Although the University provides information, assistance, advisement, and counseling to students through the publications of numerous departments and offices, the ultimate responsibility for complying with the requirements for the degree and with the regulations of the University rests with the student. Students should read the catalog and other information provided by the department and the University. If students have questions about a requirement or regulation, they should seek the answer through the instructional department or the Office of Graduate Studies. Students should not wait for some authority within the University to inform them that they have not fulfilled a requirement or complied with a regulation.

The University of Delaware extends to qualified graduate students the privilege of attendance. The expectation is that they will put forth a genuine effort academically. Their conduct and citizenship at all times both on and off campus must reflect credit upon the University and its student body. Students may be suspended or terminated for academic or disciplinary reasons if officers of the University determine that they are not profiting by attendance or that such action is not in the best interests of the University. Graduate students are required to abide by the Code of Conduct as published in the Official Student Handbook. Graduate students accused of a violation of the Code of Conduct are subject to a hearing procedure and disciplinary action under the Graduate Student Judicial System.

It is the policy of the University of Delaware that no person shall be subjected to discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

Academic honesty and integrity lie at the heart of the educational enterprise. Students are expected to do their own work and neither to give nor to receive assistance during quizzes, examinations, or other class exercises. One form of academic dishonesty is plagiarism. Students are urged to consult individual faculty members for explanation of procedures for taking tests, writing papers, and completing other course requirements so that students may fully understand their instructor's expectations. Because faculty and students take academic honesty seriously, penalties for violations may be severe, depending upon the offense as viewed by the Graduate Student Judicial System. The minimum sanction for cases of proven cheating is an automatic failure for the course and/or expulsion from graduate studies at the University.

Students who are permitted by special arrangement to conduct a portion of the research for their thesis in governmental or other laboratories off campus must register for this work so that it may count toward degree requirements. This work must be under the direct supervision of a member of the faculty of the University. The amount of credit earned is determined and approved by the student's advisory committee.

Tuition for courses in the winter and summer session is not covered by the contract. Students on contract who do not enroll in formal courses for the winter and/or summer session but remain on campus are not required to pay fees. These students may use the laboratories, library, and computer programs for study and research without registration and without paying for such use. Graduate teaching assistants may have supplemental contracts to assist in courses or to teach courses in winter/ summer sessions. (They may or may not be required to register for course work while they have such a supplemental contract.)

1) Registration cancellation. Students who decide not to attend any of the registered courses before the end of the first two weeks of classes must notify the Registrar's Office to withdraw. If the notification is received before the end of the first two weeks of classes, the registration is cancelled. The approval of the Graduate Office is not needed, but the student is required to give notice in writing to the department and the Office of Graduate Studies.

2) Drop-Add procedures. Students who advance register and wish to change their registration by either dropping courses or adding others may do so within the free drop-add period during the first two weeks of classes. After that period and until the end of the first six weeks of classes, a fee of $15 is charged for each drop-add form submitted. Approval of the Office of Graduate Studies must be sought for all changes after the free drop-add period. Courses may not be dropped or added after the first six weeks of classes without approval from the Office of Graduate Studies.

3) Withdrawal of student from all courses after the free drop-add period. If the notification of the intention to withdraw from all registered courses is made after the free drop-add deadline, the student must request in writing permission to be withdrawn by the Office of Graduate Studies. A tuition rebate is made only for course withdrawals made before the end of late registration in the fall and spring semesters and before the end of the first week of classes in either summer session. If a student withdraws unofficially, registration is continued until the end of the term and the student receives failing (Z) grades in all courses. Rights to any rebates to which the student might have otherwise been entitled are also forfeited.

Students enrolled in a degree program who seek a leave of absence from the program for medical or professional reasons should obtain written approval from the chair or graduate program coordinator of their instructional unit. The request and the recommendation from the department should be sent to the Office of Graduate Studies. The length of time needed for the leave should be indicated. Upon approval of the Office of Graduate Studies, the student's academic transcript will record the approved leave in the appropriate semesters. The period of absence will not affect the limitation of time for completion of the degree requirements as given in the student's official letter of admission.

A graduate student wishing to resign from the University (i.e., terminate his/her association with the University and a specific degree program) may do so by submitting a letter to the Office of Graduate Studies indicating the reasons for the resignation. The Office of Graduate Studies will cancel the student's matriculation and indicate the effective date of the resignation on the student's transcript.

If a graduate student desires to change majors which are not housed in the same department, the student should submit a completed admission application form to the Office of Graduate Studies and follow the same procedures for admission as any other applicant.

