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CLEMSON UNIVERSITY

GRADUATE SCHOOL

POLICIES

PROCEDURES

Academic Year 2017–2018

E-106 Martin Hall

Clemson, SC 29634-5713

864-656-4172

The GRADUATE SCHOOL

Purpose of this Handbook

All graduate students as well as faculty and sta who work with graduate programs are responsible for understand-

ing and following policies and procedures set forth by the Graduate School. This handbook contains the policies

and relevant procedures that aect the Graduate School as a whole. Students should review the handbook for the

program they are enrolled in or interested in for more detailed department and program policies. These hand-

books are accessible via the Graduate School’s academic programs page. From this page. click on any program

name and you will nd a handbook link below the program description.

You are also subject to other Clemson University policies, which you will nd in the Policies section of the

Student Handbook hosted by Student aairs.

Other University-wide policies, including the following topics, may be found by searching the web pages of

the Registrar, the Oce of Access and Equity, the Oce of Research, and the Oce of Sponsored Programs.

■ FERPA

■ EEOC/armative action

■ Title IX

■ Anti-harassment and nondiscrimination

■ Plagiarism

■ Research compliance training

■ Copyright and patent issues

■ Research policies

Changes in Graduate School policy

Generally, you are subject to the policies in eect when you rst matriculate into your graduate program. Minor

changes in policy that will not aect your progress toward a degree may be implemented immediately when that

is determined to be in the best interest of students and/or the University, or if the changes are required by a legis-

lative or regulatory body. These changes, along with all other substantive changes, will be noted in the “Changes

to Graduate School Policy, Annotated” page(s) of this handbook.

We strongly recommend that everyone consult the most current version of the handbook (linked at http://

www.clemson.edu/graduate/students/policies-procedures/index.html) each time you need a policy reference,

to ensure that you are accessing the most current information.

Graduate School academic policies are created and revised via a shared governance process that begins with

the Graduate School’s Advisory Committee, moves to the Graduate Council, and ends with approval by the Pro-

vost’s Academic Council. If you have questions about policies or how they are created or revised, call the oce of

the Dean of the Graduate School at 864-656-4172 or email Dena Smith, Administrative Coordinator.

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Recent changes to Graduate School policy, annotated

These changes begin with the 2015–2016 academic year, when the Graduate School Policies & Procedures

Handbook was rst published as an interactive PDF document.

Policy Aected

Date of

Change Explanation/Notes

Combined bachelor’s/

master’s plan

Fall 2015 Number of required credit hours, course level, and maximum research hours were

added to clarify requirements.

Dismissal and

admission appeals

Fall 2016 Dismissal policy and procedure wording updated to clarify roles of program

coordinator, Graduate School dean. Dismissal Appeals changed from subtopic to

topic.

Academic renewal Fall 2016 Updated form GS00 Request for Academic Renewal and claried that Graduate School

approval of form indicates consideration for readmission.

Readmission Fall 2016 New policy approved by Academic Council 3/31/16; outlines conditions and

procedures for readmission to the University following a dismissal as a result of an

undocumented/unapproved leave of absence.

Continuous

enrollment

Fall 2016 Updated policy approved 3/31/16 by Academic Council. Topic updated to cross-

reference new Leave of Absence policy and Readmission policy. Includes section on

failure to maintain continuous enrollment.

Leave of absence Fall 2016 New policy approved 3/31/16 by Academic Council; outlines conditions under which

a student may request a time-specic leave of absence, and procedure for doing so.

Academic Grievance

Policy

Fall 2016 “Procedures for Academic Grievance Committee” updated to replace requirement for

transmission of paperwork by certied mail with transmission via secure email.

Application for

resident status

Fall 2016 Under “State resident status,” claried procedure and added link to form GS35,

Request for Certication of South Carolina Residency.

Academic Grievance

Policy

Spring 2017 Updated to include IGRB proceedings prior to full review by Academic Grievance

Committee. Committee structure redened to accommodate new College structure.

Time limit for

doctoral programs

Spring 2017 Time limit for completion of all doctoral program requirements (including master’s en

route to PhD plans) updated from ve years to eight years.

Graduate faculty status Fall 2017 New policy and guidelines added.

Advisory committee Fall 2017 Committee structure and member qualications updated.

Theses and

dissertations (ETD)

Fall 2017 Clearer timelines for thesis and dissertations and strict adherence to deadlines

approved by Academic Council for fall 2017.

ETD embargo Fall 2017 Policy and procedure for thesis/dissertation embargo (delay of publication) updated.

Form GS-Bachelor-

to-Graduate

Fall 2017 Name of form GS6BSMS Request for Combined Education Plan updated for clarity

since combined plans are not limited to BS and MS programs.

Withdrawal from the

University

Fall 2017 Ocial Registrar’s withdrawal form approved by Academic Council for fall 2017.

Replaces online withdrawal via iROAR.

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Contents

Purpose of this Handbook .................................................... ii

Changes in Graduate School policy ..........................................................ii

Recent changes to Graduate School policy, annotated .......................................... iii

Part 1: Application and Admission. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

1.1. Admission Requirements ..................................................................1

The Graduate School’s academic admission requirements

......................................1

Previous degrees

........................................................................1

Transcripts

.............................................................................1

Previous academic work (transfer credit)

..............................................1

English language prociency

................................................................2

Programs’ admission requirements and recommendations

......................................2

Standardized tests

......................................................................2

Other documents

If the program(s) you are applying to require letters of recommendation, a resume or CV, a personal state-

ment, or other documents, these can be submitted or requested through our online application process. It is

your responsibility to ensure all deadlines and requirements are met.

Immunization requirements

Clemson University species basic health and immunization requirements for admission. You may nd these

requirements on the Student Medical Services web page. The additional requirements below are set forth for

graduate students.

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All students at Clemson must present their immunization records, either through the MyHealth e-portal or

in person directly to Redfern upon arrival.

Health insurance— mandatory

All domestic graduate students enrolled in nine or more hours on campus are required to be covered by some form

of health insurance. Most international graduate students will be required to enroll in Clemson’s student health

plan. Enrollment in the University plan, administered by Redfern Health Center, will be automatic unless the you

are covered by other health insurance that meets certain requirements and a waiver request is approved. If you do

not submit the waiver request in a timely fashion, you will be billed for the University’s plan.

The waiver request, current mandatory health insurance requirements for Graduate and International stu-

dents, and a Student Health Insurance Plan brochure are available as PDF les. More helpful information about

insurance and billing may be found here. Once the waiver request form is submitted online, you will receive an

email message that the request to has been received. If the waiver is granted, the insurance company will send that

information to Student Accounts and the cost of medical insurance will be removed from your account. You will

receive an email message indicating the decision on their request for a waiver.

International students will be billed as indicated in the Student Health Insurance Plan brochure for this

insurance coverage with their tuition. This expense is included on the I-20 or DS-2019. International students

who bring dependents are encouraged to purchase dependent health insurance separately at Redfern Health Cen-

ter upon arrival.

1.2. The Application Process

The application is available online. By following the three steps at this link, you’ll set up a secure ApplyWeb

account to complete your online application. Applications are valid for one year beyond the initial semester

desired for enrollment, aer which the you would be required to submit a new application and pay the application

fee at the rate in eect at the time of reapplication.

The type of application being submitted determines the application procedures to follow. Instructions and

relevant deadlines for completing each type of application are included with the application.

The Graduate School website features a section for prospective students, “Frequently Asked Questions.” If

you need additional information, contact the Oce of Graduate Admissions via email or call 864-656-3195.

Dates and deadlines

You may submit your application at any time. However, most programs at Clemson have program-specic dead-

lines. Refer to your program’s graduate program handbook for dates and deadlines.

International students

Typically, the University requests that international students’ applications are completed no later than April15

for fall semester enrollment, September 15 for spring semester enrollment, and February 1 for summer enroll-

ment because international students must consider that additional steps, including receipt of necessary immi-

gration documentation from the University (DS-2019 or I-20 forms), require that the nancial certication

process be complete prior to issuance of these forms. Forms I-20 and DS2019 are normally completed by the

Oce of International Services by July1, October15, and April1 for registration in the fall, spring and sum-

mer semesters, respectively, to allow the international student adequate time to secure a visa.

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1.3. Special Applicant Categories

The online application for all following special applicant categories uses the same online application portal as for

typical applications.

Non-degree seeking students

A non-degree seeking student is any individual who does not seek to attain a graduate degree or certicate creden-

tial. Non-degree-seeking students may only become candidates for graduate degrees by rst applying to, and being

admitted into, a degree program. Taking courses as a non-degree-seeking student does not provide any guarantee

that you will be accepted into a degree program. You may accrue a maximum of 12 credits in non-degree seeking

status. If you as a non-degree seeking student subsequently matriculate into a graduate degree program, that pro-

gram may — at its discretion — accept up to a maximum of 12 credit hours you earned as a non-degree student to

be applied towards the Clemson University graduate degree into which you are subsequently admitted.

Seniors (undergraduate)

A Clemson University senior with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 and above may apply to enroll in any

graduate course, subject to approval by the department oering the course and the Graduate School. Approval

is required prior to registration and may be requested via form GS Request for Senior Enrollment in Graduate

Courses. Your total course workload for the semester must not exceed 18 hours, and your cumulative graduate

credits earned as a senior must not exceed 12 semester hours.

Combined bachelor’s/master’s degree

An undergraduate student enrolled at Clemson University can apply for admission to a combined Bachelor’s/

Graduate degree program if you hold a cumulative grade point average of 3.4 and the program of interest

allows this option. You must submit form GS-Bachelor-to-Graduate Request for Combined Education Plan

to be considered for this program.

University employees

Employees of Clemson University may enroll in classes and pursue degrees at Clemson and may be eligible for

special tuition benets. However, no member of the faculty with an appointment in an academic unit at the rank

of instructor or higher may be considered as a candidate for a degree in the academic department where employed.

For information on how to access the tuition benet for employees, reference the Oce of Human Resources’

Tuition Assistance Benet Toolkit.

Transient graduate students

If you have been admitted to a degree program at another institution and want to take graduate courses for trans-

fer to your institution, you may be permitted to enroll as a non-degree seeking transient student. To indicate this

status when completing the online application, choose “Transient” as program type. Applications should be sub-

mitted at least two weeks prior to registration. You may earn no more than a total of 12 semester hours while in

transient status, and you will not be eligible to matriculate into graduate degree programs at Clemson University

without completing a separate application as a degree-seeking student and being oered admission.

Teacher certication

Initial certication, recertication, and advance certication for teachers and school administrators are all avail-

able through the College of Education. Students and educators may obtain general information about the South

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Carolina requirements for certication by accessing the South Carolina Department of Education Certication

Regulations web page; contact the College of Education for details. An application fee is required.

1.4. Application Fees and Status

All degree-seeking students (including new students, University employees, and Clemson students applying for a

graduate program aer completing an initial degree) must submit a nonrefundable application fee to the Univer-

sity before your application is processed. The Admissions section of the Graduate School’s website lists current

application fees.

Application fee waivers

McNair Scholars who hold a grade point ratio of at least 3.0 will have application fees waived. Application fee

waivers may also be oered by a graduate program or the Graduate School to select applicants under certain

circumstances.

Procedure for programs:

Program coordinators should contact the Associate Director of Graduate Recruit-

ment, Aubrey Landers, for details about obtaining and distributing application fee waiver codes.

Status of application

You can check the receipt status of your application by logging onto the Graduate School’s application portal.

From there, click on “Manage Your Account” and then “View All Forms.” If you are concrned about applications

that are not listed as received, contact the Oce of Graduate Admissions via email, or call 864-656-3195.

Application expiration date

Acceptance under an application is valid for one year beyond the initial semester desired for enrollment, with

approval from the program of study. Applications initiated but not completed within one year will become

invalid. See Deferred admission.

Disposition of application materials

Credentials or supporting materials submitted for admission to the Graduate School become the property of the

University and are not returned. No copies will be provided to third parties outside the University except when

compelled by legal authority. Copies will, however, be provided to appropriate oces at the University in the

interest of academic matters or nancial awards relative to the applicant. Applications and supporting documents

are retained according to the retention policies of the state of South Carolina.

1.5. Admission

Status of admission decision

The faculty of the various graduate programs make recommendations for admission to the Dean of the Graduate

School. Offers of admission are not official until approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. Official admis-

sion decisions are communicated to applicants by email from the Dean of the Graduate School. You can view the

status of your admission application online at the application portal. Click “Manage Your Account” and then

“View All Forms.”

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Admission classications

Applicants admitted to Clemson University’s graduate programs are classied either as fully admitted or condi-

tionally admitted.

Fully admitted

Fully admitted status indicates that your applicant credentials equal or exceed minimum admission criteria

prescribed for the particular degree.

Conditionally admitted

At the discretion of the Graduate School, an accepted applicant may be required to complete specied con-

ditions either within the rst semester of enrollment or prior to receipt of a graduate degree from Clemson.

Specied conditions may include, but are not limited to, providing undergraduate degree certication, an

ocial copy of a nal transcript or a nal diploma. Special conditions requiring you to provide undergraduate

degree certication and/or an ocial copy of a nal transcript or nal diploma will be identied in the oer

of admission. All other special conditions will be identied in correspondence provided by the admitting

department or program.

Procedure for student:

If your nal transcript indicating the awarding of the baccalaureate and/or grad-

uate degree was not available at the time the admissions oer was made, you must arrange to have ocial

transcripts specifying the awarding of a degree submitted to the Oce of Graduate Admissions or the Oce

of Enrolled Student Services within the rst semester of your enrollment. Students failing to provide the

appropriate documentation within the rst semester of enrollment may be prohibited from enrolling in sub-

sequent semesters until the necessary documentation is received. Clemson University transcripts do not need

to be requested.

The registrar’s oce at each institution previously attended must provide ocial transcripts in sealed

envelopes with an ocial signature over the seal. A sealed transcript opened by a student is no longer consid-

ered ocial. Transcripts may be mailed to Clemson University at the following address:

Graduate Admissions Oce

Clemson University

E-209 Martin Hall

Clemson, South Carolina 29634 U.S.A.

Ocial electronic transcripts may be emailed directly from the Oce of the Registrar of the sending institu-

tion to Clemson University at gstranscripts@clemson.edu. A transcript submitted electronically by anyone

other than the issuing institution will not be considered ocial.

Deferred admission (change of term)

You may defer enrollment for up to one year beyond the semester indicated in your oer of admission, pending

approval from the program of study. To defer admission, you must request and receive written approval from the

academic program that recommended admission via the GS Change of Term form. Your application and sup-

porting materials are valid for one year. Should you wish to defer your admission beyond one year of the initial

semester desired, a new application, supporting documentation, and the prevailing application fee must be sub-

mitted (see previous topic Application expiration date). If you are an international student, you should notify the

Oce of International Aairs when your request for deferred admission is approved by the admitting program.

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Denied admission

An applicant may be denied admission to any of Clemson’s graduate programs for various reasons. If you are

denied admission and believe the decision was made unfairly or improperly, you may appeal the decision.

Admission appeals

You may appeal an admission denial if you can demonstrate that the admission decision was made unfairly or

improperly. Appeals are heard by the Graduate Admissions and Continuing Enrollment Appeals Committee or

Applicant Conduct Review Appeals Committee, depending on the circumstances regarding the denial.

Appeals procedure

1. You must submit an appeal of denied admission in writing within 30 days of the date of the letter

indicating denial or at least two weeks prior to the beginning of the term in which you desire to begin

classes, whichever is earlier.

2. You must submit the written statement to the Graduate School requesting the appeal on form GS-

Appeal Appeal of Dismissal or Denied Admission and provide evidence that the admission decision was

unfairly or improperly rendered. Any documentation for the Graduate Admissions and Continuing

Enrollment Appeals Committee and/or Applicant Conduct Review Appeals Committee to consider

should be attached to this form.

3. For denial cases initially determined by Applicant Conduct Review Committee, the appeal will be

reviewed and considered by the Applicant Conduct Review Appeals Committee consisting of the Dean

of the Graduate School, chair of the Crisis Management Team, and the Vice President of Student Aairs.

Upon reviewing the case, the Dean of the Graduate School will communicate the appeal decision that

shall be considered nal.

4. For cases involving denials for academic reasons, the Graduate School will make available to the Graduate

Admissions and Continuing Enrollment Appeals Committee your appeal request and the complete

admission le (application; transcript[s]; supporting documents) within three days. The Graduate School

will also provide the graduate program coordinator with a copy of your appeal.

5. The Graduate School will identify the earliest hearing date, will schedule the meeting, reserve the room,

and notify all parties of the time and location of the hearing.

6. The Dean of the Graduate School’s designee will attend the hearings to provide procedural guidance but

will have no vote in the decision of the committee.

7. You will be called in rst by the chair of the hearing panel to present your case. Following conclusion of

your presentation, you will be excused.

8. The faculty member[s] representing the graduate program will be called in next by the chair of the

committee to present the rationale of the program for denying admission. This faculty member may bring

to the meeting any relevant documents to share with the members of the committee. These documents

will be retained with the case in accordance with the state guidelines on retention of academic materials.

9. The committee will make a decision on your case, which will be communicated immediately to you and

to the program coordinator. This communication will be in the form of an email notication originating

from the Graduate School.

10. Appeals of the decisions of the committee may be made by you to the Dean of the Graduate School

within ten business days of the decision of the committee.

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11. Within 15 business days, the Dean of the Graduate School will render a nal decision for the University

on admission appeals and will communicate that decision to each party and to the members of the

committee.

Readmission

A degree-seeking student who has separated voluntarily from the University without an approved Leave of

absence may apply for readmission, at which time you must pay the standard application fee. Readmission deci-

sions must be approved by the program and the Graduate School.

If you are readmitted, you must pay a fee equivalent to registering for one credit hour for each fall/spring

semester you were absent from the University. All policies and course of study requirements in eect at the time

of your readmission will be in eect for the remainder of your program of study. Courses that have exceeded the

maximum time limit (which dier for master’s and doctoral degrees), or in which you did not receive at least a C,

will not be applied to your new program of study. Of those courses that meet the readmission criteria, programs

have sole discretion as to whether or not they accept these courses. Programs also have the right to impose other

requirements as part of the readmission, including (but not limited to) retaking qualifying or comprehensive

exams, completing new internships, etc.

Procedure for student:

Complete the Graduate School application. The application includes instructions

for students seeking readmission, which include addressing program-specific questions and submitting a plan

and timeline for completion as a part of your personal statement. The standard application fee and all supporting

materials are required to be submitted even though the University may already have some of those supporting

materials on file (see Continuous Enrollment and Leave of Absence in the Academics section of this handbook).

Notication of readmission will originte from the Graduate School.

Procedure for department:

Departments and programs will process the application for readmission in the

same manner as a new application. All policies and course of study requirements in eect at the time of read-

mission will be in eect for the applicant (see Continuous enrollment and Leave of absence). Notication to

students of readmission decisions will originte from the Graduate School.

Re-entrance as an undergraduate student

Former graduate students in good standing who are interested in re-entrance at the undergraduate level to pursue

an undergraduate degree should contact Undergraduate Admissions.

Academic renewal

If you were dismissed from the Graduate School for a grade point deciency and you have not enrolled for a

period of two or more academic years, you may apply for readmission under special conditions known as aca-

demic renewal. For details and procedure, see Academic renewal in the Academics section.

