Completion Guidelines for Non-Thesis Master's Degree

This Completion Guidelines information is merely designed as a guide to provide general information. Please consult the handbook or the Grad office if you have any questions.

Semester 1

  • Familiarize yourself with your degree requirements (see MSNT Handbook).
  • Complete your Responsible Conduct of Research training
    • Visit www.citiprogram.org and select “Log In” and then “Log In Through My Institution.”
    • Click on Purdue University. Log in with your BoilerKey and complete the registration process.
    • Once logged in, click to add courses and select the Responsible Conduct of Research Training – Faculty, Postdoctoral, and Graduate Course.
    • Complete all modules. This will meet the CoE online training requirement.
  • We recommend drafting your Plan of Study (POS) late in your first semester (please note, you will not be able to file your POS until ~2 months into your first active semester, e.g. if you began in August, the system should be available in October, while if you began in January it will be available in March). Information on how to complete your POS can be found in appendix B of the handbook.

Semester 2

Second-to-Last Semester

  • Update your Plan of Study using a Change of Plan of Study form as necessary (see instructions in appendix C of the handbook).
    • Your plan of study must be fully approved before your final semester. Approval can take up to 4 weeks. If you fail to file a POS on time, a late fee may be assessed.
  • To view more information on deadlines administered by the Graduate School, see the Graduate School Deadline Calendar. 

Final Semester

  • Declare Candidacy for Graduation. Register in CAND 99100 using the scheduling assistant before the end of the first week of classes in the term you plan to graduate.
  • Register for Commencement. If you plan to participate in commencement, you must notify the graduate school via the Commencement tab on myPurdue. Please note that this tab will not open until about a month and a half into the semester.