Not every graduate program at A&M-Central Texas requires a thesis for degree completion. Students must have full admission to a degree program and the permission of the graduate program coordinator to enroll in a thesis course. A thesis will not be accepted unless a student has completed a minimum of six semester hours of thesis coursework. The A&M-Central Texas Thesis Manual, which contains details regarding the preparation and submission of a thesis for approval, is available on the Thesis Office website. Students who plan to pursue a thesis should obtain a copy of this manual early in their graduate programs.

Thesis Credit

Students who begin to write a thesis are expected to enroll each semester, to include summer, in at least one thesis hour until the thesis is completed. Students not involved in human-subjects research may be released from summer enrollment with written permission from their committee chair. Students may lose access to resources when not enrolled.

Those who make satisfactory progress for the semester will be given the grade of "IP/S."  The thesis grade of "S" is not included in the GPA calculation for the degree. Only six hours of thesis credit will count towards the required hours. Students may not exceed the six-hour limit without the approval of the graduate coordinator or the dean of the Graduate School.