Graduate Student Handbook

Graduate Program Guidelines & Resources
Graduate Advisory Committees

The student and the graduate advisor are responsible for the selection of an Advisory Committee. The duties of the Advisory Committee are to assist a student in the preparation of their Plan of Study and to offer advice to the student while in the graduate program. The committee consists of the graduate advisor and other members of the graduate faculty as defined by the OGSPS. MS students are required to have a minimum of three committee members while PhD students are required to have a minimum of four committee members.

Because it is crucial for Advisory Committee members to bring independent thought and decision-making to their Advisory Committee roles, the OGSPS strongly recommends that graduate advisors, graduate students, and other individuals involved in the Advisory Committee selection process strive to avoid appointments where there may be potential conflicts of interest. Advisory Committee appointments of spouses/partners, partners in business, or those with financial conflicts of interest connected to the graduate student, for example, should be carefully reviewed and alternatives considered.

Members of the committee need not be faculty with whom the student has taken coursework; however, at least 51% of the committee members must have “Regular” graduate faculty certification at Purdue University (see OGSPS definitions for “Regular” versus “Special” appointment). The Advisory Committee appointment request is made on the same OGSPS form and at the same time as the Plan of Study request for approval.

All students pursuing a graduate degree in FNR (non-thesis MS, MS, or PhD) must have at least one member of their Advisory Committee who is external to FNR. An external committee member can be defined as:

  • an individual who does not have a majority appointment in FNR,
  • an individual from another department at Purdue University, or
  • any individual who is not employed by Purdue University.

When employed by FNR, Post-doctoral Researchers, Research Faculty, Administrative Professional Staff, or any other FNR employees do not qualify as external committee members under this policy.

All external committee members that do not have a “Regular” Graduate Faculty appointment must request a “Special” appointment as member of the Graduate Faculty to serve on the Advisory Committee. The OGSPS “Special” Faculty Appointment Request will be prepared by the FNR Graduate Program Specialist. Before the request can be completed, the graduate student will need to submit to the FNR Graduate Program Specialist: 1) a current CV of the person seeking the “Special” appointment and 2) a statement of rationale why the person is the best choice for the committee. If approved, the OGSPS will assign a graduate faculty identifier to the appointee.

When setting meetings for their Advisory Committees, note that most faculty are on 9-month academic-year appointments (from mid-August to early May). Therefore, every effort should be made to confine committee meetings, preliminary exams, and thesis defenses to the academic year. The only exception should be when it is urgent that students receive feedback on their research or complete their degree in the summer

Changes in the Advisory Committee
Changes to the Advisory Committee must be submitted electronically via the myPurdue portal. Each request for a change must be accompanied by a rationale and be signed by the student and each committee member whose status is affected by the request.

Academic Performance & Policies

Cumulative Grade Index
Graduate students whose cumulative grade point average (GPA, i.e., grade index) drops below 3.0 (A= 4.0) will be notified in writing that they have one semester to re-establish a minimum 3.0 cumulative index. Note, academic standing is not addressed during the summer semester. Should they fail to improve their cumulative index to 3.0 during the probationary semester, they will be dropped from the graduate program. However, students who feel their case involves extenuating circumstances may appeal to the FNR Graduate Committee for an additional semester on probation. A performance review (see Section 4.3) will then be conducted by the Graduate Committee. No further appeal will be allowed if the cumulative index has not reached 3.0 at the end of the second probationary period. Students on graduate assistantships will continue to receive support for the first probationary semester only. Once a graduate assistantship is terminated for any reason, there is no assurance of renewed support even if the student achieves the cumulative 3.0 index during the second probationary semester. If a student’s cumulative GPA drops below 3.0 in their final semester, approval for graduation should go to the department head pending recommendation of FNR Graduate Committee.

The graduation index includes all grades earned in 500- and 600-level courses while enrolled as a graduate student, plus undergraduate-level courses approved on the Plan of Study (at the request of the graduate advisor). Neither 10000- nor 20000-level courses may appear on a Plan of Study. No more than a total of six 30000- or 40000-level course credit hours. Courses on the Plan of Study must be a passing grade (i.e., C- or better) with the exception of 30000- or 40000-level courses or transfer credits must be B- or better. Note, if the transfer credits are from an institution on quarters and not semesters, quarter credits are considered three-quarters of a semester credit (e.g., a four quarter hour course could transfer for three semester hours).
Graduate course credits earned while an undergraduate at Purdue University or other accredited institutions of higher learning may be applied toward an advanced degree if these credits are in excess of any requirements for the baccalaureate degree. Such credits must be certified as available for graduate credit by the institution from which the student received his/her baccalaureate degree, but will be accepted only if:

  • the student had junior or senior standing when taking the course,
  • the student received a grade of B or better (work taken under the pass/not-pass option is not acceptable),
  • the course was designated as a graduate course.