1.6. Orientation and Registration

Policy surrounding new student orientation and class registration— including dates and deadlines— is main-

tained by the Oce of the Registrar. The Graduate School and the Oce of International Services oer infor-

mation, procedures and support for incoming graduate students on their respective websites.

All new graduate students should attend the general Graduate School orientation (see “Register for Orien-

tation(s)” under the First Things First topic on the New Student To Do List page) as well as a specic program

orientation if the department holds one.

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New international graduate students, please visit the Students page of the International Services website for

information about arrival, orientation, campus life, and required documentation.

1.7 Official University Communication

According to Clemson University policy, email is an ocial method of communication. Thus, all ocial com-

munications will be transmitted through Clemson University email to your ocial Clemson email address at the

“clemson.edu” domain. It is your responsibility to monitor this email account at all times while enrolled in Clem-

son University. Failure to monitor this account may cause you to miss important announcements and deadlines,

and will not serve as a basis for an appeal or modication of deadlines.

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Part 2: Academics

2.1. Graduate Program Basics

All students should familiarize themselves thoroughly with the academic policies and procedures of the Graduate

School and Clemson University as outlined in this handbook and provided at the Oce of Student Aairs’ Aca-

demic Policies web page on the University website. Students should consult their graduate program handbooks

and their graduate program coordinators or department chairs for specic details within their degree program,

which may have more stringent requirements.

Academic integrity

Graduate philosophy

An academic environment of integrity is one in which students, faculty and sta interact with each other

from a position of mutual trustworthiness. As a member of the consortium of institutions comprising the

International Center for Academic Integrity, Clemson University has committed itself to preparing a com-

munity of scholars dedicated to integrity in teaching, research, scholarship, mentorship and the acquisition

and display of professional values of trust, honesty, fairness, responsibility, respect, and courage.

Clemson grad-

uate students are expected avail themselves of the many opportunities and resources both on and o campus

to learn how to engage in professional practice with integrity. The Graduate School and the community of

scholars engaged in graduate-level education will respond vigorously and expeditiously to charges of viola-

tions of academic integrity.

The Graduate School and the graduate faculty will respond vigorously to charges of violations of aca-

demic integrity. To create a culture that values academic integrity:

■ faculty must be clear on syllabi and in instructions to students about the academic expectations for

completing assignments,

■ students must be aware of academic integrity policies and expectations and must be proactive in asking

for clarication on procedures for completing assigned work,

■ graduate programs must engage students in discussions about disciplinary-specic issues and professional

practice relative to academic integrity,

■ research mentors should inform students of prominent cases of academic dishonesty by other faculty and

graduate students so as to heighten students’ awareness,

■ advisory committees should discuss integrity in relation to master’s or doctoral degree requirements,

comprehensive exams, etc. and should be proactive in screening these products for violations.

2. The Fundamental Values of Academic Integrity, 2nd Edition. The Center for Academic Integrity, October 1999; revised 2013. Accessed at

http://www.academicintegrity.org/icai/assets/Revised_FV_.pdf.

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2.2. Graduate Faculty Status

This policy seeks to establish a graduate faculty composed of faculty members well-equipped to teach graduate

level courses, to lead advisory committees, to serve on dissertation committees, and to chair dissertation com-

mittees. Absent this basic quality-control mechanism, with appropriate checks and balances, we are at risk for

providing sub-optimal education for our graduate students.

Policy

The Graduate Faculty is the group of faculty qualied and approved to direct the learning of graduate student

through eective teaching at the graduate level and mentoring students’ professional development and research

progress. Each college will develop policies and process within their typical personnel review and appointment

structure to dene: (a) qualications for graduate faculty status; (b) dierent qualications (if any) for chairing a

student thesis or dissertation advisory committee; (c) how these decisions are made and approved; (d) the mech-

anism for periodically reviewing graduate faculty status and for removing a faculty member where necessary; and

(e) appeal process. At the beginning of each academic year, each college will provide a list of graduate faculty to

the Graduate School.

Guidance for developing college policies

A. Qualications for Graduate Faculty status vary across disciplines. They oen include:

1. Faculty status (at Clemson, for example, being a Regular or Administrative faculty member, rather

than a Special faculty member),

and how unusual cases will be handled (such as scholars or experts

outside Clemson);

2. A clear statement of the minimal acceptable degree (oen a terminal degree) and/or other critical

qualications appropriate for the eld in the discipline or closely related disciplines (e.g., professional

licensure);

3. Prociency in scholarly/creative production as evidenced by indicators such as:

a. Active scholarship documented by publication of scholarly work (e.g., books; articles in refereed

journals or conference proceedings), grants and contracts received, and/or creative activities

appropriate to the eld

b. Recognition of creative contributions and research by awards, prizes, fellowships, and similar

honors

c. Editorial service for scholarly journals, university press, scholarly books, and professional

manuscript review

d. Professional contributions in a relevant eld

4. Prociency in teaching courses at the graduate level and what indicators of teaching prociency will

be valued;

5. Prociency in mentoring graduate students in professional or scholarly endeavors;

6. Other discipline-specic criteria.

3. Revised 16 March 2016 to eliminate senior grad status. Approved 19 September 2016 by Graduate Council with amendment regarding renewal

of status. Revised 19 June 2017 to clarify that units are required to have a policy, and that these are recommendations or guidelines.

4. For denitions of Regular, Administrative, and Special faculty, refer to the – Faculty Manual, p.12.

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B. Dene qualications for chairing a thesis or dissertation advisory committee, if dierent from A, above.

For example, as chairing a thesis or dissertation is a skill that many new faculty have not had a chance to

practice, at some institutions graduate faculty are required to participate in a few advisory committees

or to co-chair prior to chairing a committee. Units should consider not only how to ensure quality

mentoring for graduate students, but mentoring of new faculty in this skill, and whether it is appropriate

for early-career faculty to accept the burden of chairing committee(s).

1. Currently, only Regular or Administrative faculty are eligible to chair a thesis or dissertation, and

Special faculty ranks can serve as co-chairs.

C. Determine the mechanism through which graduate faculty status is awarded, both for Regular and

Special faculty ranks (which may dier). In some units, department chairs will make the decision, while

in others, TPR committees will have the responsibility. For newly hired faculty, it is helpful to describe

whether they can receive graduate faculty status as part of the appointment process, and if so, how that

decision is vetted.

D. Determine the mechanism for periodically reviewing graduate faculty (or chairing committees) status,

and the criteria for maintaining this status. Units will oen want to incorporate this review into other

typical and routine faculty review processes (e.g., TPR, post-tenure review, reappointment of lecturers,

etc.).

E. Although unpleasant, units should consider carefully the mechanism for removing a faculty member

from the graduate faculty. Membership in the graduate faculty should be considered a privilege, not a

right. Units might want to carefully scrutinize the privilege of chairing a thesis or dissertation and specify

due process for review and rearmation or removal of graduate faculty status. For example, a unit might

decide that faculty found to be in violation of certain University policies — or out of compliance with

certain federal regulations — might be removed from the graduate faculty.

F. Outline a reasonable appeal process for faculty who feel unfairly treated in this process. Ideally, these

appeal processes should be internal to the college except in unusual circumstances, in which case the

Provost could be the last and nal arbiter of this process, again ideally as part of routine faculty review

processes.

2.3. Your Advisor and Advisory Committee

Advisor (major advisor, committee chair)

Every student enrolled in a graduate program must have a major advisor. The major advisor is the faculty member

who provides general guidance throughout your program of study. The major advisor will recommend initial

courses to be taken until the advisory committee is selected. Initial coursework should be of a fundamental or

core nature so that the full advisory committee, once constituted, will have maximum exibility to formulate the

remainder of your program of study. Your major advisor, in consultation with the graduate program coordinator

or department chair, will assist you in selecting the members of your advisory committee. The major advisor is

responsible for chairing the advisory committee meetings and for providing realistic expectations for completing

the requirements of the degree. An advisory committee may be co-chaired by more than one faculty member.

Note that some colleges or departments will have dierent criteria for faculty to serve as chair of your advisory

committee.

5. For denitions of Regular, Administrative, and Special faculty, refer to the – Faculty Manual, p.12.

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Students pursuing a master’s or specialist’s degree must select an advisor and submit your plan of study by

the middle of your second semester, and doctoral students must select an advisor and submit your curriculum no

later than the beginning of your fourth semester of study following matriculation. Aer these deadlines, you may

be blocked from registering for future courses until you submit a plan of study. Review your program’s graduate

program handbook for the written procedures for selection of the major advisor. The Graduate School supports

your right to have signicant control over the selection of your major advisor (including the ability to change

advisors) and your advisory committee.

Graduate Advisory Committee

A student’s advisory committee approves your degree curriculum, supervises your graduate program, administers

the nal oral examination (if required), and initiates the recommendation for the awarding of the degree. In addi-

tion, the advisory committee may administer qualifying (or preliminary) or nal comprehensive examinations.

One member of the committee is designated as chair (or major advisor) and normally directs your dissertation or

thesis, if required.

Every student enrolled in the Graduate School must form an advisory committee not later than the middle

of their second semester aer matriculation into a master’s or specialist’s degree program, or not later than the

beginning of the fourth semester of their doctoral program. Individual programs that require a standing exception

to the timeline for curricular reasons may appeal for an alternative timeline to be approved by the Dean of the

Graduate School.

Committee composition: A minimum of three faculty members must be selected by a student seeking a

master’s or specialist’s degree, and a minimum of four faculty members must be selected by a student seeking a

doctoral degree. All members of an advisory committee must be current members of the graduate faculty. The

majority of the advisory committee, including the chair, must include full-time Clemson University Regular or

Administrative faculty as dened in the Faculty Manual.

Special faculty may serve as co-chairs or committee

members as long as the chair is a permanent faculty member appointed to the graduate faculty and the Special

faculty member(s) are members of the graduate faculty. The chair, co-chair, or at least half of the committee must

have a primary appointment in the program oering the degree. If the student declares a minor, this area must be

represented on the committee. Committee members of interdepartmental programs are to be appointed accord-

ing to bylaws (formulated by the program faculty and endorsed by the academic unit housing the program).

Major advisor or committee chair:

Regular or Administrative faculty holding graduate faculty status are eligi-

ble to serve as the major advisor or chair of the committee.

Academic unit policies:

Units may specify more restrictive standards for whom may be eligible to serve as major

advisor or committee chair, and may expand the pool of eligible faculty to include Special faculty categories who

serve as full-time Clemson employees. These unit guidelines should clearly articulate qualications for this status,

what types of special faculty are eligible, and how they are reviewed (e.g., TPR committee and department chair).

Chairing a dissertation: Graduate School policy does not currently dierentiate qualications for serving in

this very challenging and important role. We encourage academic units to specify what qualications, if any, they

look for in serving as a dissertation chair.

Persons not employed by the University

: Certain non-employees may serve on the advisory committee.

External individuals (e.g., tenure-track faculty at other institutions, scholars employed in industry or other

6. Revisions proposed 20 January 2017. Passed advisory committee January 2017. Passed Graduate Council April 2017; revised 11 April 2017 for

terminology consistency about faculty categories in faculty manual.

7. For denitions of Regular, Administrative, and Special faculty, refer to the – Faculty Manual, p.12.

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non-academic venues, etc.) who meet the unit standards for graduate faculty status and are active scholars in an

area relevant to the thesis or dissertation may serve as a committee member pending approval of the unit TPR

committee and department chair. External committee members may not serve as chair of the advisory committee.

Once advisory committee members are selected and approved, you, your department, and your committee

members are notied of the fully constituted committee by means of the approved Plan of Study.

Your Plan of Study (form GS2, graduate degree curriculum)

If you are a degree-seeking student, you must le a GS Plan of Study or graduate degree curriculum (accessed

via iROAR) near the beginning of your program of study. This planned program represents your individual cur-

riculum as recommended by your advisory committee. It must adhere to departmental as well as University pol-

icies. The total number of graduate credits required for the degree is determined by your advisory committee,

consistent with the specic program guidelines and Graduate School policy. These credits constitute the core of

your graduate degree curriculum. All transfer courses listed on the GS2 must conform to the policies on transfer

courses (see Transfer credit). These documents may evolve, with advisory committee approval, throughout the

course of your degree program, and changes should be reviewed and approved by your committee, and a new

GS2 form submitted whenever a change occurs. The Graduate School website provides additional Plan of Study

instructions online.

If you experience a problem completing or routing your Plan of Study, you may contact the Graduate School’s

Director of Web Technologies, Miranda Hix.

Deadlines: Students pursuing a master’s or specialist’s degree must submit the plan of study by the middle of

their second semester following matriculation, and doctoral students must submit the curriculum no later than

the beginning of their fourth semester of study following matriculation. If you don’t meet these deadlines, you

may be blocked from registering for courses until you submit a plan of study.

Final GS2 and graduation:

In order to be approved for graduation, your nal GS2 must be led by the dead-

line listed on the graduation deadlines web page. Failure to meet these deadlines may result in late fees and/or

inability to graduate when desired.

Continuous enrollment

As a graduate student enrolled in a degree program, you are required to maintain continuous enrollment aer

initial matriculation (i.e., you must register each fall and spring semester until you either have graduated, have

permanently withdrawn, or have been dismissed). If you are enrolled in the spring and fall semesters, you are not

required to register during the summer unless you meet the exceptions below. Registration in a zero-credit intern-

ship or similar course satises this requirement. Registering to audit a course does not meet this requirement. Note

that a student on a 12-month graduate assistantship must maintain continuous enrollment during the summer in

addition to fall and spring semesters (see section ., Assistantships and Fellowships) to keep that assistantship.

Exceptions

■ Incomplete grades

A student who anticipates not being able to remove a fall semester I (incomplete) grade by the end of

the semester should register for that spring semester, and any subsequent semesters needed to complete

the work, to stay in compliance with the continuous enrollment policy. A student who fails to remove

a spring I grade by the end of the summer will not be terminated (because summer registration is

not required for continuous enrollment), but you will have to register for the following fall and any

subsequent semesters until the I has been removed (see Grading system: Incompletes).

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■ Registration in a summer session for submission of thesis/dissertation and oral examinations, or

other degree milestones

A student who completes any degree milestone (e.g., preliminary or comprehensive exam, defense or oral

exam of any kind) or submits your thesis/dissertation to the Graduate School during any summer session

must be registered during that summer session.

■ Graduation

A student who completes all requirements for the degree (including the Graduate School’s acceptance of

the nal version of your thesis or dissertation) prior to the rst day of classes for the fall or spring semester

or the rst summer session may graduate during the next semester or summer session without being

registered, provided that you were registered in the immediately preceding semester or summer session

and that you applied to graduate during that preceding term.

Failure to maintain continuous enrollment

The Graduate School may dismiss any student who fails to comply with the continuous enrollment policy.

If you are terminated from your program for failure to maintain continuous enrollment, you will be required

to reapply for admission (see Leave of absence). Readmission requires a positive recommendation from your

academic program as well as approval by the Graduate School and, therefore, is not guaranteed.

Leave of absence

A student in good academic standing (minimum 3.0 GPA and has successfully met other program or Graduate

School requirements) who must interrupt a graduate program may request a leave of absence from graduate study.

A leave of absence may be granted for up to 12 months, with a possible renewal of up to one additional 12-month

period.

A student not in good standing (GPA lower than 3.0 or failed critical program or Graduate School require-

ments; e.g., comprehensive or qualifying exams) may also request a leave of absence. However, the Graduate

School may also choose to dismiss the underperforming student where future success seems unlikely. Should the

request for the leave of absence be approved by the Graduate School, the student will return in the same academic

status as prior to the leave.

A leave of absence is usually granted for compelling personal, family, medical, or professional reasons that

require the student to suspend graduate study and to be absent from the University for a period of time. During

a leave of absence, students are expected to be focused on these non-academic priorities. A leave of absence is not

intended to be a mechanism for you to avoid tuition costs while making progress toward a degree. Therefore, you

may not make progress toward your degree requirements while on leave (e.g., taking comprehensive or qualify-

ing exams; completing incomplete grades; submitting, revising, or defending a thesis or dissertation; conducting

independent research, etc.). A student on leave will maintain access to basic CCIT services such as University

email, but should not use other University resources such as research labs, faculty time, recreation facilities, or

health and wellness services.

Procedure for student:

The plan to take a leave of absence from your program should be discussed rst with

your major advisor and/or program coordinator well in advance of your intended leave. These faculty members

will inform you of concerns at the program level that must be understood and/or addressed prior to leave, includ-

ing issues of departmental or program nancial support. Formally notify the program and the Graduate School of

your intended leave by completing the online form GS-LoA Request for Leave of Absence. Aer you complete this

form, forward it electronically or hand deliver a hard copy to secure the necessary signatures from your graduate

program advisor or coordinator. Incomplete forms will not be approved by the Graduate School and you thus will

be considered not in compliance with the Continuous enrollment policy. If you are an international student, you

should check regulations on how a leave would impact your visa status and other important factors.

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Transfer credit

Independence of graduate degrees

A graduate student who has completed the requirements for a graduate degree may not then use those same

credits toward a second degree. The exceptions to this rule are the master’s degree en route to the doctorate

and students approved for the dual degree option.

Research, internships, theses and dissertations

Under no circumstances will transfer credit be awarded for research, internships, master’s thesis or doctoral

dissertation work performed at another university.

Courses

Your advisory committee will make the nal determination about transfer credit. Up to 12 credit hours of

coursework (and no more than one-third of the graded course credit hours required for a master’s degree)

may be transferred to a master’s degree. Up to 48 credit hours of coursework (and no more than one-third of

the graded course credit hours) may be transferred to a doctoral degree. All credits transferred to Clemson’s

graduate programs must have been completed at a regionally-accredited institution and must be veried by

submission of an ocial transcript. Programs may have more restrictive policies on acceptable transfer credits

clearly articulated in their graduate program handbook but may not exceed the guidelines in this policy.

Grades earned for courses taken at institutions other than Clemson University will not be included in

the student’s grade point ratio. Valid transfer credits will appear on your transcript as credits earned. Under

no circumstances will transfer credit be awarded for courses in which a grade lower than B (or its equivalent)

has been received; courses graded on a pass/fail basis; continuing education units; courses completed outside

the six-year (master’s) or eight-year (doctorate) time limit for degree completion; for correspondence, exten-

sion, or in-service courses; or for concentrated courses and workshops that award credit at a rate exceeding

one credit per week. All transfer courses listed on the GS Plan of Study must be courses taken for credit

from a regionally accredited degree-granting institution whose scholastic reputation is acceptable to Clemson

University and to your advisory committee and department.

Procedure for student:

To have courses considered for transfer, you must discuss with your major advisor

and/or advisory committee your proposal to use specic courses from other institutions. Within the guide-

lines established by the Graduate School, the advisory committee will identify courses acceptable for transfer

and will record these courses on your GS Plan of Study. You must then have an ocial transcript sent from

the institution(s) where credit was earned to the Oce of Enrolled Student Services, 104D Sikes Hall. Only

when courses have been veried by Enrolled Services to meet all Graduate School requirements will they

be approved for application toward the degree. This approval should be secured as early as practical once

you matriculate into a Clemson University degree program. The Oce of Enrolled Student Services and

the Graduate School have nal authority to approve or deny requests for course transfer. No faculty or sta

outside the Oce of Enrolled Student Services or the Graduate School have authority to approve this type

of request.

2.4. Navigating Courses

Syllabus

A syllabus will be prepared for every graduate class and made available to studentsenrolled in that class, ideally

on the rst day of class and no later than the last class period before the last day for a student to add a class. The

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syllabus should dene the course expectations, including a topical outline of the course, grading information, and

attendance policies.

