Students are required to defend the thesis based on original research and to take a final oral examination. Appropriate leveling course work may be required. A nonthesis option is available in family financial planning. This option requires a minimum of 38 hours of course work. The doctor's degree requires a minimum of 75 semester hours of graduate work beyond the bachelor's degree, exclusive of credit for the dissertation.
Students develop their courses of study in consultation with a graduate advisory committee.
Leveling course work may be required. A preliminary examination is required of all students before the end of the second semester of work toward the Ph.D. degree. The student's progress will be evaluated and recommendations will be made concerning continuation of graduate studies and leveling course work necessary to remove any deficiencies revealed by the examination. Following the completion of all course work, a qualifying examination for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree will be conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Graduate School. The master's programs require a minimum of 3.0 GPA on the last 60 hours of undergraduate course work.