Graduate Academic Policies and Procedures

For registration, residence, and leave of absence policies and procedures, visit the Homewood Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs website.

Please note that for students enrolled in the residential graduate program, there is an expectation to attend classes and conduct research at the Homewood Campus in Baltimore, MD. There is not a full-time remote coursework option for residential programs, and students may need to defer (if they are brand-new), take a leave of absence, or withdraw (if they are a current student) from their program if they are unable to attend in-person in Baltimore.

Immigration regulations require students in F-1 and J-1 status to take in-person courses, with the exception of one online or hybrid course per semester. Students must consult the Office of International Services at [email protected] for advising on the implications of any delays or changes to full-time, residential enrollment on their visa status.

The Office of the Registrar website provides information for all JHU students on general topics, such as the academic calendar, registration procedures, and how to add or drop a course.

All full-time, degree-seeking graduate students (both resident and non-resident) in Homewood-based programs are required to maintain adequate health insurance coverage to provide protection against unexpected accidents and illness.

Enrollment in the University’s Student Health Benefits Plan:

• All full-time, degree-seeking graduate students (both resident and non-resident) in Homewood-based programs will be automatically enrolled annually in the University’s Student Health Benefits Plan administered by CHP (Consolidated Health Plans).
• Domestic students may waive the CHP plan. To do so, students must provide evidence of a comparable policy (more information can be found on the Office of the Registrar website).
• International students are not permitted to waive the CHP plan—they must enroll in it to ensure sufficient local coverage.
• Students with comparable coverage and are eligible to waive the CHP plan can go to their SIS self-service, Personal Info, Student HEALTH Insurance  to access the waive health insurance link.

Costs for the University’s Student Health Benefits Plan:

• The cost of insurance is fully covered for Whiting School full-time resident doctoral students if they elect to use the CHP plan.
• All students matriculating into a WSE full-time residential master’s program in Summer or Fall 2020* or are continuing master’s students, and who have full-time resident status and are enrolled in the CHP plan, will only be required to pay the first $500 ($250 per semester) towards the mandatory health insurance fee every year. The remainder of the fee will be covered by the Whiting School of Engineering for the duration of their program, as long they remain in a full-time, resident status. 
• If a Fall 2020 accepted student defers the start of their program, they will be grandfathered into the subsidy.
• Effective Spring 2021, new WSE full-time residential master’s students enrolled in the CHP plan will be responsible for the full premium every year.
• Non-resident doctoral and master’s students are responsible for the costs of the CHP plan if they don’t waive out and/or their advisor/department is not paying on their behalf.
• Part-time, degree-seeking (including all Engineering for Professionals [EP]) students are not required to provide proof of health insurance with the exception of international students on J-1 status who must meet U.S. Department of State requirements (provided by the Office of International Services). They are eligible to purchase the plan at their own expense.

At the discretion of the Homewood graduate program, a graduate student may attempt up to two course retakes during their program of study; this may be on the same course or two different courses, but the grade(s) from the initial effort(s) will remain on the student’s transcript. This applies whether the initial effort occurred while the student was an undergraduate or graduate student.

If you will be writing a doctoral dissertation or a master’s thesis, please review the Guidelines for the Preparation of Dissertations and Theses. All PhD-seeking students and students in some other doctoral and master’s programs will submit their approved dissertation or thesis to the JHU ETD Repository. Full details on this process are available here. 

Please note that the library does not provide bound copies of your thesis. Instead, they provide links to vendors who provide this service. It is customary to make three bound copies of your thesis: one for yourself, one for your advisor, and one to be kept in your department’s library. Many of the engineering departments and/or PhD faculty advisors will cover the cost of the three bound copies; please consult your department for guidance. You are, of course, welcome to purchase additional bound copies for your own personal use.

Master’s essays are also submitted electronically to the library via the same link. Master’s students may, at their own expense, arrange to have bound copies made.

