Registration, Enrollment, and Grades
Abidance of Guidelines
All students, including visiting, inter-institutional, and professional school students, enrolled in Graduate School courses at UMB are subject to Graduate School grading and registration guidelines and policies.
Students must have been approved for admission by the Graduate School to be eligible for registration and enrollment; only those who have been approved to enroll may attend classes.
Students are not officially enrolled without an active course registration entered into the University’s student information management system (SIMS). If a student does not register for at least one course in each semester (fall and spring), their registration eligibility is interrupted; they may request a leave of absence or must request re-entry and permission to re-enroll.
Full- and Part-Time Enrollment
Graduate students must be registered for a minimum of 9 total credit hours per semester to be considered a full-time student or to be enrolled on a full-time basis.
Students receiving a graduate assistantship must be enrolled on a full-time basis. Graduate assistants must register for 7 credits of ABGA 900, 901, or 902, whether receiving a half-time or a full-time assistantship. Thus, graduate assistants must register for an additional (minimum) 2 credits to be enrolled on a full-time basis. Additional information regarding the terms of enrollment for a graduate assistant are cited in the Financial Assistance/Graduate Assistantships part of this publication.
Students receiving need-based assistance (federal Title IV funds) need to be registered for at least 6 credit hours to be eligible for federal aid. Enrollment must include “regular” credit-bearing courses; courses taken for audit do not count.
Change of Degree Intent
An enrolled student who needs or desires a change of degree intent (master’s to PhD or vice versa) must submit a written request to their advisor and program director. The request should include the reason(s) for the request and the effective semester of change. The request must be approved by the advisor and the program director and forwarded to the Graduate School for final approval.
Change of Program
An enrolled student who desires to change their program of study within the Graduate School must submit a written request to the program director of the desired program. The request must include the reason(s) for the request and the effective semester of change. The request also must be copied to the director and advisor from the program the student is leaving and to the Graduate School. In most cases, a new application for admission and supplemental documentation may be required.
Undergraduates Taking Graduate Courses for Undergraduate Credit
Subject to requirements decided by the program offering the course, undergraduate students may register for graduate-level courses — i.e., those numbered from 600 to 898 (except 799) — for undergraduate credit. A student seeking this option normally will be in their senior year; have earned an accumulated grade-point average of 3.0; have successfully completed, with a grade of B or better, the prerequisite and correlative courses; and be majoring in an appropriate department. Enrollment in a graduate- level course does not in any way imply subsequent Graduate School or program approval for credit for a graduate degree at the University of Maryland except in relation to approved five-year bachelor’s or master’s programs.
Undergraduates Taking Courses for Graduate Credit
UMB undergraduate students who have a grade-point average of at least 3.0 in the discipline in which they wish to take the course, and are within 7 credits of graduation, may register for some 400- to 600-level-and-above courses, which may later count for credit toward a graduate degree at UMB. Except in approved bachelor’s or master’s programs, the credits must be beyond those required for the student’s undergraduate degree. Credits in the senior year over those required for graduation cannot count for graduate credit without prior, written approval of the instructor in the course, the director of the respective graduate program, and the Graduate School dean.
Academic Record (Transcript)
A graduate student’s academic record (transcript) serves as a complete, official history of their academic progress at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. As such, it will not change except in accordance with stated Graduate School policies. Under no circumstances will the academic records change because of dissatisfaction with a grade or other academic accomplishment.