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Accelerated Bachelor's-Master's Degree Program

The Accelerated Degree Program is designed to provide a more efficient means to obtain a master’s degree. It is based on attaining the necessary competencies rather than just a specified number of credits. The program is for students who have a high academic potential and want to start taking courses that will count both toward their undergraduate and graduate degrees. It benefits the university by capturing our best students for master’s study. Each department has a limited number of openings for this program and will accept the highest performing students.

The ADP allows a student to begin accumulating credits toward completion of a master’s degree while still enrolled as an undergraduate. Undergraduates participating in this program are granted early admission to the Graduate School and are allowed to take specified graduate-level courses during their junior year or senior year.

Academic units can choose to impose stricter guidelines than those that appear below.

With the approval of the applicable academic unit, up to 12 graduate credits taken during their undergraduate career may be applied toward completion of their graduate degrees as long as the following criteria are met:

1. The courses must be appropriate to attain the necessary competencies for the graduate degree.
2. The student must earn a grade of B or above in each course.
3. The courses are 5000-level courses or above. Pure graduate-level courses are 6000 and above courses. 5000-level courses are upper division courses that carry graduate credit. ADP students can take 5000-level courses, but they must complete the Graduate Credits Requested for Undergraduate Course form, found at marquette.edu/grad/documents/GradCreditsforUGCourse.pdf, that specifies the additional work that they are going to do to justify the awarding of graduate credit for an undergraduate course.

These graduate-level courses may also count toward their baccalaureate degree. The grades earned in courses applied toward both the baccalaureate and graduate programs will be computed into the grade point averages of both programs. None of the graduate courses taken in this program may be applied to the undergraduate core of common studies.

Academic units interested in participating in the ADP must provide a proposal to the UBUS and the UBGS that indicates how the necessary competencies will be incorporated into this accelerated program. Specific courses that will comprise the ADP course selection must be identified rather than permitting students to select any courses that they desire.

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Admission Procedure

Participation in the ADP by any academic unit is optional. Each academic unit will develop admission criteria based on the following guidelines:

1. Minimal criteria for admission will be established by each participating program.
2. Each academic unit will establish the point in an undergraduate career when a student may apply for admission to the ADP, but in no case may it be earlier than the completion of the sophomore year.
3. The student must apply for admission to the ADP through the Graduate School. This admission, if approved, will include admission to the graduate degree granting academic unit. After admission into the ADP, the student will be identified as having ADP status through a student group within the records management system.
4. International students who are admitted into the ADP will work with the Graduate School and the Office of International Education in order to apply for a visa extension.

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Academic Advising and Records

Academic units that want to participate in the ADP will develop a clear admissions and advising process for the ADP. The academic unit will send the student a letter listing the graduate courses (5000-level and above) from which they may compose their graduate program of study. A copy of this letter will be placed in the student’s graduate record and will be provided to the student’s undergraduate college.

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Program Requirements

Programs that offer an ADP may approve a maximum of 12 credit hours, which can be applied toward the undergraduate degree during the junior and senior year. Following admission to the master’s program, those courses may be transferred into a master’s program. While an undergraduate, the student must enroll for graduate credit but will pay the appropriate undergraduate tuition for the specified graduate courses.

Only courses in which a B or above have been earned will be transferred into the graduate program of study. Students who complete the undergraduate degree may claim their status as graduate students (with the appropriate graduate credit) in the next term or session after receiving the bachelor’s degree. Students who have completed the Accelerated Degree Program will have it noted on their transcript.

Admission to the ADP is a promise of formal admission to the Graduate School and the academic unit after completion of the bachelor’s degree. However, the ADP student will still be officially considered an undergraduate student until the baccalaureate degree is officially awarded. At that time, the student must notify the Graduate School that the baccalaureate degree has been received, and the student will be formally admitted into the Graduate School. The student must then transfer the graduate credits from their undergraduate career into their graduate career by completing a Master's Degree Transfer of Credit Request form, found online at marquette.edu/grad/documents/MasterTransferofCredit.pdf.

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Dual Counting of Undergraduate and Graduate Credits

Graduate courses taken during an undergraduate program of study will only be accepted for both undergraduate credit and for transfer into a graduate degree program if students have participated in an approved Accelerated Degree Program. Graduate courses taken outside of an ADP as an undergraduate student, however, may still be considered for transfer into a graduate program if they have not also been counted toward the undergraduate degree.

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English as a Second Language Program (ESLP)

The Office of International Education (OIE) provides advanced English language courses for students of other language backgrounds whose academic success at Marquette requires additional formal instruction in spoken or written English. Departments that wish to have the English competency of their graduate students evaluated should contact OIE for information about the English Placement Test. The results of this test are used to recommend any appropriate English language (ESLP) courses. ESLP courses are offered in the fall and spring terms. Descriptions for the courses in Composition, Reading, and Listening Comprehension are described in the Undergraduate Bulletin. Additionally, all incoming international teaching assistants (TAs) are required to attend a special one-week International Teaching Assistant Program (ITAP) during the fall semester. This training program includes evaluations of each TA's English language and classroom skills for possible placement into ESLP 6021 American Language and Communication Skills for Teaching Assistants.