There are three categories of Nonresident Status for WSE graduate students:

1. Nonresident PhD or Master’s: Dissertation/Essay/Project Completion  To qualify for this status: (a) There can be no outstanding coursework and/or exams (such as departmental qualifying exams and non-final Graduate Board Oral exams [where applicable]) must be completed. This includes research courses required for a master’s degree. (b) The graduate student must be very close to their dissertation defense/submitting their essay/project and may need to leave campus to start employment elsewhere. (c) There must be a scheduled defense for PhD students applying for this status. (d) Please note that this status is for one semester only; two semesters may be allowed, but only with special extension approval. (e) For this status, the student is responsible for NR tuition and health insurance costs and there is no mandated stipend. (f) For this status, the NR PhD/Master’s: Dissertation/Essay Completion student typically cannot be employed on campus.
2. Nonresident PhD or Master’s : Study Away To qualify for this status: (a) There can be no outstanding coursework and any exams (such as departmental qualifying exams and non-final Graduate Board Oral exams (where applicable)) must have been completed. (b) The PhD/master’s student (with or without their advisor) has the opportunity to be actively engaged in PhD/master’s work, but at a non-JHU facility (the student is not on campus). (c) For this status, the  student remains fully supported by PI/department/host facility (NR tuition, stipend and health insurance premium payment are provided for the student) if already being supported.
3. Nonresident PhD or Master’s: Internship/Co-Op To qualify for this status: (a) There can be either no outstanding coursework in that semester of nonresidency or unfinished exams (such as departmental qualifying exams and non-final Graduate Board Oral exams [where applicable]), or it must be part of an approved program. (b) The student is voluntarily requesting to take time to pursue opportunities that may only be tangentially relevant to their degree. The expectation is that they will return to campus in a residential capacity to complete their degree. (c) Please note that this  status is only for one academic year; two years may be allowed only by extension approval. (d) In this status, the student is responsible for the NR tuition and health insurance costs and receives no stipend.

This policy applies to all full-time WSE doctoral students and master’s students conducting thesis research. Every graduate program is required to publish their own policies and standards with respect to academic standing. At the end of each semester, all full‐time Homewood graduate programs are expected to review the academic records of their graduate students to evaluate academic progress.

Once per academic year, all full‐time Homewood graduate programs are required to provide a written review to: (a) all doctoral students, and (b) all master’s students conducting thesis research.

Departments are encouraged to include mention of funding continuation, as appropriate. This review must include the opportunity for the student to offer self‐evaluation. Students who fail to attain a program’s minimum level of performance may be placed on academic probation or dismissed, using the procedures outlined in the Homewood Schools Policy for Graduate Student Probation, Dismissal, and Funding Withdrawal. In making these decisions, and particularly related to dismissal, the program will take into consideration extenuating circumstances beyond the student’s control.

All enrolled and active doctoral students (including coursework-focused PhDs, non-residents, and PhD students on internships/co-ops) must be evaluated annually, beginning their first year in the program.

Please see the policy for the broad stroke requirements. The dean’s and provost’s offices will oversee and track the completion of all annual reviews.

There is no universal template for annual reviews, but there are three major components that must be addressed for each student per annual review:

Student Self-Evaluation

• Students should document what they accomplished over the past year and any specific accomplishment(s) of which their department may not be aware. Examples include: papers in review/published, posters presented, presentations or guest lectures given, and/or grant proposals in progress, submitted or funded. Students should note if they had any teaching assistant duties.
• Students should also list their research/academic goals for the next year and share an assessment of their progress and expected timeline for meeting program goals and degree completion.
• Students should share specific feedback on ways they feel their academic program and/or advisor can support them in developing and meeting their professional development goals; both in the next year and beyond (as appropriate). Self-reflective feedback on goal progress over the past year (when relevant) is also encouraged.

