UNL | Graduate Studies Bulletin | 2008-2009 8/28/08 6:00 PM University of Nebraska–Lincoln Graduate Studies Bulletin 2008-2009 Policies and Courses Welcome to the 2008-2009 Graduate Bulletin The Graduate Studies Bulletin contains information about all programs of graduate study offered at the University of Nebraska– Lincoln. The dynamic bulletin found here will be changing periodically throughout the year as needed for updating policies, faculty and curriculum. To access the 2008-2009 static version or previously published bulletins, click on this link. Graduate Policies General Information Admission Policies of UNL Graduate Studies Funding Registration Graduate Degrees Offered Masters Degree Requirements Doctoral Degree Requirements Requirements for Graduate Certificates Academic Credit/Academic Progress Policies Probation, Termination and Appeals Guidelines for Good Practice in Graduate Education University Resources Academic Colleges Areas of Study Courses General Information Contents 1 The University 2 Heritage 3 Enrollment 4 Role and Mission 5 The Missions of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln 6 Accreditation 7 UNL Graduate Studies Calendar 8 Nondiscrimination Policy 9 Student Privacy Policy 10 Sexual Harassment Policy 11 Student Responsibility 12 Student Honor Code 13 Governance 13.1 The Board of Regents 13.1.1 Elected Members 13.1.2 Student members 13.2 The University of Nebraska Administration http://bulletin.unl.edu/archive.html Page 1 of 436 UNL | Graduate Studies Bulletin | 2008-2009 8/28/08 6:00 PM 13.3 The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Administration 13.4 The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Deans 13.5 Graduate Studies Governance 13.6 Graduate Committees 13.7 Emeriti Graduate Faculty Rights and Privileges The University The University of Nebraska-Lincoln—Nebraska’s largest, most comprehensive university—has offered quality education for more than 130 years. Nebraska has grown into one of the great Midwestern universities and a major international research center, offering 148 undergraduate majors and 114 graduate programs. The University is a diverse, cosmopolitan community. While 75 percent of NU’s nearly 23,000 students come from Nebraska, students from every state and over 100 countries choose the University for its comprehensive programs and reputation for quality. Fifty percent of the graduate student enrollment comes from beyond Nebraska’s borders. Nebraska’s nationally and internationally recognized faculty is its most important resource. Over 1,500 teachers and scholars bring to UNL’s students the knowledge and experience they have gained from research at the world’s finest universities. Experts in their fields, Nebraska’s professors bring the most current knowledge and technology to their classrooms. Nebraska’s facilities are equally impressive. UNL’s Biological Collections, George W. Beadle Center for Genetics and Biomaterials Research, Center for Biotechnology, Morrison Life Sciences Research Center, Humanities Research Facility, Midwest Center for Mass Spectrometry, Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, Devaney Sports Center, Tractor Testing Laboratory, Behlen Observatory, and Behlen Physics Laboratory are among the nation’s best. Nebraska offers modern computer facilities and the state’s major research library. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s 616-acre campus contains 75 major academic buildings. Lincoln, Nebraska’s capital and second largest city, surrounds the University. Home to nearly 250,000, this All-American City sports a rejuvenated, tree-lined downtown with retail stores, restaurants, theaters, parks, and a convenient bus system. Interstate 80 passes just north of the University and Lincoln can be reached by major airlines, bus systems, and Amtrak. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Web site is available at www.unl.edu. Heritage The University of Nebraska was chartered by the Legislature in 1869 as the state’s public university and land-grant institution. Founded in Lincoln, the University of Nebraska was expanded in 1968 into a state educational system under the guidance of a Board of Regents and a central administration. The University’s flagship campus, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), includes the agricultural components organized within the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Other campuses of the system include the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO), the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha, and the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK). Instruction is organized within individual colleges and schools on each of the four campuses. In addition to bachelors and professional degrees, the University offers masters, specialist, and doctoral degrees, which are granted by a system-wide Graduate College. The University of Nebraska Graduate College was the first established west of the Mississippi River. Graduate instruction began as early as 1886 when the Board of Regents established the residency and thesis requirements for earning the masters degree. Within four years, the PhD degree was authorized. By 1896 a Graduate School was organized with a designated faculty under the leadership of a dean. Within a year, with more than 100 graduate students, the University of Nebraska qualified as the first university west of the Mississippi to formally establish a Graduate School. An amendment to the charter of the University was passed by the Legislature in 1909 to change the designation of the school to the Graduate College. In 1968 the University of Omaha was merged with the University of Nebraska, and in 1971, at the direction of the Board of Regents, the Graduate College of the University of Nebraska and the Graduate College of the University of Nebraska at Omaha were merged to form one University-wide Graduate College with one Graduate Faculty. Most recently, Kearney State College became the fourth campus of the University of Nebraska system. In 1991, the Board of Regents approved the addition of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. In 1978 the Legislature assigned to the University of Nebraska, through its University-wide Graduate College, sole state-wide responsibility among the public institutions for all doctoral programs and for all masters and specialist programs outside the field of teacher education. Today, more than a century later, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Graduate College offers the graduate student resources no other college or university in the state of Nebraska or in many other states can match. Enrollment The total 2007-2008 first (fall) semester enrollment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln was 22,973 students. Of the 4,418 graduate students, 53.1 percent were female and 46.9 percent were male. Eighty percent of graduate students during Fall 2007 were U.S. citizens; 20 percent originated from other countries. Role and Mission http://bulletin.unl.edu/archive.html Page 2 of 436 UNL | Graduate Studies Bulletin | 2008-2009 8/28/08 6:00 PM The University of Nebraska-Lincoln, chartered by the Legislature in 1869, is that part of the University of Nebraska system which serves as both the land-grant and the comprehensive public University for the State of Nebraska. Those responsible for its origins recognized the value of combining the breadth of a comprehensive University with the professional and outreach orientation of the land-grant University, thus establishing a campus which has evolved to become the flagship campus of the University of Nebraska. UNL works cooperatively with the other three campuses and Central Administration to provide for its student body and all Nebraskans the widest array of disciplines, areas of expertise, and specialized facilities of any institution within the state. Through its three primary missions of teaching, research, and service, UNL is the state’s primary intellectual center providing leadership throughout the state through quality education and the generation of new knowledge. UNL’s graduates and its faculty and staff are major contributors to the economic and cultural development of the state. UNL attracts a high percentage of the most academically talented Nebraskans, and the graduates of the University form a significant portion of the business, cultural, and professional resources of the state. The quality of primary, secondary, and other post-secondary educational programs in the state depends in part on the resources of UNL for curricular development, teacher training, professional advancement, and enrichment activities involving the University’s faculty, museums, galleries, libraries, and other facilities. UNL provides for the people of Nebraska unique opportunities to fulfill their highest ambitions and aspirations, thereby helping the state retain its most talented youth, attract talented young people from elsewhere, and address the educational needs of the non-traditional learner. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has been recognized by the Legislature as the primary research and doctoral degree granting institution in the state for fields outside the health professions. UNL is one of a select group of research universities which hold membership in the American Association of Universities (AAU). Through its service and outreach efforts the University extends its educational responsibilities directly to the people of Nebraska on a state-wide basis. Many of UNL’s teaching, research and service activities have an international dimension in order to provide its students and the state a significant global perspective. The Missions of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Teaching, research,