GSAS Handbook

ENROLLMENT AND REGISTRATION

All GSAS students must be registered for 12 credit hours to be considered a full-time student.  GSAS does not offer part-time programs and only in extraordinary circumstances are students permitted to carry a part-time course load. 

Full-time registration can be 12 course credits, 12 non-topical research credits or a mix of non-topical and course credits.  Since students do not earn credits for courses taken on an “audit” grading basis, these should be excluded from the credit count for full-time status.  However, for tuition purposes, audited courses cost the same as a regular course

Non-topical Research

Each department has been assigned course numbers for four non-topical research seminars: 8998 NON-TOPICAL RESEARCH (Preparation for Master’s Research, no thesis director), 8999 NON-TOPICAL RESEARCH (For Master’s thesis, taken under the supervision of a thesis director), 9997 NON-TOPICAL RESEARCH (Preparation for Doctoral Research, no dissertation director) 9999 NON-TOPICAL RESEARCH (For Doctoral dissertation, taken under the supervision of a dissertation director).

Students working on a master’s degree will enroll in either 8998 (if they have not selected thesis advisor) or 8999 (if they have selected thesis advisor) and students working on a Ph.D. degree will enroll in either 9998 (if they have not selected dissertation advisor) or 9999 (if they have selected dissertation advisor).

Entering students must enroll for a 12 semester-hour course load and with no more than three hours of non-topical research.

Non-topical Research Fees

See Tuition Fee Chart (.xls, 38KB). Once students have finished their course work, they can sign up for research-only fees, a substantial savings. This registration status requires students to enroll for 12 hours of non-topical research, but they will have full access to all University facilities. It is associated with gaining hours toward degrees (but not towards the core 54 hours of classes), and allows students to defer student loan payments.

Non-Resident (Continuous Enrollment) Status

Continuous enrollment (non-resident enrollment) means that the student will not be using the University of Virginia facilities or faculty time. This status is often used by advanced students who do not need to be considered a full-time student or by students who are finishing their dissertations off-Grounds. This status may be used by students who have completed all coursework and research but need to be enrolled at the University for administrative reasons (such as finishing an incomplete, awaiting graduation). Continuous enrollment status is not related to in- or out-of-state tuition status. Students must register for the continuous enrollment status each semester to maintain enrollment at UVA.

Important: Continuous enrollment does not allow students access to University facilities, does not accrue credit, and will not allow for the deferral of student loans. Continuous enrollment students are considered to be enrolled less than half-time and receive no student I.D. card privileges (such as athletic event and recreational facility access, Student Legal Services, library circulation privileges, use of Student Health facilities, University Bookstore charge privileges, University transit passage, and ARTS$ supply).

*International Students who plan to remain in the US cannot enroll as non-residents and keep their student visa status. Questions regarding eligibility should be directed to Richard Tanson, Foreign Student Advisor, 207 Minor Hall, 434-982-3017.

Submission Deadline: Students are responsible for obtaining the signature of their graduate director and submitting this form to the GSAS Enrolled Student Office by the appropriate deadline (Spring- December 1, Fall- August 1, Summer- June 1). Failure to notify GSAS of non-resident status prior to the semester deadline may result in additional late registration fees.

Continuous Enrollment Fee Payment: Students are required to pay the fee for their enrollment to remain active. After the student’s status is updated in SIS by GSAS (student center class schedule for the term reflects enrollment in NGRA 1- 1), the student may then pay the fee ($176.00 per semester for Academic Year 2010-2011) online in SIS using QuikPay to finalize their continuous enrollment status. Checks will not be accepted.

Continuous Enrollment Form

“Auditing” a course not taken for credit

Quoting from the Graduate Record:

Students may audit courses with the permission of the instructor.  Courses successfully taken on an audit basis have the symbol AU (audit) recorded in the grade column of the academic record.  As no credits or grade points are earned in audited courses, these courses are not applicable toward a degree.  Instructors have the option of deciding whether students may or may not take their courses on an audit basis.  A grade of W is recorded for any student who discontinues the audit after the drop deadline or who fails to meet the instructor’s standards.  Audited courses will incur similar tuition charges as courses taken for credit.  See Tuition Fee Chart (.xls, 47KB).