Faculty Advisor/Department/Committee Evaluation

• The faculty advisor* should document goals for the student for the next year and share an assessment of the student’s progress over the past year. There should be mention of a timeline for meeting program goals and degree completion; and any concerns regarding performance. Funding, research changes, TA expectations should be confirmed and clarified as well.
• If a student has not been performing well, this can be an opportunity to place them on a TA, academic, and/or research probation. Any probation should be outlined in a separate letter with clear terms and deadlines. The Office of Academic Affairs (Christine Kavanagh, associate dean) can assist with the policy, probation templates, and best practices.
• There should be an effort to note the student’s professional development progress (as based on previous conversations and discussed goals), and for the advisor/department/committee to strategize on how to best support the student’s professional development goals over the next year.

Discussion

• The student and their faculty advisor* should meet (preferably in-person, but alternatively by Zoom, phone, FaceTime, etc.) to discuss both the student’s self-evaluation and the advisor/department/committee’s evaluation.
• Concerns, questions, and needed clarifications should be addressed in this meeting
• If there are irreconcilable concerns, the DGS and/or chair should be consulted.

Departmental Responsibilities

• Programs are responsible for initiating the process and ensuring its completion.
• Programs are responsible for uploading a fully completed and signed annual review packet for each doctoral student into the PhD SIS Module promptly, following the discussion of the annual review, and no later than before the first day of classes each academic year.
• Programs are responsible for completing its evaluation of the student even if a student doesn’t comply/engage in the process.

If a student doesn’t respond to requests to participate in the annual review process, a note should be placed with the department’s evaluation upload citing that the student did not comply.

*Faculty advisors should be the primary department representative. If there is no faculty advisor or the advisor and student are unable to work on the evaluation together, the DGS and/or chair may stand in for the advisor in exceptional circumstances to complete both the evaluation and discussion of progress with the student. If there is a committee, it must be engaged in the evaluative process.

If the student’s primary research advisor resides in a different department or division of the university, it is still the department’s responsibility to ensure that the annual review has been completed by all parties.

There should be no mention of a student’s mental or physical health or of any other students in any documentation created by the department/advisor/committee.

Programs with master’s students conducting research/capstone/thesis work are encouraged to follow this process as well, but they do not need to upload the reviews to SIS.

This policy applies to all grades earned by Homewood graduate students since the Spring 2005 semester. (Revised November 2007)

Letter Grades (A through F)

• Changing letter grades of “A” through “F” to a “Passing” grade is not permissible at any time.
• All other grade change requests (e.g., “B” to “A”) are acceptable within one year only. Change requests beyond one year can only be changed as a result of a clerical error and must be accompanied by a written explanation/justification from the course instructor.

Incomplete Grades (I)

Students who are confronted with compelling circumstances beyond their control that interfere with their ability to complete their semester’s work during the normal course of a term may request an incomplete grade from the instructor. Approval of such a request is neither automatic, nor guaranteed. Procrastination or distraction by other pursuits are not considered compelling circumstances, and granting extensions in these situations is unfair to students who have completed their course requirements within the allotted time.

If the instructor agrees to grant an incomplete grade, the instructor and student must establish a timetable for submitting the unfinished work, but no later than the end of the third week of the following semester. See below for specific information about graduating students. When entering an incomplete grade in SIS, the instructor may also enter a reversion grade. This is the grade that the student will receive if the missing work is not completed. For example, if the student, based on the coursework completed by the end of the semester, would receive a C+ grade without the missing work, then the grade of I/C+ is entered on the transcript. If the incomplete grade is not resolved within the allowed period (the end of the third week of the subsequent semester), the incomplete grade is automatically converted to the reversion grade (a C+ in this example).

Students who are in good academic standing have until the end of the third week of the next semester to finish incomplete work. Exceptions to this deadline require a petition from the instructor and appeal to the appropriate advising office before the end of the third week of the following semester. When appealing to change the deadline, faculty members must specify a new date for completion of the work which must be before the end of the current semester. Incomplete grades cannot typically be held over to another semester in order to complete the missing work by retaking the course.

