Chapter 3361:50-77 | The Graduate School

Rule 3361:50-77-01 | The graduate school: vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

• Effective: September 15, 2012
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) The vice provost and university dean of the graduate school shall, under the general supervision of the senior vice president and provost for baccalaureate and graduate education, be responsible for all matters pertaining to the supervision of graduate education within the university other than professional degrees in "Doctor of Pharmacy," "Doctor of Medicine," and "Juris Doctor." The all-university graduate faculty organization and the graduate council shall report to the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school. The fellows of the graduate school shall report to the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

(B) The senior vice president and provost for baccalaureate and graduate education may assign additional responsibilities to the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

Last updated June 29, 2021 at 9:18 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 11/1/1984

Rule 3361:50-77-11 | The graduate school: governance.

• Effective: September 15, 2012
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

The all-university graduate faculty has the responsibility for determining educational policies and regulating requirements for the admission of students, their candidacy, and the awarding to them of degrees. The executive officer of the faculty is the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school, who is assisted in his/her duties by a graduate council, the members of which are chosen as representatives of the major graduate program groupings.

(A) Vice provost and university dean of the graduate school. The graduate school is headed by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school and he/she reports directly to the senior vice president for academic affairs and provost. In this capacity, the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school will:

(1) Assume the central role in all graduate programs throughout the university, including joint graduate-professional programs but excluding professional programs leading to the "Doctor of Medicine" (college of medicine) and "Juris Doctor" (college of law) degrees. The vice provost and university dean of the graduate school will serve as coordinator to such programs; provide central administrative services; help define and maintain standards; serve as the advocate for graduate education at the university; and exercise leadership in strengthening existing graduate programs and initiating new ones to foster excellence in teaching and research.

(2) Consult with deans of colleges containing graduate programs and be advised by the graduate council.

(3) Chair meetings of the graduate council and the all-university graduate faculty. The vice provost and university dean of the graduate school is an ex-officio member of all committees of the graduate faculty.

(4) Assign and monitor departmental allocations of all graduate funds.

(5) Be consulted by the senior vice president for academic affairs and provost on decisions regarding promotion, appointment, and reappointment of members of the graduate faculty.

(6) Be responsible for interaction with the "Ohio Board of Regents" on all matters concerning graduate education (university policy).

(7) Provide leadership especially for those programs which cut across conventional departmental or college lines.

(B) University graduate faculty:

(1) The university graduate faculty shall include all faculty designated graduate faculty by each program as determined by criteria set by programs and graduate council and approved by the graduate school dean.

(a) Members of the university graduate faculty shall:

(i) Have voting rights,

(ii) Be eligible for committee appointments, and

(iii) Be eligible for membership on the graduate council.

(b) Candidates seeking appointment to the university graduate faculty must be nominated by their academic graduate programs following an academic program-level peer-review process. Nominations are to be submitted by an academic program to the vice provost and dean of the graduate school in the form and manner set forth in the graduate faculty status policy. Faculty members who are not nominated by their program may petition the vice provost and dean of the graduate school for membership consideration.

(c) Appointment and reappointment to the university graduate faculty is subject to the following policies and procedures:

(i) The vice provost and dean of the graduate school has the responsibility for making all appointments. He/she shall have authority to accept or refuse the recommendations of the nominating academic program. In making this determination the vice provost and dean shall utilize the following criteria:

(a) The candidate must possess appropriate credentials as defined and approved by the academic program.

(b) The candidate must have demonstrated the ability to conduct and guide graduate research or other creative professional contributions at an advanced level. In addition, the candidate must be engaged currently in research, scholarship or creative professional activities that are indicative of substantive contributions to the field.

(ii) In instances of refusal, the vice provost and dean of the graduate school shall provide a letter to the graduate program director articulating the basis for refusal.

(iii) All faculty appointed as university graduate faculty shall undergo review for reappointment concurrent with external program review. The process and criteria are set by the program and approved by the vice provost and dean. Faculty not reappointed shall cease to be university graduate faculty.

