University of Colorado Denver College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Please refer to the Master’s Graduation Deadlines. It is important that you adhere to the deadline dates if you desire to graduate in a given semester.

Admission to the Graduate School does not constitute admission to candidacy. Completion of hours of course work does not mean a student is automatically eligible for an advanced degree. Students must have fulfilled appropriate requirements, as established by their major department and the Graduate School.

• If you have any classes in which you have received an incomplete, this grade must be changed by the date indicated on the master’s deadlines.
• You must be registered for courses, thesis or project, or as Candidate for Degree during the semester that you take your final examination or defend your thesis/project.
• See the Electronic Thesis Dissertation submission process page for thesis guidelines.

Complete and submit the following:

• Application for Admission to Candidacy Form  This initiates a process of determining if the student has met all of the other requirements for the degree, and is eligible to submit a thesis.
• Application for Graduation (This must be completed at the beginning of the semester you plan to graduate, even if previously submitted) Students need to select Denver Campus in the pulldown menu. Then go halfway down the page and look for the the link to UCDAccess, where students will login as usual to their Student Portal (same as what you use to register). 
• Request for Graduate Examination/Thesis Defense Form (submit 1 week prior to exam)
• Preliminary copy of thesis to the Graduate School, LSC 1251, to be checked for format review
• Electronic submission of final thesis. See Electronic Thesis Dissertation submission process​.

Time Limit Exceptions

For students admitted to a master's degree program prior to January 2009, the degree should be completed within 7 years of acceptance into the program of study.  If you exceed this time limit, you must obtain an approved extension from your graduate program director and the Graduate School Dean.

Students admitted after January 2009 will have 5 years to complete the master's degree, due to a revision of the Graduate School Rules.