Registration and Degree Requirements

Registration

Entering graduate students register during the official registration period posted under the Registration Timetable for the relevant semester. Registration for classes is done using the

STAR for Students system by tapping on the tab “STAR GPS Registration”. Students may also register in the period just prior to the start of fall classes, or in the case of programs that begin in the spring or summer, prior to the beginning of the semester.

Continuing graduate students are encouraged to participate in early registration whenever possible. Graduate students must meet general guidelines for tuition and fee payments set by the university.

Full-Time Registration Requirements for Students

Graduate students must register for six or more credits during the Fall or Spring semesters and when applicable, three credits during the summer to be considered full time. 1/2 time is defined as three credits, and students taking 1-2 credits are considered less than half time.

International students must be enrolled for at least 6 credits in each regular semester of the graduate program. Please check with the International Student Services Office for details.

Academic Standards

A cumulative grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 (on a scale where A = 4.0) in courses required by the graduate program is required in order to maintain satisfactory academic standing and graduate degree certification. When the cumulative GPA falls below 3.0, the student will be placed on academic probation. Once a student is placed on probation, the student has two semesters to attain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, or the student will be dismissed.

Students admitted under Provisional status must earn a grade of B- or better in all courses taken in the first year. Failure to meet this requirement will result in dismissal from the program.

No credit is granted for graduate courses in which a grade lower than a B- has been received. For courses offered as CR/NC, to qualify for “credit”, the work of the student must be at the B- level or higher. Grades lower than a B- and NC, however, will appear on the student’s transcript and letter grades will be computed into the student’s GPA, although these courses will not fulfill degree requirements.

Graduate students who do not meet other academic/program standards will be dismissed from their graduate program. This process entails a warning letter from the chair of the graduate program to the student. If the necessary academic standards are not attained within a period specified by the graduate program, the graduate program’s chair informs the appropriate Dean that the student be dismissed from the program.

Students will be notified of the intended action. Appeals of such action may be made in writing to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (VCAA) or designee within ten business days. The VCAA’s decision on the appeal will be final.

Graduate Committees and Primary Academic Advisors

Except for certain professional programs, most graduate programs utilize a graduate committee system for advising and evaluating graduate students. Please view the full policy on Graduate Committees and Primary Academic Advisors for detailed information.

Minimum Residence Credits for Degree Certification

Regardless of any previous graduate experience, a minimum of 24 credit hours must be taken at UH Hilo before a degree can be granted. This is known as the “residence requirement,” and applies to all graduate degree programs at UH Hilo. At the graduate level, a maximum of six credit hours earned under courses designated as “thesis” may be counted toward the Graduate Division’s minimum residence requirement.

Students continuing their studies for a doctoral degree in the same UH Hilo program from which they earned their masters’ degree need not fulfill a second residence requirement.

Minimum Credits in Graduate Level Courses

Students are required to complete a minimum of 24 credits in courses at the graduate level before a degree may be granted. Specific graduate programs may require additional credits at the graduate level. Students are advised to read program requirements and discuss them with their primary academic advisor.

Use of Undergraduate Courses for Graduate Credit

Graduate students may take up to six credits in 400-level courses toward their graduate degree requirements with the prior approval of the primary academic advisor, graduate program chair and the Graduate Division. Courses numbered 499 may not be used for graduate credit. Credits used to meet requirements for an undergraduate degree may not be used to meet graduate program requirements. To register for 400-level courses, complete the Petition to Transfer, Substitute, and/or Waive Courses form and submit it to the Graduate Division.

Dual Level Courses

Some courses are dually listed at the 400- and 600-level. Courses identified by graduate programs as core courses are not eligible as dual level offerings. For dual level courses, credit in the graduate course is not available to students who have already received credit in the corresponding undergraduate course.

Dual level courses must be evaluated as a unit based upon their specific content, including specification of differences in expectations for undergraduate and graduate students.

Overload Policy

Students may register for up to 15 credits without the approval of the graduate program chair. Any course load above 15 credits requires approval by both the graduate program chair and the Graduate Council Chair as indicated on the Student Overload Approval Form. After obtaining the primary advisor’s and graduate program chair’s signatures, the form is submitted to the Graduate Division for the Graduate Council Chair’s signature; the form is then submitted to the Office of the Registrar by the Graduate Division. The Overload Form must be approved before the end of the add deadline, and will be retained in the student’s file in the Graduate Division.