Research Credit Hours
All thesis MS and PhD students are required to complete satisfactory research credit hours (FNR 698 or FNR 699, respectively). The student also is expected to earn “Satisfactory” (S) grades for research credit hours. For every semester that students are enrolled in research credit hours, they and their faculty advisors must complete the Graduate Research Credit Expectations Agreement Form and submit it to the FNR Graduate Program Specialist. This form details the tasks the student should complete to receive an S grade. Two consecutive semesters of “Unsatisfactory” (U) grades for research credit hours mandate that the department conduct a performance review (see Section 4.3) and inform the student and the OGSPS with regards to discontinuation or conditions for continuation of the student’s graduate study.

Waivers and Performance Reviews
If a student or faculty advisor would like to waive one of the FNR program requirements outlined in this handbook, a formal request must be submitted to the FNR Graduate Committee. The request should be a letter written by their faculty advisor (and/or the student’s Advisory Committee). The letter should be addressed to the Graduate Committee and provide the rationale as to why the student should be exempt from the requirement. The Graduate Committee will then review and vote to approve the request. The student and faculty advisor will then be notified of the decision.

If a student is on their second semester of probation or has received two Us for research credit hours, the student performance should be reviewed by the Graduate Committee. The student, faculty advisor, and/or the student’s Advisory Committee will submit documentation of the student’s performance to the Graduate Committee for review. The faculty advisor and/or the student’s Advisory Committee should write a letter to the Graduate Committee outlining the student’s performance and indicate their desired outcome regarding the student’s status within the FNR degree program.

If a conflict of interest exists for a member of the Graduate Committee, they will not participate in the voting for either waiver decisions or performance reviews. A majority vote is required for waivers and performance review outcomes. In the case of a tie vote, the Department Head will be asked to review and vote. If an equitable decision cannot be determined for a performance review outcome, the Department Head as well as additional members of the FNR faculty may be included in deliberations. Additionally, the OGSPS may be contacted to provide advice to determine the most suitable outcome for all parties involve

FNR Ombudsperson
Within the FNR Graduate Program, the Department Head, Graduate Committee Chair, and the Graduate Program Specialist may all act as an ombudsperson. Additionally, there is an FNR student ombudsperson. The student ombudsperson is selected through the FNR Graduate Student Council, and their nominee is submitted to the FNR Graduate Committee to confirm the nominee is in good academic and programmatic standing.

An ombudsperson is an informal, neutral, and, in most cases, confidential resource for new and continuing graduate students to raise questions or share concerns about any aspect of their graduate experiences. An ombudsperson is able to provide advice, inform students about university resources, make referrals, offer options, and seek explanations. However, the ombudsperson does not file formal complaints nor keep formal records of visits. An ombudsperson is unable to formally advocate for the students in university matters.

Note, university policy requires cases of alleged research misconduct be reported to the Research Integrity Office or the Office of the Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships, depending upon the nature of the allegation. Likewise, they must report situations in which students and others are in imminent risk or danger. They are mandatory reporters of sexual harassment and sexual violence allegations regardless of service or assistance requested.

An ombudsperson’s role is to hear reports of issues involving a graduate student as an objective third party, serve as a clearinghouse for information pertaining to possible options for addressing complaints, and facilitate communication between affected parties to attain a mutually acceptable resolution.

