University Policies | Geology Dept. Policies and Degree Requirements

Geology Grad Student Handbook | Faculty | Courses | Dept. Home

 

POLICY MANUAL FOR THE

GEOLOGY GRADUATE PROGRAM

Many policies affecting graduate students are set by the Graduate College and other branches of the University Administration. These policies generally supercede those of the Geology Department. For information on Graduate College Policy and University-wide rules, consult the University Policies page. Policies specific to the Geology department can be found below.

PROCEDURES, POLICIES, & DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

(specific to the Geology Department)

 

Introduction

The rules and policies of the department are designed to give you a clear idea of what is expected of you in your career as a graduate student in the Department of Geology at the University of Illinois. They also outline the specific degree requirements.

Advising

Students are assigned an initial advisor when they begin the program. By the end of the first year of the program, the student must select a research advisor. Advice and additional information on advising can be found in the orientation section of the grad handbook (click here to open that page). Please address any problems in a timely manner -- not after problems develop into crises.

Petitions and Grievance Procedures

Deviations from standard policies may be allowed under appropriate circumstances, upon approval of a petition. There are two kinds of petitions: Departmental petitions and Graduate College petitions. See Barb Elmore in the Geology Department office to obtain the correct petition. If you file a petition, it is strongly advised that you do so before the deviation from standard policy occurs.

If you have a grievance concerning capricious grading, interaction with your advisor or any other faculty member, or your work load, please talk to the Graduate Study Committee Chair. There are standard procedures for dealing with such issues. If the problem is serious enough, it will be brought to the attention of the Department Head.

Academic Integrity

Please see the Handbook for Graduate Students and Advisors (created by the Graduate College) for a discussion of policies concerning academic integrity. Be particularly careful of rules concerning proper referencing, attribution of quotes, and use of other students' work.

Academic Load

Exceptions to these minima can arise when, for example, students take 100- or 200-level courses where credit is in hours rather than units.

Grade Point Average

Candidates for both the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees must maintain a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 (4.0 = A) for their academic work. If a student's GPA falls below this minimum after completion of 3 or more units of graded course work, the student is put on probation. The GPA must be raised to or above 3.0 after the completion of 3 additional units of graded course work and must be maintained at or above the minimum thereafter. Students failing to meet these GPA standards are prohibited from further registration.

Chemistry 393

Students are required to complete Chemistry 393 before beginning work in a laboratory that involves toxic reagents, equipment for wet chemical analyses, compressed gas, or other potentially hazardous items or conditions.  A graduate student anticipating working in such a laboratory should take this course in his or her first semester.  This requirement may be waived only by approval of the Department safety officer, upon notification and approval of the student's faculty advisor and, if different, the faculty member responsible for the laboratory in question.

Geology 499/493

Geology 499 is thesis credit. You may register for 499 only after a faculty member has formally agreed to supervise your work. If you wish to undertake independent study or research for credit before you have an advisor, sign up for Geology 493.

Geology 491 and Colloquium

During semesters in which Geology 491 ("Current Research in Geoscience") is offered, each graduate student is required to complete this course, except in the case of an unavoidable scheduling conflict, and to attend the weekly departmental colloquium.  Credit in Geol 491 counts toward the total course work requirements for a masters or doctoral degree, but not toward the formal course work requirement.

Copyrights, Inventions, and Discoveries

The University has specific regulations concerning ownership rights to intellectual property (inventions, discoveries, copyrights). Copyrightable works, like theses prepared by students as part of the requirements for a degree, are generally the property of the student, subject to the following provisions:

  1. The original records of an investigation for a thesis are University property, but may be retained by the student at the discretion of the student's major department.
  2. The University has the royalty-free right to retain and use a limited number of copies of the thesis, as well as the right to require its publication for archival use.

Inventions and discoveries generally belong to the University if the invention was conceived of or made usable by the student either as a result of his/her dissertation research or as a result of use of University resources such as equipment, facilities, or funds.

University Policies | Geology Dept. Policies and Degree Requirements

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