Administrative staff may be designated to handle routine petition matters . In all matters of substance, however, it is expected that the petition will bear the signature of a member of the graduate faculty. Rubber-stamped signatures are not accepted. The petition may also be submitted as a memo or letter as long as it contains the required information and appropriate signatures. Completed petitions should be returned to Betsy Kleiss at the address listed above .
Information follows about some of the most common areas in which petitions are filed.
A student who petitions for a time extension should summarize progress made to date, remembering that the Graduate College staff will not necessarily be aware of the standard milestones in a particular degree program. The student should also provide a detailed and realistic timetable for completion of the degree. If the extension requested is for a period longer than one academic year, only the first 12 to 15 months will normally be granted. Transfer credit policies are described more fully in A Handbook for Graduate Students and Advisers. For example, 300-level courses at the University of Illinois at Springfield are given only for undergraduate credit and may not be used for graduate credit on our campus.