Incomplete Grades

An instructor may assign an Incomplete (I) grade when a student has done most of the course work satisfactorily, but because of unforeseen circumstances has not completed all course requirements. The Incomplete is not for the purpose of converting a failing grade, or unsatisfactory work, to a passing grade. The student must request the Incomplete option from the instructor, but it is the instructor’s decision as to whether it is appropriate or not.

Graduate students who are given a grade of “I” must complete the coursework before the due date listed in the University Academic Calendar. “I” grades that are not completed by this due date automatically are converted into “NC” grades. The instructor may set a deadline sooner than that listed in the University Academic Calendar, reflecting the instructor’s availability to extend his/her commitment beyond the course. The instructor, however, cannot extend the due date unless granted a specific waiver by the college Dean.

Some departments and programs may have more restrictive policies regarding incomplete grades. Students should confer with their academic advisors concerning departmental rules and expectations.

The incomplete policy has specific implications for students receiving tuition scholarships and other kinds of financial aid and for international students holding visas. Graduate students who receive federal or state aid may lose their eligibility if they receive Incompletes. See the Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy.

All courses taken by graduate students are subject to the above policy. Incomplete grades must be resolved before students can receive a graduate degree.

Repeating Courses for Credit

A few graduate courses (numbered 600 and above) are repeatable for credit. Examples include thesis research and courses that are approved via the curriculum review process as “repeatable for credit" (e.g. Special Topics classes).

Retaking Courses for a New Grade

With the exception of courses that are explicitly repeatable for credit (see above), graduate courses cannot be retaken unless approved by the primary advisor, program chair and Graduate Council Chair prior to registration. With the permission of the primary advisor and the graduate program chair, courses may be retaken, but not for additional credits. No more than two courses may be retaken, and no graduate level course may be retaken more than once during the student’s graduate career.

The grade received will be averaged with the previous grade in that course in computing the UH Hilo cumulative grade point average (GPA). For graduation purposes, however, a program grade point average may be computed which includes only the grades earned in the courses that are part of the student’s graduate program. A statement which specifies the recomputed program GPA will be reflected on the student’s academic records and transcript. Submit the completed Graduate Repeat Course Notification form to the Graduate Division, where the final signature will be obtained.

Continuous Registration

All students admitted to a degree-granting program must maintain continuous registration each semester for at least one credit hour. Even students pursuing research or work opportunities off campus must register if they intend on completing their degrees. The purpose of the continuous registration policy is to ensure that students and programs remain in contact and that steady progress is made each semester towards completion of the degree.

Students who do not register and who have not been granted a leave of absence (see below) will be removed from their graduate programs. In order to return to their programs, students must reapply for admission and include in their application an explanation for the absence from the program. Readmission is not guaranteed and students may be subject to changes in the degree or additional requirements deemed necessary by the program and graduate council. In addition, if students are readmitted, they will be required to pay an additional one credit of tuition for each semester not continuously registered for up to three semesters.

Students do not need to be enrolled during the summer session unless final degree requirements are to be completed during this period.

Students must be registered during the semester when the degree is granted.

Leave of Absence

Under exceptional situations, students may apply for a Leave of Absence. Students on leave are excused from the continuous registration requirement during the period of the leave and thus are not required to pay tuition and fees.

Leaves are normally granted for six months with a possible extension of 6 months for a total of up to one year. A Leave of Absence is granted only in exceptional circumstances, such as illness or other unusual personal hardship, and requires detailed justification. Students must submit a Returning Student Application to the Graduate Division prior to return.

Leaves of Absence are not granted to students who wish to absent themselves to undertake thesis or dissertation research elsewhere.

Requests for Leaves of Absence should be submitted one month prior to the semester for which the leave is requested. Students may NOT apply retroactively for a Leave of Absence because they have failed to register for a current semester. Students not submitting Leaves of Absences or requests to extend their Leaves of Absence must comply with the Continuous Registration policy.

In order to request a Leave of Absence, or an extension to a Leave of Absence, students must submit the Petition for Leave of Absence (Electronic ) form, requiring approval from the Primary Advisor and Graduate Program Chair, Graduate Council Chair and the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.

Additional signatures must be obtained from the Financial Aid Office, and if the student is an international student, from the Director of International Student Services.

Withdrawals

Once classes begin, a student can withdraw from his/her last or only class via MyUH until the Last Day to Drop a Class Online with a "W". Please see the Academic Calendar for the appropriate corresponding date.

After the Last Day to Drop a Class Online with a "W", students must submit a Complete Withdrawal form and follow official procedures. Please be sure to review the Tuition and Fee Refunds schedule to determine the financial implications of doing a complete withdrawal.