(iv) Members of the university graduate faculty shall be appropriately identified by the graduate school.

(v) All faculty holding the title of university graduate faculty as of November 15, 2011 shall retain that status until the next external review of their programs, at which time they will be reviewed for reappointment in accordance with this rule.

(2) Role of the graduate faculty:

(a) To chair thesis and dissertation committees. Only university graduate faculty members are permitted to chair these committees.

(b) To provide leadership for graduate education and scholarly or creative activity within each academic program.

(c) To support the mission of the graduate school, including serving on the university graduate council if elected, as outlined in paragraph (B)(4)(a) of this rule.

(3) Fellows of the graduate school: the fellows of the graduate school are chosen from the university faculty in recognition of their outstanding scholarly accomplishments. Recommendation is by the fellows, and appointment is by the board of trustees for life.

(4) Graduate council:

(a) Composition of the graduate council: the graduate council shall consist of representatives from the graduate faculty, elected by the graduate faculty members of each group listed below for a period of two years.

The associate deans of the graduate school shall be non-voting, ex-officio members of the council, and in addition, one graduate student, elected by the graduate student governance association, shall be a voting member of the council. Each member of the council is instructed and empowered to appoint an alternate for attendance at meetings which he/she is unable to attend. The composition of the graduate council shall consist of one representative from each of the following:

Chair of the college of arts and sciences council on graduate affairs

Humanities (college of arts and sciences)

Social/behavioral sciences (college of arts and sciences)

Natural/physical sciences (college of arts and sciences)

College of business

College-conservatory of music

College of design, architecture, art, and planning

College of education, criminal justice, and human services

College of engineering and applied science

College of medicine

College of nursing

College of pharmacy

College of allied health sciences

Graduate student governance association

Faculty senate (two representatives)

University libraries

Registrar's office

(b) Duties and responsibilities of the graduate council: the graduate council shall meet at regularly established times or at the request of two or more elected council members in order to consider matters pertaining to the policy of the graduate school, and to present recommendations to the faculty; it shall keep written minutes of its meetings. No observers are permitted at meetings of the graduate council unless prior permission is obtained from the council. The secretary to the council is instructed to make a special effort to inform colleges of decisions affecting them. The duties of the graduate council will be:

(i) To assist the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school in enforcing the rules and regulations of the graduate faculty.

(ii) To propose and consider measures and policies for the improvement of the graduate school.

(iii) If called upon by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school to assist in matters of discipline, and in deciding upon petitions of the students and staff members.

(iv) To codify and publish the rules and regulations of the graduate faculty and to review the content of the "Graduate Bulletin."

(v) To receive applications for new graduate programs. Each application should set forth the qualifications of the departmental staff desiring to offer work, its material equipment to that end, an outline of the work it proposes, and the benefits of adding the subject to the graduate curriculum. After an investigation, the council will report to the graduate faculty its approval or disapproval of the application; adoption to be by a majority vote of the graduate faculty.

(vi) To keep the faculty from which a council member is elected properly informed of the policies considered and the business transacted by the council. This will be the responsibility of the individual members of the council to the groups they represent.

(c) Board approval: It is understood that any action taken (by the graduate council and/or graduate faculty) shall be in conformity with the by-laws and rules of the board of trustees and shall be subject to the approval or disapproval of the board.

Last updated June 29, 2021 at 9:21 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 4/14/2008

Rule 3361:50-77-23 | The graduate School: doctoral degree programs.

• Effective: September 15, 2012
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) Credit hours/program-specific and university requirements

(1) A minimum of sixty (if the student has earned a master's degree) or ninety (if the student has not earned a master's degree) semester credit hours of graduate work in one graduate program shall be successfully completed for a doctoral degree including credits for dissertation research. In no case, however, shall a degree be granted solely on the basis of accumulated credit hours. The doctoral degree will be granted for no less than the equivalent of three years of full-time graduate study.

(2) Graduate programs shall recommend students for the doctoral degree after they have met all program-specific and university requirements for the degree including satisfactory completion of an approved dissertation or other culminating project.