Failure to comply with the requirement of maintaining continuous registration either in courses, in sustaining status, or with approved leave of absence will be taken as evidence that the student has terminated his/her graduate program, and the admitted status to the graduate program will be terminated. The date of termination will be recorded on the student's transcript.

The following temporary grades are used:

I--Incomplete. Used to indicate incompleted assignments, absences from final or other examinations, or any other course work not completed by the end of the semester only because of circumstances beyond the student's control.

An I grade must be removed no later than the end of the first six weeks of the semester immediately following, e.g., incomplete work for the fall semester must be completed by the end of the first six weeks of the spring semester following; incomplete work for the spring semester must be completed by the end of the first six weeks of the following fall semester. Incomplete work for either summer session must be completed by the end of the first six weeks of the following fall semester. Under extenuating circumstances, the Office of Graduate Studies may approve extensions to these time limits if requested to do so in writing by the instructor.

At the time of grading, the instructor who gives an I grade will be required to report to the department chair and the Graduate Office by the I Grade Explanation Form: (1) the nature of the incomplete (absence from the final examination, project or paper not completed, etc.), (2) the student's reason for the incomplete (illness, accident or injury, serious illness or death in immediate family, etc.), and (3) the grade earned by the student in the course exclusive of the incomplete work. Copies of the I Grade Explanation Form will be sent to the department chair and the Graduate Office for file and audit.

Instructors should submit a change of grade to the Graduate Office in order to change the temporary grade of I to a permanent grade by the deadline for completing incomplete work. If the incomplete work has been made up, the instructor will give the appropriate final grade for the course. If the work has not been made up, the instructor may give the student a final grade of F, or may have the option of giving the student a passing grade based on the work that was completed for the course. If the instructor has not reported a final grade upon the expiration of either the deadline or the extension of the deadline, the temporary grade of I will revert to a grade of F.

S--Satisfactory Progress. For dissertation, thesis, research, special problems, and other courses that may carry over from semester to semester.

U--Unsatisfactory Progress. For dissertation, thesis, research, special problems, and other courses that may carry over from semester to semester.

Temporary grades of S and U are recorded where the work normally extends beyond the regular semester periods. The time limit for such grades is determined by the nature of the project. Final grades are normally recorded at the completion of the project. The grade recorded for the last course entry (a final grade) is understood to be the grade that applies to all preceding S or U grades in that course. If instructors wish to change individual S or U grades, they may do so in the regular manner through change-of-grade forms. The revised current and cumulative summaries will be posted on the permanent record at the time of and along with the recording of grade changes.

Students are expected to attend all their scheduled classes and laboratories and not to be absent without adequate reason.

Deficiency in any required work resulting from absence from class must be made up to the satisfaction of the instructor.

A student who is absent from a course without adequate reason may be assigned a failing grade. Students who are registered as Auditors are subject to the same attendance regulations as those registered for credit. Those Auditors who are reported for their excessive absence from class will receive a grade of LW in the course.

By action of the University Faculty, the responsibility for defining attendance expectations is left to the individual faculty member, subject to the guidelines given below. Thus it is of great importance that early in each course the instructor make clear to each student what the attendance expectations are, and how absences due to "relatively minor" illnesses, as described below, are to be communicated. Students should check the syllabus for attendance expectations and means of communicating about minor illnesses.

It is the policy of the University of Delaware not to cancel classes on religious holidays. However, students and faculty are encouraged to exercise their own judgment pertaining to their attendance on these days. In addition, faculty are encouraged not to schedule examinations or require the submission of special assignments on the following days: the evenings before as well as the first two days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in the fall term, Good Friday and the evening before and the first two days of Passover in the spring semester.

1. Absence on religious holidays listed in University calendars is recognized as an excused absence. Nevertheless, students are urged to remind the instructor of their intention to be absent on a particular upcoming holiday.
2. Absences on religious holidays not listed in University calendars, as well as absences due to athletic participation or other extracurricular activities in which students are official representatives of the University, shall be recognized as excused absences when the student informs the instructor in writing during the first two weeks of the semester of these planned absences for the semester. Absences due to similar events that could not have been anticipated earlier in the semester will be recognized as excused absences upon advanced notification of the instructor by an appropriate faculty advisor or athletic coach.
3. Absences due to serious illness or death within a student's family are recognized as excused absences. To validate such absences, the student should present evidence to the Dean's Office of his or her college. The Dean's Office will then provide a letter of verification to all of the student's instructors for the term.
4. Absences due to serious illness of the student (e.g., hospitalization, surgery, or protracted medical illness or convalescence) shall also be recognized as excused absences. To validate such absences, the student should present evidence of the illness to the Dean's Office of his or her college. Supportive evidence will be provided on the student's request by the Student Health Service directly to the respective Dean. 
   
