15.5. Credit Limits

Graduate tuition waivers can only be applied to the maximum number of credits required to complete a graduate degree program; an additional 3 credits are allowed for a master’s program and an additional 6 credits are allowed for a doctoral program. This equals a total of 33 credits for master’s students, and a total of 96 credits for doctoral students for the entirety of the graduate degree program. For master’s-level degree programs with an unconventional number of credits to complete, tuition waivers can be applied to a maximum of the credits required for the graduate program completion and an additional 3 credits, and an additional 6 credits for doctoral-level program. College-specific exceptions may be made with documentation of the exception and reasoning.

Transfer graduate credits from other institutions are included in the total maximum limit for the tuition waiver credits at NDSU. These credit limits apply to all graduate credits, regardless of whether or not they were covered by a tuition waiver at NDSU.

At the discretion of the colleges, graduate assistants who add a certificate that is not integrated with their degree program and/or plan of study may have an extension of an additional 9 credits covered by a tuition waiver per degree program. College-level approvals and criteria to extend the credit limit of the graduate assistant by 9 credits to accommodate a certificate per degree program must be a consistent practice within the college.