REGISTRATION, ENROLLMENT AND TRANSFER OF CREDIT

Unless a leave of absence has been granted, students must register for every academic quarter once their graduate studies begin. Students must either be registered or on filing fee status in the quarter in which the degree is awarded. If a student was enrolled or on filing fee status every quarter of the previous academic year, then they may complete their degree during the summer without paying fees.

Students who have completed all degree requirements except for filing their dissertations/theses or sitting for their master’s comprehensive examinations are eligible for filing fee status during the final quarter of residence. For students writing dissertations or theses, the student’s committee must have read and approved a draft of the manuscript, with only minor revisions remaining.

Students on filing fee status pay only one-half of the student services fee. Because filing fee status is tied to that fee, it can vary from quarter to quarter. See registrar.ucr.edu for information on fees. Only one quarter on filing fee status is allowed, unless a student fails the master’s comprehensive exam. Then a retake of the exam on filing fee status is allowed. Students who fail to complete their degree programs by the appropriate deadline while on filing fees status must register and pay full fees for the following quarter.

A leave of absence is intended to allow the temporary interruption of the student’s academic program. Leaves are granted for the following reasons:

• 1. Serious illness or other temporary disability

• 2. The need to concentrate on a job or occupation not directly related to

the degree program

• 3. Family responsibilities

To be eligible for a leave of absence, students must have the approval of their graduate advisor, be in good standing, and have been enrolled for at least one quarter. Leaves are not normally granted for more than one year.

Since students on leave do not pay fees, they may not use university facilities or make demands on faculty time. Students on leave are ineligible for fellowships, research grants, and financial aid. Appointment as a graduate student researcher or teaching assistant, or any other appointment requiring full-time enrollment, is not possible. Nor can students on leave take qualifying examinations or receive credit for academic work done during the leave period.

Students pursuing graduate study or research outside the state of California for an entire quarter may register in absentia and receive an 85 percent reduction in the student services fee and tuition. Refer to the Finances and Registration section of this catalog for a schedule of fees. In absentia registrants are normally advanced to candidacy for the doctorate; master’s candidate are normally in the stage of researching the master’s thesis.

Students who withdraw during the first five weeks of a quarter are entitled to a partial refund of fees. The amount of the refund is determined by the number of calendar days elapsed between the first day of instruction and the date on which a withdrawal form is filed with the Graduate Division. See the Schedule of Refunds in the Finances and Registration section of this catalog. Students who have applied for the Deferred Payment Plan are considered registered students and are held to the same refund schedule.

Students who are unable to file the necessary paperwork due to illness or emergency should call the Graduate Division at (951) 827-3390.

Candidacy for the degree may lapse after withdrawing or failing to register at the end of a leave of absence.

Each quarter, graduate students must pay their fees and enroll by the date indicated at registrar.ucr.edu. Course schedules require the prior approval of the departmental graduate advisor.

All graduate students are expected to carry a full academic course load unless good reasons exist for not doing so. Graduate students are considered to be full time if they are carrying 12 graduate units. When a course program contains both graduate and undergraduate courses, the table on this page is used to calculate the appropriate course load.

Full Academic Program

Graduate + Undergraduate = Fulltime Units Units 0 + 16 = Fulltime 1 + 15 = Fulltime 2 + 13 = Fulltime 3 + 12 = Fulltime 4 + 11 = Fulltime 5 + 9 = Fulltime 6 + 8 = Fulltime 7 + 7 = Fulltime 8 + 5 = Fulltime 9 + 4 = Fulltime 10 + 3 = Fulltime 11 + 2 = Fulltime 12 + 0 = Fulltime

The regulations regarding a reduction in fees for attending part-time is set by the Office of the President. It is only approved for students who cannot attend full-time for reasons of occupation (full-time employment outside the university), unusual family responsibilities, or poor health. Students may not be advanced to candidacy for the PhD and can only enroll in 6 units or less. Employees may not apply for this reduction in fees unless they do not meet the requirements of the Employee Reduced Fee Program. International students should be aware that federal regulations governing student visa status require full-time attendance. University financial aid is not available for students taking less than six units of course work. Eligibility for deferment of student loan repayment obligations may be in jeopardy as well. Students should consult the Student Business Office of the University where they incurred their debt for specific information.

The application must be submitted to the Graduate Division two weeks before fees are due unless students want to pay their full fees first. If full fees are paid first, a refund will be processed. In no event may the student turn in a petition after the third week of the quarter.

A maximum of 8 quarter units from institutions outside the University of California may be counted towards the master’s degree at UCR. All transfer work must have been completed in graduate standing with a minimum grade of “B.” Units cannot be transferred if the student earned a degree. These units may not be used to reduce the minimum number of graduate level units required (24 units required for the thesis plan and 18 units required for the comprehensive exam plan).

Department and Graduate Division approval must be obtained before these units can be accepted for credit. Units are transferred as “Satisfactory” (S) with no grade point value.

Since doctoral students do not have a strict unit requirement they do not need to transfer in units.

Students may apply summer sessions course work from any UC campus toward their graduate degree requirements if they have the prior approval of their departments and of the Graduate Dean.

Units from another UC campus may be used to satisfy one of the three quarters of the residence requirement and may be counted for up to one-half of the total units required for the UCR master’s degree. Department and Graduate Division approval must be obtained before such units can be accepted for credit. Units cannot be transferred if the student has earned a degree from that campus.

In addition, students may transfer up to 8 units of concurrent enrollment credit. Concurrent enrollment means that a student took regularly scheduled UCR classes but was not an admitted student and paid for the class through UCR Extension. Students must have taken these units before their enrollment as graduate students. Matriculated graduate students (including students on leave of absence) may not enroll in course work through Extension without the Graduate Dean’s approval. Graduate students who withdraw before completing their program objectives, then take courses through Extension are required to wait one year before applying courses to their degrees. Grades from UCR Extension courses will be recorded on student transcripts.

UCR graduate students may use, with the approval of their Graduate Advisor, any relevant 200-level course(s) taken during a UCR bachelor’s program toward a graduate degree at UCR, excluding any 200-level course(s) approved to count for bachelor’s degree, unit, or GPA requirements. Alternatively, the Graduate Advisor may approve waiving degree requirements based on 200-level courses taken as a UCR undergraduate and require the student to complete minimum unit requirements while enrolled in a graduate program.

All substitutions or waivers of degree requirements must be reviewed by the Graduate Adviser and approved by the Graduate Dean. Waiver of course work will not reduce the minimum number of units required for a master’s degree.