Special Rules for Graduating Students

Students with incomplete grades in required courses at the date of degree conferral will not graduate. Students with incomplete grades in courses that are not required for degree completion may still graduate. However, the deadline for completion is abbreviated; students must resolve incomplete grades within approximately 30 days after degree conferral when the university closes their graduate record. If the work is not finished by the deadline, a reversion grade may be recorded.

Dropping an “Incomplete” grade from the transcript is not permissible at any time.

Changing an “Incomplete” grade to a final grade (“A” through “F”, “Pass”) may be done by the instructor if during the designated timeframe. After that deadline passes, grade change requests must be sent via a grade change form to the student’s cognizant Dean’s Office of Graduate Academic Affairs (Renee Eastwood, KSAS/Christine Kavanagh, WSE) for review and approval.

In-Progress Grades (IP)

The “In-Progress” grade (denoted by an “IP” on the transcript) is reserved for classes in which it is expected that the assigned work will require more that one semester to be completed, but the class itself will meet for only one semester. (These are usually graduate seminar courses for which the final product is a major paper.)Students work independently to complete course requirements, at which point, a final grade is assigned.

• Dropping an “In-Progress” grade is permissible only with the approval of the instructor and the Dean’s Office.
• An instructor may change an “In-Progress” grade to a final grade (“A” through “F”, “Pass”) at any time before the student’s departure without Dean’s Office approval by submitting an official Grade Change Form directly to the Office of the Registrar.

Missing Grades (MR, X)

All instructors have a certain amount of time following the end of the finals period to assign a final grade for all students. A “Missing” grade (denoted by an “MR” or an “X” on the transcript) appears if the instructor has not submitted a grade within that timeframe.

An instructor may submit a Grade Change Form directly to the Office of the Registrar to change a “Missing” grade to a final grade.

• Dropping a “Missing” grade from the transcript is not permissible.
• Changing a “Missing” grade to an “Audit” is not permissible at any time.

Audit (AU)

When a grad student enrolls in a course with “audit” status, s/he must reach an understanding with the instructor as to what is required to earn the “audit”. If the student does not meet those expectations (e.g., fails to attend the class), the instructor must notify the Registrar’s Office in order for the student to be retroactively dropped from the course. The course will not appear on the student’s transcript.

Changing a course registration from “Audit” [student receives no letter grade] to “Credit” [student receives letter grade], or from “Credit” to “Audit” is permissible during the Office of the Registrar’s official add/drop dates. Registration changes beyond this deadline are not permissible.

Changing a final grade (“A” through “F”, “Pass”), “Incomplete” grade, “In-Progress” grade or “Missing” grade to “Audit” is not permissible at any time.

NOTE: No changes can be made to a student’s transcript after he/she graduates or withdraws from an academic program. What appears on the transcript at that time will become the student’s permanent record.

Doctoral education is fundamental to the university’s teaching and research mission. For an intellectual community of scholars to flourish, it is important to acknowledge the principles that underlie the compact between doctoral students, the faculty, and other members of the university community.

It is in this spirit that the Doctor of Philosophy Board, in collaboration with faculty and students from across the university, has articulated a statement of rights and responsibilities for doctoral students at Johns Hopkins. The principles described in this document are to be realized in policies established by the various schools of the university; the schools will also develop mechanisms to monitor and enforce such policies. 

Statement of the Rights and Responsibilities of PhD Students.

Graduate Study Away status applies to degree-seeking WSE master’s and doctoral students engaged in graduate education at a different institution (coursework and/or research) with departmental/advisor approval.

As this is not a full-time resident status, health insurance benefits are not guaranteed and semesters away do not count towards the residency requirement. Graduate Study Away students should discuss this with their department and can apply through the nonresident application.

