Forms and Policies

All Graduate Students

Petitions

Students have the right to petition any College, Rackham, or Department rule or requirement. The Associate Chair for Graduate Education and/or the Graduate Program Committee make decisions on all submitted petitions in consideration of their charge to uphold the integrity and rigor of our graduate degrees. Any petition that bears on graduation plans should be submitted prior to the term in which a student intends to graduate, so there is time for alternate arrangements to be made if the petition is not approved.

To petition, the Online Petition Form must be completed. Students should always attach supporting documentation (e.g. a course syllabus). The result of the petition will be communicated via email at each stage of the process (see flow chart below).  You can also check the status of your petition here.

If you are petitioning a Department rule, then the Department will review and make a decision. If you are petitioning a Rackham or College rule, then the Department will review, followed by Rackham or the College, as appropriate. Depending on which parties are involved in the review process, the response time frame can be a few days to a few weeks. The ME Graduate Coordinator will keep you informed via email.

Appeals

Students may submit a request to appeal a faculty or department decision. The ME department will adhere to all Rackham policies regarding academic progress, probation, dismissal and appeals as outlined here in the Rackham Academic Policies (Section 3.5).  When possible it is recommended that the student first seek an informal resolution.

The ME Graduate Program Committee (GPC) will review appeal requests. This committee consists of appointed ME faculty and the ME graduate chair. If the decision being appealed was made by the graduate chair they will not participate in the appeal review or decision. Similarly, if a faculty member on the GPC was involved in the decision which is being appealed they will not participate in the appeal process. 

Students may submit a written statement to the GPC for review and/or request a meeting to present their appeal (virtual or in-person, pending committee member availability). Students who wish to appeal a dismissal decision must do so by the add/drop deadline of the following term. 

GPC appeal decisions will be made within two weeks of the appeal meeting or submission of the written appeal statement. Appeal decisions made by the GPC may further be appealed to the College of Engineering (CARE Center) or Rackham Graduate School. 

Responsible Conduct of Research and Scholarship: 

All Ph.D. students and students who are supported by NSF or NIH funding are responsible for completing the Responsible Conduct of Research and Scholarship program.

Master’s Degree Forms & Policies

Master’s Degree Audit Form – The Master’s Degree audit form exists to help students plan coursework for their ME Master’s degree.  It does not need to be submitted unless requested by your program adviser. 

Dual Degree Application & Election Form – Students who are interested in getting a dual degree from the University must complete the Dual Degree Application. A student in a Rackham doctoral or master’s program must complete at least one term of coursework in good academic standing in a regular Rackham program before requesting admission to a dual degree program. 

Students in dual degree programs may double-count a limited number of credit hours toward the requirements of both degrees. To request double counting, a student must complete the Dual Degree Election Form no later than one term prior to completing the second degree.

SUGS Election Form – Students applying to the SUGS degree program must fill out the SUGS Election Form with their admissions application. This form will be finalized the semester of graduation, if not prior.

JI-SUGS Election Form – Students applying to the UM-SJTU JI-SUGS degree program must fill out the SJTU-SUGS Election Form with their admissions application. This form will be finalized the semester of graduation, if not prior.

Transfer of Credit
The transfer of credit form is available for students who are interested in transferring graduate credits for the Master’s Degree. A student must have completed at least 8 credits of graduate level coursework in Rackham, and have at least a B average, before requesting a transfer of credit. Only graduate courses from an external institution can be transferred into graduate courses at the University of Michigan, regardless of the content. Courses can only be transferred if a grade of “B” or better was earned. Additional information can be found in the Transfer of Credit Guidelines.

The following steps must be completed to have your petition request considered:

First, complete a Departmental Petition Request.  If approved, you will be notified via email and then you will submit the Rackham Transfer of Credit Request. With these requests, you must include:

• A syllabus for each course.
• A detailed rationale for how your credit transfer request fits the specific categories of your MSE degree (e.g. Cognate, 5XX level ME course, etc.).
• A detailed explanation of what the equivalent courses at U of M are.
• Grades earned in the courses.  
• If any of these classes were taken as an undergraduate, Rackham requires that “If the course was taken as an undergraduate, a signed statement from the Senior Auditor or Registrar (from the institution you wish to transfer the credit from) that the course was not used for the undergraduate degree is required. Only courses taken in the junior or senior year can be transferred. If course requirements involved extra work for graduate students, it must be documented that the extra work was completed.”

The Graduate Chair will electronically approve your request to Rackham.  Upon approval by Rackham, the course(s) will be added to your record.

Doctoral Degree Forms & Policies

Rackham Doctoral Degree Policies
Please see here for complete detail on Rackham academic policies for all doctoral students. 

ME Annual Progress Update (APU) Policy
The annual progress update is a formal process to review the research and academic progress of all PhD students. It is intended to be a communication tool for PhD students and research advisors to ensure there is adequate progress toward the degree. PhD students complete the update once per year in the Winter term. Access to the APU system will be sent via email from the Academic Services Office.

Dissertation Committee Form – Please see Rackham’s Quick Reference Chart for guidelines on the composition of dissertation committees. Upon completion of the Dissertation Proposal Exam, your Committee Chair should send a memo to [email protected], which listed the names, titles, and departments of all committee members.