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Master’s Degree Requirements

The following are requirements for a master’s degree:

  1. A student cannot receive two master’s degrees at the same time. A student who wishes to pursue degrees that fall under different disciplines must decide at the point of graduation the type of degree he/ she will receive at that time. For students wishing to pursue a new degree, please refer to the section of “Subsequent Master’s Degrees”.
  2. No more than six hours earned in one master’s degree may count towards a second master’s degree and each master’s degree must have a minimum of 30 unique hours. Please refer to “Additional Master’s Degrees”.
  3. A minimum of 30 hours of coursework, or with the thesis option a minimum of 24 hours of coursework plus six hours for the thesis is required for a master’s degree. Once a student registers for the thesis, he/she must continue to enroll each succeeding semester (except summer sessions) until the thesis is completed. Credit is counted only once per thesis course level unless additional hours are required by the degree program. For more information, see the sections of the catalog that pertain to the specific degree programs.
  4. During or at the end of the student’s final semester of work, the student may be given a comprehensive written examination as required by the graduate degree program. Students must arrange comprehensive examinations with their adviser prior to graduation.
  5. Degree programs may allow a student the option to include a maximum of six semester hours of work that is not a part of the student’s major field. It is the option of each graduate program to determine if graduate courses taken outside of the college are acceptable.
  6. A maximum of 18 hours in 5000-level courses may be taken for graduate credit toward a master’s degree and/ or as required by program accreditation standards.
  7. Seven-Year Time Limit: All requirements must be completed within one seven-year period. Work more than seven years old will not meet graduation requirements and can be reinstated only by special permission of the Dean for the Graduate College.
  8. A student must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 in master’s coursework.
  9. Residency: One-third of the credits towards a graduate degree must be earned through instruction offered by UTRGV. Transfer students may be required to complete additional hours above those on their degree plan to meet this requirement.