For students who completely withdraw by the last day to withdraw without a "W", the courses will not be reflected on their transcript. Students who completely withdraw after that date will receive a “W” for each of the courses in progress at the time of withdrawal. See Academic Calendar for corresponding dates. Tuition and fees will be assessed according to the UH system policy.

Students may completely withdraw through the last day of instruction.

A student who completely withdrawals without an approved Leave of Absence must reapply for admissions. The student may be required to fulfill the requirements in force upon return to UH Hilo.

Withdrawal from classes may affect financial aid eligibility. See the Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy in the UH Hilo Guide to Financial Aid.

Withdrawal may also negatively impact the Continuous Registration policy. For international students, student visas require that students be registered full time (6 credits in Fall and Spring; 3 credits in Summer, if the student chooses to attend classes in the summer), Withdrawal from courses may result in a failure to meet visa requirements. Please consult with the International Student Services director for more information prior to withdrawing from any courses.

Transfer of Graduate Credits

Students matriculated in advanced degree programs must petition to have previously earned graduate credits from other institutions transferred toward their University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo graduate degrees within their first semester at UH Hilo. Using the Graduate Division’s Petition to Transfer, Substitute, and/or Waive Courses form. A copy of the official transcript from the other institution must be on file with the Graduate Division, and a course description or syllabus should be provided by the student.

Credits petitioned for transfer must be relevant to the student’s UH Hilo degree program, must have been earned at a regionally accredited university, must not have been used to satisfy the requirements of another degree, and must have been earned in graduate-level courses for which the student earned at least a B. In cases where the transferring institution awards Credit or No Credit instead of a letter grade, the course may be eligible for transfer if the transferring institution awards Credit when the student has earned the equivalent of at least a B grade had a letter grade been used. In cases where a graduate student wishes to take graduate coursework elsewhere for transfer credit during their tenure at UH Hilo, the course work must be pre-approved, using the Petition to Substitute, and/or Waive Courses, by the student’s primary academic advisor and graduate program chair. Petition for transfer of these credits must be completed within a semester of completion of the course work, and will otherwise be subject to the same regulations as credits petitioned for transfer from before the student’s acceptance to UH Hilo.

Credits earned through correspondence courses or through courses or experiences offered under the auspices of proprietary schools, business or industrial training programs, or schools conducted by federal agencies such as the Department of Defense normally are not considered for transfer.

Courses taken more than five years prior to matriculation on in the Graduate Division are accepted only when the graduate program chair attaches a statement justifying the transfer.

Approved transfer credits will be included on the student’s official Graduate School transcript as a single entry of total credits accepted in transfer. Letter grades from transfer credits are not considered in the determination of grade-point average.

Limitations on the number of credits acceptable in transfer are set in the first instance by the minimum residence requirement of 24 credit hours for any advanced degree; transfer credits cannot be applied toward the residence requirement. For example, for a master’s program requiring a minimum of 30 credit hours, no more than six transfer credits may be applied toward the degree. When graduate programs require more than 30 credit hours, the Graduate Division or designee may accept a correspondingly larger number of transfer credits.

Prohibiting the Awarding of a Second Degree in the Same Field

The UH Hilo policy is that a second degree at the same level (master’s or doctoral) can be awarded only when a significant amount of additional coursework in a different field is completed. Normally students who have already earned a master’s or doctoral degree in a given discipline at either a foreign or U.S. institution may not earn a second degree in a similar field at the same level from UH Hilo.

Transcript Notations of Approved Concentrations Within a Major Program

For each advanced-degree recipient, approved concentrations, or specializations, may be listed on the official graduate transcript, along with the graduate major. Such listings are limited to two concentrations. In addition to the titles of approved and satisfactorily completed majors and concentrations, official graduate transcripts show the titles of doctoral dissertations and master’s theses. All such special transcript listings are made only at the time of completion of final degree requirements.

Courses Taken in Other Graduate Programs at UH Hilo

Graduate students may take courses offered by other graduate programs at the University with the consent of the course’s instructor. These other courses may count toward the student’s degree program only with the authorization of the student’s graduate program, and this authorization must be obtained before the student registers for the course using the Petition to Substitute and/or Waive Courses-Graduate form.

Waiver of Regulations and Requirements

Some Graduate Division regulations and/or program requirements may be waived by the VCAA or designee in exceptional individual instances. A petition for waiver must be endorsed by the student’s graduate program committee or graduate chair, who append their reasons for believing that the waiver request would not breach the spirit of the specified regulation or requirement.