The Graduate College Handbook for Students, Faculty and Staff
Chapter IV: Graduate Degree and Graduation Requirements
B. Graduation Requirements
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Degree Conferral (Graduation Date):
Master's degrees are conferred in May, August, October, and December. Doctoral degrees are conferred in May, October, and December. In order to receive a degree, a student must apply to be on the degree list for the appropriate graduation date. Until the tenth day of classes in a given semester, students may use the UI-Integrate Self-Service system to apply to be on the degree list. After the tenth day, students should complete an Application for Degree form and submit it to their graduate department office. Deadlines for applying to be on the list for each graduation date are noted on the Thesis Office Deadlines Web page.
A student may not receive a degree with a grade of I, NR, or DFR in any course except thesis research, on their graduate record without an approved petition. - Certification of Degree:
A student who has fulfilled all of the degree requirements before the next conferral date may need certification for employment or to meet visa requirements. To request a degree certification letter, the student should use the Request for Certification of Degree Letter form. A student who has not deposited the thesis with the Graduate College (when deposit is required), who owes money to the University, or who is enrolled in any course other than research credit cannot receive a degree certification. - Theses:
A thesis is an original, significant contribution to the scholarly literature of an academic discipline. All University of Illinois graduate students whose programs require the completion of a thesis or dissertation must deposit their manuscript in the Graduate College.
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Deposit:
The Graduate College does not require students to be registered at the time of deposit, but some departments may, so students should consult with their department before depositing. A thesis will not be accepted for deposit until all required materials have been submitted and all corrections requested by the Graduate College Thesis Office have been made. Deposit must be made by the appropriate master’s or doctoral deposit deadlines set for each term. There are no exceptions. Upon deposit, the thesis becomes part of the student’s academic record. No changes may be made to a thesis or dissertation after it has been deposited at the Graduate College.
Formatting:
The Graduate College will only accept theses and dissertations that meet the formatting requirements set forth in the Graduate College Thesis Handbook. Many departments have additional, discipline specific format requirements, and the Graduate College requires that all students secure format approval from their department prior to format review in the Graduate College Thesis Office.
Dissemination:
Theses that are deposited as a requirement for the awarding of a degree are considered to be publications. Copyrightable works prepared by students as part of the requirements for a University degree program are deemed to be the property of the student.
As a condition of degree award, the University has the royalty-free right to retain, use and distribute a limited number of copies of the thesis, together with the right to require its publication for archival use (see University of Illinois Board of Trustees’ General Rules).
In order to best disseminate and archive the significant work of University of Illinois graduates, the Graduate College requires that every doctoral dissertation and abstract be published. The Graduate College will determine the method of publication that most effectively secures the existence of the thesis/dissertation in perpetuity. The thesis will be available to the public through the University Library.
Permissions for Previously Published Work Included in the Thesis:
Prior publication of parts of the thesis is increasingly common. Students should secure written permission from the publisher (or whoever holds the copyright to the published work) for the thesis to be submitted in paper and electronic form. Students should bring two copies of these copyright permissions with them to their deposit.
Patent Review:
If a student’s thesis contains potentially patentable information, a student may wish to have the thesis held by the Thesis Office while patentability is assessed. Holding a thesis does not postpone degree conferral or graduation. A student wishing to have a thesis held during the patent review process must contact the Office of Technology Management (OTM) prior to deposit. OTM will review the student’s request and notify the Graduate College if a thesis is to be held. Intellectual property is an important aspect of thesis research. See chapter I.C for more information.
