Degrees and Degree Requirements

Graduate Programs

The School of Graduate Studies offers programs of study leading to the doctoral degree in 36 fields. Fifty-one fields offer work leading to the master’s degree. Many combinations of major and minor or cognate work are available for the degrees mentioned. Thesis and non-thesis programs are available. Graduate certificate programs are also available in several areas. 

Degrees Granted

The degrees conferred for graduate work are the Master of Accountancy (M.Acc.) Master of Arts (M.A.), Master of Physician Assistant Studies (M.P.A.S.), Master of Science (M.S.), Master of Education (M.Ed.), Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Master of Engineering (M.Engr.), Master of Environmental Management (M.E.M.), Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.), Master of Music (M.M.), Master of Occupational Therapy (M.O.T.), Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.), Master of Science in Applied Economics (M.S.A.E.), Master of Public Health (M.P.H.), Master of Social Work (M.S.W.), Doctor of Arts (D.A.), Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Doctor of Occupational Therapy (O.T.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) and Doctor of Physical Therapy (D.P.T.). The Specialist Diploma is offered in Educational Leadership.

Certificate Programs

Some graduate programs offer certificate programs in addition to the degree programs. Certificate programs generally require a minimum of nine credit hours in approved graduate courses with the following requirements:

A minimum grade point average of 3.00 is required to earn the certificate.

Degree seeking students may simultaneously be enrolled in a degree and certificate program and apply courses to both. Courses from completed degrees at UND and courses from other institutions may be used to satisfy certificate requirements with departmental approval and subject to the conditions of the UND transfer policy.

UND graduate certificate courses can be transferred to a degree program, up to one-fourth of the credits required for the degree.

Courses transferred from another university to a certificate program have to meet the conditions of the transfer policy as stated in the Transfer of Graduate Credits in this edition of the UND Graduate Catalog.

Accelerated and Combined Degrees

The University of North Dakota is currently offering accelerated and combined degrees. The intention of these programs is to allow qualified undergraduate students to complete requirements for both a baccalaureate degree and a master’s degree in a shorter period of time. This program allows students to designate six to twelve graduate credits to count for both degrees. The selected courses must have graduate course standing and be designated when a student requests admission to the program.

The full Accelerated and Combined Degree policy can be found in the Academic Policies and Procedures section of the graduate catalog.

Students interested in these programs should refer to the individual departments for admission and program requirements.

Degree Requirement

It is the student’s responsibility to be familiar with the requirements for a degree. The student may receive guidance from the advisor and the staff in the School of Graduate Studies. The requirements are listed in this section of the catalog and in the section entitled “Departmental Programs.”