Academic Policies
Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin
General academic policies are described in the Graduate Degree Programs Bulletin which is
available from the Office of Graduate Admissions, The Pennsylvania State University, 201 Kern
Graduate Building, University Park, PA 16802-3391. This bulletin is issued every two years.
The general rules set forth in the Graduate School bulletin take precedent over those set by
the individual colleges and departments; however, department and programs are able to set
admissions criteria and program policies that have more stringent requirements than those of
the Graduate School. Consequently, every graduate student should obtain a copy of the bulletin
and the Department or Program handbook and refer to them frequently. The Graduate Degree
Programs Bulletin is available in electronic format at http://www.gradsch.psu.edu/bulletin/.
Thesis Guide
Every graduate student contemplating writing a thesis or dissertation should obtain a copy of
The Graduate School Thesis Guide: Requirements for the Preparation of Master's and Doctoral Theses.
This document is about 50 pages long and is available from the Office of Theses and Graduate School
Publications, 303 Kern Graduate Building, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802.
The University enforces the rules regarding theses and dissertations as set forth in this guide very strictly,
and the guide states very emphatically that should there be a contradiction between a standard style
manual and the Penn State Thesis Guide, The Pennsylvania State University requirements take precedence.
The Thesis Guide is available in electronic format at http://www.gradsch.psu.edu/thesis/thesis.guide.html.
Graduate Calendar
Another document that students writing theses or dissertations should obtain is the Thesis Calendar,
which is also available from the Office of Theses and Graduate School Publications. This is issued yearly
and gives various deadline dates for steps in the thesis preparation and submission process if a student
is to make the final degree list for any given semester or session (i.e. May, August, or December). The
University enforces these deadlines rigidly and the most relevant dates come extremely early in the semester.
The calendar is available in electronic format at http://www.gradsch.psu.edu/bulletin/calendar.shtml.
Academic Status
A graduate student is expected to maintain at least a 3.00 cumulative grade point average while pursuing
a graduate degree. A student will be placed on departmental academic probation at the beginning of the first
semester after his or her cumulative grade point average falls below 3.00 and will remain on probation until
the cumulative grade point average rises above 3.00. If the student's semester grade average for any subsequent
semester while the student is on probation is below 3.00, then the student will be dropped from the degree
program. A student dropped from degree program status because of a deficient GPA can continue to complete
graduate course work as a non-degree student. Upon earning a GPA of 3.0 or better, the student can apply for
admission to the degree program.
Reappointment of a student as a research assistant when the student is on academic probation will be reviewed
carefully by the student's advisor, the Graduate Program Officer, and the Program Chair.
If a student is on academic probation, he or she must see his or her advisor and the Graduate Program Officer
for the Graduate Program in Acoustics at the beginning of the semester and reassess the choices of the courses
that are to be taken that semester. The Graduate Program Officer is authorized by the Program to require the
student to take various remedial courses in conjunction with or before enrolling in specified courses administered
by the Program.
If a student should be dropped from the program, it may be possible for a student to enroll as a non-degree
student and take selected courses to better prepare for graduate work and then to apply for admission.
Academic Advisors
The academic advisor, in conjunction with the thesis or doctoral committee, is the primary source of guidance
for the student's progress through his or her course work, research, and writing of the thesis, paper, or dissertation.
Advisors to students in the Graduate Program in Acoustics are appointed by the Program Chair from among the
Program's faculty. Faculty supervising incoming students working on sponsored research programs will normally
serve as the academic advisor to such students. It is the responsibility of each student to provide the Acoustics
Program with a statement of interests or areas in which the student desires to focus his or her academic work.
The Program will in turn provide the students with a list of faculty whose interests or work coincide with that
of the student. The student should then schedule a meeting with each faculty member to discuss the potential of
establishing an advisor/advisee relationship. Once a student and a faculty member have agreed to work together,
the Program Chair should be consulted and the appointment made. The Graduate Program Officer will serve as a
temporary advisor for incoming students who, by the first day of the semester, do not yet have an advisor.
From time to time, the student and advisor relationship may experience discord; however, such periods are
to be expected and should be resolvable. In rare cases the advisor and student relationship is not mutually
successful and the discord appears to be irresolable. In such cases, the Program Chair should be consulted.
The Program Chair will then decide whether a termination of the relationship is appropriate. It is the
responsibility of the student to identify a new faculty member willing to assume the role of advisor. Once
the student and the new faculty member have agreed to work together, the Program Chair should be consulted
and the appointment made.
Time-to-Degree Completion
All requirements for the M.S. and M.Eng. degrees must be completed within eight years of being admitted to
the Acoustics Program as a degree student. All requirements for the Ph.D. degree must be completed within
eight years of passing the Candidacy Examination.
