ADMISSIONAnyone who wishes to earn graduate-level credit, whether as a degree-seeking student or as a non-degree student, must make formal application to, and be officially admitted by, the Graduate School. The Graduate School offers two classifications of admission: 1. GRADUATE STANDING 2. NON-DEGREE STANDING Application. Applications for admission to the Graduate School must be accompanied by a $40.00 application fee ($50.00 for international applicants) which is not refundable and will not apply against the general registration fee if the applicant enrolls. The application form may be obtained from our web page at: http://www.uark.edu/depts/gradinfo or the application form may be obtained from and should be submitted directly to: GRADUATE SCHOOL ADMISSIONS OFFICE Transcripts. For applicants who desire full graduate standing: it is the responsibility of each applicant who desires full graduate standing to request EACH college or university which the student has previously attended to send directly to the Graduate School Office two official copies of the student's academic record including all courses, grades, and credits attempted and indication of degree(s) earned. (Note: The fact that courses completed at one institution may be included on a transcript from another institution will not suffice; official transcripts must be received from each institution previously attended.) All transcripts become the property of the University of Arkansas Graduate School and will not be released to the applicant or to any other person, institution or agency. All application materials including all official transcripts, should be received by the University at least one month prior to the date of registration. Previously Enrolled or Currently Enrolled at Fayetteville. For those previously enrolled or currently enrolled at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, the Graduate School obtains transcripts from the Registrar's Office. For a graduate of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (baccalaureate degree), the only transcripts required are those from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and those from each institution attended after completing the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, degree. Anyone who was previously enrolled, but who is not currently enrolled in the University of Arkansas Graduate School, is considered a "readmission" and is required only to submit an Application for Admission (no fee) and official transcripts from institutions attended after the University of Arkansas Graduate School enrollment. (See Admission Classification: Readmission.) Admission is for a Specific Semester Only. Applicants who wish to change their date of entry after submitting an application must notify the Graduate School Admissions Office; applicants who have already been admitted should also notify the department in which they plan to major. Application materials for applicants who apply for admission, but who do not subsequently enroll, will be retained by the Graduate School Admissions Office for two calendar years from the date of the applicant's original proposed semester of entry. However, applicants must file a new Application for Admission (no fee) to notify the Graduate School of their request for reconsideration. Applicants who are admitted but do not enroll for two years or more after admission must submit an application for admission, application fee, and have two official copies of the student's academic record sent from each college or university attended and follow procedures for initial admission. Admission to Graduate Standing. Official notice of the decision concerning admission will be sent from the Graduate School. Admission will not be granted until all requirements are met, and graduate credit will not be granted retroactively except in unusual circumstances as approved by the Graduate Dean. Further, admission to graduate standing does not automatically constitute admission to a specific program of study leading to a graduate degree. Therefore, in addition to satisfying the general requirements of the Graduate School, applicants must comply with the specific requirements and have the approval of the department in which they desire to pursue graduate study. Adviser. At the time of admission to a degree program of the Graduate School, the student is assigned to a major adviser who acts as the adviser throughout the student's program of study. The appointment of the adviser is made in the student's major department and is determined primarily by the student's particular areas of interest in the field. More detailed information regarding the student's program of study can be secured from the appropriate department chairperson. International and Resident Alien Applicants. International applicants and resident aliens must submit a minimum score of 550 on the paper-based or 213 on the computer-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) taken within the preceding two years, unless their native language is English, they have received a graduate degree from an accredited U.S. graduate school, or they have demonstrated an acceptable level of language proficiency as defined in the Graduate School Handbook located on the Graduate School website. Individual departments may have higher requirements and reference should be made to program descriptions. Resident aliens must submit a copy of their Resident Alien card with their application. International applicants must have all material submitted by May 1 for fall semester admission, by October 1 for the spring semester, and by March 1 for the summer session. International applicants must be acceptable to a program of study as a condition to being granted admission to the Graduate School and must meet the requirements for regular admission status unless holding a degree from the University of Arkansas. International students and resident aliens whose native language is not English must demonstrate competency in spoken English by submitting a test score of at least 50 on the Test of Spoken English (TSE) in order to be eligible for a graduate assistantship with teaching responsibilities. This test cannot be waived. The publication International Student Information is available from the International Admissions Office, 215 Silas H. Hunt Hall. Classifications of Admission to Graduate Standing Full Graduate Standing, Regular Admission. To be considered for full graduate standing, regular status, applicants must have earned a baccalaureate or a master's degree from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, or from a regionally accredited institution in the United States with requirements for the degrees substantially equivalent to those of this University, or from a foreign institution with similar requirements for the degrees. Admission to graduate standing does not automatically constitute acceptance to a program of study leading to a graduate degree. To pursue a graduate degree a person must also be accepted in a program of study by a department after gaining regular admission to graduate standing. International applicants cannot be admitted to graduate standing unless they are also accepted by a department in a degree program AT THE SAME TIME. Persons who achieve regular admission but are not initially seeking a graduate degree (non-degree) and who subsequently decide to pursue a degree must apply for and be accepted in a degree program by the appropriate department and by the Graduate School. A student with regular graduate standing who has not been