International graduate students seeking CPT approval must consult in advance with their advisor and department for permission/advising, as well as with the Office of International Services to determine their eligibility and seek preliminary approvals. Please visit the OIS CPT Webpage.

The paperwork approval and registration process is as follows:

You must complete the CPT Request form in iHopkins (OIS).  Go to ihopkins.jhu.edu, log in with your JHED ID and password and open the F-1 Practical Training drop down menu to access the form.   If the OIS form is asking for credits, please enter zero (0) for now. The Office of Graduate Education and Lifelong Learning will determine credits at the time of course enrollment. Once CPT authorization is issued, you will receive an email noting that you have been approved for whatever time period appropriate to your application and that your I-20 has been created. You will need to follow OIS’ directions on how to obtain your approval documents (updated I-20, etc.). Failure to do so in a timely manner may result in an interruption of payroll and/or benefits. Please refer to the OIS website for more information.

Additional Instructions for CPT Finalization:

For every semester you are engaging in CPT, you must be enrolled in EN.500.851, Engineering Research Practicum. You cannot do this on your own and it must be approved by the WSE Office of Graduate Education and Lifelong Learning, which will determine the credit hours for you.

1. Once you have the OIS approval email, please complete the appropriate course add form found on the registrar’s website and email it to  Mia Brooms ([email protected]) and cc Dean Kavanagh ([email protected]).
2. The following information must be included the email you submit with your form:
   • Your enrollment status for the semester of CPT (either full-time or part-time)
   • The start and end dates of your internship
   • How many hours per week you will engage in your internship
   • DO NOT write in any credits in your course-add form. This will be determined by the Office of Graduate Education and Lifelong Learning

Once it has reviewed your submission, the WSE Office of Graduate Education and Lifelong Learning will send you an email with the approval, credit determination, and instructions on how you can submit the email and the course add form (and any other documentation) through a SEAM ticket for the registrar’s office to process.

Note that you will have to complete the course add request for every semester you are engaged in CPT. If you have any questions about the course registration, please contact the Office of Graduate Education and Lifelong Learning.

CPT Tuition Policy

For full-time Homewood students (enrolled in at least nine credits), there is no additional tuition charge to add the course EN.500.851.

For part-time Homewood students, there is no additional cost to enroll in the course EN.500.851, as long as the student is also enrolled in one other course. If a part-time student is enrolled only in EN.500.851 at any point, they are subject to the WSE part-time minimum tuition charge .

View PDF > (This policy applies to all WSE master’s and doctoral students.)

Procedures for handling allegations of misconduct by full-time and part-time graduate students: Graduate Student Misconduct Policy (PDF)

All WSE Graduate students enrolled in a full-time, Homewood-based program must complete EN.500.603 (Academic Ethics) with a grade of ‘P’ in their first semester of graduate status. The course is an online BlackBoard module, and students will be notified of their access and timeline for satisfactory completion within the first month of the fall and spring semesters.

WSE Procedures for Dealing with Issues of Research Misconduct (applies to all Whiting School graduate students, both full-time and part-time).