Procedure for instructors:

Instructors may access the Graduate School’s syllabus requirements on the Faculty

and Sta Resources web page (login required) under “Current Class Regulations.”

Class attendance

You are expected to be well prepared for — and to routinely attend — all classes except when extenuating cir-

cumstances intervene. All students are required to attend the rst scheduled day of classes and labs. Students who

cannot attend the rst class are responsible for contacting the instructor to indicate their intent to remain in that

class. If you do not attend the rst class meeting or contact the instructor by the second class meeting or the last

day to add the class, whichever comes rst, the instructor has the option of dropping you from the roll. Specic

class attendance policies are established by instructors and are included in each course syllabus.

Auditing courses

Permission to audit a graduate course is granted at the discretion of the academic department chair, the coordi-

nator of the program oering the course, or the instructor. Audited courses do not carry credit and are not noted

your academic record. Audited courses may not be used to satisfy stated prerequisites for a graduate course. Addi-

tionally, you may not establish credit through examination in any course for which you were previously registered

as an auditor.

Change of major or degree program

You may request a change of major and/or degree by completion of the iROAR-based GS Request for Change

of Degree and/or Major process. You must meet all program and Graduate School requirements for admission

into the new program and receive approval from the new program’s program coordinator and department chair

before nal approval will be granted. Comprehensive exams must always be completed in the current discipline

regardless of whether you completed them in the previous discipline.

Enrollment limits

Maximum enrollment limits for graduate students refer to graduate and undergraduate credits combined. During

the summer sessions, if the six-week and three-week sessions run concurrently, the total credits are not permitted

to exceed the maximum for the six-week session.

Graduate student enrollment limits

Maximum credit hours

Student category Semester 6-week session 3-week session

Full-time students 15 6 3

Graduate assistants (10 hours) 15 6 3

Graduate assistants (11+ hrs.) 12 6 3

Full-time CU employees 9 6 3

Procedure for student: If you want to exceed these credit-hour limits, you must get approval from your major

advisor, who will submit an appeal of the enrollment policy to the Dean of the Graduate School, who in turn will

assess your record and make a determination.

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Clemson University Graduate School POLICIES & PROCEDURES

Procedure for department: Departments or programs that want to require graduate curricula to exceed

15credit hours per semester should submit this request to the Graduate Curriculum Committee for review as a

program modication.

Dropping courses

The Academic Calendar provides ocial dates for withdrawing from a class without record or without nal

grades. If you are considering dropping a course, you must ensure you are in compliance with all other policies and

conditions of your awards. You may submit a withdrawal request via iROAR. Failure to attend classes or verbal

notication to instructors does not constitute formal withdrawal. A student who stops attending classes but does

not withdraw is held accountable for all nancial and academic outcomes of that decision.

A student who ocially withdraws within the rst two weeks of classes will have no grades recorded. Those

who ocially withdraw aer the rst two weeks and prior to the last ve weeks will have a grade of W (withdrew)

entered on the academic record. If you are dropping all courses, please see Withdrawing from Clemson Univer-

sity; the timetable diers between dropping one course and dropping all courses with intent to withdraw. The

date on which you withdraw online is the ocial date of withdrawal recorded by the Registrar.

Prior to dropping courses, international graduate students must receive authorization from an advisor in the

Oce of International Services. It is important that you not fall below the required full-time enrollment man-

dated by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

A student on an assistantship must maintain minimum enrollment levels. See section 3.2, Assistantships and

Fellowships.

Grading system

Graduate courses are graded on an A-B-C-F scale. A minimum grade of C (or P) in all courses must be earned for

the courses to apply toward a degree.

Grade appeal

Grades cannot be appealed, although you may le an ocial grievance under certain circumstances. See

Academic Grievance Policy.

Pass/fail enrollment

Thesis and dissertation research, and a small number of unstructured courses approved by the Graduate

Curriculum Committee as non-graded courses, may be taken at the graduate level on a pass/fail (P/F) basis.

Courses graded P/F are not included in your GPA; however, the grade P or F does appear in your permanent

academic record. Classes not previously approved as pass/fail by the Graduate Curriculum Committee will

not be converted to the pass/fail option at a student’s request. Credit hours for which you receives a grade

of fail (F) will not apply toward the number of credit hours required for your degree but can indicate lack

of satisfactory academic progress and may lead to dismissal. The accumulation of grades of pass (P) in thesis

or dissertation research does not infer completion of the research; such grades indicate satisfactory progress.

Incompletes (grades of I)

A grade of Incomplete (I) indicates that a relatively small part of the semester’s work remains undone and

indicates a reasonable expectation that your completion of the work will lead to a satisfactory grade. Grade

I is not given a student whose submitted work indicates a failure to master the material, failure to turn in

any work, or failure to attend class. Instructors have complete discretion to approve or deny a request for an

incomplete based on their assessment of your progress in the course. This decision is not grievable.

The student is allowed 30 days aer the beginning of the next scheduled session, excluding summers and

regardless of the student’s enrollment status, to remove the incomplete grade. Normally, only one extension

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for each I may be granted, and only under unusual circumstances. The extension must be approved in writing

by the instructor of the course and the chair of the department in which the course was taken. The extension

will indicate the nature and amount of work to be completed and the time limit. (Under this policy you are

prohibited from removing the I by repeating the course.) A letter grade of I converts to F unless the incom-

plete is removed within the time specied.

Any student who receives a grade of I is ineligible for graduation, including earning a master’s degree en

route to a doctoral degree, until the incomplete work has been resolved and a letter grade submitted to the

Oce of the Registrar.

Procedure for student:

If an instructor grants you an incomplete, ask your instructor to provide a written

statement of the work to be completed and the due deadline.

Procedure for instructor: At the student’s request, you should provide a written statement of the work

to be completed. Instructors have ten working days aer the deadline to grade make-up work and submit

the nal grade to the Oce of the Registrar. You should not accept work submitted aer the deadline unless

an extension has been approved. If the student has requested an extension, the instructor should submit

the request to the Oce of the Registrar by the deadline specied on the make-up form. Once the student

has submitted the completed work, you should submit the make-up form to the Oce of Enrolled Student

Services for the grade to be recorded.

GPA (grade point average)

In calculating your grade point average (GPA; sometimes referred to as a grade point ratio or GPR), the total

number of grade points accumulated is divided by the total number of credit hours attempted at Clemson during

the semester, session, or other period for which the grade point ratio is being calculated. For each credit hour, the

student receives grade points as follows: A–4, B–3, C–2, F–0, I–0, W–0. Audited courses do not carry credit and

are not noted on your academic record.

Computing and resetting the grade point average (GPA)

Clemson University recognizes the independence of graduate degrees; that is, credits earned for a completed

degree may not be used towards a second degree. As such, it is the policy of the Graduate School to reset the

grade point average following completion of any graduate degree, with one exception: that of a master’s degree

earned en route to the PhD in the same discipline.

Academic records

Your permanent academic record is maintained in the Oce of the Registrar and contains personal identifying

information, grades, and credits. The academic record, maintained in accordance with the University’s retention

policy, is a historical record of a student’s academic progress.

Transcripts

All information related to obtaining an ocial transcript is available on the website for the Registrar. A Tr a n -

script request form is also available as a PDF from the Oce of the Registrar. The University does not currently

oer an electronic ocial transcript.

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

2.5. Degree Requirements

The Master’s degree

Credits required

Consistent with our regional accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission

on Colleges (SACSCOC), Clemson University requires a minimum of thirty hours beyond the bachelor’s

degree for any master’s degree. At least one-half of the total graduate credit hours required by the advisory

committee, exclusive of thesis research, must be selected from courses numbered 8000 or above.

Your GS Plan of Study will determine your specic requirements for the degree as determined by your

advisory committee, consistent with the specic program guidelines and Graduate School policy. These cred-

its constitute the core of your graduate degree curriculum. Supplemental courses (undergraduate or graduate

courses to broaden your academic experience) are not required to be included on the GS Plan of Study;

however, if a listing is desirable, such courses may be included.

Thesis option

Each program includes a minimum of 24 hours of graduate credit and a minimum of six hours of master’s

thesis research (8910).

Non-thesis option

Each program includes a minimum of 30 hours of graduate credit, none of which may be master’s thesis

research.

Programs with a minor

A minor outside the degree program, if chosen and/or required by the program, shall consist of at least sixcredit

hours in that area.

Residence

There is no University-wide residence requirement for a master’s degree; however, individual degree programs

may establish such a requirement.

Thesis grades

Thesis research is graded on a pass/fail (P/F) basis. The accumulation of grades of pass (P) in thesis research

does not infer completion of the research, but only indicates satisfactory progress. Receipt of a grade of fail

(F) implies unsatisfactory progress and may be cause for dismissal from the Graduate School, irrespective of

grade point average.

Time limit

A master’s student has six years from the date of rst matriculation to complete a degree; therefore, all course-

work to be credited toward any master’s degree must have been enrolled in and completed within six (6)

calendar years prior to the date on which the degree is to be awarded. When recommended by your advisory

committee and approved by the Dean of the Graduate School, as many as six credit hours of coursework

taken at Clemson University, but completed outside the six-year limit, may be revalidated by a written com-

prehensive examination based on the latest syllabus and course content. Independent study courses are not

subject to revalidation. Coursework completed outside the six-year time limit at an institution other than

Clemson University may not be transferred to Clemson. Courses taken at any institution other than Clemson

University may not be revalidated for graduate credit at Clemson. A student exceeding the six-year time limit

may be dismissed for failure to maintain adequate progress toward the degree.

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

The Specialist in Education degree

The requirements pertaining to residence, time limits, and nal examinations for master’s degrees also apply to

the Specialist in Education degree. Coursework required includes 30 credit hours beyond the master’s degree.

Consult the College of Education and individual programs’ graduate program handbooks for details on

the various EdS programs. All graduate degrees below the doctoral level are subject to the six-year time limit.

The Doctoral degree (PhD, EdD, DNP)

Coursework leading to the doctoral degree is planned to give you a comprehensive knowledge of your eld

of specialization and a mastery of the methods of research. The degree is not awarded solely on the basis of

coursework completed, residence, completion of preliminary or comprehensive examinations, or other rou-

tine requirements. The nal basis for granting the degree is your grasp of the subject matter across a broad

eld of study, your competence in planning and conducting research, and the ability to express yourself ade-

quately and professionally both orally and in writing. Ultimately, only your advisory committee can certify

that you have earned this degree.

Some doctoral programs allow students with a bachelor’s degree to matriculate directly into the doctoral

degree program. The Graduate School website hosts a list of these programs.

Program of study and credit requirements

In accord with SACSCOC

guidelines, the Graduate School requires that a doctoral degree comprise a min-

imum of 30 credits beyond the master’s degree, and at least 60 credits beyond the bachelor’s degree. The

advisory committee aids you in developing an individualized curriculum (to be outlined in the GS Plan of

Study) which meets program requirements and provides appropriate training to meet your goals.

A minimum of 18 hours of dissertation research is required for any doctoral degree.

Residency

The purpose of residency is to require students to spend a specied minimum amount of time immersed

in— and engaged with — the eld of study. To receive a doctoral degree, you must complete at least 15 grad-

uate credit hours (including research credit hours, 9910) on a Clemson University campus in a continuous

12-month period. If you are unable to meet this requirement, a statement specifying the manner in which the

residence requirement is to be satised must be formulated by your advisory committee and included in your

GS Plan of Study. The Dean of the Graduate School must approve exceptions to this requirement. You

will forward to the Graduate School a statement approved by the department chair certifying that residence

requirements have been met.

Preliminary or qualifying examinations

The Graduate School does not require programs to administer preliminary or qualifying examinations.

However, some doctoral programs require that preliminary or qualifying examinations be taken prior to the

comprehensive examination. These types of examinations are intended to provide an early, general assessment

of a student’s mastery of content and/or conceptual understanding of the research process. The structure,

duration, review and re-examination policies for qualifying examinations are dened in writing by the pro-

gram faculty in the graduate program handbook for the respective program.

8. This policy became eective 1 August 2011. Students enrolled before that date are bound by the minimum credit requirements in eect when

they enrolled.

9. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

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

Comprehensive examinations

The comprehensive exam is designed to evaluate your overall mastery of a body of knowledge and skills aer

most of the program of study is completed. The particular form of the comprehensive examination in any

degree program is described in that graduate program handbook. You may attempt the comprehensive exam-

ination only on the recommendation of your advisory committee and only aer completion of most of the

required coursework. This examination must be administered by faculty of the Clemson University pro-

gram oering the degree, according to published program policies. A majority decision is required; dissenting

members of the examining committee may forward a minority report to the Graduate School. Your perfor-

mance on this examination will determine whether you will be recommended for admission to candidacy for

the degree.

Satisfactory completion of the comprehensive examination must occur at least six months prior to the

date of graduation.

Should you fail to pass the comprehensive examination, you may be given a second opportunity only by

recommendation of the examining committee. Committees are encouraged to carefully consider a student’s

likelihood of successfully completing the exam aer they fail the rst attempt and to recommend dismissal

for any student whose performance is so poor that it is unlikely that a second attempt will be successful. For

a student who is permitted a second attempt, a minimum of two months must pass before the student can

undergo a second comprehensive examination. A second failure will result in the student being dismissed

from Clemson University.

Doctoral students who have passed a comprehensive examination, and who decide to change degree pro-

grams, must complete a comprehensive exam in the new degree program.

Procedure for student:

Prior to scheduling the comprehensive examination, you must have selected an

advisory committee and have an approved graduate degree curriculum (GS Plan of Study) on le in the

Oce of Enrolled Student Services. Comprehensive examinations are scheduled individually by the depart-

ments. Consult with your graduate program coordinator and major advisor for appropriate advice on prepar-

ing for and scheduling the comprehensive examination.

Procedure for committee:

Within three weeks of the examination, the chair of the advisory committee

will inform the Oce of Enrolled Student Services of the result of the comprehensive exam, via form GSD

Results of the Doctoral Comprehensive Exam and Candidacy.

Candidacy

A doctoral (PhD, EdD, DNP) student becomes a candidate for the doctorate (or is “admitted to candidacy”)

upon successful completion of the comprehensive examination for the degree and submission to the Oce of

Enrolled Student Services of form GSD Results of the Doctoral Comprehensive Exam and Candidacy.

Dissertation

The candidate for a doctoral degree receives academic credit for conducting research and preparing a disserta-

tion under the direction of the research advisor. A dissertation, mandatory for all candidates for the doctoral

degree, requires 18 hours of doctoral research (9910) exclusive of any research credits earned at the master’s

level. See also Finalizing your thesis or dissertation aer defense.

Time limit

All requirements for the doctoral degree must be completed within eight (8) years from the date you rst

matriculate into a doctoral degree program at Clemson. The time limit applies to all doctoral programs, even

cases where a student is receiving a master’s degree en route to the doctorate. This clock does not stop for leave

of absence. Programs may petition for dierent time limits for their program for good cause. In exceptional

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circumstances, a student may petition the Graduate School for additional time with approval of the advisory

committee. A student who exceeds the time limit without an extension can be dismissed from the Graduate

School for failure to maintain adequate academic progress.

O-campus research

Although thesis and dissertation research is normally performed at Clemson or at Clemson-aliated locations,

in some cases the University may not own appropriate, specialized equipment or facilities. Permission may be

granted for o-campus research according to the following provisions:

1. Written consent and research plan: You must have the written consent of your thesis/dissertation

advisor, full advisory committee, and department chair prior to engaging in o-campus research. You

must submit a written plan for the research eort to the advisory committee for approval. The plan

should include a discussion of the problem and intended scope of the investigation, and should be

structured in terms of a specic time frame.

2. Statement from the organization where research will be conducted: Your advisory committee may

require a statement from an appropriate ocer of the organization at which you will be located, agreeing

to a) your plan to complete thesis/dissertation research using the organization’s equipment and facilities;

b) the apportioning of at least 25 percent or other appropriate amount of the your employment hours to

thesis research; and/or c) the organization’s release of patent rights or copyrights arising from discoveries

or concepts that evolve during the course of your master’s or dissertation research.

3. Travel: You may be required to travel to the Clemson campus at your own expense to meet with your

thesis/dissertation advisor and advisory committee as oen as the committee deems necessary.

4. Continuous enrollment: You must maintain continuous enrollment at Clemson University while the

research is in progress.

5. Supervision and reports: When research is conducted at a non-Clemson facility, we must be sure that

we are exercising proper and necessary control over this important phase of your study. The following

requirements must be met:

a. An employee at the facility must be identied to supervise your research. This individual must be

qualied and certied for the supervisory position by the department and college involved and by the

Dean of the Graduate School, and must be suitable for graduate faculty status within the academic

unit housing your degree program;

b. A resume of the research supervisor must be submitted to your full advisory committee for review

and recommendation to the Dean of the Graduate School;

c. The research supervisor must provide updates to the advisory committee as to your progress.

Foreign language requirements

Language requirements are determined by programs rather than by the Graduate School. Consult your program’s

graduate program handbook for foreign language requirements and guidelines.

Senior enrollment in graduate courses

Clemson University seniors meeting the accepted academic standard for graduate work (3.0 cumulative grade

point average) are eligible to request enrollment in graduate level courses. Enrollment of seniors in any graduate

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

course is subject to approval by the department oering the course and by the Graduate School. The total course

workload for the semester must not exceed 18 hours, and the cumulative graduate credits earned by seniors shall

not exceed 12 semester hours. The credits and quality points associated with senior enrollment in graduate

courses will be part of the undergraduate record. Graduate courses used toward an undergraduate degree cannot

be counted toward any graduate degree (including total minimum credit count of 120). Graduate courses taken

beyond the requirements of the undergraduate degree may count toward a graduate degree.

Seniors with 3.4 or higher grade point average. Seniors with 3.4 or higher grade point averages are eligible for

participation in a combined bachelor’s/graduate plan.

Seniors with 3.0 grade point averages. Seniors with 3.0 or higher grade point averages are eligible to request

enrollment in graduate level courses. Courses cannot be taken at the 6000 level if their 4000-level counterparts are

required for the undergraduate degree in the same academic major as the proposed graduate degree (see Course

restriction, -level).

Procedure for student:

Approval by the Graduate School is required prior to registration in any graduate

course. The student should use the appropriate form GS Request for Senior Enrollment or the GS- Bachelor-

to-Graduate Request For Combined Education Plan.

Combined Bachelor’s/Graduate plan

A combined bachelor’s/graduate degree plan may provide a seamless and ecient path for students to complete

both degrees at Clemson. There are several advantages to this process, including automatic admission into the

master’s program (bypassing the application fee and the need to take the GRE), and potentially applying graduate

credits to both undergraduate and graduate program requirements.

To be eligible, the student must have completed the bachelor’s curriculum through the junior year (minimum

90 credits) and have a minimum overall grade point average of 3.4. A maximum of 12 credit hours of graduate

courses in the master’s program may be applied to the bachelor’s program; however, the total credit hours taken

for the two degrees must be at least 150 unique credit hours for the bachelor’s to master’s plan, or 180 unique

credit hours for the bachelor’s-to-doctorate plan. That is, the credit hours counted towards the bachelor’s degree

plus the credit hours taken aer the bachelor’s is awarded must total at least 150 (master’s) or 180 (PhD). Fur-

ther, this total may contain a maximum of six credit hours of thesis/dissertation research, and all credit hours to

be included in the total that are completed aer receiving the bachelor’s degree must be in 6000-level or higher

courses. As determined by the participating bachelor’s program, graduate courses may be applied to the bache-

lor’s degree as electives or technical requirements or by substitution of 7000- or 8000-level courses for required

undergraduate courses. Under no circumstances can 6000-level counterparts of 4000-level courses required for

the bachelor’s degree be counted toward graduate degree requirements. Combined bachelor’s/graduate plan stu-

dents are not eligible for graduate assistantships or fellowships until their bachelor’s degrees have been awarded.