If the ombudsperson is contacted by a student with a complaint, the ombudsperson should:

  • meet with complainant to garner a preliminary evaluation of the situation. At the initiation of the meeting, the complainant should be made aware that the ombudsperson is required to report any disclosure of alleged harassment or discrimination. If so disclosed, it must be reported to the Department Head and subsequently to the Office of Institutional Equity, Office of the Dean of Students, or Office of the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance.
  • determine:
    • scope of the problem,
    • needs of the complainant (i.e., “What would you like me to do?”) and potential courses of action (i.e., what options are available?), and
    • whether involvement from the Department Head or the FNR Graduate Committee Chair is needed (due to legal issues).
  • inquire of the complainant what they consider the best way to proceed.
  • make initial recommendations that outline a plan of action to address the problem.
  • facilitate components of the plan of action (e.g., facilitate a meeting of student and Advisory Committee).
  • schedule follow-up meetings to evaluate progress.
  • request permission to expand the group of informed individuals if the plan of action is not working.
Student and Graduate Advisor Relationship

The interaction between a graduate student and their graduate advisor is one of the most important relationships at a university. Academic productivity, professional development, and attitudes towards oneself and others can be influenced, sometimes dramatically, by the status of relations between student and advisor. Creating and maintaining a positive student-advisor relationship is to be encouraged and valued by both parties.

There is no substitute for frequent, open dialog between students and advisors in establishing and maintaining good working relationships. On occasion, however, communication may falter, or other issues may impede programmatic progress and personal growth for either a student or an advisor. In those circumstances, an impartial third party (ombudsperson) may be needed to serve as a sounding board, a facilitator of dialog, or a/an mediator/arbitrator of acknowledged disputes.

FNR Stipend Levels for Funded Graduate Students

The following stipend levels apply for all funded graduate students pursuing the:

  • MS degree should receive at a minimum, a stipend at the appropriate fiscal year (FY) (July 1 - June 30) rate for MS-level departmental assistantships, if they have completed an undergraduate degree at the bachelor’s-level or higher.
  • PhD degree should receive at a minimum, a stipend at the appropriate FY (July 1 - June 30) rate for PhD level departmental assistantships, if they have completed an undergraduate degree at the bachelor’s-level or higher.
  • Integrated Bachelor of Science and MS program, if receiving a stipend, must be paid at a minimum of the current FY (July 1 - June 30) departmental standard for MS students and stipends for these students cannot exceed the upper limits set by the OGSPS.

All FNR graduate students who transfer from one degree program to another (MS to PhD or PhD to MS), while enrolled in a graduate degree program in FNR, will have their stipend level altered to reflect the appropriate FY (July 1 - June 30) departmental stipend rates for the new degree at the beginning of the semester subsequent to the official change in degree status, regardless of funding source.

Stipend levels can be set independently if funded by a fellowship provided as a consequence of special endowments (e.g., van Eck), Interdisciplinary Programs (e.g., Ecological Sciences and Engineering, Computational Interdisciplinary Graduate Program, PULSe), or which fall under the dictates of outside funding agencies (e.g., GAANN) for MS and PhD as long as they do not fall below the minimum levels provided for departmental assistantships for the same degree or exceed the upper limits set by the OGSPS. Supplementation of assistantship stipend levels from departmental or external funding sources will be allowed only within the context of current university policies and must be approved by the FNR Graduate Committee Chair and subsequently by the Department Head.

Any student supported by departmental stipend funds must be classified as a student in the FNR Graduate Program using the corresponding departmental code for admission and registration; and must adhere to all policies and procedures established by the FNR Graduate Committee.

Graduate Assistantship

Assistantships are offered to graduate students based on the employment needs of the department to fill both research and teaching needs. These assistantships provide graduate students with a half-time employment opportunity to earn a small salary and to have some specified portion of their tuition expenses covered. A graduate assistantship should be viewed as a half-time professional position that can facilitate and enhance a graduate student’s overall educational experience.

Although they often can appear to be the same thing, being a graduate student pursuing a degree and being an employee holding a graduate teaching or research assistantship are separate responsibilities. The following section provides clarification on being a graduate student versus a graduate student employee. Additional information regarding graduate student employment policies, payroll procedures, and benefits can be found in the Graduate Staff Employment Manual.

Funding for Graduate Research and Teaching Assistantships
Nearly all graduate students in FNR are supported by graduate research and/or teaching assistantships during their time in the program. Funds supporting graduate teaching and research assistantships come from different sources. The three primary funding sources in FNR are departmental, external, and endowment. Typically, the funding source dictates the required assistantship job duties. For example, funding for teaching assistantships will nearly always come from the department or university to support delivery of courses. Funding for research assistantships will most often come from outside research grants (i.e., external) that a faculty member has received to deliver specific research products for federal, state, or private organizations. Gifts or endowments from outside donors also can support graduate teaching or research assistantships depending on the wishes of the donor. Graduate students should know and understand the source of funding that supports their assistantship.