To register for an audited course, the student must submit a completed Course Action Form to the GSAS Office, 110 Randall Hall.  The form can be found on the Registrar’s website at: http://www.virginia.edu/registrar/courseactionform.html. Graduate students must be registered for 12 credits for full-time status.  Audited courses are excluded from this count.

Grade Changes, Incompletes (IN), and No Grades (NG)

University regulations stipulate that grades of IN must be converted to the appropriate letter grade within 200 days of the date on which the grades for the term were due. After 200 days, the grade automatically reverts to an F, which will appear on the transcript. A grade of F, like any other grade below B-, is considered to be an unsatisfactory grade. Receipt of such a grade is grounds for dismissal from the graduate program. Once a grade of F is recorded, the grade may only be changed with the approval of the Assistant Dean for Graduate Studies, and the acceptable reasons for the Dean to authorize such a grade change are limited to cases “when an instructor certifies that, because of an error in calculation or transcription, an incorrect grade has been submitted.” Once the F is in place, it is hard to remove!

NG: In the University Regulations, it is written that “No student with an outstanding NG is eligible to receive a degree or certificate.”Currently NG grades revert to F after one month.

Changing Grades / Correcting the Transcript: Responsibility for checking the accuracy of the transcript lies completely with the student. A student has one semester from the time an erroneous grade is recorded to get the error corrected. Errors not corrected within that time frame become permanent and cannot be changed. The student is responsible for checking his/her transcript early in each semester to ensure the grades recorded are those that were earned in the previous term. If there appears to be an error, the instructor of the course must be contacted immediately so that the change can be made within the time limit.

Appeals and Grievances

Students who have a grievance relating to a faculty member, department chair, or dean are invited to discuss their academic grievance in the following manner:

1. Concerns related to a faculty member that cannot be resolved between the two parties should be discussed with the Director of Graduate Studies and/or department or program chair on a person-to-person basis.
2. If the concern is related to the department chair, the grievance should be filed with the Assistant Dean of the Graduate School (Mary Stegmaier) in 101 Randall Hall.
3. If the concern is related to the Dean, the grievance should be filed with the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs (Milton Adams).
4. If the level of concern relates to the Vice President and Provost, appropriate written documentation should be presented to the President of the University.

Appeals must be made in a timely fashion, but under no circumstances will appeals of any decision be accepted after the end of the next semester has passed.

Variances to Rules: Students who petition for exemptions or variances to graduate school rules and policies must do so through the director of graduate studies of the department who will then bring the request to the assistant dean for graduate programs. Petitions for exemptions will not be accepted from individual students.

Dissertation Committees

The group of faculty who determines that a candidate’s dissertation is acceptable for a PhD degree. To quote the Graduate Record:

The examining committee, under the chairmanship of the advisor professor, will consist of not fewer than four members from the graduate faculty, one of whom must be from another department and serves as a representative of the graduate faculty. Through its chair, the examining committee may invite other members of the departmental faculty to take part in the examination; indeed, it is recommended that the doctoral examination be given before the entire professional staff of the department concerned. The result of the examination, with the names of the examiners and their departmental affiliation, must be reported by the chair of the examining committee to the Graduate School no later than two weeks before final exercises.

The above describes the minimum number of people for a committee: three from the candidate’s department or program and one who acts as the “Dean’s representative” from another department.

General faculty members are eligible to serve on dissertation committees with approval of the director of graduate studies.

Faculty members with appointments in more than one department are eligible to serve as a department member of the committee in those departments.  Faculty members cannot serve as the “outside/Dean’s representative” in the department in which they have their primary appointment. 