Form GS-Bachelor-to-Graduate Request for Combined Education Plan should be completed and signed by the

student and relevant faculty members, and returned to the Graduate School.

Procedure for student:

While a senior you should consult both your academic advisor and the graduate pro-

gram coordinator of the master’s program you wish to pursue and ocially request participation in the combined

bachelor’s/master’s program by completion of form GS-Bachelor-to-Graduate Request for Combined Education

Plan. Endorsements by the program coordinator or department chair of both programs are required. Note: The

GRE cannot be required for students who are approved via GS-Bachelor-to-Graduate forms to pursue graduate

degree programs.

Procedure for department:

Departments and graduate programs that wish to oer a combined bachelor’s/

graduate program should submit a written notication to the Dean of the Graduate School, identifying the date

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

on which they intend to make this option available to their students. For each student in this program, depart-

ments and graduate programs should ensure: 1)the courses to be double-counted meet the requirements specied

above and number 12 credit hours or fewer; 2)there are at least 150 total, unique credit hours counted towards

the two degrees; and 3)that courses completed aer the baccalaureate to be counted toward the 150 credit-hour

requirement are at the 6000 level or above.

Dual master’s degrees

If a student pursues two master’s degrees simultaneously, one-sixth of the graded graduate coursework may be

applied toward both degrees. The one-sixth course rule references one-sixth of the curriculum with the highest

number of graduate credits. Required core courses for either degree may not be displaced by selecting the option

to participate in the dual degree option.

Procedure for department:

The graduate degree curricula (as recorded on form GS Plan of Study) must

clearly denote that the student is working toward two degrees and must identify the courses that are being applied

to both programs. The Plan of Study form must be submitted in accordance with the Plan of study policy. Com-

mittee members, department chairs, and deans of both graduate programs must approve the two plans of study.

At least one committee member must serve on both committees.

Course restriction, 6000-level

6000-level courses are graduate counterparts of undergraduate 4000-level courses. To enroll in or receive credit for

any courses at the 6000 level or above, you must have been ocially admitted by the Graduate School, either to a

degree program or as a non-degree student, or have been approved to enroll as a senior in graduate-level courses

through request using form GS Request for Senior Enrollment in Graduate Courses, or

form GS- Bachelor-to-

Graduate Request for Combined Education Plan (see previous topic, Dual master’s degrees). You may not enroll

in 6000-level courses for which the corresponding undergraduate 4000-level credit has been awarded, nor can

graduate credit be awarded retroactively for 4000-level undergraduate courses already completed.

Duplication of graduate degrees

A student holding a master’s degree or a doctoral degree (from Clemson or any other institution) may not, as a

rule, become a candidate for the same degree in the same eld of study.

Certicate programs

Graduate certicates are ocial credentials oered by Clemson University and approved by the South Carolina

Commission on Higher Education in the same manner as are all degree programs. Each has its own application

and admission process, as well as individual requirements. Graduate certicates will be noted on ocial tran-

scripts, and a written certicate will be given to the student upon completion of the requirements. Tuition and

fees vary by certicate program and number of hours the certicate encompasses. Find more information at the

Graduate School’s Tuition and Fees web page or in the individual certicate description provided by the hosting

department.

Graduate certicates require a minimum of nine credit hours. No more than one-third of the total credit

hours may be 6000-level credits from 4000/6000 courses. All other credits must be at the 7000 level or higher and

may include no more than three credit hours of research. A minimum grade of B is required in all courses. Courses

counted toward a certicate can also be counted toward a degree program. A Graduate Certicate Curriculum

form should be completed and submitted.

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

Credit by examination

Graduate students are not eligible to receive credit by examination other than through utilization of the form,

policy and procedures on course revalidation (form GSCV). All course work to be credited toward any of the

master’s degrees must have been enrolled in and completed within six (6) calendar years prior to the date on

which the degree is to be awarded. For example, a student graduating in the spring semester must have started and

completed all course work within the 72-month period beginning with the summer term six years earlier. When

recommended by the student’s advisory committee and approved by the Dean of the Graduate School, as many

as six semester hours of course work at Clemson University completed outside the six-year limit may be validated

by written examination. Such examinations will be under the direction of the department regularly oering the

course or courses for which the student seeks validation. Course work completed outside the six-year time limit at

an institution other than Clemson University may not be transferred to Clemson or validated for graduate credit.

2.6. Nearing Graduation

Graduation requirements

A candidate for graduation is a student who has submitted an application to graduate via iROAR by the Apply to

Graduate deadline prescribed in the University calendar for a particular graduation date. Only candidates who

have completed all graduation requirements are permitted to participate in the graduation ceremony.

Procedure for student:

Follow the steps below and visit the Graduation deadlines web page and the theses

and dissertations web pages for additional information.

■ Early in the year you expect to graduate: Contact the Enrolled Student Services Oce early in the

calendar year in which you plan to graduate to conrm your graduation status and eligibility.

■ At the beginning of the semester in which you desire to graduate: A candidate for a degree is required

to apply for the diploma within three weeks following the opening of the nal semester or the opening of

the rst summer session prior to the date the degrees are to be awarded. Applications for graduation must

be submitted online through the student’s iROAR account.

■ Work with your chair/advisor to nalize your thesis/dissertation: Your research advisor will

determine when your thesis/dissertation is suitable for initial review by the rest of your advisory

committee. At this point, you and your advisor will provide a copy of the manuscript to each committee

member. This must take place at least three weeks prior to the defense. Committee members may request

more than three weeks to review the thesis/dissertation. These deadlines should be coordinated through

your committee chair. For your convenience, the Graduate School website provides templates, sample

les, and other information to help you format your manuscript.

■ Schedule your thesis or dissertation defense: You must hold your defense at least two weeks (14

calendar days) prior to the deadline for submission of the GS form, or a minimum four weeks (28

calendar days) prior to the commencement at which you plan to graduate. This provides minimal time

for edits and responses to the defense, formatting review, and further edits based on formatting review. If

your thesis or dissertation requires signicant revisions, or substantial formatting changes, you may not

have enough time to provide edits and complete all other steps for graduation. We encourage students to

schedule defenses as early as is practical.

■ Notify Enrolled Student Services of date, time, location and other details of your defense at least ten

(10) calendar days prior to your defense. To do this, complete the online defense form that will add your

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defense to the calendar. Submitting the form will generate an email to Enrolled Services, and this email

will serve as your ocial written notication.

■ Hold your defense as scheduled.

■ Revise your thesis/dissertation to respond to committee recommendations during defense. Once your

committee and chair are satised with your thesis/dissertation and all revisions are nal and approved,

they will complete the appropriate GS form. This form must be submitted to Enrolled Student Services

at least two weeks (14 calendar days) before commencement. Note that if committee-required revisions

are substantial, you may not be able to meet subsequent deadlines for graduation and may have to defer to

a future graduation date.

■ Submit to the Graduate School for formatting review: You must submit your approved thesis or

dissertation to the Graduate School at least two weeks (14 calendar days) before commencement. The

Graduate School will review the thesis or dissertation to ensure that it complies with the formatting

guidelines established by the Graduate School, particularly the preliminary pages of the document but

including the page size and margins, and consistent formatting throughout the manuscript. Manuscript

submission and review is completed online. Step-by-step instructions and helpful tips for the process,

including formatting, defense, le conversion, submission via upload, revision, and nal approval, are

available at the Theses and Dissertations page on the Graduate School website. You will be notied via

email when the review is complete. Manuscripts will be approved by the Graduate School only if and

when no changes are required. Typically, theses and dissertations are reviewed within three business days

of receipt by the Graduate School, though it may take longer if you submit close to or on the deadline

date. In addition, you must allow for the possibility that format revisions will be required aer one (or

more) initial reviews and plan your submission accordingly. Note that ocial approval for graduation

includes both manuscript acceptance by the Manuscript Review Oce and the receipt of the completed

form GSM Final Exam and Thesis Approval Form or form GSD Dissertation Defense and Approval by

Enrolled Student Services.

Master’s degree programs

For degree programs that require a nal examination, your graduate program handbook should outline the

nature of the exam, when students are expected to complete the exam, and how it is evaluated.

Following successful completion of the exam and acceptance of the terminal project, if one is required, form

GSM Final Exam and Thesis Approval should be submitted to Enrolled Student Services.

For degree programs that require a thesis, the Graduate School provides programs broad latitude for creating

appropriate processes for proposal, formatting, and defense of theses. The graduate program handbook should

outline the processes required regarding proposal of a thesis project, guidelines for how the thesis should be for-

matted, how it is evaluated, and how it is defended. Information about thesis formatting for electronic publica-

tion and archiving is covered in Finalizing your thesis or dissertation aer defense below.

Doctoral degree programs

Dissertation proposal

Once advanced to candidacy, you must submit a proposal to your advisory committee outlining the details

of the research you hope to do to fulll the dissertation requirement. Each program should have a process

for the evaluation, defense, and endorsement of dissertation proposals. Endorsement of the proposal by the

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committee (ideally in written form) serves as the “contract” between the committee and you outlining scope

of the project, and should occur prior to data collection.

Submitting your dissertation for committee review

You will present your completed dissertation manuscript to your committee chair and advisory committee in

accord with the guidelines outlined in your program’s graduate program handbook and in concert with the

timeline established by your major advisor and/or advisory committee. This timeline must meet University

deadlines above.

Your committee chair determines when the manuscript is suitable for initial review by the remaining com-

mittee members. Once your advisor decides the dra is ready to share with the rest of your committee, you

will provide each committee member with a copy of the manuscript for review. Committee members should

normally complete the initial review of your dissertation in three weeks or less; however, agreements may be

made to allow for additional time if necessary.

Dissertation oral defense

You must pass an oral examination (the dissertation defense) which your committee will administer. Defenses

are public events — members of the Clemson University community are invited to attend the examination.

Defenses not open to the public should be rare and for good cause. Personal preference does not constitute

“good cause” but reasonable University accommodations for documented accessibility needs do constitute

“good cause.” Departments may have a standard procedure for these announcements/invitations, which will

be outlined in the program’s graduate program handbook.

A majority decision is required for a student to considered to have passed the oral exam; dissenting mem-

bers of the examining committee may forward a minority report to the Graduate School. A vote of “pass” at

a thesis/dissertation defense should only be rendered when each committee member indicates nal approval

(or dissent) of the dissertation by signing form GSD Dissertation Defense and Approval. The committee

should not sign form GS7D until the manuscript is responsive to all committee members’ concerns and rec-

ommendations. If a student submits a manuscript requiring substantial revisions, there might not sucient

time for revisions and committee review and approval before the submission deadline for format review. In

these cases, graduation may have to be deferred to a future graduation date.

A student who fails a dissertation defense may be allowed a second opportunity only at the recommenda-

tion of the advisory committee. Committees should only grant a second attempt when there is a strong prob-

ability of success. If the performance in the rst exam leaves committee members feeling that there is a low

probability for success on the second attempt, the student should be recommended to the Graduate School

for dismissal. Failure of the second dissertation defense will result in dismissal from the Graduate School.

Finalizing your thesis or dissertation aer defense and committee approval

Formatting and format approval

The Graduate School has delegated authority to graduate programs and students’ advisory committees to

determine the appropriate format for publication of theses and dissertations in accordance with standards

acceptable to the discipline. Consequently, each program handbook must contain specific information about

program expectations for theses and dissertations.

The Graduate School will review the thesis or dissertation to ensure that it complies with the guidelines

established by the Graduate School for formatting, particularly the preliminary pages of the document but

including the page size and margins, and consistent formatting throughout the manuscript. Manuscript sub-

mission and review is completed online. Step-by-step instructions and helpful tips for the process, including

formatting, defense, le conversion, submission via upload, revision, and nal approval, are available in the

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

Theses and Dissertations pages on the Graduate School website. Review typically requires at least three busi-

ness days, and if formatting corrections are needed, the entire review process may take longer.

Publishing, archiving and printing

The Graduate School publishes theses and dissertations electronically in partnership with ProQuest and

the University Libraries. You will nd a step-by-step guide to the submission process in the Theses and

Dissertations section of the Graduate School website. There are no fees required to upload, publish, and

archive your thesis or dissertation; fees apply only to the order of printed, bound copies and to certain

ProQuest publishing options such as open-access publishing (note that the University Libraries provide this

at no charge) and copyright ling with the U.S. Oce of Copyright.

The Graduate School does not require you to purchase any printed copies, but some departments do

(see the online list of departments requiring bound copies). You may order printed, bound copies of your

manuscript when you submit them for review or aer your manuscript has been published. Any program

requiring a student to purchase printed copies must state this clearly in the program handbook, along with

any requirements for binding style, size, paper quality, etc. You may, of course, have your own personal copies

printed and bound wherever you wish, and are not limited having your manuscript printed only by ProQuest.

Approximately eight weeks aer your graduation (or aer your publication embargo expires, whichever is

later) your thesis or dissertation will be available for viewing online at ProQuest and in the TigerPrints repos-

itory on Cooper Library’s website.

Restrictions on publication, publication embargoes

It is expected that the results of research performed using University facilities be published in the open litera-

ture (i.e., theses, dissertations, journals, magazines, or books) and that any information obtained may be freely

disclosed by the faculty in the teaching programs of the University. Exceptional cases may arise, however. The

guidelines below shall apply to any projects requiring that results be kept condential for a limited period of

time; a request for delay of publication is also referred to as an embargo.

■ The University shall not accept external contracts/grants that require research results to be kept

condential forever. A denite term of condentiality shall be stated in a written nondisclosure

agreement that is approved by the Dean of the Graduate School and shall not exceed one year beyond

the date of notication to the sponsor that a manuscript suitable for publication has been prepared.

Exceptions and extensions may be granted by the University administration only under unusual

circumstances (e.g., national security, national emergency, classied activities, pursuit of patents, or

certain condential agreements), with the approval of the Dean of the Graduate School.

■ Students associated with condential projects must have prior approval for the use of results in

preparing reports, theses, or dissertations in fulllment of degree requirements. The Graduate School

usually will not accept a thesis or dissertation that must be embargoed for more than one year.

Documents submitted in partial fulllment of degree requirements will be retained by the Graduate

School (or the department in the case of project reports for non-thesis programs) in accordance with

the nondisclosure agreement. The student’s thesis or dissertation defense shall not be open to those not

bound by the nondisclosure agreement.

■ Students may request an embargo priod not to exceed one year, but may request a renewal of up to one

additional year with approval from the Graduate School.

Procedure:

Students have the opportunity to specify an embargo period as part of the online

submission process. In addition, embargo requests must be directed via email to the Graduate

School Director of Communications, Jill Bunch. Students must include their advisor(s) in embargo

consideration and correspondence. It is preferred that the advisor originate the email request to the

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Graduate School. Embargoes are granted for up to one year, with the option to request renewal for up

to one additional year.

Restrictions on use

Theses and dissertations submitted to the Graduate School in partial fulllment of the requirements for grad-

uate degrees and deposited in the University Library are, as a rule, open to the public for reference purposes.

Extended quotations or summaries may be published only with the permission of the author and the Dean of

the Graduate School.

2.7. Special Circumstances

Academic probation

Graduate students who fail to meet the following minimum academic standards for graduate studies at Clemson

University are placed on academic probation. These minimum standards include a cumulative 3.0 grade point

average in:

■ all graduate-level courses (6000-level or above);

■ all courses listed in the GS Plan of Study; and

■ all courses (undergraduate and graduate) since admission to the Graduate School, excluding those taken

on a pass/fail basis.

Courses taken on a pass/fail basis are not included in GPA calculations, but failures can indicate failure to maintain

adequate performance or to make satisfactory progress toward degree and can lead to probation. The cumulative

3.0 GPA requirement applies independently to graduate degrees; that is, a new grade point average computation

begins aer the completion of the rst degree. A minimum grade of C on any coursework must be made for the

course to apply toward a degree. Students who fail to meet these requirements become ineligible for graduation

and remain on academic probation until they earn the requisite 3.0 grade point average or are dismissed.

Procedure for student:

If you are a graduate student placed on academic probation, you should meet with

your major advisor and/or graduate program coordinator to ensure that the expectations for removal of the pro-

bationary status are clearly dened and that you understand them. You must submit an R Plan for Success or R

Second Plan for Success form not later than the date specied in the probation notication (typically around the

beginning of classes for the next term).

Graduate assistants and fellowship recipients:

If you are a graduate student on academic probation, you may

be in jeopardy of having your assistantship or fellowship terminated, particularly if you are on probation more

than one semester. Programs may choose not to reappoint a student failing to perform to expected standards

academically or in reference to assistantship duties. You should consult your graduate program handbook for

program expectations. The Graduate School reserves the right to declare a student ineligible for an assistantship

or fellowship independent of program decisions.

Dismissal

You may be dismissed from the Graduate School for failure to maintain an adequate academic status or satisfac-

tory progress. Satisfactory progress includes completing mutually agreed-upon tasks and goals listed in your R1

or R2 Plan for Success, including work on research, theses, dissertations, qualifying or comprehensive examina-

tions and/or required projects. You may appeal a dismissal if you believe the dismissal to be unfair or improper.

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Dismissal can also occur as a result of violation of other policies (e.g., continuous enrollment, academic integrity,

student conduct, etc.). Dismissal notices are delivered via ocial Clemson University email to your ocial Clem-

son University email account (at the clemson.edu domain). In most cases, dismissal does not prevent you apply-

ing to a Clemson University program in the future. Signicant violations of academic integrity or community

standards policies may result in “permanent dismissal,” which means you are not eligible to apply to any Clemson

University program at any time in the future.

Procedure for department: A program wishing to recommend dismissal of a graduate student should submit

a request, along with a rationale, to the Dean of the Graduate School. At the end of each semester, program coor-

dinators are notied of students who have grade point averages below 3.0 or who have other indicators of failure

to make satisfactory progress (e.g., failure to complete milestones according to stated deadlines). The Graduate

School will designate the level of probation (R1 or R2) to be assigned to each student or will determine that the

student should be dismissed.

Dismissal appeals

Appeals of dismissal related to academic performance/satisfactory progress are heard by the Graduate Ad -

missions and Continuing Enrollment Appeals Committee. The burden of proof is on the student to demon-

strate the dismissal decision was the result of improper or unfair process. This constitutes the only grounds

for appealing a dismissal decision. Disagreement with the decision does not constitute grounds for appeal or

reversal of decision.

Procedure for student:

An appeal of continuing enrollment (dismissal) must be submitted in writing by the

graduate student within 30 days of the date of the ocial letter received from the Graduate School indicating

dismissal.

1. The student should submit the written statement requesting the appeal on form GS-Appeal and provide

evidence that the dismissal decision was unfairly or improperly rendered. Any supporting documentation

for the committee to consider should be attached to this form.

2. Within ve business days (excluding days the University is closed) of receipt, the Graduate School will

make available to the committee the student’s appeal request, the student’s Enrolled Services le, the

recommendation for dismissal, and any relevant documents provided by the student. The Graduate

School will also provide the graduate program coordinator with a copy of the student’s appeal request

within the same time frame.

