Section 6 – Navigating Your Degree

Johnson Hall Graduate Center – Section 6.a.

The Johnson Hall Graduate Center (JHGC), located in Johnson Hall 131 on the Pullman campus, is home to the academic coordinators (ACs) who administer the MSAG graduate program.

The ACs serve as the liaison for students with committee members, the steering committee, the director, and the Graduate School. The ACs respond to all student inquiries about the program, prepare applications for review by the steering committee, submit recommendation forms to the Graduate School, and provide oversight of all MSAG managerial needs.  The ACs manage the MSAG web and SharePoint sites.  The ACs also manage graduate student files, monitor student progress, collect annual review forms, assist students with managing program-related paperwork, and serve as the first point of contact for students when questions or issues arise.

IMPORTANT: Please route all forms through JHGC after receiving advisor/committee signatures for us to assist in obtaining the MSAG director’s signature and submitting to the WSU Graduate School.

Lisa Lujan, **MSAG Academic Coordinator**
Johnson Hall Graduate Center
llujan@wsu.edu

Deb Marsh, Academic Coordinator
Johnson Hall Graduate Center
marshdj@wsu.edu

Checklist – Section 6.b.

This checklist will help guide you and summarize the process for completion of the MSAG degree program. You are 100% responsible for meeting deadlines. Faculty members in the program are not obligated to remind you of these deadlines or to support you if you wait until the last minute to complete these tasks.

Prior to starting classes…

• Review and complete the New Student Checklist (MSAG website), including Photo-bio Release form
• Start using your WSU email account; WSU will only contact you at your WSU address; also note contact from instructors may be done inside their Blackboard course space
• Read and understand the MSAG handbook
• Read and understand the Policies and Procedures manual of the WSU Graduate School
• Complete the MSAG Admission survey (see MSAG website)
• Contact your advisor to discuss your first semester and to begin planning your program of study, and discuss potential committee members
• Enroll in courses at your earliest opportunity each semester to help ensure courses will meet minimum enrollment requirements

During your first semester…

• Students wishing to follow the thesis plan vs non-thesis plan must submit a Thesis Petition (see Appendix)
• Contact and finalize your committee members with advisor
• Submit a Program of Study with your advisor’s and committee’s approval
• Draft and complete a Project/Thesis Proposal (see Appendix)

Throughout your program…

• Meet annually (at a minimum) with your entire committee (via: Skype, phone, etc.)
• Submit Program Change or Committee Change forms if needed
• Each year, complete the required annual review (see MSAG website)
• Communicate with your advisor and committee as needed
• Initiate and execute project research/study and draft project report/thesis; enroll in research credits accordingly (note you must be enrolled in 2 of the 4 minimum research credits required in the term you take your final exam)

When you are close to finishing…

• Review Graduate School deadlines for degrees
• Apply to graduate
• Review Final Exam requirements as explained in this handbook
• Enroll in 2 credits of AGRI 700 or 702 in your final semester
• Review protocol for completing a final exam at a distance
• Schedule your final exam
• Complete final exam, including presentation or seminar
• Complete course requirements
• Complete the Exit Survey (see MSAG website)
• Complete Exit Interview with MSAG director
• GRADUATE and receive your DEGREE!

Graduate Committee – Section 6.c.

Establishing and Managing the Committee (first semester): Upon your acceptance to the MSAG program, a faculty advisor will be assigned to you by the MSAG director based on your primary area of academic or research interest as indicated on your application, your expressed interest in working with a specific advisor, and/or the recommendation of the MSAG director.

The advisor serves as the primary contact for the student for planning the program of study, identifying committee members, and designing thesis research or project activities. The advisor assists with first semester course selections, since the full committee is not in place, and supports the student with identifying other suitable committee members. Once the full committee is established, the advisor serves in a synergistic role with other committee members to design the program of study and research/project objectives with the student. This person also typically serves as the committee chair.

This committee chair serves as the official signature authority on behalf of the committee for forms required by the Graduate School that do not require full committee signatures (i.e. Program of Study Change Forms, etc.). The committee chair manages all committee meetings, moderates the written and final exams, and serves as the faculty contact with the Graduate School for the student.  In rare instances where the advisor is not permitted to serve as a committee chair or co-chair, the committee member may serve as the students’ advisor, and another eligible committee member may serve as the committee chair.

In addition to a chair/advisor, all students have a thesis or non-thesis advisory committee. Prior to, or at the beginning of, your first semester in the program, you must meet with your advisor to identify other members of your committee.  Committee members must have at least a master’s degree, and a minimum of three members are required. The majority of members of each committee shall be active MSAG graduate faculty members and at least one must be permanent and tenured or tenure-track. Students must meet with their entire committee either in person or via phone conference or web at least once in every semester they are enrolled. STUDENTS are responsible for arranging these meetings.