The job of the “Dean’s representative” on the committee is to simply confirm that the student was treated fairly and that the rules of GSAS were observed. Committees can be any size as long as these minimum requirements are met. Individuals from other units within the University may be permitted to serve as the GSAS representative. A petition from the DGS of the student's program to the Assistant Dean indicating the advantage of having the outside individual serve as the GSAS representative is necessary to obtain that permission. Once the minimum GSAS requirements have been met, additional committee members from other institutions may be added. They may not serve as the Dean's representative, nor will the Dean's office provide financial support for their participation.

Degree Deadlines

All forms are submitted to the GSAS Office, 110 Randall Hall

See http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/gradschool

December Degree Candidates:

October 1        Last day for submitting graduate degree applications to 110 Randall Hall

November 1    Last day for submitting an unsigned copy of thesis or dissertation title page to student’s department

December 1     Deadline for submitting Theses/dissertations to 110 Randall Hall

May Degree Candidates:

February 1       Last day for submitting graduate degree applications to 110 Randall Hall

April 1             Last day for submitting an unsigned copy of thesis or dissertation title page to student’s department

May 1              Deadline for submitting Theses/Dissertations to 110 Randall Hall

August Degree Candidates:

July 1               Last day for submitting graduate degree applications to 110 Randall Hall

July 1               Last day for submitting an unsigned copy of thesis or dissertation title page to student’s department

August 1         Deadline for submitting theses/dissertations to 110 Randall Hall

Graduate Student Council

A self-elected body of graduate students who play many roles. They fund many graduate student events, hold an annual Research Fair for which prizes are given for the best papers, and organize social activities. See http://www.student.virginia.edu/~gsasc/ for details.

Fellowship & Fiscal Contacts

The GSAS financial team is comprised of Brenda Davis, our Fellowship Coordinator, and Lloyd Banks, our Budget Officer.  They can assist with questions concerning fellowships, student health insurance, travel reimbursements, and tuition awards. 

Brenda Davis 434.924.6742

Lloyd Banks 434.924.3919

GSAS offers a variety of fellowships available to our graduate students. A summary of our primary fellowship programs is below:

Dissertation Year Away

Limited funding is available to pay the non-topical research fees (less the non-resident fee) for students completing research off Grounds, usually in foreign countries. Application forms and instructions are available on the GSAS home page. This award is designed for students completing their dissertation that have student loans that would become due if he/she is not registered with 12 hours of non-topical research.

Graduate Student Travel Awards

GSAS provides limited travel funding to graduate students through the Huskey Travel Funds and funds from the Society of Fellows. Travel support up to $550 dollars will be awarded to recipients based on the cost of conference registration fee, hotel and travel (flight/mileage) and will be chosen by the Dean. Students may receive only one award per fiscal year (July 1 – June 30). Because of limited funding, priority is given to Ph.D. students on the job market who are presenting research at the conference. In order to provide support to as many students as possible, travel awards rarely cover the full cost of conference trip. Awards are granted on a quarterly basis with the following deadlines for the Graduate Director to submit graduate student requests to GSAS:

February 15 for travel during April, May and June

May 15 for travel during July, August and September

August 15 for travel during October, November and December

November 15 for travel during January, February and March

Travel requests can only be submitted for travel during the specific quarter for which the deadlines are outlined. Requests will only be reviewed by the Dean if they are submitted to Amy Goldstein () by the Director of Graduate Studies. Award notifications will be emailed out shortly after the quarterly deadline. If you have questions regarding receipts or the process of receiving your award, please contact Brenda Davis ().

Summer Foreign Language Institute (SFLI)

The UVA SLI offers intense training in a number of foreign languages. For additional information see http://www.virginia.edu/summer/SLI/index.html . GSAS has funding available to graduate students in select departments to gain foreign language skills during the summer session at UVA or elsewhere.  Applications must be submitted through the Department’s Graduate Director for the purpose of:

a) Participation in an intensive foreign language institute that puts the student in a favorable position to compete for outside fellowships in foreign study

b) The language skills are a necessary and important research tool for the student, above and beyond satisfying the basic PhD language requirement. No payment is made for students to accomplish language requirements.

