Master’s Degree Requirements

Application for Admission

Applications must be submitted online at www.applytexas.org. Application is made through the Graduate School. Most master’s degree programs require supplemental application materials. Contact the academic unit for additional information on supplemental materials and deadlines.

General Degree Requirements

The candidate must earn 30 or more hours of graduate credit, depending upon the requirements for the degree sought. Specific graduate degree requirements are stated in the approved degree plan and can be based on either the Graduate Catalog currently in force at the time the student first matriculates or subsequent catalog under which the student enrolled.

Consult subsequent sections of this publication for the specific course requirements for each master’s degree.

Level of Work Required

All of the course work to be credited toward the master’s degree plan must be numbered 5000 or higher. Deficiencies or background courses are completed in addition to course work to be credited toward the master’s degree plan regardless of course number. A maximum of 12 semester hours earned in non-degree or certification status prior to admission to a degree program may be counted toward degree requirements.

Quality of Coursework Required

The graduate student must maintain a 3.0 average on all courses that receive graduate credit, whether or not the courses are to be applied toward a graduate degree. Grades received in all courses numbered 5000 or higher are included in the computation of the graduate student’s grade point average. Exception to this policy is for students approved for Graduate Restart or students dismissed from one graduate program but accepted to another.

The student whose graduate GPA earned at another institution is below a 3.0 average will be required to make up the deficiency either at the other institution or at UNT Dallas. This regulation applies not only to graduate work attempted elsewhere before the student was first admitted to graduate studies at UNT Dallas, but also to graduate work attempted elsewhere after the student’s admission at UNT Dallas.

Students must make satisfactory progress toward completion of degree requirements to remain in good standing within a specific degree program. Students whose progress is unsatisfactory may be removed from the program by the dean on recommendation of the major department or school. Courses in which the grade is D cannot be used toward completion of graduate degree requirements.

A grade of C or better must be earned in each undergraduate or graduate course assigned as a deficiency by the student’s major department. Departments that wish to do so may establish more stringent requirements.

Graduate credit will not be granted for knowledge acquired through prior work or performance experience regardless of whether these experiences were of a paid or voluntary nature.

Time Limitations

All course work and other requirements to be credited toward the master’s degree must be completed within the following time periods, depending on the number of semester hours required for the degree.

• 42 or fewer hours: 6 years
• 43 to 49 hours: 7 years
• 50 or more hours: 8 years

As individual courses exceed these time limits, they lose all value for degree purposes. Credits more than six years old at the time of first registration for graduate work are not transferable from other institutions.

Time limits are strictly enforced. Students exceeding the time limit may be required to repeat the comprehensive exam, replace out-of-date credits with up-to-date work, and/or show other evidence of being up-to-date in their major and minor fields. Students anticipating they will exceed the time limit should apply for an extension two semesters before the normal time period to complete the degree expires. Holding a full-time job is not considered sufficient grounds for granting an extension. For time extension procedure/forms, contact the Graduate School.

Time spent in active service in the U.S. armed forces will not be used in computing the time limit. However, career members of the armed forces should consult the graduate admissions office concerning the credit given to work completed before or during active military service.

Leave of Absence

Leave of absence applies to students admitted to the master’s degree who wish to discontinue work toward the degree for a specified period of time due to exigent circumstances. Leave of absence may be granted by the academic program, which then notifies the Graduate School. Degree requirements and graduation must be completed within the appropriate time limit for completion of the degree.

Use of Transfer Credit

Subject to the approval of the department, program or school, a student who has been admitted to graduate study at UNT Dallas may apply toward a master’s degree the following number of graduate credits completed at other universities:

1. Up to 6 semester hours in a 30- to 35-hour program,
2. Up to 9 semester hours in a 36- to 41-hour program,
3. Up to 12 semester hours in a program of 42 hours or more.

It is the student’s responsibility to make sure official transcripts of courses completed elsewhere are furnished to the Office of Graduate Admissions, and that graduate credit has been assigned by the other institution(s) to whatever courses are being requested as credit toward the UNT Dallas degree. If transfer credits do not show a grade of B or better in each course, the student is required to make up the deficiency either at the institution where the credit was earned or at UNT Dallas.  Any additional conditions under which credit transfers may be made are determined by the departments/programs.

In accordance with the rules of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, at least one-third of the semester hours required for any graduate degree must be completed in course work on the campus of UNT Dallas.  The graduate program committee is responsible for compliance with program accreditation requirements.  For any transfer credit to count toward a degree, the courses transferred must have been taken within the time limit established by the Graduate School.  

Note: The number of hours accepted by transfer from an institution within the UNT System or an accredited university is determined by a student’s department and/or program.

Use of Semester Credit Hours from Conferred degrees

Students in any graduate program may request to use a limited number of credits from a conferred degree toward the requirements of a second degree.  Students pursuing a second degree have the option to use credits where the courses meet specific requirements in a degree. In all cases the program faculty must review the courses and make a decision about the appropriateness to their program.

For any transfer credit to count toward a degree, the courses transferred must have been taken within the time limit established by the Graduate School. The number of credits from a conferred degree counted will have to be determined on a program-by-program basis dependent upon the number of credits in the program. Departments and programs may limit the counting of previously conferred semester credit hours below the maximum but may not allow counting above the limit. Some programs may not allow counting of previously conferred degree credit hours.