Your committee aids in developing the program of study and provides guidance and expertise for your project or research. It is essential that you consistently check in with all committee members, not just your advisor, to ensure that committee members are in agreement with course work changes that are made, as well as the direction of project efforts. In addition to advising the student, each committee member must read the thesis or project write-up, and attend and vote at the final exam.

Making Committee Changes: The Committee Change form is used when the student needs to replace one of their committee members with someone new. The established membership of a student’s committee occasionally changes due to faculty retirement or departure from the university, or if the student’s academic or research interests change.

It is essential that the student processes committee member changes in a timely manner so that new members have time to contribute to the evolution of the student’s experience. The student must contact the new faculty member to discuss their program before presenting the committee change form to them for signature. A committee change is signed by all members of the new committee members only; it is a professional courtesy for the student to notify the dropped committee member of such action.

Programs of Study – Section 6.d.

Preparing the Program of Study (first semester): Once your graduate committee has been formed you can create your Program of Study (POS). The MSAG program requires students to complete their POS by the end of the first semester they are enrolled in the program. The POS defines the coursework that must be completed for a student to fulfill the course requirements of the MSAG program. Once approved it becomes the official guiding document describing the student’s course requirements for the MSAG program.

Courses taken by a student that are not on the approved POS will not be applied towards the requirements of the MSAG degree program.
Note: No graded courses of ‘B-‘or below may be dropped from a POS for an advanced degree nor can a course be repeated for a higher grade if the final grade is ‘C’ or higher. Any course listed on the POS for which a grade of ‘C-‘or below is earned must be repeated for a letter grade, not on a Pass/Fail basis.

Steps for Completing a Program of Study:

1. Obtain the POS for Master’s Degree form located on the WSU Graduate School’s forms page.
2. Read and thoroughly understand the Graduate School’s academic requirements (listed on the POS form) and the MSAG degree program and option requirements outlined in this handbook.
3. Consult your advisor who will serve in a synergistic role with other committee members to design your program of study (and research/project objectives).
4. In consultation with your committee, plan out all of your courses by semester for the duration of your program and complete the POS form (must be typed).
   • You are required to take courses from a variety of disciplines in the list of MSAG approved courses.
   • Specific course requirements for the Food Science & Management and Plant Health Management options are provided in the form of advising sheets (see Appendix).
   • Students following the general agriculture track must ensure their course selections are science-intensive; an advising guide is also included in the Appendix. Attach a brief written summary explaining your goals in the MSAG program and how these goals support your course choices.
   • In all cases, course choices must clearly support your overall goals in the program.
   • The POS may include a maximum of three (3) credits in seminar courses.
   • Course substitutions for the MSAG core (Stats 412 or 512, Agri 587) are by exception only and must be approved by the MSAG director.
   • All of your committee members must approve these courses.
   • Your POS will not be approved if it does not meet these requirements.
5. All committee members and the director of the MSAG program will be required to sign off on your planned program. You may request assistance from the Academic Coordinator in obtaining signatures.
6. All Programs of Study must be signed by the MSAG director; the academic coordinator will arrange this signature.
7. Once the POS is signed by the director, the academic coordinator will forward the POS to the Graduate School for final approval.

After your POS has been submitted, you will be allowed to continue your degree program.

Making Program Changes: Occasionally there are reasons to make changes to your Program of Study (POS). This typically occurs due to course availability issues or a shift in the student’s area of interest makes other courses more appropriate than those originally listed. The MSAG program requires that you submit a Program Change form IN ADVANCE of enrolling in a course other than what was originally approved in your POS. All committee members most approve of the proposed changes prior to submitting the form to the Director for consideration.

No graded courses of ‘B-‘or below may be dropped from a POS for an advanced degree nor can a course be repeated for a higher grade if the final grade is ‘C’ or higher. Any course listed on the POS for which a grade of ‘C-‘or below is earned must be repeated for a letter grade, not on a Pass/Fail basis.

Retroactive changes to your POS may not be accepted by your committee or the director. All changes must be submitted in advance and prior to registering for the semester during which the change occurs. Program change forms will not be accepted after the start of the student’s last semester in the MSAG program.

Steps for Completing a Program Change:

1. Download and fill out the Program Change form located on the WSU Graduate School’s forms page.
2. Consult with your committee to identify suitable course substitutions that are supported by all members of the committee.
3. Attach a separate sheet with a written explanation of the reason for the change.
4. Send the program change form and the explanation to the academic coordinator who will acquire signatures from your advisor and the MSAG director.
5. The academic coordinator will submit the program change form to the Graduate School.

If the change is approved you may now register for the new course.