Graduate Teaching Assistants \ Graduate Research Assistants

GTAs\GRAs are graduate students with instructional assignments in classrooms or laboratories. GTAs generally assume responsibility for all lecture and classroom activities connected with a single section of a multi-section course under the general supervision of a faculty member, or the assignment to lead discussion sections of courses that are taught by a member of the regular faculty, or lead the laboratory sections under the general supervision of a regular faculty member who has responsibility for the course. GTAs should normally be enrolled in a full-time degree program. Typical duties include holding regular office hours, grading papers for sections, and attending regular meetings for section or lab planning. Students engaged in teaching receive wages and taxes are withheld by the University. GTAs and GRAs are eligible for tuition remission and health insurance subsidies through GSAS if minimum requirements are met. Departments may also have tuition adjustment subsidies available to their out-of-state GTAs and GRAs although this assistance is not guaranteed. For more information on GTA/GRA wages and tuition awards, see the Provost’s Wage Authorization Policy at: http://www.virginia.edu/provost/documents/2011-12WageAuthorization.pdf (.pdf)

Teaching + Technology Support
Partners

The Teaching + Technology Support Partner Program is a joint initiative of the offices of the Provost and the Vice-President of Information Technology. The program provides support and training for graduate students who work with faculty interested in enhancing teaching and learning through the integration of technology. The TTSP program makes awards to departments and centers, which then in coordination with the TTSP program select a graduate student to serve as a Teaching + Technology Support Partner for that unit. Graduate students serving as TTSPs receive a stipend and similar tuition and health insurance subsidies as GTAs and GRAs. Additional information is available at http://tti.virginia.edu/ttsp/.

Tuition Remission

Students employed at 50% effort or more as a GTA or GRA are entitled to tuition remission in the semester they work. Students who earn wages as an instructor (on a faculty line and not a GTA/GRA) do not qualify for tuition remission.

Tuition Adjustment

Graduate students earning $5,000 or more as a GTA or GRA may be eligible for a tuition adjustment to cover the out-of-state portion of their tuition and fees. Adjustments are awarded solely at the discretion of the Department and based on funding availability. Students who earn wages as an instructor (on a faculty line and not a GTA) do not qualify for an adjustment.

Student Health Insurance

All graduate students must have health insurance. Students may either provide their own coverage or purchase a policy through UVA Student Health. Additional details can be found at: http://www.virginia.edu/studenthealth/insurance.html

Graduate students serving as GRAs and GTAs may be eligible for health insurance subsidies provided by GSAS. To qualify for this subsidy a student must earn wages of at least $5,000 as a GTA or GRA. Lloyd Banks is the student health insurance liaison and can be contacted regarding eligibility issues.

Work Overload Requests

The Provost’s Wage Authorization Policy states that graduate students are permitted to work up to 20 hours per week.  Requests to work more than 20 hours per week must be approved by the department graduate director and submitted to the assistant dean in GSAS.  The request should indicate why it is important for the student to be granted a work overload, the number of hours the student intends to work per week, the impact that the work overload will have the student’s academic progress, and the student’s status as an international student.  International students are not permitted to work more than 20 hours per week when classes are in session.  More information on these work policies can be found in the current Wage Authorization Policy on the Provost’s website: http://www.virginia.edu/provost/policies.html

Tuition and Fees

The chart below is an unofficial document updated periodically by GSAS in an effort to keep our students and staff aware of tuition and fees for properly enrolled full time graduate students in the School of Arts and Sciences.  The official tuition and fees are determined by Student Financial Services.

Tuition Fee Chart (.xls, 47KB)

Graduate Student Financial Aid

Graduate students can apply for various financial aid programs through Student Financial Services. The below links provide guidance in completing this process and information on the various programs available:

http://www.virginia.edu/financialaid/gradstudents.php

http://www.virginia.edu/financialaid/graduate.php