(3) The final thirty semester credits must be completed under the direction of graduate faculty from the university of Cincinnati.

(4) Prior to admission to doctoral candidacy, doctoral students shall complete a residency requirement of a minimum enrollment of ten graduate credit hours per semester for two out of three consecutive semesters of study including summer.

(B) Candidacy

(1) Doctoral students shall complete a departmental certification process for doctoral candidacy. The nature of this departmental certification process and the rules governing its administration shall be determined by the doctoral program in which the student is enrolled.

(2) A doctoral student shall be admitted to candidacy when he or she has achieved a grade point average of at least 3.0 for all doctoral course work, satisfactorily completed all pre-candidacy requirements as specified by the doctoral program in which the student is enrolled, and successfully completed the departmental certification process.

(3) Once a student is admitted to candidacy, he or she shall register for at least one graduate credit hour in the fall semester of each year to maintain his or her graduate student and candidacy status.

(C) Time limitation

(1) The period from time of matriculation to a doctoral program to candidacy shall not exceed five consecutive years unless otherwise approved by the dean of the graduate school.

(2) The period of time from admission to doctoral candidacy to completion of the doctoral degree shall not exceed four consecutive years unless otherwise approved by the dean of the graduate school.

(3) The period of time from matriculation to graduation shall not exceed nine years regardless of the pre- and post- candidacy periods.

(D) Dissertation

Each Ed.D. and Ph.D. candidate shall produce an approved dissertation that demonstrates high scholarly achievement based on the candidate's original research or creative activity. Other doctoral programs may require students to complete other types of capstone experiences.

(E) Dissertation committee

Following admission to doctoral candidacy and the selection of a research topic and research mentor, a dissertation committee shall be appointed by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school according to the recommendation of the doctoral program in consultation with the research mentor and student.

(1) The research mentor shall serve as chairperson of the dissertation committee.

(2) A dissertation committee shall be composed of a minimum of three full-time faculty members with professorial rank at the university of Cincinnati. The committee chair must be a member of the graduate faculty.

(3) Individuals with appropriate expertise may be added to a dissertation committee if nominated by the candidate and approved by the committee chairperson and doctoral program. Such persons shall serve without compensation from the university or candidate, and shall be full voting members of the committee.

(F) Final defense of dissertation

Once a dissertation is deemed to be satisfactory with respect to its form and content by the committee, a final defense shall be announced under dissertation defense announcements on the graduate school website.

(1) The defense is open to the public and all members of the academic community.

(2) Under the standard dissertation defense procedure, the candidate will answer pertinent questions put by members of the committee following an oral presentation of the dissertation.

(3) After the committee has completed its questioning, other persons present will have an opportunity to submit questions or comments.

(4) At the conclusion of the defense, the committee will withdraw and render a decision regarding the acceptability of the dissertation and its defense, and report its decision to the candidate. In the case of a favorable decision, this decision shall be communicated to the graduate program and the graduate school. Dissertation approval requires a favorable decision by the candidate's dissertation committee.

(G) Petitions for reinstatement and extension of candidacy

Students may petition graduate council for extension of their doctoral candidacy through their program, college, and the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school prior to its expiration. Students whose candidacy has expired may petition for both reinstatement and extension of candidacy using the same administrative procedure. If reinstatement is approved, the student will be readmitted to candidacy only after satisfying the formal candidacy examination requirements administered by the department. Each department shall establish and publish a policy concerning extension of degree candidacy and requirements for reinstatement into candidacy subject to the approval of the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

(H) Publication of dissertations

Dissertations completed as part of the degree requirement for the doctoral degree shall be published and made freely available in hard copy and/or electronic form. A request to delay publication of a dissertation may be made to the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school to allow intellectual property related to the content of the dissertation to be appropriately protected.

Last updated June 6, 2021 at 12:59 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 12/19/2001, 2/15/2008

Rule 3361:50-77-25 | The graduate school: special rules and provisions.