This form may be used by all WSE graduate students. Download PDF > 

1. Residency Requirement: Every master’s student must register as a full-time graduate student for at least two semesters. (Concurrent bachelor’s-master’s degree students are exempt, as are those who enter a WSE master’s degree program after two or fewer semesters, following the completion of a JHU undergraduate degree.)
2. Registration Requirement: Every student must be registered in the semester that degree requirements are met; this includes students who have no courses remaining in which to enroll but must resolve coursework for which an “Incomplete” grade was assigned and those who must complete other academic requirements, such as a computing requirement or responsible conduct of research.Note that degree-seeking WSE graduate students cannot be simultaneously enrolled in a degree-seeking program at another institution.
3. Degree Completion Verification: Every student must provide certification by their department or program committee that all of their departmental or committee degree requirements have been fulfilled.
4. Formal Essay: If a master’s student is submitting a formal essay to the MSE library as part of their master’s degree requirements, the essay must be approved by at least one JHU faculty reader. (See the Homewood Academic Council Faculty Status table, under “Thesis Supervision of Graduate Students,” to determine who may serve as the reader/advisor. Additional readers, if required by the program, need only program approval.)
5. Accepted Course Level Towards Graduate Degree
   •  A. For students who started their graduate program/or were accepted into a combined bachelor’s/master’s status prior to the fall 2021 semester:
     • i. All courses applied to the master’s degree must be at the 400-level or higher. At their discretion, individual graduate programs may institute a higher course level as the minimum for their own students.* Graduate students typically should enroll primarily in graduate-level courses (typically 600-level or above).
   • B. For all students starting a graduate program /or were accepted into a combined bachelor’s/master’s status starting in the Fall 2021 or beyond:
     • i. All courses applied to a WSE graduate degree must be at the 600-level or higher. With departmental permission, bachelor’s/master’s students may count courses at the 400 or 500-level towards their graduate degree, following all double counting rules, etc.
   • Notes for all WSE graduate students: If a 400 or 500-level course is not yet offered at the 600-level and is required to satisfy degree requirements, any graduate student may count the course with prior department approval. Approvals must be marked clearly on all degree audits/checklists.
6. Maximum Time to Degree: Every student must earn the master’s degree within five consecutive academic years (10 semesters). Only semesters during which a student has a university-approved leave of absence are exempt from the ten-semester limit; otherwise, all semesters from the beginning of the student’s graduate studies—whether the student is resident or not—count toward the ten-semester limit.*
7. Every graduate student must receive a passing grade in academic ethics.
8. Every graduate student must complete training on the responsible and ethical conduct of research, if applicable.  (Please see the WSE Policy on the Responsible Conduct of Research.)

*Applies to all students who started their graduate degree during the Fall 2005 semester or later.

This information is for graduate students who are pursuing the combined Bachelor’s/Master’s degree. In order for a student’s status to change from “undergraduate” to “graduate,” a Change of Classification Form for Concurrent Students must be completed. For students whose status change is due to completion of eight semesters of full-time undergraduate studies at JHU (or the equivalent for transfer students), it is the responsibility of the program coordinator in the student’s chosen graduate program to sign the form and forward it to the Office of the Registrar.

For students whose status change is due to completion of undergraduate degree requirements prior to the eighth semester of full-time undergraduate study at JHU (or the equivalent for transfer students), it is the responsibility of the program coordinator in the student’s undergraduate program to sign the form first. It then will go to the student’s graduate program before it is received by the Office of the Registrar.

The Whiting School of Engineering has established the following policies on double-counting coursework for all students in the full-time (Homewood) programs and the part-time Engineering for Professionals (EP) programs. If an individual program adopts double-counting policies that are stricter than these, the program’s policies override the school-wide policies. Students are encouraged to refer to individual program policies.

With bachelor’s/master’s and master’s‐/master’s double‐counting, across any number of degree programs, a student can reduce the number of master’s courses required by up to two (with approval of the programs involved). Beyond that, the remaining courses must be unique to the degree program. With a 10‐course master’s degree program, for example, eight of those courses must be unique to the program and not applied to a different degree at any level. A student can double‐count any number of undergraduate courses toward various master’s degrees (but at most, two to each master’s program) and they can double‐count the same course across any number of degrees pursued (with the approval of the programs involved).

Bachelor’s Master’s Double Counting

Coursework applied to a bachelor’s degree:  Students either in a WSE combined (bachelor’s/master’s) program or seeking a WSE master’s degree after having earned a WSE or Krieger School of Arts and Sciences bachelor’s degree, may double-count two courses (400-level or higher) to both programs with the permission of the master’s faculty advisor.  WSE master’s degree candidates may not double-count courses applied to a bachelor’s degree earned at a different institution. Individual graduate programs reserve the right to enforce stricter policies.