Graduate students cannot be paid to perform teaching functions as part of a research assistantship, and they cannot be paid to conduct research as part of a teaching assistantship.

Graduate Research Assistantships
The following provides the general guidelines for graduate research assistantships.

  • Graduate students holding a half-time research assistantship are responsible for conducting research activities under the supervision of their graduate advisor for up to 20 hours/week.
  • As the supervisor of the research assistantship, the graduate advisor may assign the graduate student employee any research-related duties within the 20 hours/week limit. The research duties assigned by the graduate advisor may or may not be related to the graduate student’s thesis research. Most FNR graduate students are fortunate to have their assigned research assistantship duties align with their thesis research. However, this is not a requirement.
  • The supervisor of the research assistantship and the graduate research assistant should have a clear understanding in writing about the duties that comprise the 20 hours/week job responsibilities. Clear weekly or monthly performance targets should be established for the research assistantship duties by the supervisor at the beginning of the semester, and job evaluations between the supervisor and graduate research assistant should be scheduled throughout the semester.
  • Some confusion can arise when a graduate student’s assigned research assistantship duties and thesis research are the same effort. It often can be difficult in these cases to distinguish between the graduate advisor serving as the employment supervisor of the 20 hours/week research assistantship duties, and as the graduate advisor providing advice to the student about completing their thesis research. Therefore, care should be taken by the graduate advisor to separate as clearly as possible the student’s responsibilities under their 20 hour/week assistantship and what is being advised to advance the student’s thesis research beyond the assistantship. When clear lines are not established, it is easy for the graduate advisor to inadvertently assign more work than the maximum 20 hours/week permitted under the research assistantship. For example, if an FNR graduate student has a half-time (20 hours/week) assistantship and is registered for six credit hours of FNR 69900, they may be expected by their graduate advisor to work 20 hours/week for the graduate research assistantship and another 18 to 30 hours for their FNR 69900 course. One credit hour of research generally involves about three to five hours of effort per week. Likewise, some activities that the student engages in as part of their research or educational goals outside of the 20 hours/week assistantship may not be directly supporting of the graduate advisor’s research program (see Section 7.5).

Graduate Teaching Assistantships
The following provides the general guidelines for graduate teaching assistantships:

  • Graduate students holding a teaching assistantship are responsible for conducting their teaching assistant duties under the supervision of the assigned course instructor(s) for up to 20 hours/week. A student’s graduate advisor is generally not involved in supervising teaching duties unless they are also an instructor for the course.
  • As the supervisor of the teaching assistantship, the course instructor(s) may assign any teaching-related duties that they choose within the 20 hours/week limit.
  • The course instructor(s) and the graduate teaching assistant should have a clear understanding in writing about the duties that comprise the 20 hours/week job responsibilities. Clear weekly or monthly performance targets should be established for teaching assistant duties, and job evaluations between the course instructor(s) and graduate teaching assistant should be scheduled throughout the semester.
  • At the end of every semester that a student holds a teaching assistantship, the Graduate Teaching Assistant Evaluation From must be completed and submitted to the Graduate Program Specialist when grades are due.

Simultaneously Holding Graduate Teaching and Research Assistantships
Depending on the funding source, some graduate students will only hold a research assistantship during their time in FNR. In some situations, a graduate student may simultaneously hold during one semester (or over successive semesters) a quarter-time (10 hours/week) teaching assistantship and a quarter-time (10 hours/week) research assistantship. In these cases, the student is expected to work 10 hours/week on teaching assistant duties and 10 hours/week on research assistant duties. However, the 10:10 time split does not necessarily need to be followed the same way every week. There may be weeks when teaching assistant duties dominate and weeks when research assistant duties dominate. As long as a total of 20 hours is not exceeded and on average 10 hours/week over the semester is spent on teaching assistant duties and 10 hours/week is spent on research assistant duties, the dual appointment is being delivered properly.

Graduate Student Activities Outside of an Assistantship
Outside of the 20 hours/week research or teaching assistantship obligations, graduate students are free to pursue whatever academic activities they wish to enhance their graduate education. These activities may include collaborations with faculty, staff, or other graduate students to pursue other lines of research, publish papers from previous work, pursue ideas and studies unrelated to their graduate advisor’s lab, or any other activities the student believes enhances their education or career development.