• Effective: February 15, 2008
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) Eligibility of university faculty and administrators for graduate degrees: no graduate degree will be granted to any faculty member above the rank of instructor who teaches in the same department or division in which the degree is to be granted. This rule applies also to adjunct appointments at any professorial rank and to interdisciplinary degrees.

No holder of an academic administrative title of assistant dean or equivalent or above shall be granted a graduate degree from the university of Cincinnati. This rule applies only to those who hold faculty rank above instructor. Those holding "equivalent rank" must petition the graduate council.

(B) Restricted research for theses and dissertations: the right to open exchange of information and opinion in faculty relations with students carries the obligation to avoid comments or violations of confidentiality that would reduce free expression or inquiry by students.

A faculty member has the right to publish his/her research findings and the right to protection against retaliation because of displeasure over his/her conclusions by the public, administration, government, or others. He/she has the concomitant responsibility to refrain from conducting secret, nonpublishable research as part of his/her university duties.

Student involvement in industrial proprietary projects should be permitted only when these projects in no way restrict the student's ability to fulfill his or her degree requirements, which includes the obligation to publish dissertation results.

Last updated June 6, 2021 at 12:59 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361

Rule 3361:50-77-26 | The graduate school: graduate awards.

• Effective: September 15, 2012
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) Applicability. This chapter apply to all graduate tuition scholarships, assistantships and fellowships distributed by the graduate school using university general funds. They do not apply to similar awards or compensation earned from other sources of funding. However, units supporting graduate students from other funding sources are urged to treat these rules as best practices in the administration of all graduate awards. In all cases, regardless of the source of funding, students shall be informed of the terms and conditions of all graduate awards.

(B) Purpose of awards. Graduate awards to a student should be regarded as support for an apprenticeship period during which the student enhances his or her scholarly and professional skills. Any assignments that result from a graduate award must be consistent with the student's academic pursuits.

(C) Types of awards. Awards are based on academic merit, and the graduate assistant is first and foremost a student. Awards are made to students who have attempted fewer than one hundred seventy-four semester graduate credit hours. Award types include:

(1) University graduate scholarships that cover instructional and/or general fees;

(2) Graduate assistantships that provide a stipend that obligates the student to specified research, teaching, service or administrative responsibilities;

(3) Fellowships that provide a stipend without research, teaching, service or administrative obligations.

(D) Eligibility criteria for awards must be published by graduate programs that make awards and appointments.

(E) Students who receive a university graduate scholarship but no graduate assistantship or fellowship shall not be assigned duties that are not required of unsupported students.

(F) Terms and conditions of appointments. Offers of graduate awards shall be conveyed to students as promptly as possible in writing and shall contain information about the amount and duration of the award, a general description of the obligations and responsibilities accepted by the student as part of the award, a reference to sources of information about academic requirements for degree completion, a description of the conditions under which either the student or unit may terminate the award prior to its end-date, and criteria for reappointment.

(G) Students receiving graduate assistantships are required to register for at least twelve graduate credit hours each semester of the academic year.

(H) Students receiving university graduate scholarships who register for over eighteen credit hours per semester are subject to tuition and general fee charges for the excess hours.

(I) Minimum stipends are set by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

(J) Procedures and policies related to termination, temporary absence and reappointment are described in the university graduate handbook.

(K) Graduate assistantship awards obligate awardees to no more than an average of twenty hours per week of services. These services must make a substantive contribution to the student's academic and professional development.

(L) Students with graduate awards have the right to engage in collateral employment so long as it is consistent with the university of Cincinnati's collateral employment policies.

(M) Graduate assistants are entitled to a discount at the university bookstore.

Last updated June 6, 2021 at 12:59 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 4/7/2008

Rule 3361:50-77-28 | The graduate School: policies and procedures.

• Effective: July 13, 2007
• Promulgated Under: 111.15

(A) Policies and procedures governing graduate programs are described in the "University Graduate Handbook."

(B) The handbook is maintained by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school. Amendments to the handbook shall be made by the associate senior vice president and university dean of the graduate school following consultation with graduate council.

Last updated June 29, 2021 at 9:48 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 3361
Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 2/13/2004