Page 80 - 2016-2018 Graduate Catalog (Revised)

Advancement to Candidacy is a major step in fulfilling the requirements
for the Master's Degree. Advancement to Candidacy is accomplished by
presenting evidence of having an approved program of study, a grade
point average of 3.25 and a minimum of 12 - 18 semester hours of
specific program core courses graduate work taken at Bowie State
University. Should the required 3.25 average not be attained when a
maximum of 18 credit hours have been earned, Advancement to
Candidacy will be denied. Students will be given the opportunity to
retake courses that were taken as part of the 12 – 18 credit hours
requirement. Students will not be allowed to go beyond the 18 credit
limit if they have not met the requirement for advancement to
candidacy. Each graduate program may have additional requirements
for Advancement to Candidacy that students are required to complete.
Additional requirements will be included in the section of the catalog
for each program.

Students must be advanced to candidacy before taking the
Comprehensive Examination, Seminar or Practicum (Internship I and II
for Mental Health Counseling).

Procedure:
I. A student must apply for Advancement to Candidacy by
completing the Request for Advancement to Candidacy form
and submitting it to the Graduate School. The form can be
filed once the student has taken 12 credits of required
coursework but must be completed before 18 credits are
earned.
II. The Graduate Records Coordinator will review the student’s
records to determine academic progress.
III. If the student has met the requirements for Advancement to
Candidacy, the student will be advanced and the student
information system, PeopleSoft, will be updated to reflect so.
IV. If the student is denied Advancement to Candidacy, the
Graduate School will correspond with the student to direct
him/her to the advisor to develop a plan for meeting the
Advancement to Candidacy requirement.
V. A student who does not satisfy the advancement to
candidacy requirement will not be allowed to continue taking
courses after the completion of the first 18 credit hours.

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