Admission to Candidacy
Admission to graduate study is not the equivalent of admission to candidacy for a master’s degree.
The decision on a student’s admission to candidacy for a master’s degree will be made after the student has completed a minimum of eight semester hours of graduate credit in residence (18 hours for Guidance and Counseling), has a “B” or better average in his or her major field, and at least a “B” average in all work attempted. Decisions on candidacy will be guided by scholarship at the graduate level, evidences of professional competence, results of the GRE General Test or GMAT, as appropriate, results of other achievement tests if administered, the student’s Degree Audit, other conditions specified by the department, and recommendations from the student’s advisor and/or instructors.
The student may not continue past 15 graduate hours unless he or she has met the requirements for candidacy in the program and has agreed to the Degree Audit as determined with their graduate program advisor.
In addition to approval of a degree audit, admission to candidacy for the M.S.Ed. requires documentation of having met all certification requirements and approval for the appropriate level and teaching area(s) from any state. The documentation will remain on file with the Dean of the Graduate School. Students who are earning the teaching certificate as part of their graduate studies may be admitted to candidacy if the Teaching Certificate specifies all courses required to earn a Missouri Teaching Certificate. Applicants whose objectives are in non-public education may be approved by the individual program, if appropriate, without meeting certification requirements. See individual programs for exceptions.
For the M.S.Ed., M.B.A., M.A., or M.S. degrees, undergraduate courses specified by the department or college in which the applicant plans to do his or her major study may also be required. Any additional requirements specified by the department or college must also be met.
Students who are conditionally admitted or who do not qualify for conditional admission may not be admitted to candidacy until after they have completed eight semester hours of graduate study with a “B” or better grade point average and have met all other candidacy requirements.
The admission to candidacy procedures for the Ed.S. degree are described in the School of Education section.