3. The Graduate School will identify the earliest hearing date, and will schedule the meeting, reserve the

room, and notify all parties of the time and location of the hearing.

4. A designee of the Dean of the Graduate School will attend the hearings to provide procedural guidance

but will have no vote in the decision of the committee.

5. The student will be called in rst by the chair of the committee to present their case. Following

conclusion of the student’s presentation, they will be excused.

6. The faculty representing the graduate program will be called in next by the chair of the committee to

present program’s rationale for recommending dismissal. The faculty may bring to the meeting any

relevant documents to share with the members of the committee. These documents will be retained with

the case in accordance with the University’s regulations on retention.

7. The committee will make a decision on the case, which will be communicated immediately to the student

and the program coordinator. This communication will be in the form of an email notication. A letter,

under the signature of the Graduate School, will also be mailed to each party.

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8. Appeals of the decisions of the committee may be made by the student to the Dean of the Graduate

School within ten calendar days of the decision of the committee. Appeals of these decisions can only

be made when there is evidence that the appeals committee unfairly or improperly applied policy or

procedure in arriving at their decision. Disagreement with the decision is not grounds for appeal.

Withdrawing from Clemson University

Withdrawing from the University occurs when you voluntarily decide to leave Clemson and discontinue your

degree program (as well as any assistantship or fellowship or other nancial aid). This is dierent from a medi-

cal withdrawal or dropping a course. To withdraw from Clemson University, you should submit a Withdrawal

Request form to the Oce of the Registrar, which will serve as your request to immediately separate you from the

University. Note that if you have pending issues of concern, such as an academic integrity or community standards

violation, the Graduate School may delay taking action on your request until those issues are settled. The Gradu-

ate School reserves the right to dismiss a student rather than approving a withdrawal.

For international students, withdrawing from Clemson University will likely have visa implications. Be sure to

communicate with International Services prior to withdrawing.

Withdrawal from Clemson does not prevent you from reapplying to a program in the future.

Posthumous graduate degree

A graduate student who has passed away aer making signicant progress toward the degree, and who had a strong

likelihood of successfully completing the degree, may be awarded that degree posthumously on the recommen-

dation of the faculty of the college concerned. The student’s advisory committee should recommend awarding of

the degree to the department chair, who will then send the recommendation to the college dean, who will forward

to the Dean of the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School will forward this request to the Oce of

the Registrar, where it will be processed. The diploma will be mailed to the requesting relative of the decedent.

Posthumous degrees are not typically awarded during commencement ceremonies.

Academic redemption

There is no opportunity at the graduate level for academic redemption (i.e., repeating a course to replace a prior

grade with a new grade). When a course is repeated, the new grade will be added to — not substituted for — the

original class grade. The exception to this is academic renewal.

Academic renewal

A student who was dismissed from the Graduate School for failure to maintain an adequate academic status or

satisfactory progress, and who has not enrolled for a period of two or more academic years, may apply for readmis-

sion under special conditions known as academic renewal. Under these conditions, all previous graduate credits

and course grades will be ignored for purposes of evaluating new GPA and academic status or satisfactory progress.

However, these courses cannot be counted toward the new degree program. The previous record will remain on

the transcript as well as the notation “readmission under the policy of academic renewal.” Academic renewal may

occur only once. To apply to be readmitted under the requirements of academic renewal, contact the coordinator

of the program of interest and the director of graduate admissions to discuss the policy and procedures associated

with this status. Submit form GS Request for Academic Renewal along with a new application for admission.

Approval of consideration for readmission under academic renewal will be determined by the department.

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2.8. Academic Grievances

Academic Grievance Policy

It is the policy of the Graduate School to address all grievances of an academic nature led by enrolled graduate

students. Graduate student grievances are heard by the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee.

Grievances must be led with the Graduate School within 60 days of the alleged act and may involve the

following:

1. violations of program, department, college, or Graduate School policies related to nal grades in courses

or research (8910 or 9910);

2. violations of program, department, college, or Graduate School policies and procedures related

to the completion of any academic requirement including theses and dissertations, oral or written

comprehensive examinations; and

3. graduate student assistantship employment including allegations that oers of assistantship appointments

made during recruiting were not honored aer enrollment.

The Graduate Academic Grievance Committee will not hear allegations of discrimination based on age, color,

disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status. All such allegations or com-

plaints should be submitted to the Oce of Access and Equity. The Graduate School will promptly refer any

such complaints received to the Oce of Access and Equity.

The Graduate School will support a timely process to hear and respond to grievances, and will handle all doc-

uments in such a way to protect the condentiality of the information. Members of any committee and parties to

any hearing are expected to keep all information related to a grievance condential.

Committee structure

The Graduate Academic Grievance Committee (GAGC) is a committee of faculty and student represen-

tatives. Faculty are selected by their colleges and serve two-year staggered terms. Student representatives are

selected by the Graduate Student Government through an application and interview process in the spring

semester, and are approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. Students serve one-year terms. e Associate

Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (or dean’s designee) serves as nonvoting chair. No member of the

Graduate Academic Grievance Committee may simultaneously be a member of the Undergraduate Academic

Grievance Committee, nor may they be members of the undergraduate or graduate academic integrity com-

mittees. The selection of faculty and student membership on the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee

will occur in April of each year as needed.

The Initial Grievance Review Board (IGRB) is a subcommittee of the GAGC, responsible for deter-

mining which grievances will go forward to the Grievance Hearing Panel. The membership of the IGRB is

selected from the larger membership of the GACG, and should comprised one faculty representative from

each college. One graduate student representative also serves on the IGRB. The IGRB selects a faculty mem-

ber to serve as its chair. The IGRB will serve for an entire academic year. A majority of the voting members

must endorse a grievance to move forward to the hearing panel.

The Grievance Hearing Panel (GHP) is a ve-person subcommittee of the GAGC, composed of three

faculty and two graduate students, appointed by the chair of the GAGC as cases are received from the IGRB.

The GHP is responsible for hearing student grievances forwarded to it by the IGRB, proposing resolutions

and, in the case of appeal, preparing the le and forwarding recommendations to the Dean of the Graduate

School. A chair of each GHP will be selected from the faculty members of the panel. Members of the hearing

panel should not be members of the college of the student ling the grievance.

10. Academic Grievance Policy implemented fall 2010. Updated spring 2017.

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Procedures and rules governing academic grievances

     

At any time prior to ling a grievance, you may consult with the University Ombudsman charged with

mediation in cases involving graduate students.

Step 1. Any student wishing to le a complaint must rst make every attempt to resolve it within the

college. You must rst take the complaint to the faculty or sta member(s) involved. If no resolution can

be reached, you should request assistance from the department chair and the Dean of the college. The

University Ombuds Oce may be a resource for you during this time.

Step 2. If the grievance remains unresolved, you may le the complaint with the Graduate School. You

must rst meet with the Associate Dean of the Graduate School charged with oversight of the Graduate

Academic Grievance Committee. The Associate Dean will describe the grievance process to you. If you

wish to proceed with the grievance, the Associate Dean will provide you with Graduate School form

GS-g-A Filing of Grievance, which will enable you to provide a written statement detailing the grievance

and your attempts to resolve it at the college level by documenting (a) the dates of consultations at the

college level, (b) the names of the people consulted, and (c) the signature of the collegiate dean attesting

that no resolution could be reached. You must return the fully executed form GS-g-A to the Graduate

School within 30 days of your initial meeting with the Associate Dean. If you fail to le the grievance

within this timeframe, you forfeit your opportunity to proceed unless you can show clear evidence that

it was impossible to comply with this deadline. Questions concerning possible impacts on your graduate

status should you not be successful in the grievance may be discussed at this time with the Associate Dean

of the Graduate School.

You may seek external counsel (an advisor, an attorney, etc.) to assist with preparation of materials to

submit to the Academic Grievance Committee. You may also request such individual accompany you to

the hearing, but this advisor may not actively participate in the hearing.

Step 3. You and the Associate Dean of the Graduate School will le the grievance with the Initial

Grievance Review Board.

       ()

1. An associate or assistant dean (dierent from the associate or assistant dean above providing

assistance to the student ling the grievance) from the Graduate School will serve in a non-

voting advisory role to the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee and IGRB, if needed.

2. The chair of the Initial Grievance Review Board (IGRB) will be provided a copy of the

grievance (form GS-g-A), at which time the chair will convene the IGRB (either in person or

asynchronously) to review the grievance. The Graduate School will retain the original copy of

form GS-g-A.

3. The IGRB will determine, by majority vote, if the complaint constitutes a grievance as dened

by the grievance policy above, rendering it either nongrievable or grievable.

■ Nongrievable. If the IGRB nds the complaint to be nongrievable, or that the grievant

has not followed policies, procedures, and timelines outlined in the Graduate School Policies

& Procedures Handbook, the IGRB will execute its portion of form GS-g-A, explaining the

reasoning for its determination, and return the case to the Associate Dean with oversight of

academic grievances. The Associate Dean will notify the student of the IGRB’s decision. The

student may appeal this determination to the Dean of the Graduate School within ten days

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

by requesting a review of the complaint. The student’s request to the Dean must provide a

convincing rationale for the appeal based on factual evidence that policies were not followed

or were misinterpreted. Disagreement with the decision is not a basis for an appeal to the

Dean. This appeal must be in writing and will be attached to form GS-g-A. The Dean of

the Graduate School may elect to uphold the IGRB’s decision or forward the case to the

Academic Grievance Committee for a hearing. If the Dean of the Graduate School upholds

the decision of the IGRB — that the case is nongrievable — the Graduate School will notify

the student and the University will take no further action. The Dean will respond with an

appeal decision, which is not subject to further appeal or due process. The Associate Dean

of the Graduate School will notify all parties involved in the case, including the chair of the

Graduate Academic Grievance Committee, the student, and all department faculty and sta

reported on form GS-g-A, of the decisions of the IGRB and results of any appeal.

■ Grievable. If the IGRB nds the complaint to be grievable, and that the grievant has

complied with all relevant policies, procedures, and timelines contained within the Graduate

School Policies & Procedures Handbook, the IGRB will forward the case through the Associate

Dean of the Graduate School to the chair of the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee,

who in turn will appoint the Grievance Hearing Panel to hear the case.

      ()

1. In the case that the IGRB recommends that the grievance be heard, and that it meets all

requirements for a grievance, the chair of the GAGC will appoint a Grievance Hearing Panel

of ve individuals (three faculty and two graduate students not from the same college as the

student ling the grievance and also not from the same college as the faculty member against

which the grievance was led) to hear the case. The GHP will select a faculty member to serve

as chair and notify the Associate Dean of the Graduate School.

2. A copy of the recommendation of the IGRB and all supporting documents related to the case

will be provided to the Hearing Panel chosen to hear the case.

3. Prior to convening the hearing, the chair of the Hearing Panel will contact the student who has

led the grievance as well as the faculty member against whom the grievance has been led.

The chair of the Hearing Panel will provide copies of the grievance to both parties, answer

procedural questions that the parties have concerning the hearing, and also ask each party if they

have submitted all written documentation to the committee. If additional written materials are

received prior to the hearing, the chair of the Hearing Panel will distribute copies to all Hearing

Panel members and to all parties to the grievance.

4. The hearing will be informal and will be closed. The chair will take whatever action is necessary

to ensure appropriate due process and an equitable, orderly, and expeditious hearing. All parties

to the grievance will be given an opportunity to be heard. In addition, the chair may request

the presence of any other person who can supply information pertinent to the grievance. If any

witness is unable to be present at the hearing, the chair may, at their discretion, accept a written

statement from that witness to be presented at the hearing. Witnesses will be present in the

hearing room only when they are called to speak before the Hearing Panel. All parties will be

permitted to question all individuals who present information, including each other. All parties

may bring one advisor of their choice to the hearing to provide counsel; however, advisors

will not be permitted to participate in the proceedings in any way except to communicate

condentially with the individual they are present to advise. They may not ask questions,

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

speak, provide any written information, or in any other way communicate with panel members

or individuals present to speak on the topic, and may not in any way interrupt or inuence

the proceedings. The chair is directed to immediately remove any advisors who violate this

restriction in any way. Removal of an advisor from the proceedings will not be considered as

grounds for appeal. No other person may be present for the hearing.

5. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the Hearing Panel will by majority vote reach a recommended

resolution to the grievance. The Hearing Panel chair, in consultation with the Associate Dean

of the Graduate School, will then formulate the ndings in writing. The written ndings and

recommended resolution will be forwarded via ocial University email to all designated parties.

Each party will be asked to indicate acceptance of the recommended resolution by replying to

the ndings/resolution email within 14 days of its original send date. Failure to respond within

14 working days will constitute acceptance.

6. If all parties to the grievance accept the resolution recommended by the Hearing Panel, the

matter of the grievance will be considered closed. The Associate Dean of the Graduate School

will notify all involved individuals that the case is resolved. The Associate Dean of the Graduate

School will ensure that the resolution is eected and will notify other appropriate University

ocials as necessary.

7. If either party rejects the recommended resolution to the case, all materials will be referred to

the Dean of the Graduate School. When grievances are referred in this manner, this constitutes

an appeal of the decision. The Dean of the Graduate School will make the nal decision within

ve working days of receipt of the appeal. This decision is nal and not subject to further

appeal. The Associate Dean of the Graduate School will notify all parties included on form

GS-g-A of the decision of the Dean and will ensure that the resolution, including notication to

the University Registrar if needed, is communicated promptly.

8. Should a grievance be led against the Dean of the Graduate School in the Dean’s capacity as a

member of the faculty, the substitution of the Vice President of Academic Aairs and Provost of

the University (or Provost’s designee) must be made for a student wishing to appeal the nding

of the Hearing Panel.

9. At the conclusion of the hearing, all printed materials provided to individual members of the

Academic Grievance Committee will be collected by the Graduate School.

10. To the extent permitted by law, all records and discussions relevant to the grievance will be held

in condence; however, information will be available to succeeding members of the Academic

Grievance Committee. The Graduate School will retain one complete le of each grievance in

a locked le for the required length of time in accordance with state guidelines on retention of

academic materials.

11. These policies and procedures can be changed by recommendation from the membership of

the Academic Grievance Committee with approval of the Graduate Advisory Committee, the

Graduate Council, and the Provost’s Academic Council. Such changes will not aect any case

under consideration at the time of the change.

University Ombuds oce

The ombudsman is an independent, condential resource who provides assistance to faculty, graduate students,

and postdoctoral students in resolving problems, complaints, and conicts when normal procedures have not

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

worked satisfactorily. The Ombudsman’s oce serves as a central information source on policies, procedures, and

regulations aecting faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral students. The oce refers individuals to people

and oces able to resolve problems or handle appeals at the lowest possible level. Where appropriate, the ombuds-

man can facilitate communication or mediate between parties.

The ombudsman strives to ensure that faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral students receive fair and

equitable treatment within the University system. They provide an independent point of view in an informal and

condential environment. The ombudsman will not identify you or discuss your personal concerns with anyone

without your permission. Private condential meetings can be arranged at your convenience. All communications

will be treated with strict condentiality, to the extent permitted by law.

The ombudsman works toward resolutions based on principles of fairness. They are neither an advocate for

faculty, administration, or students, nor an agent of the University.

The Oce of the Ombudsman is available to assist faculty members, graduate students, and postdoctoral

students who

■ need guidance in resolving a problem or a concern relating to the University;

■ need information about policies or procedures;

■ need someone to mediate between individuals or within the University;

■ feel the University has made an error in a particular case;

■ feel they have been victims of harassment or discrimination;

■ are unsure about which University policies, procedures, or regulations apply to a given situation;

■ have specic academic problems that cannot be resolved by following regular University procedures;

■ feel they have been unfairly treated;

■ have a problem that requires someone to negotiate a solution or to help facilitate communication

between parties; and/or

■ feel that a University policy, procedure, or regulation has been applied unfairly or erroneously.

Additional information about the ombudsman’s standards, practices, and condentiality, plus oce location and

contact information, are available at the University Ombudsman web page.

2.9. Violation of Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity

Graduate policy and procedures

Violations of the principles outlined in the graduate philosophy on academic integrity will be pursued to the

fullest extent according to the procedures outlined below. Violations of academic integrity include violations

in coursework, research,

independent projects, practica, internships, comprehensive and qualifying exams,

11. Academic Integrity Policy and Procedures implemented in 2010.

12. Depending on the research infraction, the University’s Research Division Policies may in some cases take precedence over the Academic

Integrity Policy.

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

theses and dissertations and other publications

or works submitted as requirements for receipt of a degree.

Non-degree seeking students may also be charged with violations of academic integrity.

This policy broadly denes and provides examples of violations of academic integrity, categorizes the

seriousness of violations into four levels,

and establishes guidelines for discerning appropriate sanctions for

each. As there is no way to identify within this policy all of the possible violations of academic integrity, the

policy and ensuing procedures are intended as a general guide for faculty in all colleges to enable consistent,

reasonable, and fair judgments of graduate student actions incongruous with the fundamental values and

general philosophy described above.

The authority to resolve cases of violations of academic integrity by enrolled graduate students is vested in

the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee.

. ,        

Violations of academic integrity may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Cheating. Cheating involves giving, receiving, or using unauthorized aid on any academic work sub-

mitted for grading including but not limited to coursework, laboratory assignments, research projects,

comprehensive and qualifying examinations, theses and dissertations, or using digital logins and account

numbers that belong to another person without the permission of the account owner. Unauthorized aid

includes collaborating with classmates or others when explicitly prohibited, using online paper mills or

paying individuals to prepare research papers, reports or projects, submitting identical work to satisfy the

requirements of more than one class without the approval of the faculty, or using textbooks, notes, the

internet, and other sources when instructed to work alone.

Fabricating/falsifying information.

Fabricating or falsifying information involves actions such as mak-

ing up data that were not collected, stating that studies were conducted that were not, indicating that

original source material was read when information was obtained from secondary or tertiary sources,

making up references not used, or identifying sources that were not consulted (e.g., telephone interviews).

Facilitating violations of academic integrity.

Facilitating violations of academic integrity involves a

student intentionally helping another violate the principles of academic integrity (for example, allowing

friends access to their work, or instructing students on ways to solicit aid on papers, projects, take home

exams, tests for state and national licenses, etc.).

Failing to cite contributors.

Failing to cite an author or multiple authors involves not giving credit to

individuals who have contributed signicantly to a work (paper, research project, poster, etc.) and claim-

ing the nal product as one’s own.

Plagiarizing.

Plagiarizing is the of the work accomplished by someone else. It includes copying and

pasting words, phrases, sentence structure, computer code or les, images, or ideas from any source,

including the internet, and attributing the work to one’s own eorts. Blatant examples of plagiarism

include failure to use quotation marks, failure to indent quoted text of more than three lines, and failure

to cite consulted sources either in footnotes, endnotes or within the body text of a document. More sub-

tle examples of plagiarism include paraphrasing or using others’ conceptual frameworks for developing

13. Depending on the research infraction, the University’s Research Division Policies may in some cases take precedence over the Academic

Integrity Policy.

14.

Levels based on the academic integrity model of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ; used by permission. Rutgers’ document accessed at

https://slwordpress.rutgers.edu/academicintegrity/wp-content/uploads/sites////AI_Policy_.pdf

15.