Coursework not applied to a bachelor’s degree: For students who are either in a WSE combined bachelor’s/master’s degree program or have already earned a Whiting School of Engineering or Krieger School of Arts and Sciences bachelor’s degree and are seeking a WSE master’s degree, graduate-level coursework (as defined by the WSE graduate program) not applied to the undergraduate degree may be applied to the graduate degree, regardless of when that course was taken (i.e., before or after the undergraduate degree was conferred) with the permission of the master’s faculty advisor.

For students who earned an undergraduate degree outside of the Whiting School of Engineering or the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, two courses completed before the undergraduate degree was conferred can only be applied to a Whiting School of Engineering master’s degree if evidence is provided by the degree-granting institution that the course was not applied to the undergraduate degree, and with advisor approval.

Master’s-Master’s Double Counting

Coursework applied to a master’s degree: Students pursuing (1) a WSE master’s and a master’s from any JHU school simultaneously or (2) a WSE master’s after having earned a master’s from any JHU school may double-count either two semester-length courses or three quarter-length courses across two master’s programs, as long as the courses are equivalent to ones that are 400-level or higher in WSE full-time graduate programs. The student must receive approval from both master’s degree program faculty advisors if both sets of degree requirements will be completed at the same time. For a student to double-count coursework from two master’s degrees, whose requirements are met at different times, the student must obtain only the approval of the faculty advisor in the program to be finished second. Individual graduate programs reserve the right to enforce stricter policies.

Timing and Ramifications for Current Students: This policy will be applied to all students entering a WSE master’s program in Fall 2007 and beyond. Any student who has entered a WSE master’s program before then will be exempt from this policy and should follow the course arrangement made with his/her advisor, provided it is in compliance with departmental, school, and university requirements.

Declaration of Double-Counted Course:  WSE master’s students wishing to double-count courses must submit these courses to the WSE master’s program for approval. If it is discovered that a student has double-counted a course for the WSE master’s degree without permission of the WSE master’s program, the program reserves the right to revoke the degree.

For students who earned an undergraduate degree outside of the Whiting School of Engineering or the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, two courses completed before their undergraduate degree was conferred can be applied to a Whiting School of Engineering master’s degree only if evidence is provided by the undergraduate degree-granting institution that the course  was not applied to the undergraduate degree, and with JHU advisor/department approval. Students are encouraged to secure permission to transfer a course as early as possible in their time at JHU to avoid issues.

WSE graduate students may transfer in up to two graduate-level courses from another institution which were completed after the undergraduate degree was conferred, if evidence is provided that the course was not applied to any previous degree, and with JHU advisor/department approval. Students are encouraged to secure permission from their WSE master’s/PhD program faculty advisor to transfer a course as early as possible in their time at JHU to avoid issues, and a transcript from the relevant academic institution must be included with conferral completion paperwork submitted to the academic affairs office. EXCEPTION: WSE master’s students in a department‐approved study abroad program can transfer in additional coursework (i.e., beyond two courses), but in total, at least half of the courses/credits applied to the WSE master’s degree must be taken/earned at Johns Hopkins.  Individual graduate programs reserve the right to enforce stricter policies.

NOTE: This policy is effective for students beginning a WSE master’s/PhD degree program in Spring 2008 or later.

After a student submits an Application to Graduate to the Office of the Registrar, the following documents must be delivered to the student’s primary degree program (academic staff member) for a Whiting School of Engineering master’s degree to be conferred:

• Program-completed upload of graduating student data to the Expected to Graduate List.
• Program‐specific certification forms (including course check sheet) submitted to and approved by the program’s graduate coordinator or graduate program director.
• Transcripts for any course applied to the degree that cannot be viewed through SIS, including undergraduate and transfer courses (JHU transcripts can be unofficial).
• A certificate showing the completion of the Responsible Conduct of Research course, if the course is not visible on the student’s transcript as AS.360.624 or AS.360.625. [If applicable]
• Any documentation showing approval for permission to use courses other than those designated for the degree to double‐count a course, or any exceptions granted/requested. [If applicable]
• A forwarded submission approval email by the Electronic Theses and Dissertation staff in the JHU library indicating the thesis was received by the deadline listed below (if applicable). The email must include the thesis title as well as the degree and department of the student (for example, MSE in Civil and Systems Engineering, or MS in Computer Science), and this is the second email received by a student by ETD. Note: this is not the submission acknowledgment email.