Extensions to the eight year limit may be granted by the Director of Graduate Enrollment Services. Students
seeking an extension must petition the Acoustics Program Chair, who if circumstances warrant, will request an
extension from Graduate Enrollment Services. The student's petition must include an explanation for why the
extension is needed, a time line for degree completion, and a supporting letter from the student's advisor.
Under only the most extraordinary circumstances will the Acoustics Program consider an extension of more than two years.
Status Reports
Each graduate student enrolled in the program is required to file a status report with the Program Office
every semester. A form outlining the general format for this report can be obtained from the Program Office.
Such reports are to be nontechnical in nature and should describe the student's progress in meeting the formal
requirements for the degree being sought. In particular, it should report plans for actions during the next
semester that will lead to such progress. The general intent is to encourage the student to focus on his or her
academic objectives and to alert the Program Office to current and potential problems students may be encountering
in the timely progress toward their degree.
Registration
The maximum number of credits for which students holding assistantships may register is restricted by the
Graduate School. Half-time assistants, in particular, may not register for more than 11 credits, and this rule
has been strictly enforced. Consequently, students wishing to maximize their progress toward meeting course
requirements should do careful planning well in advance.
It is the Program's policy that students planning to visit a course without formally taking it for a letter
grade register for that course as an auditor and that they not ask the instructor for permission to avoid
registration. The reason for this is that the ability of the Program to offer a substantial number of advanced
courses in acoustics requires that the overall enrollments be above university-established thresholds.
Due to the sequencing of course work, students are admitted only to the Fall Semester to begin their studies.
Because the student body consists of a diverse blend of undergraduate majors, the first two semesters of course
work contain little flexibility. The sequence of courses per semester follows.
Fall Semester
- ACS 501 Fundamentals of Acoustics I - 2 credits
- ACS 502 Fundamentals of Acoustics II - 2 credits
- ACS 513 Digital Signal Processing - 3 credits
- EMCH 524A Advanced Engineering Mathematics - 3 credits
Spring Semester
- ACS 505 Experimental Techniques in Acoustics (Lab) - 2 credits
- ACS 515 Acoustics in Fluid Media - 3 credits
- EMCH 524B Advanced Engineering Mathematics II - 3 credits
- Plus one other course as determined in consultation with advisor - 2 or 3 credits
Audit Policy
Students who elect to audit a course will not receive credit for the course; however it will appear on the
student's transcript as AU indicating regular attendance or W for unsatisfactory attendance. Students who audit
a course must attend all classes to earn the AU. In addition, at the discretion of the instructor, students who
register for audit may be required to complete all or a portion of the homework, projects, and exams assigned.
Thesis and Dissertation Research Credits
To register for thesis research a student uses ACS 600 for on-campus research and ACS 610 for off-campus research.
Tuition is based on the number of credits for which the student has enrolled for either course. Limits have been placed
on the number of research credits that can be assigned a letter grade in a student's program: 6 credits for an M.S. student
and 12 credits for a Ph.D. candidate.
Dissertation Preparation Credits
ACS 601 and ACS 611 are available for Ph.D. candidates and are used for special noncredit registration for thesis
preparation work. Such candidates must have passed the comprehensive exam and must have met the two-semester residence
requirement. A candidate registered for ACS 601 is classified as full-time and may enroll in one other course for audit.
A candidate registered for ACS 611 is classified as a part-time student. Neither ACS 601 nor ACS 611 is assigned grades.
Master's Thesis
The Master of Science thesis should demonstrate the student's ability to perform semi-independent research under the
guidance of a faculty member. The extent and content of the thesis is specific to the research performed by the student.
The format of the thesis should follow the University's guidelines for thesis preparation.
Master's Paper
The Master of Engineering paper should demonstrate the student's ability to apply graduate level concepts to a topic
of special interest to the student of related to the student's professional duties. The extent and content of the paper
is distinctly different from that of a Master of Science thesis. The length of the paper should be typical of that of a
semester paper or design project. It may consist of a synthesis of research papers, development of case studies, comparison
of techniques between several research papers, or other similar efforts. The paper may be based on job related work performed
by the student and use may be made of technical reports and other writings authored by the student.
The topic of the paper is initially approved by the student's advisor, with final approval by the Program Chair. Upon
completion the paper is submitted to the advisor for review. Once the advisor approves the paper it is forwarded to the Program
Chair for acceptance. The format of the paper should follow the University's guidelines for thesis preparation. The M.Eng.
paper requirement is completely satisfied only after a hardbound copy of the approved version of the paper is submitted to
the Program Office.
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