Based on the academic integrity model of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ; used by permission. Rutgers’ document accessed at https://

slwordpress.rutgers.edu/academicintegrity/wp-content/uploads/sites////AI_Policy_.pdf

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creative works without acknowledgment or permission or citing a source within the text, but then directly

quoting the materials without the use of quotation marks or text indentation.

Thwarting others’ progress.

Thwarting others’ progress involves editing, deleting or otherwise destroy-

ing electronic les that belong to another person or intentionally stealing or destroying property which

prevents others from using it to gain needed information to complete assignments; for example, library

materials on reserve, materials on loan by a faculty member, or reports and documents made available for

student use by external companies, state and federal agencies, etc.

.          

 

At the graduate level, it is expected that students exhibit sophistication in understanding the tenets of aca-

demic integrity. Even so, it is clear that some types of violations are more serious in nature than others and

that some types of violations require deliberate, calculated actions on the part of the student. This policy

categorizes academic integrity violations into four levels. To provide guidance on the administration of

sanctions, examples of violations of academic integrity are delineated below by the level of seriousness.

This list is by no means exhaustive but is reective of the types of violations that have been observed

at Clemson University. Guidance may be sought from the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee to

determine the appropriate level of seriousness in unusual or highly complex instances.

Level One violations of academic integrity and sample recommended sanctions

Includes instances where it is determined that a rst-year graduate student is essentially unaware of the

principles of academic integrity at Clemson, where a student has misunderstood instructions from a

professor and has committed an infraction impacting a minor portion of assigned work, or has com-

mitted an infraction on an assignment of minor signicance to the nal grade. Level One violations are

addressed by the professor. Examples of Level One violations include the following:

1. failure to follow instructions to work independently;

2. plagiarism aecting very minor portions of an assignment or project;

3. rst-time oenses by students unfamiliar with the academic integrity expectations at Clemson.

Sample recommended sanctions for Level One violations include one or more of the following:

1. failure on the assignment;

2. requirement to make appropriate corrections and resubmit the assignment for grading;

3. verbal or written reprimand;

4. assignment to attend a seminar on academic integrity and to write a paper on knowledge gained

to be submitted for credit or no credit, at the professor’s discretion.

Level Two violations of academic integrity and sample recommended sanctions

Includes instances that impact a moderate portion of an assignment, course, project, laboratory, or

research activity. Level Two violations are addressed by the faculty member, the graduate program

coordinator, and the department chair. Examples of Level Two violations include the following:

16. Based on the academic integrity model of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ; used by permission. Rutgers’ document available at https://

slwordpress.rutgers.edu/academicintegrity/wp-content/uploads/sites////AI_Policy_.pdf

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1. failing to acknowledge sources by use of quotation marks, footnotes, endnotes or indentations

of lengthy direct quotes;

2. using unauthorized aid (notes, books and other references, other students’ work, websites, etc.)

in violation of explicit instructions to complete in-class or take-home exams;

3. failing to acknowledge sources of materials paraphrased;

4. failing to acknowledge sources of assistance or other contributors in preparation of assignments,

papers, posters, or projects, etc.;

5. using the conceptual frameworks of others in developing creative works without

acknowledgment or permission.

Sample recommended sanctions for Level Two violations include one or more of the following:

1. failure on the assignment with no opportunity to amend;

2. assignment of a similar task with a higher level of diculty and more stringent grading;

3. receipt of zero on the assignment.

Level Three violations of academic integrity and sample recommended sanctions

Includes instances where it is determined that a student agrantly and intentionally has violated the

principles of academic integrity in a signicant portion of an assignment, course, or research activity.

Level Three violations are heard by the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee. Examples of Level

Three violations include the following:

1. knowingly plagiarizing major sections of papers submitted for grading;

2. knowingly plagiarizing major sections of the thesis or dissertation prior to submission for

publication;

3. purchasing papers or reports and submitting them for grading;

4. thwarting others’ progress by destroying computer les, laboratory resources, or library

materials;

5. devising means with classmates to cheat on exams of any sort (qualifying, preliminary, state

exams for licensing, etc.).

Sample recommended sanctions for Level Three violations include one or more of the following:

1. receipt of a grade of F in the course;

2. suspension from the University for one or more semesters;

3. termination of the student’s graduate assistantship and/or University fellowship;

4. notation in the Graduate School of the violation of academic integrity and the sanction.

Level Four violations of academic integrity and sample recommended sanctions

Includes instances where it is determined that a student has intentionally committed violations of

the principles of academic integrity serious enough to constitute academic aud, actions which have

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

the impact of bringing the reputation of the institution itself into question. Level Four violations are

heard by the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee and may involve interaction with the Faculty

Senate and the Vice President for Research if sponsored research is involved.

1. fabricating data in research projects, papers, and reports;

2. creating false sources for references which do not, in fact, exist;

3. plagiarizing in materials to be submitted for publication, including nal submission of theses

and dissertations and journal articles;

4. falsifying transcript records, altering any supporting documents submitted to the University

with the application for admission;

5. paying an individual or company to produce a thesis or dissertation;

6. forging a faculty or sta member’s signature on any document.

Sample recommended sanctions for Level Four violations include one or more of the following:

1. mandated permanent dismissal from the University with no possibility of academic renewal;

2. notation in the Graduate School of the violation of academic integrity and the sanction;

3. notation of the dismissal on the student’s permanent academic record (transcript).

Note: Repeated violations of the policy of academic integrity, irrespective of the level, should result in

serious sanctions, up to and including permanent dismissal.

.       

Faculty. Three tenured faculty members from each of the seven academic colleges and the Library,

elected by the faculty accorded voting rights in each college and the Library, serve staggered three-year

terms on the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee. Members of the Graduate Academic Integrity

Committee must not simultaneously be members of the Undergraduate Academic Integrity Committee,

nor of the grievance committees of either the graduate or undergraduate programs. Faculty representa-

tives are selected by college rules at the end of the spring semester to serve two-year staggered terms that

begin in the fall.

Students. Seven graduate students — one from each college — are selected and approved by the Grad-

uate Student Government (GSG). These students are then recommended for one-year appointments to

the Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate School. Graduate student committee members must

maintain good standing within the University for the entire duration of the appointment and must have

completed nine credit hours at the graduate level prior to being selected by GSG.

Chair. The Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (or Dean’s designee) serves as chair and

is a non-voting member.

Hearing Panel. Cases will be heard by a panel of ve committee members comprising two graduate

students and three faculty members from dierent departments. Decisions of the hearing panel require a

majority vote.

Meetings and Hearings. The committee convenes throughout the calendar year, including summers,

when there is a case to be heard. The Graduate Academic Integrity Committee will meet to review and

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

revise its procedures, if necessary, prior to the last day of classes of every spring semester. Revised proce-

dures will go into eect on the rst day of the subsequent fall semester.

Recusal. To avoid possible conict of interest, faculty and graduate student representatives should

recuse themselves from cases involving colleagues or peers in their colleges.

.       

1. When, in the opinion of a faculty member, there is evidence that a student has committed a

violation of academic integrity, the faculty member will fully document the charge in writing in

a statement delivered in a sealed envelope to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School. At the

same time, at their discretion, the alleging faculty member is encouraged, but is not required, to

privately inform the student charged of the nature of the allegation.

2. When, in the opinion of a student or sta member, there is evidence that a student has

committed a violation of academic integrity, he or she should contact the faculty member for

the course (including the research advisor or internship/practicum/co-op supervisor) to discuss

the incident. Aer being contacted, if, in the opinion of the faculty member, there is evidence

that the student has committed a violation of academic integrity, the faculty member will deliver

a formal written charge in a sealed envelope to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School.

At the same time, at their discretion, the alleging faculty member is encouraged, but is not

required, to privately inform the student charged of the nature of the allegation.

3. When, in the opinion of anyone outside the University, there is evidence that a student has

committed a violation of academic integrity, that person should bring this allegation to the

attention of the Associate Dean of the Graduate School. The Associate Dean will contact

the appropriate faculty representative of the student’s program (consistent with the alleged

violation). The faculty member will determine if charges are to be brought against the student.

If the faculty member determines that there is sucient evidence to le a charge, the faculty

member will fully document the charge in writing in a statement delivered in a sealed envelope

to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School. At the same time, at their discretion, the alleging

faculty member is encouraged, but is not required, to privately inform the student charged of

the nature of the allegation.

4. Within ten working days from the date the Associate Dean of the Graduate School has received

a formal charge of an alleged violation, they will provide the student with a copy of the charge

and the policy and procedures of the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee.

5. The Graduate School will notify the Academic Integrity Committee that a case has been

received and will indicate whether or not this violation constitutes a rst oense (veried by

documentation of previous violations sanctioned at Level Two or above as noted on the record

retained in the Graduate School).

6. The Graduate School will identify a panel to hear the case depending on the availability of

committee members and the faculty member bringing the charge.

.            

1. The student must meet with the Associate Dean of the Graduate School to request to waive

their right to a hearing. This usually happens when the student is informed of the charges.

2. If the student wants to waive their right to a hearing, the Associate Dean will allow the student

to execute form GS-ai-A Request to Waive Academic Integrity Hearing, and will inform the

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

student of the classication/level of the oense (Level Two to Level Four). A student may not

request a hearing for a Level One violation.

3. A student who requests to waive their right to a hearing will have no right to appeal the sanction

imposed, unless the sanction includes suspension or permanent dismissal from Clemson

University.

4. The Graduate School will notify the professor of the decision of the student to waive their right

to a hearing.

Application of sanctions in cases without a hearing

When the student has waived their right to a hearing, sanctions may be imposed by the faculty mem-

ber if Level One; by the faculty member and department if Level Two; or by the Academic Integrity

Committee hearing panel if Level Three or Four.

1. In cases of Level One violations, the professor should meet with the student and inform him or

her of the sanction. The professor should provide an email notication to the Associate Dean

of the Graduate School including the date of the meeting with the student and the sanction

imposed. Level One violations will not become a part of the student’s permanent academic

record at the University but will be recorded for data purposes only in the Graduate School.

In keeping with the commitment to encourage students’ understanding and embracing the

tenets of academic integrity, Level One violations will be used as a warning and as a teaching

opportunity.

2. In cases of Level Two violations, the professor and department chair should meet with

the student and inform him or her of the sanction. The professor should provide an email

notication to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School including the date of the meeting

with the student and the sanction imposed. Level Two violations will not become a part of the

student’s permanent academic record at the University but will be recorded in the Graduate

School and considered as the student’s rst oense of violation of the policies of academic

integrity.

3. In cases of Level Three violations, the professor and department may choose to recommend a

desired sanction to the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing panel; however, the

panel will make a nal determination of appropriateness of the sanction.

a. If the hearing panel accepts the recommendation of the professor/department, the hearing

panel chair will notify the Associate Dean of the Graduate School. The Associate Dean will

then make notation in the student’s le accordingly, and forward a copy of the sanction to

the student and professor. If the student does not appeal the decision of the hearing panel

within the allotted ve working days (see appeals below), the Graduate School will notify

the University Registrar of the violation and the sanction, if suspension is imposed.

b. If the hearing panel does not accept the sanction recommended by the professor/

department, the hearing panel will make a determination of appropriate sanction. The

Associate Dean will then make notation in the student’s le accordingly, and forward a copy

of the sanction to the student and professor. If the student does not appeal the decision of

the hearing panel within the allotted ve working days (see appeals below), the Graduate

School will notify the University Registrar of the violation and the sanction, if suspension is

imposed.

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

4. In cases of Level Four violations, the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee hearing panel

will determine the sanction. The Associate Dean will then make notation in the student’s le

accordingly and will forward a copy of the sanction to the student and professor, department,

and Dean of the Graduate School. If the student does not appeal the decision of the committee

within the allotted ve working days (see appeals below), the Associate Dean will notify the

University Registrar of the violation and the sanction.

.         

1. A hearing may not be requested for a Level One violation. Level One violations will be used as a

teaching opportunity in the course/program/department, whichever is relevant, to discuss with

the student the seriousness of failure to understand academic integrity issues at the graduate

level.

2. If a student requests a hearing for a Level Two violation, the Associate Dean of the college will

assist in assembling a three-person hearing panel within the college. Decisions of the hearing

panel will be nal. Graduate student representation on this panel is not required.

3. The Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing panel (for cases identied to be Level Three or

Four) will consist of ve individuals— two graduate students and three faculty members from

dierent colleges— selected as cases are brought forward. Each hearing panel will select a

faculty member to serve as chair of the hearing.

4. The faculty member filing the charge must present a full written explanation of the charge to

the Associate Dean of the Graduate School, who will forward it to the chair of the Graduate

Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing panel within three working days of receipt. The

Graduate School will also provide a copy of the charge to the student within the same time

frame.

5. The student will then have five working days in which to provide a detailed written explanation

on form GS-ai-B Student Rebuttal of Charge in their own defense. This form will be submitted

to the hearing panel through the Graduate School.

6. The chair of the hearing panel will convene the hearing as soon as is practical.

7. The student and the alleging faculty member will receive at least ve business days’ advance

notice of the hearing date.

8. The hearing will be conducted in a closed session with the student, alleging faculty member,

hearing panel members, Associate Dean of the Graduate School, and any witnesses called to be

present.

9. Only materials submitted to the hearing panel prior to the hearing may be introduced and/or

explained during the hearing. If necessary, witnesses may be called to speak before the hearing

panel and will be present only when speaking before the panel.

10. At the discretion of the chair of the hearing panel, the hearing may be suspended to

accommodate the review by the panel of unanticipated new information.

11. Following the hearing, the parties will be excused and the hearing panel will deliberate in a

closed session.

12. Decisions of the hearing panel will be made by majority vote.

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

.     

1. If the student is found not in violation, the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing

panel will report this nding to the Graduate School on form GS-ai-C Report of Finding. The

Graduate School will notify all parties involved of the nding by forwarding a copy of form

GS-ai-C to each.

2. If the student is found in violation, in cases at Levels Three or Four, the Graduate Academic

Integrity Committee’s hearing panel will report its decision and recommended sanction to the

Associate Dean of the Graduate School on form GS-ai-C Report of Finding. The Graduate

School will notify all parties involved of the nding by forwarding a copy of form GS -ai-C

toeach.

. 

The decision of the collegiate or Graduate Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing panel is nal and no

appeals may be led except in cases resulting in suspension or permanent dismissal. In these instances,

within ve working days aer receipt of written notication of a suspension or dismissal, a student may

submit a written appeal to the Dean of the Graduate School to review the decision. The decision of the

Dean of the Graduate School is nal.

Note: Should the faculty member ling the charge be the Dean of the Graduate School (in their capacity

as a member of the faculty), the substitution of the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and

Provost of the University (or Provost’s designee) must be made for students wishing to appeal the nding

of the hearing panel.

.   

The alleging faculty member will notify the student and the Graduate School of sanctions imposed for

Level One or Two violations. The Graduate School will notify all parties of the decision of the Graduate

Academic Integrity hearing panel for Level Three and Four violations and will oversee administration of

any sanctions involving suspension or dismissal.

1. Level One sanctions are determined by the alleging faculty member. While the faculty member

is not restricted to the limited suggestions outlined in this policy, the sanction should be

consistent with the suggested sanctions for Level One violations. The Associate Dean of the

Graduate School may be contacted for assistance, if desired.

2. Level Two sanctions are determined by the faculty member in consultation with the graduate

program coordinator and department chair. While these individuals are not restricted to the

limited suggestions outlined in this policy, the sanction should be consistent with the suggested

sanctions for Level Two violations. The Associate Dean of the Graduate School may be

contacted for assistance, if desired.

3. Level Three sanctions are determined by the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing

panel. If the violation is not the student’s rst while enrolled at Clemson University, the student

may receive a grade of F for courses or research (8910 or 9910) or will receive a grade of “fail”

on the comprehensive exam in question, and may be suspended from the University for one or

more semesters. Students suspended for violations of academic integrity will also be terminated

from graduate assistantships or University fellowships for the same period of the suspension

from the date of suspension. The Dean of the Graduate School will be notied on decisions

involving suspension and will formally issue a letter of suspension to the student. Notication

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

to the Oce of the Registrar, the Oce of International Aairs, the collegiate dean, graduate

program coordinator, faculty bringing the charge, and department chair will be made by

forwarding to those parties a copy of the letter of suspension.

4. Level Four sanctions are determined by the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee’s hearing

panel. Level Four sanctions require that the student be permanently dismissed from the

University. The Dean of the Graduate School will be notied of decisions involving suspension

and will formally issue a letter of permanent dismissal to the student. Notication to the Oce

of the Registrar, the Oce of International Aairs, the collegiate dean, graduate program

coordinator, faculty bringing the charge, and department chair will be made by forwarding to

those parties a copy of the letter of permanent dismissal.

. /  

The Graduate School will retain all les of academic integrity cases and their ndings in accordance with

the University’s records retention policy.

. 

All academic integrity hearings are closed and cases are considered condential. The Graduate School

and members of the Graduate Academic Integrity Committee and hearing panels will keep all materials

and discussions of the cases condential to the extent permitted by law.

Academic misconduct for former graduate students

It is possible that an act of academic misconduct will remain undiscovered until aer a degree is awarded. In such

a case, Clemson University reserves the right to revoke any degree based on new revelations about scholarly issues

including — but not restricted to — admission credentials, all forms of coursework, research, theses, dissertations,

or other nal projects.

Revocation of academic degrees

Academic institutions have a critical responsibility to provide an environment that promotes integrity, while at

the same time encouraging openness and creativity among scholars. Care must be taken to ensure that honest

errors and ambiguities of interpretation of scholarly activities are distinguishable from outright misconduct. This

policy is applicable to egregious fraudulent or other misconduct in obtaining an academic degree. The Clemson

University Board of Trustees has the sole authority to revoke any degree previously awarded.

Denitions. As used herein, the following terms shall apply when the degree holder was a graduate student:

1. “Dean” shall mean the Dean of the Graduate School.

2. “Committee of Investigation and Recommendation” shall be composed of the members of the standing

University Graduate Admissions and Continuing Enrollment Appeals Committee, except for the

Associate Dean of the Graduate School, who shall not be a member of the committee. A graduate student

will be appointed to the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation by the President of the

Graduate Student Government within ten calendar days of notication by the President of the Faculty

Senate. Any member of the Graduate Admissions and Continuing Enrollment Appeals Committee who

is a faculty member in the department that awarded the degree shall not be a member of the Committee

of Investigation and Recommendation for that particular investigation. If there are fewer than three

non-disqualied faculty members, the President of the Faculty Senate shall appoint additional faculty

members to bring the number of faculty committee members up to three. If the President of the Faculty

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

Senate is from the same department that awarded the degree involved, the President-elect of the Faculty

Senate shall appoint the additional member.

Complaint. An allegation or complaint involving the possibility of misconduct can be raised by anyone. The

allegation should be made in writing to the Dean of the Graduate School.

Initial review. The Dean of the Graduate School will conduct the initial review to determine whether or not

the allegation has merit. The Dean may discuss the matter with the former student’s advisory committee and

other faculty members as appropriate. The Dean may also contact people outside the University who may be able

to provide factual information on the alleged misconduct or who may otherwise have expertise concerning issues

involved in the alleged misconduct. If the Dean determines that the allegation has no merit, they will terminate

the investigation. If the Dean determines that serious academic misconduct is suspected, the Dean will notify the

President of the Faculty Senate in writing in a condential manner. The Dean shall also notify the Executive Vice

President for Academic Aairs and Provost of the University of the charge, but will not discuss any details of the

charge.

