannot be applied toward a graduate certificate.
6) Credits may be
double counted between a single certificate and a single master's or PhD program.
7) Michigan Tech requires that students earning
a graduate certificate complete a minimum of 15 credits beyond the bachelor’s
degree. Students concurrently earning a graduate certificate in addition to a
graduate degree at Michigan Tech are allowed, with the approval of the
certificate program advisor, to complete 12 out of the 15 credits required for
the certificate in order to obtain both certificate and graduate degree. A 12-credit
certificate will not be awarded until completion of a Michigan Tech graduate degree.
Faculty
Endorsement & University Approval of a New Graduate Certificate
Graduate Certificates may be proposed by individual
faculty, groups of faculty, departments, or groups of departments in any
academic or research unit at Michigan Tech. Graduate Certificates may be
proposed in disciplines without a preexisting graduate degree program. A proposed
Graduate Certificate curriculum may contain fieldwork, distance learning, and
laboratory courses in addition to traditional classroom offerings. Additional admission
requirements for a Graduate Certificate program beyond that stated above must
be listed in the proposal.
Proposals
for Graduate Certificate programs will follow the usual procedures for
university degree programs, and be submitted to the Senate by the Provost.
Editorial Change (in blue): 01 February 2010
Adopted by Senate: 24 February 2010