Graduate students do not need permission from their graduate advisors to pursue activities that enhance their graduate education or career development. However, in pursuing these other academic activities, students are also responsible for ensuring that this additional activity does not interfere with their 20 hours/week research or teaching assistantship responsibilities, coursework, or progress on their thesis research. See Conflicts of Commitment link below for additional details. If outside activities become productive enough that a student wishes to have them contribute towards their FNR degree requirements, approval by their graduate advisor and Advisory Committee will be needed.

Although graduate assistantships require up to 20 hours/week of work, students should be aware that being a successful graduate student requires investing substantial time in completing their coursework and conducting their thesis research that extends far beyond the time demands of a teaching or research assistantship. This is time spent solely as a graduate student.

Students should be careful when accepting consulting fees or other paid jobs that this outside employment does not violate university policies related to their assistantship, or possibly any federal policies for international student visas they might hold. Any perceived or actual conflicts of interest or commitment between outside activities and the university need to be avoided as well. Students should always notify their graduate advisor about any outside employment or activities. Purdue University policy on Outside Activities is included in the Graduate Staff Employment Manual (p. 22):

OUTSIDE EMPLOYMENT, OTHER OUTSIDE ACTIVITIES, AND CONFLICTS OF INTEREST Purdue employees may not engage in outside employment and other outside activities that would conflict with their University duties. Graduate student employees are required to file a Disclosure of and Application for Permission to Engage in a Reportable Outside Activity form before engaging in any reportable outside activities. Such outside activities include employment and connections with business enterprises, public offices, professional associations, educational institutions, and foundations (see the definition of a reportable outside activity in policy III.B.1.) In addition, graduate student employees are required to complete a Conflict of Interest Disclosure Statement for any business enterprise activities in which the employee expects to derive a profit from any University contract or purchase (see the definition of financial conflicts of interest in policy III.B.2). For additional information and the University’s policies on these topics, refer to the following: 1. Individual Financial Conflicts of Interest (III.B.2) 2. Conflicts of Commitment and Reportable Outside Activities (III.B.1).

The link to the Reportable Outside Activity form and Responsible Conduct of Research is provided below.

As with any general guidelines, there may be situations where the above information does not provide sufficient guidance for a particular situation. In these cases, graduate students should work with their graduate advisor and if needed the FNR Department Head to get clarification on unique circumstances.

Some of the above issues will intersect with mentoring responsibilities by graduate advisors, required outside activities disclosures, and responsible conduct in research. The following links provide additional information on these issues:

FNR Program Requirements and Timing

Throughout program:

  • Every semester
    Start – FNR Form: Research Credit Hours Expectations
    End – FNR Form: Graduate Student Semester Evaluation
  • After TA appointment – FNR Form: Graduate Teaching Assistant Evaluation

OGSPS(GS) Plan of Study submission

  • MS – end of second semester
  • PhD – end of third semester

Proposal

  • Completed at least one year prior to the semester of degree completion
  • FNR Form: Research Proposal Evaluation
  • Timing:
    • o MS – within the first year
    • o PhD – within the initial 1.5 years

Preliminary Examination (PhD only)

  • Completed one year prior to the date of defense
  • GS Form 8: Request for Appointment of Examining Committee (due one month prior to examination)
  • GS Form 10: Report of the Preliminary Examination

Final Examination

  • Register as CAND 99100, 99200, or 99300
  • GS Form 8: Request for Appointment of Examining Committee (due one month prior to defense date)
  • Create defense announcement flier (due 2.5 weeks prior to defense date)
  • GS Form 7: Report of Master's Examining Committee
  • GS Form 11: Report of the PhD Final Examining Committee
  • GS Form 9: Thesis/Dissertation Acceptance
  • Thesis/Dissertation formatting review and deposit

Program completion

  • Graduate Student Check-out Form
  • CV/Resume
  • FNR Form: Candidacy Extension/Outreach Evaluation
  • FNR Placement Survey (Qualtrics)
  • GS Exit Questionnaire Certificate of Completion (completed prior to thesis/dissertation deposit date)
  • GS Earned Doctorate Survey (PhD only; completed prior to thesis/dissertation deposit date)
  • Register for commencement (must be completed mid-semester of the last semester)
  • Exit interview with Department Head
  • Thesis/Dissertation PDF submitted to FNR