Committee of Inquiry. The President of the Faculty Senate shall, within ten (10) calendar days of receipt of

the notication from the Dean, appoint three faculty members to the Committee of Inquiry and notify the Pres-

ident of the Graduate Student Government, who shall appoint a graduate student to the Committee of Inquiry

within ten calendar days of notication. The President of the Faculty Senate shall also notify the degree holder

of the formation of a Committee of Inquiry. If the Faculty Senate President is from the same department that

awarded the degree involved, the President-elect of the Faculty Senate shall appoint the Committee of Inquiry.

The faculty members will be appointed from departments which did not award the degree involved. The commit-

tee will elect its chair from the faculty members on the committee.

For each allegation, the Committee of Inquiry will review the complaint and any other information provided

by the Dean and determine whether there is sucient evidence to warrant a formal charge of academic miscon-

duct and further investigation under this policy. While the Committee of Inquiry shall not make a recommenda-

tion as to whether a degree should be revoked, the purpose is to provide a review to separate frivolous, unjustied,

or mistaken allegations from those requiring a more detailed and formal investigation. The Committee of Inquiry

will review the evidence and must determine that the alleged misconduct more probably than not occurred in

order for the committee to recommend a formal charge and further investigation.

Within 30 calendar days of the formation of the Committee of Inquiry, the committee will submit a written

report to the President of the Faculty Senate. If the committee’s report nds that the investigation should not

proceed, the President of the Faculty Senate shall terminate the investigation and notify the appropriate people.

If the committee’s report nds that a formal charge and further investigation are warranted, the President of the

Faculty Senate shall, within ten calendar days of receipt of the report, send a copy of that report to the Dean of

the Graduate School and to the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation. The President of the Faculty

Senate shall also immediately notify the President of the Graduate Student Government that a student repre-

sentative needs to be appointed to the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation. The President of the

Faculty Senate shall also notify the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost of the Committee

of Inquiry’s recommendation. No details of the charge will be discussed. A majority vote of the Committee of

Inquiry is necessary to recommend that a formal charge and further investigation are warranted. A tie vote means

that the investigation is terminated as stated herein.

Notication to degree holder. The Dean shall issue in writing, within ten calendar days of receipt of the report

of the Committee of Inquiry, a formal charge of academic misconduct to the degree holder. This written notice

shall detail the faculty allegations for the charge and the evidence supporting the charge. This written notice shall

also inform the degree holder that if the charges are substantiated, the degree holder’s degree could be revoked.

This written notice shall also inform the degree holder of their right to appear at a hearing as stated in this policy.

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The Dean shall also send with this notice a copy of this policy and procedure. This notice shall be delivered to the

accused in person or sent by certied mail, return receipt requested.

Committee of Investigation and Recommendation. The Committee of Investigation and Recommendation

shall extend to the degree holder due process, which shall, at a minimum, include the following:

1. notice of the nature of the complaint;

2. notice of the evidence supporting the complaint;

3. notice of the hearing;

4. the opportunity to present evidence, including testimony;

5. the opportunity to hear the testimony against the degree holder;

6. the opportunity to ask questions of all witnesses; and

7. the opportunity to have an attorney or advisor present at the hearing; however, the role of the attorney or

advisor shall be solely to assist the party, and the attorney or advisor shall not be permitted to participate

actively in the proceedings.

The degree holder shall not be entitled to know the identity of the person(s) who originally made the complaint

unless that person agrees that their identity can be revealed.

The chair of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall inform the degree holder of the time

and date of the hearing.

The Dean of the Graduate School or Dean’s designee shall present the accusation against the degree holder

at the hearing and may have one additional representative present during the hearing. Under this section the term

“Dean” is understood to include the Dean’s designee, if such a designation is made.

The degree holder and the Dean may submit written materials to the Committee of Investigation and Rec-

ommendation prior to the hearing. The chair of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall

make available the materials received to the other party and to all committee members. The hearing before the

Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall be held no sooner than thirty (30) calendar days and

no later than ninety (90) calendar days aer receipt of the report of the Committee of Inquiry unless the degree

holder and the Dean agree to a dierent date. All matters pertaining to the hearing shall be kept as condential

as possible and the hearing shall be closed to the public. A verbatim record of the hearing will be taken and a text

copy thereof transcribed and made a part of the hearing record. The degree holder and the Dean shall be responsi-

ble for having any witnesses they wish to testify in attendance at the hearing. Witnesses will be present only while

testifying.

The chair of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall take whatever action is necessary

during the hearing to ensure a fair, orderly, and expeditious hearing. No formal rules of evidence will be followed.

If any objection is made to any evidence being oered, the decision of the majority of the committee shall govern.

Irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded.

The degree holder and the Dean shall be permitted to oer evidence and witnesses pertinent to the issues.

The Dean shall present the case against the accused rst. The accused shall then present their response.

The chair will allow each party to ask questions of the other party and will allow each party to ask questions

of the other party’s witnesses at the appropriate time during the hearing as determined by the chair. Members of

the committee may ask questions of any party or any witness at any time during the hearing.

Within 15 calendar days of the conclusion of the hearing, the Committee of Investigation and Recommenda-

tion shall submit a written report to the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost. The report

shall contain ndings and a recommendation as to whether the degree holder’s degree should be revoked. The

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

Committee of Investigation and Recommendation must nd clear and convincing evidence that serious academic

misconduct has been committed in order to recommend the revocation of the degree holder’s degree. If the Com-

mittee of Investigation and Recommendation does not nd clear and convincing evidence of serious academic

misconduct, the Committee cannot recommend revocation of the degree holder’s degree and the matter shall be

closed. A majority vote of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation is necessary to recommend the

revocation of a degree holder’s degree. This means that a tie vote will result in the matter being closed.

At the same time that the report is sent to the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost,

the chair of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall send a copy of the report to the degree

holder, the Dean, and other appropriate people involved in the process.

If the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation recommends that the degree holder’s degree be

revoked, the chair shall also send a complete copy of the hearing record to the Executive Vice President for Aca-

demic Aairs and Provost. The hearing record shall consist of the transcript of the hearing and all documents

that were submitted to the Committee. The chair of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation shall

label which documents were submitted by each party when forwarding this information to the Executive Vice

President for Academic Aairs and Provost.

If the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation recommends that the degree holder’s degree be

revoked, the chair shall also send a copy of the transcript of the hearing to the degree holder and the Dean at the

same time that it is sent to the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost.

Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost. If the Committee of Investigation and Rec-

ommendation recommends that the degree be revoked, the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and

Provost shall review the hearing record and report of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation. If

the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost decides that the degree holder’s degree should

not be revoked, they shall notify the degree holder, the Dean, the Committee of Investigation and Recommen-

dation, and other appropriate people involved in the process, in writing, within 21 calendar days of receipt of the

transcript of the hearing; and the matter shall be closed. If the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and

Provost decides to recommend that the degree holder’s degree should be revoked, the Executive Vice President

for Academic Aairs and Provost shall send that recommendation in writing to the President of the University

within 21 calendar days of receipt of the transcript of the hearing. The Executive Vice President for Academic

Aairs and Provost shall send to the President, along with their recommendation, the Committee of Investigation

and Recommendation’s report and the hearing record. The Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and

Provost shall send a copy of their recommendation to the degree holder, the Dean, the Committee of Investiga-

tion and Recommendation, and other appropriate people involved in the process. If the Executive Vice President

for Academic Aairs and Provost is disqualied from reviewing the case, the Dean of the Graduate School shall

be substituted for the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost.

President. If the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost recommends to the President that

the degree holder’s degree should be revoked, the President shall transmit that recommendation along with the

report of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation and the hearing record to the Executive Secretary

of the Board of Trustees within 30 calendar days of receipt. If the President wishes to make a recommendation,

they shall review the recommendation of the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost, the

report of the Committee of Investigation and Recommendation, and the hearing record and forward his recom-

mendation to the Executive Secretary of the Board of Trustees within 30 calendar days of receiving the recom-

mendation of the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost.

Board of Trustees. The Executive Secretary of the Board of Trustees shall send to all Trustees the hearing

record, the recommendation of the Executive Vice President for Academic Aairs and Provost, the report of the

Committee of Investigation and Recommendation, and the recommendation of the President, if any. A majority

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

vote by the Board of Trustees, at a duly constituted board meeting, is required to revoke an academic degree. The

decision of the Board of Trustees shall be nal.

Guiding principles. All actions taken by committees shall be eective by a majority vote.

All investigations, hearings, and actions shall be kept as condential as possible except for notice of any revo-

cation approved by the Board of Trustees.

A decision not to proceed at any stage of the proceedings set forth in this policy does not necessarily mean

that the original complaint was groundless.

For good cause shown, at the request of either party and the approval of the other, the Executive Vice Presi-

dent for Academic Aairs and Provost shall extend any time limit set forth in this policy. Any such time extension

shall be communicated in writing to all appropriate parties.

Administrative action if degree is revoked. If a degree is revoked by the Board of Trustees, the former stu-

dent’s transcript will be modied to reect that the degree was revoked, and the former student will be informed

of the revocation and requested to return the diploma. If the former student was enrolled in a program requiring

a thesis or dissertation, all bound copies and the ETD (electronic thesis or dissertation) will be removed from

the Clemson University Library. In addition, ProQuest will be notied and requested to take appropriate action

regarding the ETD. Students whose degrees have been revoked may be eligible to reapply for admission according

to normal University procedures and policies in eect at the time of reapplication.

Retribution or retaliation

In a community of scholars who respect and promote academic integrity, there is no place for retribution. Faculty

should agree to support and uphold the decisions of their peers who serve as members of the Academic Integrity

Committee and hearing panels, as these individuals take seriously the responsibility to render objective decisions

on cases brought before them. Faculty members have a professional obligation to teach by example and to guide

graduate students in practices of ethical judgment and building of personal and professional integrity. Students at

the graduate level are expected to refrain from retribution or retaliation and to maintain similar high standards of

academic and professional integrity.

The Oce of Access and Equity hosts the University’s Anti-harassment and Non-discrimination Policy and

denes procedures for resolution of discrimination/harassment complaints.

For additional information on this topic as it aects all members of the University community, see Whistle-

blower policy at the University Policies web page.

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

Part 3: Financial Information

andAssistantships

3.1. Financial Basics for Graduate Study

Tuition for graduate students

Satisfactory settlement of all expenses is a requirement for completing each semester’s class registration, and no

student is ocially enrolled until all past due accounts have been satised. Financial aid cannot be used to satisfy

balances carried forward from a prior academic year. Tuition for graduate students is delineated in the Program

Tuition Tiers charts and on the Tuition and Fees web page. See also Fiscal Policy: Settlement of University

Fees.

State resident status

Eligibility for payment of in-state tuition and fees shall be determined under the provisions of Sections --

 through --, South Carolina Code of Laws, 1976, as amended. The University also oers residency

classication information.

Application for resident status:

Any graduate student or prospective student whose status concerning entitle-

ment to payment of in-state tuition and fees is uncertain has the responsibility of securing a ruling from the

University by providing all relevant information on a special application forms or forms. If you are interested in

applying for residency and therefore receiving resident tuition, you may submit an Application for Residency

Status found on the University’s Residency Classication web page, or may print, complete, and deliver the appli-

cation to the Oce of Residency Classication in G-01 Sikes Hall at least two weeks prior to the semester in

which resident tuition is desired. If the Financial Aid Residency Ocer requests additional information, you

may be asked to complete the Graduate School’s form GS Supplemental Information Form Re: South Carolina

Residency.

Appeals:

Students may appeal determinations of non-residency. Students wishing to appeal a determination

regarding residency should contact the Oce of Residency Classication, G-01 Sikes Hall, Clemson, SC 29634-

5123, or email naid@clemson.edu.

Fees for graduate students

Fees in general support non-academic services for students. The University works to keep fees competitive with

peer institutions and only charges students what is defensible in covering costs associated with the services pro-

vided. For a list of required fees for graduate students, see the Graduate School’s Tuition and Fees web page. See

also the Mandatory health insurance topic in this section.

Student loans

Information about loans for graduate students may be found on the Graduate School’s Finance/Tuition —

Loans web page. The Office of Student Financial Aid administers federal financial aid for graduate students. We

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encourage you to discuss your financial aid options with the Office of Financial Aid. For more information, visit

the Student Financial Aid web page or end a request via email.

Payment methods

The Oce of Student Financial Services details student billing information, payment due dates and methods,

payment plans, and optional fees online at Paying Your Bill. Graduate assistants are eligible for the payment plans

that are described on the Student Financial Services website under “Payment Plans.”

Late registration service charge

A student has not completed registration until all required steps have been taken, including payment of tuition

and fees. Any student failing to complete registration on the published deadline dates will incur a late enrollment

charge. See the Registrar’s Academic Calendar for deadlines.

Past due accounts

Any indebtedness to the University which becomes past due immediately jeopardizes the student’s enrollment,

and no such student will be permitted to enroll for an ensuing semester or summer term. Billing fees and/or

collection costs may be added to the indebtedness. Further, any student who fails to pay all indebtedness to the

University, including collection costs, may not be issued a transcript or diploma. Unresolved debts may be turned

over to a collection agency, reported to a credit bureau, and/or deducted from state income tax refunds. Debts

include, but are not limited to, parking violations, library nes, rent, academic fees, and others.

Returned checks, EFTs, and credit card payments

Along with other scal policy, disputed settlements of University fees, returned checks, EFTs, and credit card

payments are determined by Student Financial Services. Find additional details at the Fiscal Policy web page

and at the Paying Your Bill web page.

Loan default

Graduate students who are employed in programs administered directly or indirectly by Clemson University

and are found to be in default on payments of student loans may be subject to wage withholding (garnish-

ment) according to Legislative Authority P.L. 102-164; ToU.S.C. S1095A et.seq.

Refunds

Refunds of tuition and fees, and the policies governing them, are described on the Fiscal Policy page, with addi-

tional details at the Student Financial Services page.

3.2. Assistantships and Fellowships

All assistantships are administered by individual units (departments, colleges, centers, etc.) Any student inter-

ested in an appointment as a graduate assistant should make direct contact with the department, college, or unit

of interest. Each unit may have deadlines for applying for positions and/or specic requirements for the assis-

tantship. Students may also consult the Michelin Career Center page at the Clemson Center for Career and

Professional Development website for additional postings and available on-campus employment opportunities.

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Council of Graduate Schools Resolution

Clemson is a member of the Council of Graduate Schools and adheres to the following Resolution* (for a PDF

copy of the entire resolution, click here):

Acceptance of an oer of nancial support* (such as a graduate scholarship, fellowship, traineeship, or assis-

tantship) for the next academic year by a prospective or enrolled graduate student completes an agreement

that both student and graduate school expect to honor. In that context, the conditions aecting such oers

and their acceptance must be dened carefully and understood by all parties.

Students are under no obligation to respond to oers of nancial support prior to April15; earlier dead-

lines for acceptance of such oers violate the intent of this Resolution. In those instances in which a student

accepts an oer before April15, and subsequently desires to withdraw that acceptance, the student may sub-

mit in writing a resignation of the appointment at any time through April15. However, an acceptance given

or le in force aer April15 commits the student not to accept another oer without rst obtaining a written

release from the institution to which a commitment has been made. Similarly, an oer by an institution aer

April15 is conditional on presentation by the student of the written release from any previously accepted

oer. It is further agreed by the institutions and organizations subscribing to the above Resolution that a copy

of this Resolution or a link to the URL should accompany every scholarship, fellowship, traineeship, and

assistantship oer.

— Council of Graduate Schools, Resolution Regarding Graduate Scholars, Fellows, Trainees andAssistants.

Renewed October 2014*

* This Resolution applies to oers of nancial support only, not oers of admission.

Eligibility for graduate assistantships

To qualify for a graduate assistantship, you must demonstrate that you possess at least a bachelor’s degree (by

submitting an ocial transcript to Enrolled Student Services), and must be enrolled in a graduate degree pro-

gram. Students who are employed in full-time positions either inside or outside the University are not eligible for

assistantships.

The Graduate School reserves the right to withdraw an assistantship appointment at any time because of fail-

ure to meet basic eligibility requirements, including maintaining adequate academic performance and satisfactory

progress toward degree, or for violation of University policies. Units may also withdraw an assistantship based on

failure to follow guidelines or for substandard performance in assistantship duties.

Types of assistantships

■ Graduate Research Assistants (GRA) conduct supervised research or assist with research funded from

any source administered by the University.

■ Graduate Administrative Assistants (GAA) provide help to departments with various types of

administrative duties.

■ Graduate Resident Directors (RD) are program sta of the residence halls and are classied as Graduate

Administrative Assistants.

■ Graduate Extension Assistants (GEA) provide help in carrying out supervised extension services of the

University or PSA.

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■ Graduate Teaching Assistant categories:

◆ Graduate Grader Assistants (GGA) provide help to faculty in grading classwork (e.g., homework and

quizzes).

◆ Graduate Laboratory Assistants (GLA) provide help in undergraduate laboratories but are not

responsible for assigning grades.

◆ Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTA) teach undergraduate classes or laboratories under the supervision

of a faculty member. GTAs are not responsible for assigning grades.

■ Graduate Teachers of Record (GTR) assume primary responsibility for teaching undergraduate

classes or laboratories and are responsible for assigning grades. The Southern Association of Colleges

and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) requires that all Graduate Teachers of Record

(GTR) have “earned at least 18 graduate semester hours in their teaching discipline, be under the direct

supervision of a faculty member experienced in the teaching discipline, receive regular in-service training

and be evaluated regularly.”

The department chair has the responsibility for determining that the

18-hour requirement is met either through coursework or with a memo containing documentation that

the graduate assistant meets the requirement as an exception. The Enrolled Student Services Oce will

certify that the 18-hour requirement has beenmet.

The Graduate School provides a printable assistantships reference sheet, GS Titles and Related Information

Table for Departmental Graduate Assistants, linked on the Forms and Applications web page.

Appointment process and terms

All appointments for assistantships (teaching, research, laboratory, administrative, and grader) must be pro-

cessed annually through the Graduate School. Selection of assistantship recipients, notication of the appoint-

ment, duration, and the stipend amount are the responsibilities of the department or unit making the oer. The

appointing unit must use the approved graduate assistantship contract template and included a clear description

of the expectations of the assistantship, the anticipated beginning and ending dates (not more than 12 months per

appointment letter), stipend amount, average hours of service per week, the work schedule (where appropriate),

and the conditions for reappointment, if any. In addition, the graduate assistant must be apprised of the nancial

penalties related to academic fees that may be incurred if the assistantship starts aer the beginning or is termi-

nated before the end of the semester or session. Units making the appointment may include an attachment to the

standard contract where it is necessary to specify duties and other requirements and terms of the appointment but

may not alter the language of the standard contract

Where students are to be continued (reappointed) for the next scal/academic year, each contract should be

revised to reect expectations for the coming year starting each July1 (or in the case of appointments of less than

12months, the start of the contract).

Specifying duties:

Work assignments for students should be clear and specic and should reect a relationship

to the student’s academic program. Duties to be accomplished for any graduate assistant must be agreed upon

in writing by the student and the faculty advisor (or supervisor) in charge of the assistantship appointment. The

work to be performed must be above the paraprofessional level.

Supervisors should make a clear distinction between the work to be performed for the assistantship and the

work being performed toward completing the degree. For example, it would be unusual for time spent completing

17. Section 4.8.4 of the SACSCOC Criteria for Accreditation. Accessed at http://www.sacscoc.org/principles.asp.

18.