accepted in a program of study leading to a specific graduate degree may take no more than 12 semester hours of graduate-level courses that can be counted toward the requirements for a graduate degree. At the time of acceptance in a degree program, the chair of the appropriate department will recommend to the Graduate School which courses previously taken, if any, are to be accepted in the degree program. Requirements for regular admission to graduate standing and acceptance in a program of study leading to a graduate degree are: 1. For regular admission to graduate a. a grade-point average of 2.70 or better (A=4.00) on all course work taken prior to receipt of a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education or b. a grade-point average of 3.20 or better on the last 60 hours of course work taken prior to receipt of baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education or c. a grade-point average between 2.50 and 2.69 on all course work taken prior to receipt of a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education and a satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Examinations general test, the Miller Analogies Test, or a similar test acceptable to the Graduate Dean. d. conferral of a post-baccalaureate graduate degree (excluding professional degrees) from a regionally accredited institution. 2. For acceptance to a graduate degree program the requirements are: a. fulfillment of either 1.a or 1.b, and recommendation of the chair of the department offering instruction for the degree program; or b. fulfillment of 1.c, recommendation of the chair of the department offering instruction for the degree program and approval of the Graduate Dean, on the condition that the student makes a cumulative grade-point average of 3.00 or better on the first 12 hours of graduate-level course work in that degree program and meets any other conditions that may be specified by the faculty of the department. Any other consideration for regular admission must be by individual petition to the Graduate Dean and, where pertinent, a recommendation from the appropriate departmental chair and will be considered on its own merits, case by case. Single Semester, NON-DEGREE Standing. Applicants who desire NON-DEGREE standing must obtain from the Graduate School Admissions Office and sign a STATEMENT OF UNDERSTANDING. Students admitted to single semester NON-DEGREE standing must understand that any enrollment taken in this classification will not normally carry degree credit. Transcripts are not required for applicants seeking this single semester NON-DEGREE standing. For all other types of admission, please see the Graduate School Handbook located on the Graduate School web site. Letter of Good Standing. A graduate student who is in good standing at another regionally accredited institution in the United States may be given admission (non-degree status) to the Graduate School for one semester upon submission of an Application for Admission and a letter of good standing from the Dean of the Graduate School at that institution. If at sometime in the future the student should wish to pursue a degree in the University of Arkansas Graduate School, it will be necessary to follow the normal procedures for admission and to have official transcripts sent from each institution previously attended. Graduate courses transferred and used for requirements for a degree at another university cannot be used for a graduate degree at this institution. Readmission. Readmission to the Graduate School is not automatic. Students who have been enrolled in the Graduate School within the two preceding academic years but have not enrolled in the immediately preceding semester will be readmitted if: 1. The student has earned at least a 2.70 cumulative grade-point average on all (12 hours or more) graduate credits attempted during all previous enrollments; 2. A new Application for Admission form (no fee) is filed prior to the desired registration date (preferably, at least one month prior to that date); 3. The Graduate School has received two official transcripts of all course work attempted at other institutions subsequent to the previous enrollment in the University of Arkansas Graduate School; 4. The student's graduate status at the end of the previous enrollment was "regular." Students who have been previously enrolled in Graduate School but who have not been enrolled within the preceding two years and who meet the above conditions may be granted further registration after completion of a readmission process. Students seeking readmission for the purpose of entering or resuming a graduate degree program must be accepted by the faculty of that program of study. Such acceptance must state specifically what credit will be granted for the earlier work, any conditions which must be fulfilled to qualify this earlier work in the degree program, and an exact timetable for the completion of all degree requirements. When such recommendations exceed the normal time limits or other conditions established by the Graduate School, the approval of the Dean of the Graduate School will be required. Such recommendations must be submitted and approved prior to the granting of readmission. Readmission to the Graduate School (including that of students who were conditionally admitted) under any other circumstances will be considered and decided on an individual basis. Students interested in obtaining such readmission should contact the Graduate School. Students who were not enrolled in the Spring Semester, but who were enrolled for the Summer Session will have registration materials available for the Fall Semester should they wish to continue their registration. Admission to Graduate Centers In an attempt to fulfill the recognized need for graduate education for Arkansas residents who find it impossible or inconvenient to attend classes at Fayetteville, the University of Arkansas Graduate School offers selected graduate-level courses at graduate centers throughout the state. All courses and instructors at these centers have been individually evaluated by the University of Arkansas Graduate Council and are subject to the same standards of quality that apply to graduate faculty and graduate programs at Fayetteville. Similarly, persons desiring to enroll in these courses must follow the same admission procedures and are subject to the same admission criteria as persons admitted at Fayetteville. There are no exceptions or deviations from these policies and procedures. Admission materials, including all official transcripts, should be received in the Graduate School at least one month prior to the requested semester of entry. (See Section on "Admission.") For more comprehensive information regarding format of instruction, schedule of classes, enrollment and registration, fees, etc., contact: Director of Continuing Education, Number 2, University Center, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701. Persons intending to enroll for classes at the Graduate Resident Center for Engineering (University of Arkansas at Little Rock, host campus) must submit application for admission to the Graduate School at least one month prior to initial registration through: Graduate Resident Center for Engineering To assure timely processing of the Application for Admission, a check or money order made to the University of Arkansas for the $40 application fee must accompany the application when submitted to the Graduate School. Contact the above address for information pertaining to classes, enrollment, fees, etc. |