2020-2021 Graduate Catalog

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Selective Retention

Satisfactory Graduate Grade-Point Average (GPA)

At all times after completing 9 credits of doctoral study, a student must maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2 for courses taken toward the doctoral degree.

Probationary Status

A student will be placed on academic probation if his or her cumulative GPA for courses taken toward the doctoral degree falls below 3.2 at any time after completion of 9 credits. Probationary status will be removed if a student, in completing the next 9 credits, brings the cumulative GPA to at least 3.2 for all course work toward the doctoral degree. If probationary status is not removed, a student’s admission to graduate study will be canceled, and additional graduate study will not be possible until the student has reapplied for regular admission and has been readmitted.

Readmission Procedure

A student seeking readmission must present to the dean of the Graduate School a written request approved by the doctoral program director and the chairperson of the major department. The decision to readmit will be made by the dean of the Graduate School.

Readmission Status

Upon readmission, the student will be reinstated to the classification held when graduate study was cancelled.

Time Allowed for the Doctoral Degree

It is important that doctoral students be current in their fields of study when they graduate. Therefore, after a student has been admitted to a doctoral program and has taken at least one approved course, all requirements for the degree must be met within a seven-year period. Any courses required for the degree taken before admission to a doctoral program are subject to approval by a student’s doctoral committee. Evidence of current knowledge in the area may be required. Upon the recommendation of the department chairperson and with the approval of the graduate dean, an extension of the time allowed may be granted for one additional year. In rare cases, an additional one-year extension may be granted, provided the student can demonstrate significant progress on the dissertation. Extensions are based on academic considerations and are limited. The student requesting the extension of time allowed may be required to repeat preliminary examinations, to take additional course work, or both.

Comprehensive Examinations

Prior to the approval of the dissertation proposal, each doctoral degree student will take a comprehensive examination in their major and, if applicable, cognate area(s). Students should consult their departmental policies that regulate the comprehensive examination process, as variations exist within and across programs. Equitable administration and evaluation of the examinations are the responsibility of the department or, at the discretion of the department and the examining committee. Departmental comprehensive examination policies must be documented and clearly communicated to all students, and they must be on file with the Graduate School. The department should regularly review its policy and be certain that the most current policy is on file with the Graduate School at the beginning of each academic year. For videoconferencing options, see Distance Conferencing Guidelines.

Well in advance of the examination, the examining committee will identify the course work and other preparations appropriate to the student’s program of study to be represented in the examination. The information will be communicated with the student as appropriate and as required in the program’s examination policy. The examinations will be offered
frequently enough for students to have the opportunity to sit for the comprehensive examination within a reasonable timeframe. The time and place of the exam will be determined by the administering unit.

Due to the unique clinical nature of the field, the department of Speech Pathology and Audiology has a separate comprehensive exam policy, approved by the GEC. Please consult the department’s Doctor of Audiology Student Handbook for this policy.

Although the departments and academic units that house each doctoral program will determine the comprehensive examination format that is most appropriate for each respective discipline, all comprehensive examinations must meet the following general guidelines.

Examination format, timeline, and committee regulations:

  • A student must be in good academic standing to sit for the examinations. Good academic standing means that a student cannot be on academic probation and must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2.
  • The comprehensive exam is one examination consisting of two parts, one written and one oral. 
  • Failed comprehensive examinations may be repeated one time only, in what will be referred to as the second administration of the comprehensive exams.
  • Exceptions to these comprehensive examination guidelines will be given only under unusual circumstances, in consultation with the program director and department chair, and must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate School.
  • At every stage of the examination, the student, the student’s committee chair, and the program director will be informed in writing as to the student’s status as it relates to the comprehensive examination.

Written examination procedure:

  • The written examination will be taken during a time period identified by the student’s program; exceptions must be approved by the program director and the examining committee in advance. If applicable, students are encouraged to develop a written timeline for the written examination that is acceptable to the examining committee.
  • The examining committee will decide if the student’s written examination is of sufficient quality to proceed to the oral examination. The student, the student’s doctoral chair, and the program director will be informed in writing as soon as this determination has been made, but no less than 4 weeks (excluding vacation periods) after the student completes the written examination.
  • If a department has a policy regulating a written examination remediation process, it must be clearly stated within the departmental examination policy document and must be equitably administered within a timeframe not to exceed 3 weeks (excluding vacation periods) after the evaluation of the student’s initial completion of the examination.
  • Remediation may occur only when a student passes at least half of the written examination but the examining committee has significant concerns about the content or quality of the written examination. The written examination may undergo remediation one time only across both the first and, if needed, second administration of the comprehensive exams.
  • If the remediation occurs during the first administration of the written examination, this will still constitute the student’s first attempt of the written comprehensive examinations. The student will then not be eligible for remediation during the second administration (if a second administration is necessary).