Approved by Advisory Committee 25 March 2016.

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class assignments to be part of the duties of an assistantship. Hours spent on thesis or dissertation research would

not routinely be considered part of assistantship duties unless the research and the assistantship is part of an exter-

nally funded research project and that research directly supports the work of the project.

Where duties require students to work outside the hours typically expected according to the appropriate

University calendar (e.g., nights, weekends, holidays), the appointment letter should specically describe these

expectations.

Maximum work hours: A typical graduate assistantship will require an average of 10–28 hours of service per

week and this must be clearly described in the appointment letter. A student may have multiple graduate assis-

tantships or hourly appointments by the University; however, it is the responsibility of the secondary employer to

receive permission of the primary employer and the Graduate School prior to assignment of any additional work,

and to ensure that the maximum work load of 28 hours per week (20 hours per week for F-1 visa holders) is not

exceeded.

Work calendar, University holidays, and leave:

Graduate assistants appointed as GTAs, GTRs and GLAs will

be expected to work their average hours during the typical nine-month Academic Calendar, including during

the exam period. Graduate assistants holding nine-month appointments are entitled to the ocial University hol-

idays and/or breaks accorded nine-month faculty. Graduate assistants with 12-month appointments are entitled

to the ocial University holidays accorded to 12-month administrative sta (holiday schedule). Any expected

deviation from the typical calendar must be specied in the oer (e.g., being present to feed lab animals during

holidays, working on weekends or at night, etc.) Graduate assistants do not accrue leave. They are expected to

work typical hours per week according to the calendar specied by their program. Students on 12-month con-

tracts are expected to work their typical number of hours through the entire year, including the summer.

Intellectual property terms, research policies and procedures:

Ownership of any intellectual property you

may produce is governed by the University’s Intellectual Property Policy.

Leave without pay: Graduate assistants may request up to four weeks of leave without pay per semester and

one week of leave without pay per summer session for illness of a close family member, death in the immediate

family, or personal illness or hardship. If leave without pay is not approved by the administrator of the graduate

assistantship, the graduate assistant may petition the Dean of the Graduate School for approval.

Parental leave:

A graduate assistant (of any gender) is eligible for up to six weeks of parental leave. The request

for parental leave must be made to the department at least one month in advance, with notication provided by

the department chair to the Dean of the Graduate School. The Graduate School encourages the department and

student to work together to enable the student to maintain enrollment and employment status during this time.

See the Graduate School’s web page, Student Employment FAQs, for additional information regarding leave for

assistantship holders.

Start date for fall-semester assistantships

Graduate assistantships typically start around the beginning of classes each fall. However, there may be good rea-

sons why an assistantship should start before the semester begins, such as to provide preparation time for teaching

a class, to provide training, to accommodate the timeline of a research project, to address administrative tasks that

need to be completed prior to the start of the semester, etc. Appointments for fall semester assistantships may

therefore start as early as August1. Any assistantship commencing prior to the start of classes must provide sum-

mer pay in addition to the contracted amount at the same weekly rate (or higher) as the appointment during the

regular academic year. There is no requirement for enrollment in credits during this abbreviated summer period

as long as the student is enrolled in the required credits for the fall semester.

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Prior to August1, a new hire will need to be hired as an intermittent hourly employee.Graduate students

enrolled and employed in the spring, who plan to continue their education in the fall, can remain in a student

worker status during the summer, employed as either a graduate assistant or graduate hourly. Assistantship appoint-

ments requiring start dates before August1 should be made as typical summer appointments and will require

appropriate summer enrollment (see Continuous enrollment). Assistantship appointments for other semester

terms should coincide with the start of classes and require standard enrollments.

Tuition as a graduate assistant

The University’s Board of Trustees approved a policy designed to standardize tuition and fee charges for graduate

assistants. A student on an assistantship must pay fees for graduate assistants listed on the Tuition and Fees web

page.

For an assistantship added between the rst day of classes and the last day to drop or withdraw without grades,

the student’s liability to the University is 50% of total tuition and 100% of fees unless the funding is new grant

money to the University. Aer the last day to drop or withdraw without nal grades, the student receives no grad-

uate assistant benet or refund of tuition and fees previously paid; therefore, assistantship appointments must be

made each semester prior to the date when no abatements would be oered to a graduate assistant. This date is

established annually by the Student Financial Services Oce, and this policy is consistent with the University’s

calendar for refund of fees. For more information, access the Graduate Assistant Tuition Chart online.

English prociency for international students

Clemson University complies with South Carolina requirements to assure that all instructional activities are con-

ducted by individuals possessing appropriate prociency in written and oral use of the English language. Instruc-

tional activities include lectures, recitation or discussion sessions, and laboratories. The individuals to be certied

include full-time and part-time faculty, graduate teachers of record, graduate teaching assistants, and graduate

laboratory assistants for whom English is not the rst language. Clemson University’s English Prociency Pol-

icy is hosted online by the Oce of Student aairs. See also previous topic English language prociency in the

Application and Admissions section.

Arrival deadline for international students on assistantship

International students on assistantship without a U.S. Social Security card/number must arrive on campus, reg-

ister for classes, and report to the International Services Oce (108 Long Hall) a minimum of 20 days prior to

the University’s ocial “late enrollment” period. Please nd the enrollment deadline for the relevant term at the

Registrar’s Academic Calendar page. It is ideal to arrive earlier.

Minimum stipends

The minimum graduate assistantship stipend must be commensurate with a rate 1.2 times the prevailing federal

minimum wage. As of February 2017, the minimum wage is $8.70/hour.

Maximum stipends

The Graduate School does not currently regulate or cap assistantships as long as they exceed the minimum thresh-

old. We expect that stipends should be commensurate with market, experience, and skills, and should be equitable

with other stipends within the unit.

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Benets

Benets available to all graduate assistants are summarized on the Professional Development — Student Assis-

tant Program web page.

Mandatory health insurance

All graduate students are required to maintain health insurance coverage while enrolled at Clemson. The Grad-

uate School website provides information and a link to frequently asked questions. Redfern’s current insurance

and billing fee schedules may be found on the Student Health Services Insurance and Billing web page.

Student responsibilities

Minimum enrollment: In order to maintain a graduate assistantship, you must maintain full-time enroll-

ment status (nine graduate credit hours during each fall and spring semester). Students on 9-month assistant-

ships are not required to enroll in summer courses.

Undergraduate coursework should generally be completed prior to awarding an assistantship, or should

be completed in addition to the routine graduate coursework. Only in cases where undergraduate courses are

required by the program of study will undergraduate credits be considered to satisfy this requirement.

Upper limits on academic loads as related to hours of service per week are delineated in the Enrollment

Limits: maximum credit hours chart, and both undergraduate and graduate credits are subject to this limit.

The graduate school reserves the right to disallow a student not meeting these requirements to receive

an assistantship. A graduate student who fails to maintain compliance with this policy may be considered

for immediate termination of the assistantship or loss of future assistantships. Any GA who needs to request

a variance from these guidelines should contact the graduate school prior to the beginning of the semester to

receive a waiver.

Summer enrollment:

Students on assistantships during the summer (most common with 12-month

appointments) must enroll during the period covered by the assistantship. If an assistantship is awarded for

the entire summer (long summer), you must register for at least six credits during that session. Any credits for

research must be registered in the long summer session. An assistantship in one of the six-week part-terms

(SSI, SSII, Mini A, Mini B, Mini C, Mini D) will require registration in three credits during that term.

Performance and good standing: In order to remain eligible to continue receiving assistantship support,

you must be in compliance with all policies contained in the Graduate School Policies & Procedures Handbook

and policies from the department/program awarding the assistantship. You must maintain minimum enroll-

ment levels, maintain at least a 3.0 GPA, make satisfactory progress toward your degree, perform at a high

level in your assistantship duties, and follow all other expectations of conduct appropriate to a graduate stu-

dent. Failure to comply with these expectations can result in loss of support and other sanctions outlined in

the Graduate Policies and Procedures Handbook and in your program handbook. Conduct, ethical, and integ-

rity violations can lead to immediate termination of the assistantship as well as other sanctions outlined in the

Graduate Policies and Procedures handbook.

Renewal of assistantships

Graduate assistants have no right to continuing support beyond the term of a current appointment. Renewal of

an assistantship can only occur where funds are available, and where performance during the prior appointment

has been reviewed and found to be acceptable. Where graduate assistants are not performing within acceptable

standards, we encourage supervisors to communicate feedback to students in writing early and oen during the

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appointment. As students oen rely upon support from assistantships, it is ideal to communicate intent to renew

or to not renew an assistantship as early as is practical.

Termination of assistantships

Non-renewal of an assistantship refers to a situation where a student completed an appointment and is not oered

another. Termination of an assistantship refers to a situation where an assistantship is ended prior to the end of the

appointment. Termination of an assistantship can have devastating and permanent consequences for a student,

and should only be undertaken aer clear feedback on deciencies and attempts to assist the student in meeting

expectations. Any student who is terminated can seek guidance from the University Ombuds Oce, the Grad-

uate School, or can le a grievance with the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee if there is clear evidence

that the termination was unfair or that this policy was improperly followed. Termination of an assistantship is

dierent than non-renewal.

Termination by student:

Should a graduate student determine the need to terminate their assistantship

appointment, they should consult with the assistantship supervisor as soon as possible — and if at all possible, at

least two weeks prior to termination — in order to ensure a smooth transition in hiring a replacement graduate

assistant. The notice of termination, prepared by the student, should be both verbal and written. Withdrawing

from the University (that is, withdrawing from all classes) will result in the termination of an assistantship. Inter-

national students should consult with appropriate oces relating to immigration/visa status if considering this

option.

Termination for academic deciency:

An assistantship may be terminated for academic deciency if a student

drops below the minimum credit hour requirement (nine per semester or three per summer session) or for failure

to meet other academic requirements as described under Academic probation. Any student placed on probation

will be at risk for losing their assistantship. Students may lose their assistantship without being dismissed from the

University. Departments desiring to terminate a graduate student’s assistantship for academic deciency should

prepare a written notice of termination and provide the student with at least two weeks’ notice and submit the

request to the Graduate School. The Graduate School reserves the right to terminate an assistantship or declare a

student ineligible for future assistantship appointments where serious academic deciencies are apparent.

Termination for failure to perform duties:

If, in the opinion of the immediate supervisor of the graduate assis-

tant, a student is not carrying out the duties of their assistantship satisfactorily, the supervisor should immediately

provide feedback to the student and attempt to resolve the problem. Early and frequent feedback can help prevent

more serious performance problems. All conversations and feedback should be documented and placed in the

student’s written record with a copy provided to the student. If the student’s performance remains unsatisfactory,

the student should receive a written warning from the department chair (or designee) delivered through ocial

Clemson University email detailing the nature of the problem. If, aer this formal warning, the student fails to

improve to reasonable standards, the department chair should give the student a written notice of termination.

This letter of termination should be sent to the student through ocial Clemson University communications

channels (i.e., ocial email), and should specify the date of termination and any requirements for vacating the

position. At least two weeks should elapse between the written warning and the notice of termination. The Dean

of the Graduate School should be notied of the termination. Notices of termination will be retained in the stu-

dent’s le in accordance with state employment policies.

Termination for cause:

An assistantship may be terminated for other serious violations of Clemson University

community norms and values, including violations of the Student Code of Conduct and/or Academic Integrity

Policy. Allegations regarding violations of this nature should be referred to the appropriate disciplinary body.

If a student is unable to perform their duties as a result of violations such as these, their assistantship should be

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suspended pending completion of due process. A student suspended from their assistantship but ultimately found

to not be guilty of the alleged violations should be reinstated in good standing and reimbursed for lost assistant-

ship revenue.

Termination due to loss of external funding or nancial exigency: A sudden or unexpected loss of funding

from either an external funding source or (in very rare cases) a dramatic change to the University budget environ-

ment may result in the termination of an assistantship. While we work diligently to reduce the probability of this

outcome, it is possible that unexpected developments could require this step. Unexpected loss of external funding

cannot be used to justify termination of assistantships not directly funded by that project.

Should the University receive notication that research funding will be discontinued, departments must

notify the aected graduate students with as much advance notice as possible. If departments do not provide ade-

quate notication to the research assistant, the department will be responsible for two weeks of stipend support

for the student. Departments should make every eort to secure funding to enable aected students to continue

throughout the current semester or term. With appropriate documentation, a department chair may request the

Dean of the Graduate School for an exception to the policy.

Financial liability from loss of assistantship:

Your stipend payments will cease immediately upon the termi-

nation of your assistantship, regardless of reason for termination. Any pay received erroneously in excess of the

contracted amount or aer termination of the assistantship must be returned to Clemson University.

In the event an assistantship is terminated, whether by the student or by the University, tuition and fees for

the current term will be recalculated to the normal rates rather than the highly subsidized rate aorded to a stu-

dent on an assistantship. The student will be responsible for the full balance once the bill is recalculated. If you

are found to have fraudulently received payments from an assistantship, you may also be required to repay those

funds.

Other implications of loss of assistantship:

If you are an international student who is required to have an

assistantship to maintain your immigration status, or a student required to maintain your assistantship for other

reasons, loss of your assistantship may change your ability to continue studies at Clemson University. Loss of an

assistantship may also change your eligibility for certain forms of nancial aid. It is your responsibility to under-

stand these implications and work with appropriate oces where necessary.

Protections:

Graduate students at Clemson are future colleagues and should be treated with respect betting

that status. You are entitled to a workplace free from harassment and/or discrimination. If you feel you have been

subject to a hostile work environment, harassment, discrimination, abuse, or have any other concern about your

working and academic conditions, please contact the Oce of Access and Equity, Oce of Human Resources, the

Dean of the Graduate School, or the Oce of the Ombudsman.

For additional information, download the Oce of Access and Equity’s Anti-harassment and Non-discrimi-

nation Policy.

3.3. Fellowships

Fellowships are monetary awards that require no service or work from the student. Fellowships may be institu-

tionally awarded (through the Graduate School or through one of Clemson’s graduate programs) or they may be

externally awarded and portable to Clemson University. Fellowships are awarded by government agencies (fed-

eral, state, local), private foundations, industries, professional groups, and others. The Graduate School maintains

a list of available fellowships on its website that includes information on a large number of prominent external

fellowships.

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

Typically, fellowships are awarded on merit. For Clemson University fellowships, students are nominated for

consideration by faculty. For a monetary award to be designated a fellowship, it must provide the recipient a min-

imum of $1,000 for the academic year. All fellowship recipients are granted the in-state rate for tuition and fees.

Some awards may limit students’ research to areas of interest to the donor and may require a period of res-

idency at the industrial sites. Fellowships are usually oered in early February or March. With the exception of

some programs with premium tuition levels (see Program Tuition Tiers at the Graduate School website), gradu-

ate fellows and trainees pay fees applicable to South Carolina residents. Unless otherwise stipulated by the grantor

and/or donor, holders of fellowships or traineeships are required to enroll in the same minimum credit load as

other departmental graduate assistants.

Normally a student cannot hold concurrently two or more fellowships or traineeships (or the equivalent)

administered by the University, regardless of the funding sources. Fellowship recipients are eligible for appoint-

ment as graduate assistants. For students simultaneously holding fellowships or traineeships and assistantships,

the fee structure for assistantships prevails. Detailed information is available from the individual colleges or aca-

demic departments.

Continued receipt of any fellowship or traineeship is contingent on the student maintaining a satisfactory

academic status. Fellowships may be withdrawn at any time for failure to maintain a satisfactory academic status

or for violating University policies.

Fellowships administered by the Graduate School

University fellowships. Funded from Graduate Alumni Fellowships, R.C. Edwards Fellowships, and GeorgeR.

MacDonald Fellowships, these are University-wide awards administered by the Graduate School. Fellowships are

awarded on a competitive basis to nominees selected by the departments. Scholarly potential and academic excel-

lence are the sole criteria for the awards.

Graduate Diversity Fellowships. In an eort to increase the number of students from underrepresented groups

pursuing doctoral degrees at Clemson, the University established the Graduate Diversity Fellowship Program.

Funding for the fellowship is provided by the Oce of Inclusion and Equity and managed by the Graduate

School. The Graduate Diversity Fellowship Committee, made up of representatives from the Oce of Inclusion

and Equity, the Oce of Access and Equity, and the Graduate School, oers a variety of nancial assistance

opportunities for eligible minority students pursuing doctoral degrees at Clemson University.

Note that other externally funded programs are available for underrepresented minority students includ-

ing SREB Doctoral Scholars Program and South Carolina Professional Association for Access and Equity

(SCPAAE) Scholarships. More information on these programs can be found on the Oce of Access and Equity,

Diversity Fellowship web page under the “Other Funding Opportunities” topic at the bottom of the page.

Deadlines

Deadlines for fellowship applications vary. Students should refer to fellowship announcements from their college

and program for information on application deadlines and guidelines for submission.

Tax liability

Tax laws change every year and in unpredictable ways, at both the federal and state/local level. Students receiving

any nancial aid, including assistantships and fellowships, fee waivers, and other support, should consult a qual-

ied tax advisor. The Internal Revenue Service oers guidelines for tax responsibility for fellowship and other

stipend awards under the topics “Scholarships, Fellowship Grants, Grants, and Tuition Reductions” (for U.S.

citizen students) and under the topic “Taxation of Non-resident Aliens” (for non-U.S. citizen students). The

Graduate School is not authorized to provide tax advice.

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

3.4. Hours of Employment

Graduate students (exclusive of full-time University employees) who are enrolled in classes or research hours may

not be employed by the University for more than 28 hours per week, even in instances where graduate hourly

employment and graduate assistantships are combined. No portion of hourly employment shall be used to qualify

students for benets aorded those on graduate assistantship appointments. International students must abide by

immigration regulations pertaining to on-campus employment (see International student employment below).

Employment on an hourly basis for a portion of a semester or session is permitted. The student must meet

minimum requirements for continuous enrollment in order to accept hourly employment.

3.5. International Student Employment

International graduate students are required to hold proper immigration status before any assistantship can be

paid or attending benets ensue. Special employment regulations for international students are governed by the

Code of Federal Regulations and the Department of Homeland Security/U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Ser-

vices (USCIS). To ensure compliance with the Code of Federal Regulations, detailed information about interna-

tional student employment and procedures for applying are available in the International Services Oce, 108

Long Hall; 864-656-3614.

Graduate assistantships

International graduate students who are interested in receiving any type of assistantship should submit scores

from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the Test of Written English (TWE) to Clemson

University. International students seeking graduate teaching assistantships, whose native language is not English

and whose secondary education (and beyond) was not taught fully in English, are also required to pass the Test

of Spoken English (TSE). Specialists in English as a Second Language (ESL) administer this test at Clemson

University. Some departments also have other requirements, such as videotaped oral presentations. Successful

scores on all English language tests, the interview, and the presentation (if required) must be completed before

the student can begin an appointment as a teaching assistant.

Hourly o-campus

Permission for o-campus employment must rst be requested through the international student advisors in the

Oce of International Aairs. O-campus employment generally is unavailable to international students during

the rst academic year and should not be considered as a means of nancial support. Students with F-1 visas may

apply to the USCIS for limited o-campus work authorization aer their rst year of study.

Hourly on-campus

Nonacademic employment opportunities are available on-campus on a rst-come, rst-considered basis. Once all

appropriate requirements are met, applications may be made directly to the hiring source.

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