Degree Planning Guides
Degree Planning Guides are available to help facilitate degree planning, and students are encouraged to work with their committee chair to complete the appropriate Degree Planning Guide prior to completion of the Program of Studies.
Initial planning begins early in the fall of the first semester in residence. Degree Planning Guides include course requirements specific to each specialization as well as sample semester-by-semester plans. Students may also use the guide to create their own semester-by-semester plan while consulting the GKSOM Course Rotation to ensure completion of all necessary academic work without surprises and in a timely manner. Care should be taken to make decisions about courses taught in semester 2 that will not return in the rotation until semester 6. Moreover, in completing the Program of Studies, it is important for DMA and PhD students to realize the function of the choice of coursework in preparing for their comprehensive examinations. It is highly recommended that DMA students evaluate their strengths and weaknesses in history and theory as they relate to expectations of performance on the comprehensive examinations.
Degree Planning Guides by Specialization
DMA Specializations
Choral, Orchestral, and Wind Band Conducting
Brass, Percussion, Strings, & Woodwinds Performance
PhD Specializations
The Program of Studies
Both the Degree Planning Guides and Program of Studies documents are intended to provide structure for a uniquely personalized academic program for a doctoral student's career at UNL. The Program of Studies is the official document filed with the Office of Graduate Studies.
Ideally, initial drafts of Degree Planning Guides and Program of Studies documents will be prepared very early during the first semester of studies, and in any case before Priority Registration (i.e., by the end of October or the end of March), so that they will specify all five subsequent semesters of study in a three-year, six-semester program.
The Program of Studies for the Doctoral Degree can be downloaded from the Office of Graduate Studies | Steps to Completion page.
The completed form must then be approved by the members of the student's Supervisory Committee, preferably at a face-to-face meeting.
Note: The outside committee member will be informed of the face-to-face meeting but is not required to attend.
The Program of Studies must be completed before 45 semester hours have been recorded or graded.
The Supervisory Committee is not obligated to reduce the doctoral program of studies by applying all coursework taken toward a previously earned master's degree. Each course accepted must be determined to be current and relevant in relation to the desired degree.
After approval by the student's Supervisory Committee, the Program of Studies must be submitted to the GKSOM Graduate Committee through the Graduate Forms Submission Portal and filed with the Office of Graduate Studies. It may be approved without further comment by the Graduate Committee, or it may be sent back to the student for modifications.
Program of Studies Changes
Changes may be made to an approved Program of Studies. Changes must be approved by the Supervisory Committee prior to the semester that the course(s) requested is (are) being taught. To avoid a variety of potential problems, Program of Studies changes should be anticipatory, not retrospective. Either the student or the student’s Supervisory Committee Chair may initiate a change by submitting a Program or Memorandum Substitution/Change Request to the Graduate Committee through the Graduate Forms Submission Portal.
Once submitted, the GKSOM Graduate Program Coordinator will process the form, route it for signatures, and submit it to the Office of Graduate Studies. Chairs should clear the changes with the rest of the committee via email prior to signing the form.
Minimum Credits of Enrollment
A degree-seeking graduate student enrolled for nine (9) or more hours in one semester is considered a full-time student for that semester. All graduate assistants must register for a minimum of seven (7) hours of degree graduate work each semester. Any exceptions must be granted by the Director of the Glenn Korff School of Music.
Correction of Registration Errors
A graduate student who has registered in error (for example, enrollment in the undergraduate level of a 400/800 course) should correct the error through the normal drop and add process during the term in which the error occurred.
In the event the error is not recognized until a grade is posted, the student may appeal for correction of registration within sixty (60) days of the posting of the grade report in the Office of the University Registrar. Changes to a student registration record will not be made more than sixty days after grades are posted.
Grade Requirements
For students on a GTA, a grade of B or better in all course work is required for continuance of the assistantship.
For all students, the minimum academic standard to earn graduate degree credit in a graduate course is obtained as follows:
- In non-elective* music courses, the minimum grade of B minus (B-) is required for graduate credit in graduate-only classes, i.e., in 900-level courses, or in 800-level courses without 400-level counterparts. Applied lessons are an important example of such classes, and as a further rule, lessons are not taken on a pass/no pass basis.
