Advancement to candidacy is an important milestone in the path to a doctoral degree. To recognize the significance of this achievement and the time commitment and work of both students and faculty advisers in the dissertation process, the university approved a change in the way candidates register for research credits. To judge by Daniel Stotland’s May 10 guest column (“Graduate school injustice”), this change has created some confusion and misunderstanding. Our goal is to help — not penalize — students and mentors.
Beginning in the fall, students who have advanced to candidacy will pay a new candidacy tuition (which is approximately the cost of 1.6 credit hours) and will, in turn, be registered for six credit hours of 899. Students who have not been advanced to candidacy and want to register for pre-candidacy research credits will register for 898. Both 898 and 899 will carry 18 units per credit hour. The financial effects of these changes on students will vary.
Candidates must complete 12 credit hours of doctoral dissertation research (899) before they can graduate. Candidates who spend four semesters working on their dissertations after having been advanced to candidacy will have earned 24 credits of 899 but will have paid an amount of tuition equivalent to fewer than seven credit hours. Those who spend eight semesters or four years from advancement to candidacy to defense will have paid an amount of tuition equivalent to fewer than 13 credits. For that, they will have retained status as full-time students and have had the use of all university resources, as well as the time of their faculty mentors. The credits they have earned will now more accurately reflect the amount of time they and their advisers have spent developing a dissertation.
International students and others who must remain full-time students and who have taken fewer than 12 hours of 899 will see a decrease in their tuition. In the past, such students have had to enroll for three credit hours of 899 or some other combination of credit hours that add to a minimum of 48 units. Under the new system, international students who are doctoral candidates will pay the flat tuition rather than that for three credit hours of 899 every semester, which means they come out ahead financially. Students who in the past have been able to register for only one credit hour of 899 because they have already completed 12 hours of dissertation research (899) will see an increase in their tuition. Students in this group who will graduate in December 2005 or May 2006 may request a waiver of the candidacy tuition for one semester from the graduate school. They will come out ahead financially. Under no circumstances will the graduate school change credits earned as 899 to 898.
Stotland’s letter suggests the creation of candidacy tuition and continuous registration has something to do with the graduate school’s fellowship debt. This is not the case. There is no connection between the graduate school’s budget and tuition paid by students.
The graduate school is aware of the financial difficulties many students face in their final years of graduate school, and we are working to find ways to ease the burden. Students who have tuition remission will be able to use it to cover the new candidacy tuition as well as tuition for other courses. Students who currently have some, but not enough, tuition remission to cover registration for six hours of 899 should contact the graduate school for assistance. We are pleased to announce we have recently received funds to create several new dissertation fellowships, and we hope to add annually to the fund and to our ability to support students throughout their graduate programs.
Ann G. Wylie is dean of the graduate school. She can be reached at awylie@umd.edu.