Transfer Credit: No more than half of your graded credit listed on the Program of Study may be transfer credit. Transfer credit carries several restrictions, explained by the WSU Graduate School here. To briefly summarize, only graded graduate-level coursework (vs undergraduate level), taken with graduate student status (not post-bacc) at the transfer institution, in which a grade of B or higher was earned, taken at an accredited institution (as determined by the Graduate School), not used toward an already completed MS or PhD degree, and approved by the student’s committee and MSAG director, may be transferred in. No undergraduate credit may be transferred in. The Graduate School has final determination on transfer credit.

UI COOP Coursework: WSU Pullman campus students (and WSU Global campus MSAG Food Science and Management graduate students per agreement with the WSU/UI registrar’s per email from Julia Pomerenk dated July 29, 2013) are included in the WSU/UI cooperative program. As such, these students may use UI cooperative courses—both graduate (500) level and undergraduate (300/400) level—on their program of study, if approved by the student’s committee and program chair. UI cooperative course numbers, titles, credits, grade points, and grades are listed on the UI transcript as courses taken at that institution. A copy of the UI transcript is provided to the WSU Graduate School for credit evaluation and processing. If the student earns a grade of “B” or better in the UI cooperative course, the course credits will be listed on the WSU student’s transcript as transfer credit from the UI cooperative program. Cooperative courses taken pass/fail will not transfer. UI cooperative course grades are not transferred and grade points are not averaged into the student’s GPA on their WSU transcript. The number of UI cooperative courses that may appear on a graduate student’s program of study should not exceed more than half of the total graded credits required for the WSU degree. Additional details are provided here.

Grade Requirements: No graded courses of ‘B-‘or below may be dropped from a program of study for an advanced degree nor can a course be repeated for a higher grade if the final grade is ‘C’ or higher.

Any course listed on the program of study for which a grade of ‘C-‘ or below is earned must be repeated for a letter grade, not on a Pass/Fail basis.

All grades earned by a graduate student in courses listed on the program of study, except for the first grade for a repeated course, will be averaged into the student’s program GPA.

The student is expected to earn an S grade for all research credits (702, 700). The student will be subject to dismissal from the program if he/she earns a U grade for research credit for two terms (summer term included).

Additionally, to uphold high academic standards, the Graduate School has established a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA and a 3.0 program GPA in order for a graduate student to be considered in good academic standing.

Annual Review – Section 6.e.

All students will undergo an annual progress review completed by their advisor which also includes a self-evaluation; part-time students will complete their first review after 12 credits. The form (see MSAG website) used to support this review process is delivered and completed via email for ease of preparation and submission. Students will be reviewed on their academic performance, fulfillment of the coursework outlined in their program of study on the scheduled timeline, and progress on their thesis or non-thesis project. Students who are performing satisfactorily will be allowed to continue their coursework the following year. Unsatisfactory academic performance or failure to fulfill the terms of the program of study can result in dismissal from the program. Note: Students holding Not Advanced Degree Candidate (NADC) status will not be required to complete annual review until they have completed a minimum of 12 graded credits with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater and are formally accepted into the MSAG graduate program.

Reinstatement – Section 6.f.

Students who fail to maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75 or higher will be prohibited from continuing in the MSAG program.

Reinstatement of a student who falls below 2.75 GPA following completion of one semester or one summer session will be considered only through a petition from the student to the MSAG director. Following a meeting between the student and the director, the director and the student’s committee chair may favorably recommend reinstatement for that student through a petition to the dean of the Graduate School, who has final approval.

The reinstatement procedure for a student who has completed two semesters, one semester and one summer session, or two summer sessions and whose GPA is between 2.75 and 2.99 follows the same process. The student must meet with the MSAG director who, upon favorable recommendation, may petition the dean of the Graduate School for approval to reinstate the student. If approval to continue is granted, the student will have one semester or summer session to increase the cumulative GPA to 3.0. Failure to do so will result in termination of enrollment in the program and in the Graduate School.

If the student becomes academically deficient because of two U (Unsatisfactory) grades for research credits, the student must meet with the MSAG director, who upon favorable recommendation, may petition the dean of the Graduate School for approval to reinstate the student. The MSAG director must identify the conditions for continuation of study in the petition request. If approval to continue is granted, the student will have one semester or summer session to improve his/her research progress.

Graduate Student Rights and Responsibilities – Section 6.d.

See Graduate School Policies and Procedures, Chapter 12, Section E for detailed information. If brief, if you encounter problems in your program, please speak with your advisor; if you are not able to speak with your advisor or need further resolution contact the MSAG Director and/or MSAG Academic Coordinator; or if further resolution is needed contact the Graduate School/University Ombudsman.

Preparing to Graduate – Section 6.h.