- In non-elective* music courses, the minimum grade of B is required for graduate credit in cross-listed grad/undergrad classes, i.e., in 800-level courses with 400-level counterparts. Here, the grade of B minus (B-)is not acceptable for graduate credit. Also, these courses may not be taken on a pass/no pass basis for graduate credit. (A maximum of three hours credit may be taken on a pass/no pass basis in a student's program.)
- In a minor or related area outside music or in elective* courses in music, the minimum grade of C or pass is required in 800-level or 900-level courses. A grade of C minus (C-) is not acceptable.
- A maximum of 9 credit hours may be taken in approved workshops.
- A maximum of 6 credit hours may be taken in Special Topics, Special Problems or Independent Study.
*An elective course refers to any course in which the student has a free and open opportunity to select a course. A scenario in which students may select from a menu of courses to fulfill degree requirements in a certain area (i.e., select a music theory course from among 3 different theory courses) does NOT constitute an elective course.
A student who receives a grade below the minimum allowable for graduate credit may not continue the Program of Studies without permission from the Glenn Korff School of Music Graduate Committee. Typically, an underachieving student will be placed on probation for a semester before a decision about continuing in the program is rendered. The retention of financial aid and other support will require exemplary, rather than minimum, academic standards.
If a student receives a grade below the minimum allowable for graduate credit, then the student will have to take the class off the Program of Studies and take another in its place to be counted toward the minimum required 90 credits, as the class fulfilling the particular course requirement involved.
Grievances and Appeals
Students who want to pursue a grievance or appeal (appeal a grade, for example) should follow this step-by- step procedure:
Step 1: If, after attempting to resolve the problem directly with a GKSOM administrator, professor, staff member, or fellow student, students cannot resolve the matter, the disagreement should be brought to the attention of the Graduate Committee Chair. The Graduate Committee Chair will discuss with students various options to further air the disagreement, including the options of speaking to the other person again, with the Graduate Committee Chair present to act as a mediator, or the filing of a formal complaint.
NOTE: If the disagreement is with the Graduate Committee Chair, students should bring the matter to the attention of the Director of the GKSOM.
Step 2: If a formal complaint is referred to the Graduate Committee for resolution, the Graduate Committee Chair shall utilize the Committee to render a decision on the grievance/appeal after interviewing both parties involved.
Step 3: If the student is not satisfied with Committee’s decision, the matter may be referred to the Director of the GKSOM for another hearing.
Step 4: If the person filing the complaint fails to receive satisfaction from the GKSOM Director, the matter may be referred back to the Graduate Committee Chair, who will then seek the counsel of the Dean of the Graduate College to determine the next course of action.
See also the statement on Academic Dishonesty below in this handbook.
Grading Portfolio Components in Progress
Students are expected to complete recital or portfolio requirements during the semester in which they are enrolled. Doctoral Dissertation Recitals, the Doctoral Lecture Recital, and the Doctoral Dissertation Portfolio grading procedures are to be handled as per the guidelines for dissertations in the UNL Graduate Catalog. Should circumstances prevent completion of one of these components, the major professor may assign an “I” (Incomplete). The following options may also be used:
IP: (In progress) indicates satisfactory work in progress (i.e., the student is making progress or effort as determined by the faculty supervisor). The “IP” would stand until the final examination, at which time a grade of “P” or a letter grade for all dissertation (portfolio-related) hours is submitted to the Registrar.
XP: (No progress) indicates that the student is not making adequate progress on their thesis or dissertation (portfolio-related) work. Consecutive grades of “XP” (as determined by the supervisory committee) may result in the GKSOM Graduate Committee taking action to inform the student and Graduate Studies regarding continuation of the student’s graduate study.
Note that on the final transcript, the "IP" and “XP” grades will count towards attempted hours but for Financial Aid purposes, they will count differently. Both grades will convert to an “I” on the official record if not graded as P (Pass) or with a letter grade. Because the “XP” grade will not be used in calculating the GPA, no direct academic sanction, such as academic dismissal from the University, will be imposed for earning one or more “XP” grades.