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Information and Forms to Use are you Progress through your Degree Program

MNS Forms for Thesis Option

• Online Electronic Program of Study Information (iPOS)
• Committee Approval Request Form
• Graduate Supervisory Committee Change Form -- use only if you originally filed a paper Program of Study; if you filed an online electronic Program of Study (iPOS), use the online Committee Change option
• Course Changes to the Graduate Program of Study Form -- use only if you originally filed a paper Program of Study; if you filed an online electronic Program of Study (iPOS), use the online Course Change option
• Dissertation and Thesis Format Manual
• Master's Defense Schedule Form and Format Approval Sheet Form

Steps towards the MS Degree

1. You MUST be enrolled EACH Fall and Spring semester that you are in pursuit of your degree. If you fail to enroll for a semester, you will be dropped from the ASU Graduate College, and you will have to go through another complete application process to be re-admitted into the degree program. There will not be any special considerations for your application -- your application for re-admission will be evaluated against the pool of current applications for that year and re-admission is NOT guaranteed.
2. You MUST have an APPROVED Masters Degree Program of Study on file with the Graduate College. (The POS should have a minimum of 30 credit hours. See the "SoLS Graduate Student Handbook" for specific information on and requirements for the various degree programs.) If you wish to have someone on your committee that is not currently approved by the Graduate College to serve on SoLS Dissertation Committees, you will need to submit a Committee Approval Request form to the SoLS Associate Director for Graduate Programs requesting that the person be approved to serve on your committee. Please attach a current CV for this person. This information MUST be submitted along with your iPOS. The iPOS is created and submitted online through http://my.asu.edu. Print out the completed course page and the signature page. Obtain the signatures of each of your committee members, then bring the print outs to the SoLS Grad Program Office for the signature of the SoLS Associate Director for Graduate Programs as Head of the Academic Unit. The completed iPOS and supporting documentation will be submitted by the Grad Programs Office to the Graduation Office.
3. After you file your POS with the Graduate College, if you need to make changes to your Chair, Co-Chair, and/or Committee Members, you must make official changes to your Supervisory Committee using the Graduate Supervisory Committee Change Form. This form requires the signatures from all of your committee members and the SoLS Associate Director for Graduate Programs.
4. You MUST register for at least one credit hour (that appears on the Program of Study or one hour of appropriate graduate level credit) during the semester in which you plan to defend. If defending during the summer, enrollment in any one summer session (8-week, 1st 5-week, or 2nd 5-week) will fulfill the requirement. If your oral defense is schedule during a break period, you must be enrolled during the preceding semester. If the break period is between the summer and fall semesters, enrollment in any one of the summer sessions listed above will fulfill the requirement.
5. You will need to review your Program of Study against your current ASU transcript at the beginning of your last semester.
6. If you originally filed a paper POS form , submit a hard copy Course Changes to the Graduate Program of Study form to the Graduation Office to remove courses from your POS that you did not take and/or to add courses that you did take that were not on your POS. The form will need to be signed by you, your committee chair, and the SoLS Associate Director for Graduate Programs as Head of Academic Unit. Please make sure the SoLS Grad Office has a copy of your Course Changes form before it is submitted to the Graduate College. If you originally filed an online electronic iPOS, use the online Course Changes option in iPOS to make the necessary changes to your iPOS.
7. Apply for graduation at the Graduation Office in the Student Services Building 140. Take along a copy of your working dissertation title page and the names of your dissertation committee chair/co-chairs. If you apply after the deadline (see "Graduation Deadlines and Procedures" on the Graduate College web site), you will be assessed a late fee and your name will not appear in the commencement program.
8. Apply for graduation at the Graduation Office in the Student Services Building, first floor, windows 8-10. If you apply after the deadline (see "Graduation Deadlines and Procedures" on the Graduate College web site), you will be assessed a late fee and your name will not appear in the commencement program.
9. Schedule a room for your defense through the SoLS Grad Programs Office.
10. Make arrangements with the SoLS Facilities Office if you will need audio/video equipment for your defense.
11. Submit the following to the Graduate College for Format Evaluation and Scheduling the Oral Defense -- PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE 10 WORKING DAY CALENDAR and DEADLINES on the Graduate College web site!!!! Submit documents no later than 4:30 p.m. at least 10 working days before the defense.
    • Completed Masters Defense Schedule Form form (signed by you and your committee chair)
    • Format Approval Sheet (signed by you and your committee chair)
    • 1 complete unbound copy of your Thesis
    • 1 copy of an article from the journal yo used as a style guide
    Please make sure the SoLS Grad Office has a copy of your Application for Authorization to Schedule a Defense form and your Format Approval Sheet before you submit them to the Graduate College.
12. Submit an electronic file to Jeanette or Andra in the SoLS Grad Office so that we can post announcements about your defense -- a one page defense flyer in Word or PDF format with the following information:
    • Date, Time and Place of your defense
    • Title of your Thesis
    • Committee Members
    • Abstract
    • Color or black/white photo or illustration related to your defense (optional)
13. The Graduate College will send your Report for Master's Thesis/Practicum Defense Pass/Fail paperwork to your Chair and Committee members prior to your defense. PLEASE check with your Chair to make sure they have the form prior to your defense.
14. Hold your defense.
15. Get all the necessary signatures on your Report for Master's Thesis/Practicum Defense Pass/Fail form. Have each committee member sign your Pass/Fail form. If you have a faculty member substituting for a Committee Member who could not attend the defense, please have the substitute sign the COMMITTEE MEMBERS FULL NAME followed by the substitutes INITIALS ONLY.
16. After your defense, return all furniture to the place you found it in the room, remove all food items, and clean up the room.
17. Bring your Report for Master's Thesis/Practicum Defense Pass/Fail form to the SoLS Grad Office to get the signature of the SoLS Associate Director for Graduate Programs as Head of Academic Unit.
18. Once you have final format approval from the Graduate College, take your completed Report for Master's Thesis/Practicum Defense Pass/Fail form to the Graduate College to get the Graduate College Deans signature. You must do this prior to 2:00 pm in order to get the paperwork back after 2:00 pm the following day.
19. You must submit 2 copies of your final thesis (plus any additional copies you wish) to the ASU Bookstore for binding no later than 3 p.m. on the deadline date. Failure to meet this deadline will prevent you from graduating!! The documents must be on high-quality, acid-free, xerographic 24-pound minimum paper. Further information may be found at the ASU Bookstore web site.
20. Turn in your keys to the SoLS Facilities Office, clean out your desk and office space, and give mail forwarding information to the SoLS Grad Programs Office before you leave.