Use of Semester Credit Hours from Concurrent Degrees

Subject to the approval of the Graduate School and the department, program, or school concerned, a graduate student may be allowed to apply up to 12 semester credit hours earned toward another degree pursued simultaneously toward a concurrent master’s degree, providing the 12 hours are in a related field of study.

A student simultaneously pursuing two master’s degrees must complete the requirements for one degree in full before any final decision is made concerning application of any of the work on that degree toward the second degree.

This provision is subject to the Texas Higher Coordinating Board rule requiring at least one-third of the semester credit hours to be completed at UNT Dallas.

Graduate academic certificates transfer credit:

Subject to the approval of the department, program, or school, a student who is enrolled in a graduate academic certificate and who has been admitted to the Graduate School at UNT Dallas may apply to a graduate degree.

Credits from graduate certificates leading to a master’s degree must have been taken within the time limit established by the Graduate School.

At the discretion of the department/program stackable certificates may be applied towards a master’s degree. Students are encouraged to apply for and be admitted to a master’s program as early as possible.

Degree Plan: Admission to Candidacy

The student who desires to become a candidate for the master’s degree should, before or at the time of registration, confer with the major department concerning the selection of a major professor. The major professor, and the chair of the major department or a representative designated by the chair will constitute the student’s advisory committee. The major professor will act as chair of the committee. 

The student’s program is planned under the direction of the major professor immediately after the completion of the first term/semester of graduate study. The degree plan is submitted to the Graduate School when all admission provisions are complete. When the degree plan is approved by the Graduate School, the student will then be admitted to candidacy for the master’s degree.

Certain degree programs require successful completion of a specific course for admission to candidacy. Consult the appropriate section of this catalog for the specific course requirement. Immediately after the student has completed the admission course, the proposed degree plan will be sent to the Graduate School for final approval. When the degree plan is approved, the student is admitted to candidacy for the master’s degree.

All changes in the degree plan must be approved by the major professor and the department chair or department graduate advisor and must be submitted in writing to the Graduate School.

Courses listed on the degree plan must carry letter grades, with the exception of those courses in which the student is engaged in individual research and is not attending an organized class. These courses, with the approval of the department, may be assigned pass/no pass grades.

No student whose academic or personal record is unsatisfactory will be admitted to candidacy for the master’s degree.

Applicants will be notified by the Graduate School of their admission to candidacy for a graduate degree program.

Major field

The candidate for the master’s degree ordinarily is required to select a major and a minor field. To major in any field, the candidate must have completed a minimum of 24 semester hours of undergraduate courses in the field, including at least 12 hours of advanced courses prior to beginning graduate course work. Certain graduate majors require more extensive undergraduate preparation. Consult the section of this catalog describing the particular major desired for information concerning undergraduate preparation requirements.

Concentrations

A graduate concentration is a coherent set of courses which gives a student more breadth or depth in their major and allows a student to complete the degree with a demonstrated proficiency in an area of focus within the major. Students who select and successfully complete the requirements of an approved concentration will have this documented on their transcript. Because a concentration is intended to be within the major area of study, the hours required to fulfill the concentration should likewise apply toward completion of the degree. However, that is not to say that completion of a concentration within a degree couldn’t require more hours than the degree itself, in that the student is earning an additional credential. Concentrations are only available to students enrolled in the home major.

A graduate concentration must be a minimum 12 graduate hours of coursework at the 5000-level or above and should be developed by experts in the field of the concentration. In order to be approved and noted on the student’s transcript, a graduate concentration requires approval by the disciplinary school, the Graduate School, and the University Academic Council. 

The department or sponsoring unit may set additional prerequisites for eligibility for the concentration that may or may not lie within the standards of their accrediting organizations.

A student’s intent to pursue a graduate concentration must be approved by the student’s advisor/program coordinator as well as the unit offering the concentration. If any credit hours taken toward a concentration will not also count toward the major, that condition must be documented when the student adds the concentration so that it can be taken into account at the time of degree certification. It will be up to the sponsoring department or unit to certify the successful completion of the concentration and its requirements. A student who seeks to add, drop or change a graduate concentration must submit a written request to their advisor/program coordinator as changes in a concentration may alter the requirements needed for graduation. Students may pursue a maximum of two concentrations while active in the major program. Concentration(s) will not be added retroactively to a student record after the major degree is conferred.

Master’s Degree without Thesis Requirement

In programs leading to the master’s degree that do not require the preparation of a thesis or problem in lieu of thesis, required or elective courses are substituted for the thesis requirement. The graduate curricula at UNT Dallas foster research and/or independent learning including research experiences, mentoring between graduate faculty and graduate students, and practical training that allows for contributions to the field of study, the development of new knowledge and practical experience. These programs are identified and described in subsequent sections of this catalog.

The candidate for the master’s degree under the non-thesis option is required to pass a comprehensive final examination, scheduled in accordance with the rules governing the comprehensive examination. The structure and form of the comprehensive final examination is determined by the student’s major department or school and can take a variety of different forms including, but not limited to, a capstone experience, written exam, or internship. Information concerning this requirement is available from the student’s major department or school.

Milestones for the Master’s Student