(Instructions and deadlines for academic staff processing and approving degree clearances are located on gradresources.jhu.edu, and are sent out every semester in an ETGL email by the Office of the Registrar).

Master’s Conferral Deadlines can be found on the Homewood Grad website. 

Notes:

• All students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with their own program’s internal deadlines and processes for conferral clearance. Students with questions or concerns should contact their program’s academic staff and/or DGS for guidance.
• Homewood graduate students completing a final degree during the first eight weeks of the fall semester or the first four weeks of the spring semester will generate a tuition reimbursement for that semester to whatever entity covered the cost (i.e. the student, the department, the advisor). This applies only to students for whom completion of a master’s project, master’s essay, and master’s journal submission or doctoral thesis is the sole remaining degree requirement at the start of the final semester.

(NOTE: If a student completes a Tuition Deferral Form indicating an expectation to complete the degree within a specific grace period, no payment is required to register for that semester. If the grace period deadline is not met, however, that semester’s tuition charge will be added to the student’s account.)

All signatures must be dated before the applicable deadline.

If a student completes degree requirements following the fall conferral deadline but before the first day of classes in the Spring semester, s/he is not required to enroll in Spring classes.

If the student completes all master’s degree requirements before a deadline but paperwork is submitted after the deadline the student will not be required to enroll for the following semester(s).

This policy covers the research training that is required of certain WSE master’s students and all WSE doctoral students. View WSE Responsible Conduct of Research Policies & Requirements >

WSE Masters students in their final semester who are unexpectedly and unavoidably delayed in their plans to complete their degree requirements for the May degree conferral, but who will complete them by the following August conferral, should speak to their respective departmental program coordinator with regard to their eligibility to participate in the May commencement.

Only those students who have already filed an Application for Graduation and are on their department’s Expected to Graduate List for the current spring semester are eligible for exception consideration. The diploma will not be awarded until the final course is completed successfully and recorded.

Every student must earn the master’s degree within five consecutive academic years (10 semesters). Only semesters during which a student has a university-approved leave of absence are exempt from the 10-semester limit; otherwise, all semesters from the beginning of the student’s graduate studies–whether the student is resident or not—count toward the 10-semester limit.

If a student wishes to request an extension of their length of study, the department chair or director of graduate studies of the student’s primary department may submit a written request to the WSE Office of Academic Affairs (requests can be delivered to the WSE Office of Academic Affairs or emailed to the Director of Graduate Academic Affairs) requesting permission for their student to extend their program of study beyond the five-year mark. This request must be received before the start of the first intended extension semester. Requests will be forwarded to, and decided upon by, the vice dean for graduate education; special cases may be forwarded to the WSE Graduate Committee for deliberation.

Important Notes:

• Extensions may only be requested for one semester at a time.
• A degree completion timeline with dates (when available) must be included in the written extension request.
• LOAs are not counted in the total years applied towards program completion. Note that semesters as a nonresident still count towards the total program length.
• The written request must be sent by the department chair or director of graduate studies.
• If there are to be any changes to the student’s funding in conjunction with an approved extension, the department needs to remind the student in writing (can be an email) of the expiration of—or changes to—any previous funding.
• International students should be encouraged to meet with someone in OIS (formerly OISSS) to discuss any I-20 ramifications/extensions and related paperwork- prior to the expiration of their current I-20.

The student and department will be notified of any decision via email by the WSE Office of Academic Affairs.