Student Responsibility
Graduate students are expected to know the requirements for the programs they undertake. While the University assists each student as much as possible, the responsibility for any error in enrollment or misinterpretation of rules rests with the student.
Student Conduct
Graduate students are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with the Code of Student Conduct.
Professional Ethics
Graduate students are expected to honor standards of ethical practice appropriate to academic life.
Individual degree programs may have additional ethical guidelines. It is the student’s responsibility to be familiar with and abide by such guidelines. When a programs’s faculty decide a student has failed to meet professional standards, they are responsible for identifying, remediating, or dismissing the student, except when the violation pertains to Title IX. Suspected or confirmed violations of Title IX must be reported on SOU's anonymous report located at the top of the SOU Cares page.
Course-Related Requirements
Only 500-level courses count towards a master’s degree.
Students must earn at least 30 quarter credits towards a master’s degree in residence at SOU. The last 9 credits of the program must be in residence unless a waiver is approved by the graduate coordinator and the Director of Graduate Studies.
A maximum of 9 hours of workshop or practicum credit may be included in a graduate program with advisor consent.
Graduate credit by examination, in-service, professional growth courses, and continuing professional education courses are not acceptable in graduate programs.
Prior and Transfer Credit Limitations
A student may include only 16 quarter credits of approved graduate coursework taken prior to regular admission to a master’s degree program at the University. This limitation applies to coursework taken at Southern Oregon University and coursework transferred from other institutions. Such courses must be appropriate for the master’s degree program to which the student is admitted and must be approved by the major advisor and the graduate program coordinator. All transfer credit must be supported by official transcripts sent directly from the school of origin to SOU Admissions. Acceptance of any transfer credit is the prerogative of the degree-granting institution.
Time Limitation
All courses included in the SOU program for a master’s degree must be seven years old or less at the time the degree is completed. However, with the approval of the Office of Graduate Studies, up to 12 credits of courses over seven years old but less than ten years old at degree completion may be included if they have been updated and validated by the academic program. Upon program completion, courses taken ten years ago or longer must be replaced even if they have previously been updated. Forms for course updates are available from the graduate program coordinator.
Master of Arts vs. Master of Science
The Master of Arts and Master of Science degrees differ only in the foreign language requirement. To receive an MA degree, students must demonstrate fluency in a second language. U.S. students who have completed two years of study in one foreign language at an accredited college or university automatically meet the second language requirement for the MA degree.
Graduate Assistantships
Graduate assistantships are available in some academic programs and administrative units. To hold a graduate assistantship, students must gain regular admission to a master’s degree program. They must also have an approved master’s degree program on file no later than the first week of the initial term of appointment as a graduate assistant and must successfully pursue the program at a rate defined in the General Regulations for Appointment of Graduate Assistants.
Graduate Program Handbooks
Some graduate programs have a graduate program handbook. Contact the academic program offering your specific degree area to ask about a Master’s Program Handbook with more complete and current information about the program you wish to pursue.
Note: While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, Southern Oregon University and the Oregon State Board of Higher Education have the right to make changes at any time without prior notice. The information on this website is not a contract between Southern Oregon University and current or prospective students.