   For relatively minor, short-term illnesses of students (e.g., colds and flu, where attendance in class in undesirable), or their immediate family, the University system depends upon reasonable communication between students and faculty. If possible, students should report such illnesses before the affected class, following the directions of the instructor as provided at the beginning of the semester.
5. Students are not to be penalized if absent from an examination, lecture, laboratory, or other activity because of an excused absence. However, students are fully responsible for all material presented during their absence, and faculty are encouraged to provide opportunities when feasible, for students to make up examinations and other work missed because of an excused absence.

In addition to the University's definition of good standing, some programs may also require minimum grades in specific courses in the program. These courses are identified in each program's policy and procedures manual and these unit-specific requirements have been approved by the Faculty Senate.

Performance in graduate lecture courses and seminars is evaluated according to the University's Grading Policy. When the work required in research (868/968), dissertation (969), master's thesis (869), or special problem (866) extends beyond the regular semester period, temporary grades of "S" and "U" should be recorded. Final letter grades are to be recorded only at the completion of the project.

The University's Academic Probation Policy is expressed in the following chart:

• Upon the expiration of the five-year time limit for master's degree programs or for those students in a doctoral program who were admitted with a master's degree. Upon the expiration of the seven-year time limit for doctoral students who were admitted without a master's degree.
• Upon the completion of nine graduate credits and/or two years as a visiting student who has been admitted with visiting (transient) status for the purpose of transferring credits earned to another institution.
• Upon the completion of ten consecutive semesters for an Unlimited Nondegree student.
• Upon the failure to meet the grade point average requirements as stated in the policy on Academic Deficiency, Probation, and Dismissal.
• Upon written notice to the Office of Graduate Studies of voluntary withdrawal from the program.
• Upon the failure to pass the preliminary, language, or candidacy examinations, dissertation proposal defense, or dissertation defense when a department of the University has a policy that such failure leads to dismissal from the program.
• Upon the failure to achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 upon the completion of the stated number of required credits for a degree.
• Upon the failure to meet the stated minima in specific course requirements as identified by individual programs when a department has a policy that such failure leads to dismissal from the program.

A graduate student who has been dismissed from the University for academic deficiency may not be readmitted to the major from which the student was dismissed. (This policy does not apply to a student who is dismissed for exceeding the time limit for the completion of the degree and is granted reinstatement to the original major for an extension of time.) Students who are dismissed may be admitted as a matriculated graduate student in a different major after a lapse of one calendar year from the date of dismissal. The student must apply and be approved through regular admission procedures. A graduate student may be readmitted only one time to a different major after academic dismissal.

The student's grade point average at the time of dismissal shall not carry over to the new major. The student's academic grade point average shall be based on grades received following admission to a new program. Similarly, credit for courses completed while matriculated in the major from which a student is dismissed may not be used to fulfill requirements of a different graduate program.

Students who have officially withdrawn from a graduate program at the University or students who have completed a terminal degree program and subsequently seek to reenter the University for further graduate study must apply for admission and follow the same procedures as any other student seeking admission to graduate study. (Students continuing in a doctoral program immediately after completing the master's degree which is in the same major as the doctoral degree, may request this change of program on a Change of Classification Form.)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 grants to students certain rights, privileges, and protections relative to individually identifiable student educational records that are maintained by the University. Specifically: (1) Students' education records (with the exception of directory information) will be released to third parties outside the University only with the written consent of the student. (2) Students have the right to inspect their own individually identifiable educational records. This right may be exercised by completing a request form in the Office of the University Registrar, Hullihen Hall. (3) Students have the right to challenge information contained in individually identifiable educational records. Procedure is described in the policy statement. (4) A copy of the policy statement describing the University's regulations for the interpretation and implementation of this act may be obtained from the Registration Office, 315 Hullihen Hall.

Directory Information. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act permits the release of directory type information to third parties outside the institution without written consent of the student provided the student has been given the opportunity to withhold such disclosure.

The University releases, upon inquiry to third parties outside the University, directory information without written consent of the student. Directory information includes name, address, telephone number, college, class major, dates of attendance, and degrees, honors, and awards conferred. Students may withhold directory information by notifying the Registrar's Office, 315 Hullihen Hall, and completing a directory information withholding request form. Withholding requests will be honored for only one academic year; therefore, requests must be filed annually in the Registrar's Office.

NOTE: While the withholding request may be made at any time, students wishing to have directory information withheld from the student directory should submit their requests no later than six weeks prior to the first day of fall semester classes.

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