Applying to Graduate: Action items that must be completed in order for an MSAG student to graduate are listed below.

It is your responsibility to be aware of deadlines set forth by the Graduate School for all forms and documents.

Steps for applying to graduate:

1. Students should review far in advance the Graduate School’s document Deadlines and Procedures for master’s degree available here. Failure to meet the deadlines may results in the need to enroll for an additional semester.
2. Students must apply for their degree which carries a $50 processing fee. The Application for Degree form is submitted to the Graduate School early in the term when the student is close to fulfilling all of the requirements for his/her degree program and prior to the deadline.
3. Obtain and complete a Final Examination Scheduling form.
   • Be sure to select the appropriate scheduling form as there is a different one for non-thesis and thesis MS degrees.
   • Note carefully the Graduate School’s deadline for submitting the Final Examination Scheduling Form as well as the last date to conduct the final exam in the term.
   • The scheduling form is due to the Graduate School no later than 10 working days in advance of the exam. All scheduling forms must be routed through the MSAG academic coordinator no later than 15 days in advance of the exam.
   • Work with your advisor, committee members, and academic coordinator to set your exam date.
   • Contact the MSAG academic coordinator regarding technology arrangements for the exam.
   • Submit the form to the MSAG academic coordinator for signatures (committee and MSAG director). When the form is complete the academic coordinator will submit it to the Graduate School.
   • Thesis-option students must submit an electronic draft of their thesis to the Graduate School at the same time their Final Exam Scheduling Form is submitted.
4. Conduct your final exam/thesis defense.

Final Thesis Defense and Oral Exam – Section 6.i.

The Graduate School final exam deadlines and procedures for graduation, final exam scheduling forms, and thesis preparation guidelines may be found on the Graduate School website (http://gradsch.wsu.edu/Forms/). The student’s committee and the committee chair must approve the date and time of the final oral exam. The form must then be forwarded to the Graduate School for final approval a minimum of 10 working days before the defense date. The student is responsible for obtaining signatures on the necessary forms and thesis signature pages. Students may request assistance from the MSAG academic coordinator for assistance with signatures as necessary. A student should not expect a committee member to sign off on a final exam schedule form if the thesis or project report is not available to review at least one month prior to the defense date.

Distance students should consult with the MSAG academic coordinator regarding final exam test and technology logistics prior to submitting the scheduling form.

Thesis students have a two-part final exam (requires the student to be registered for 2 credits of AGRI 700 in the term when the exam is held):

1. Public seminar where the student presents the results of the research project
2. Oral exam that focuses on defense of the research project, attended by all committee members

Faculty members are encouraged to attend the exam and ask questions, but only members of the committee may vote on whether the student passed this exam. Questions asked during the final exam are not limited to the thesis or project research per se.

Upon completion of the oral exam, the Graduate School requires an electronic copy of the thesis within 5 working days of the final oral exam. They also require the title, abstract, and signature pages of the thesis on 100% rag (cotton) paper. The signatures must be original and in black ink. It is suggested to plan ahead in order to acquire the required signatures; extra signature pages are also recommended. Refer to the Dissertation/Thesis Final Acceptance Checklist for details: http://www.gradsch.wsu.edu/Forms/.

Note–It is a professional courtesy for thesis students to provide copies of the thesis to committee members who desire a copy. An electronic copy should also be provided to the MSAG academic coordinator.

Final Non-Thesis Defense and Oral Exam – Section 6.j.

The Graduate School final exam deadlines and procedures for graduation and final exam scheduling forms may be found on the Graduate School website (http://gradsch.wsu.edu/Forms/). The student’s committee and the committee chair must approve the date and time of the final oral exam. The form must then be forwarded to the Graduate School for final approval a minimum of 10 working days before the defense date. The student is responsible for obtaining signatures on the necessary forms.. Students may request assistance from the MSAG academic coordinator for assistance with signatures as necessary. A student should not expect a committee member to sign off on a final exam schedule form if the project report is not available to review at least one month prior to the defense date.

Distance students should consult with the MSAG academic coordinator regarding final exam test and technology logistics prior to submitting the scheduling form..

Non-thesis students also have a two-part final exam (requires the student to be registered for 2 credits of AGRI 702 in the term in which the exam is held):

1. An open oral presentation including the student’s graduate committee covering the projects and materials developed during the independent project or internship/practicum experience
2. An oral exam following the oral presentation that allows committee members to further explore issues related to the presentation, independent project or internship/practicum experience and relevant coursework

Faculty members are encouraged to attend the exam and ask questions, but only members of the committee may vote on whether the student passed this exam. Questions asked during the exam will allow committee members to further explore issues related to the presentation, independent project or internship/practicum experience and relevant coursework—but not limited to these per se.