Marquette University currently does not offer a graduate degree program in English as a Second Language. For information on degrees or certificates in education, see the sections of this Graduate Bulletin relevant to the intended major academic field of study.

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Inter-University Visitation

Marquette University participates in two programs, detailed below, by which its students may take courses at another university or college in order to expand the breadth of their education.

Students should not take an off-campus course during their final term. In order to satisfy all graduation requirements, an official transcript reflecting all final grades is required. Taking a course through the Inter-University Visitation Program at UW-Milwaukee, the Medical College of Wisconsin, or via the Midwest Catholic Graduate Schools Consortium will delay a student’s graduation until the following graduation cycle.

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Marquette–UWM and Marquette–Medical College of Wisconsin

Marquette University has agreements with both the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and with the Medical College of Wisconsin. The course being taken at the host institution must not be available at Marquette. In no case will more than six credits taken at UWM or MCW be counted toward degree completion at Marquette, unless the courses are taken as part of a joint program. The students must apply for admission to the host institution as a special student; the application fee is waived. A Marquette student must complete the appropriate registration form, found online at marquette.edu/grad/forms_index.shtml, then get their adviser’s approval, and finally submit the completed form to the Graduate School. This will register the student for the course GRAD 6933 (UWM course) or GRAD 6945 (MCW course), both of which are variable title and variable credit courses that reflect the title and number of credits of the course at the host institution. The student must also register for the course at the host institution. Tuition is paid at the home institution for the GRAD 6933 or GRAD 6945 course. The course at the host institution is tuition-free. Only degree-seeking graduate students in good standing are eligible to participate. This program is not intended for students in joint programs such as bioinformatics, biomedical engineering, and healthcare technologies management, where the courses between Marquette and MCW are cross-listed. Interested students should contact the Graduate School office for additional information and enrollment forms.

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Midwest Catholic Graduate Schools Consortium

The consortium of Midwest Catholic Graduate Schools (MCGS) includes Loyola University, Chicago, Ill.; Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis.; University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind.; and St. Louis University, St. Louis, Mo. MCGS has established the protocol whereby a degree-seeking student at one university may take course work at any of the other three universities to apply toward degree requirements at the home institution.

With prior approvals, the student enrolls at the home institution and makes financial arrangements there, but attends classes, on a short-term basis, as a visiting student at the host university. Final grades are forwarded from the host to the home university for listing on the student’s permanent record. The following restrictions apply: 1) Participation is restricted to those fields of study which are under the academic jurisdiction of the graduate deans at both the home and the host institutions; 2) Non-degree or temporary students may not participate; 3) The degree-seeking student must have completed at least the equivalent of one full term at the home university before visiting one of the other institutions; 4) A student may gain approval for more than one visitation at more than one host institution, but no more than nine credit hours of courses from host institutions can become part of a degree program at the home institution.

To participate, a student must complete, for each course to be taken at a host institution, an Inter-University Visitation Enrollment Form and the applicable registration form, found online at marquette.edu/grad/forms_index.shtml, both of which require signatures of approval. Because of the paperwork involved and the number of approvals that must be obtained, the student must begin the inter-university visitation application process no later than June 1 for a fall term visitation, October 1 for the spring term, or March 1 for the summer term. Interested students should contact the Graduate School office for additional information and enrollment forms.

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Preparing Future Faculty Program

The Marquette University Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) Program, in collaboration with the Marquette University Center for Teaching and Learning, helps prepare interested graduate students for a career in academia. Students with other career interests are welcome to engage in PFF activities, and may find the programs on developing a résumé, building presentation skills, and preparing for job interviews particularly helpful.

The PFF Program requires graduate students to meet requirements in the following areas:

1. Theory and research on effective teaching and learning in higher education
2. Introduction to specific teaching skills
3. Obtaining feedback on teaching
4. Assessing student learning
5. Teaching with technology – e-learning applications
6. Applying and interviewing for faculty positions
7. Obtaining external funding.

In order to meet these requirements, graduate students have the option of either taking graduate classes offered by the College of Education or attending colloquia, workshops, and conferences sponsored by PFF. These PFF events satisfy many of the requirements or address pedagogic and professional issues to enhance the professional development of graduate students. Topics covered range from technology in the classroom to grant writing, and from the job search process to diversity in the classroom.

Participants of the PFF Program create a professional portfolio detailing their achievements and abilities and providing future employers with a wealth of relevant information. The portfolio may include documents on: a) teaching (mentoring and development); b) publications; c) conference work/participation; d) professional development; e) institutional awareness; and f) university and community service.

Successful completion of the requirements for the PFF Program is recognized with a notation on the graduate student's official university transcript and is verified by a document issued by the PFF Program and the Graduate School. For more information visit the website at www.marquette.edu/pff/

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Multicultural Awareness and Professional Integration Program (MAPIP)

The goal of this program is to assist doctoral psychology graduate students in gaining additional knowledge of multicultural issues. This includes increased awareness of the multicultural psychology research, increased understanding of diverse groups and cultures, and self-reflection of how diversity awareness can be integrated into their professional careers. For more information about this program please visit the Department of Psychology website at marquette.edu/psyc/about_diversity_mapip.shtml.