Resources for Current Students

All graduate education documents and forms can be found on the forms page.

For information on current student opportunities, including research programs, please visit our Student Opportunities page.

Programs of Study

Programs of study are due by midterm of the second semester of study (forms to submit on are in the Graduate Education Office, PL 113). Programs of study for students who began their studies in spring are due by mid-term of the fall semester. Students who begin their programs in the summer or fall must submit their program of study by mid-term of the spring semester. Students receiving assistantships must be in compliance with POS requirements in order to receive funds.

POS for Master's Students

POS for Ph.D. Students

Sample Programs of Study for both MS and PhD students are given below to assist in the completion of your POS.

Sample POS MS

Sample POS PhD

Detailed POS instructions are also provided for additional help.

POS Instructions

POS checklists are provided for each degree program, outlining degree and course requirements. These checklists are provided as a courtesy. Requirements listed in the SDSMT catalog supercede information provided in the checklists. Links to these documents are given below.

Master of Science POS Checklists
Atmospheric Sciences
Biomedical Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering
Construction Management
Electrical Engineering
Engineering Management
Geology and Geological Engineering
Materials Engineering and Science
Mechanical Engineering
Paleontology
Physics
Robotics and Intelligent Autonomous Systems

Doctor of Philosophy POS Checklists
Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences
Biomedical Engineering
Chemical and Biological Engineering
Geology and Geological Engineering
Materials Engineering and Science
Mechanical Engineering
Nanoscience and Nanoengineering

Assistantship Information

The following rules apply to all graduate assistants:

An assistant receiving a full- time stipend (50 percent academic study, 50 percent research or teaching) must be registered for a minimum of 9 credit hours during the fall or spring academic semester in which the assistantship is in effect. Reduced tuition is available for students meeting this these criteria.
An assistant receiving a three-quarter time stipend (62.5 percent academic study, 37.5 percent research or teaching) must be registered for a minimum of 7 credit hours during the academic semester in which the assistantship is in effect. Registering for 7 credits does not qualify for reduced tuition. Only students registered for 9 credits in the fall or spring and receiving a qualifying assistantship may receive reduced tuition
An assistant receiving a half-time stipend (75 percent academic study, 25 percent research or teaching) must be registered for a minimum of 5 credit hours during the academic semester in which the assistantship is in effect. Registering for 5 credits does not qualify for reduced tuition. Only students registered for 9 credits in the fall or spring and receiving a qualifying assistantship may receive reduced tuition.
The minimum compensation, established annually by the Board of Regents and currently set at $2,779, must be awarded in each semester to qualify forreceive reduced tuition. As noted above, a student must be registered for accompanied by a minimum registration requirement of nine (9) credit hours in the spring or fall semester and receiving a qualifying assistantship may receive tuition remission.
Summer assistantships. The minimum registration required to receive tuition remission with a qualifying assistantship in the summer is two (2) credits.
Self-support classes, including English remediation classes, are not eligible for tuition remission associated with an assistantship.

Note that graduate students are assessed the same campus fees as undergraduates (see “Tuition and Fees”). State law does not permit reduction or remission of fees under any circumstances.

Graduate assistants under state contract are subject to institutional policies set forth in the Faculty/Staff Handbook. Research assistants are required to sign an “Employee Agreement to Disclose Inventions” form. Teaching assistants are required to sign a “Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Compliance Sheet”.

Students must register before assistantships and fellowships are processed for the semester for which they are authorized in order to prevent payment delays.

Graduate Special Students (non-degree-seeking students) are not eligible to receive assistantships.

Fellowships

Students may choose to pursue fellowships offered by outside institutions.

Thesis/Dissertation

Information on the thesis/dissertation completion process can be found here.

Detailed writing instructions can be found here.

Important Deadlines

Graduate Education Deadlines for Exams, Defenses, Thesis & Dissertations	2011 Summer	2011 Fall	2012 Spring
Last possible day to turn in thesis to Grad Office--usually 3 weeks prior to graduation (already defended and approved by your committee).	August 5, 2011	November 23, 2011	April 13, 2012
Last possible day to take final coursework, non-thesis exams--usually one week prior to campus finals week.	August 19, 2011	December 2, 2011	April 23, 2012
Last possible day for final exam results to reach Grad Office.	August 22, 2011	December 9, 2011	April 27, 2012
Campus finals week-NOTHING else can be scheduled during this week.	N/A	December 12 - December 16, 2011	April 30 - May 4, 2012
Graduation	N/A	December 17, 2011	May 5, 2011

Commencement

Students wishing to participate in either the spring or fall graduation ceremony must have all of the graduation requirements met before participating in the ceremony. Non- thesis option students and thesis option students have due dates for final work which must be adhered to as defined in the chart below. Note that no extensions will be given to these due dates for any reason. Fall, spring and summer graduates are urged to schedule exams, defenses and dissertations well in advance of the scheduled due date (required forms for exam scheduling are in the Graduate Education Office at PL113). Summer graduates will be eligible to participate in the May ceremony upon request approval of the Dean of Graduate Education. Those not participating in the spring ceremony can participate in the December ceremony.

To complete the online Application for Graduation, go here. ONLY SUBMIT ONCE. THERE IS NO CONFIRMATION PAGE.