If the student fails the first administration of the written comprehensive examinations (including after any allowable remediation based on the program’s policy), they may sit for a second administration in a timeline determined by the program and stated in the program’s examination policy.
The student’s examining committee may determine if the student is to retake the entire examination or only the portions failed in the first attempt. This is to be clearly communicated with the student in advance, as well as the student’s doctoral chair, the program director, and the department chair.

Oral examination procedure:

  • The oral examination will be given within a timeframe determined by the administering unit but not to exceed the equivalent of 4 weeks (excluding vacation periods) from the date that the student received notification of their successful completion of the written examination. The length of the oral exam will be determined by the administering unit and stated in its comprehensive examination policy.
  • Students and faculty are encouraged to complete the oral comprehensive examinations in person on Ball State University’s campus. Both the student and the examining committee must adhere to the Graduate School’s video conferencing policy when on-site participation is deemed infeasible.
  • There is no remediation of the oral portion of the comprehensive examination.

Passing the comprehensive examination:

  • The student, the student’s chair, the program director, the department chair, and the Graduate School will be informed when the student passes their first or second administration of the exam using the Status of Comprehensive Exams form found on the Graduate School website. If a remediation of the written examination occurred, it will be noted on the form.
  • If a student had successfully completed the comprehensive examination but has exceeded the time-clock for completing their doctoral program (approximately 7 years), they will be expected to retake and pass the entire examination, following these guidelines. This will constitute the student’s revalidation of coursework for their program.

Failure of the comprehensive examination:

A failed comprehensive examination is defined as one of the following:

  • failure of the written portion if the examining committee determines that the student should not proceed to the orals;
  • failure of the oral portion if the examining committee determines that the student was unable to correct deficiencies in the written portion or new concerns emerge in the oral portion that suggest student mastery of the field has not occurred.

A student may pass either portion of the examination with one dissenting vote. However, if two or more committee members dissent, the student fails the entire examination.

If a student fails the first administration of the exam (after remediation of the written examination, if applicable), the student is eligible for a second administration of the written portion of the comprehensive examinations.

The student, the student’s chair, the department chair, the student’s director of doctoral programs, and the Graduate School will be informed each time the student fails an administration of the exam using the Status of Comprehensive Exams form on the Graduate School website. If a remediation of the written examination occurred, it will be noted on the form.

A student who fails to pass the second administration of the written examination is ineligible to continue and is dismissed from the doctoral program. The same guidelines as outlined above will be used to determine pass or fail.

Dissertation

The general supervision of the dissertation will be the responsibility of the student’s committee chairperson. When needed, members of the committee will advise the candidate about the dissertation. The comprehensive examinations must be passed and the dissertation topic approved by the committee before the student enrolls for dissertation (DISS 799). The dissertation for a doctor of education degree candidate typically will be a study that will contribute to the solution of some important educational problem. The dissertation for a doctor of philosophy degree candidate will be a research problem that will contribute new knowledge or a new technique. The dissertation for the doctor of arts degree candidate may take the form of an original contribution to new knowledge; the production and use of innovative teaching materials such as the development of new teaching media, the writing of a textbook, or the designing of a curriculum or course of study; or the writing of a series of scholarly papers worthy of publication.

After the dissertation defense, the final approved copy, any accompanying materials, and an abstract (250-300 words in length, suitable for publication) must be filed with the Graduate School electronically. Although the department concerned has the responsibility for determining the manual or form to be followed in writing the dissertation, such matters as typeface, spacing, and professional typing standards must follow the specifications in Graduate School Requirements for Writing a Dissertation, available online and in the Graduate School office.

Final Dissertation Defense

All candidates for the doctoral degree are required to complete successfully an oral defense covering the dissertation, in defensible, final form, administered by their doctoral committee. The time and place of the defense will be announced at least 10 days in advance. All committee members must be supplied a copy of the dissertation well in advance of the scheduled defense to allow adequate time to review the final product. This deadline will be determined by the committee. No defense will be given without all committee members present, unless prior consent is granted by the graduate dean in consultation with the chairperson of the examining committee and the absent committee member.

Two dissenting votes among members of the examining committee are required to fail a candidate. If one member of the examining committee dissents, the dissenting examiner and, if appropriate, the chairperson of the examining committee will file with the dean of the Graduate School a letter detailing the circumstances of the dissent.

If the candidate has failed the defense, the examining committee must prepare a report including reasons for failure and requirements to be met. The examining committee chairperson must file this report with the dean of the Graduate School within seven days from the date of the defense. Permission to defend for a second time must be obtained from the chairperson of the doctoral committee and the dean of the Graduate School. Failure to pass the second defense will result in termination of doctoral study.

Upon passing the final dissertation defense, the candidate will be formally recommended to receive the degree. Candidates must complete all degree requirements at least four weeks before the end of the semester or term in which they are certified for graduation.

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