Professional Programs
A. Post-Baccalaureate Certificate and Graduate Certificate Programs
Post-baccalaureate certificate and graduate certificate programs at Mines are designed to have selective focus, short time to completion and consist of coursework only. The two are distinguished by the amount of undergraduate-level coursework constituting the program. In general, graduate certificate programs consist of only graduate level coursework (500-level and above). Post-baccalaureate certificate programs can include courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level. For more information about specific certificate programs, please refer to the sections Departmental Graduate Programs and Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs of this catalog.
1. Academic Requirements
Post-baccalaureate certificates and graduate certificates require a minimum of 9 total credits. Specific credit requirements are detailed within the sections Departmental Graduate Programs and Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs of this catalog. Students may not, on an individual basis, request credits be transferred from other institutions as part of the certificate requirements. Some certificates, however, may allow the application of specific, pre-approved transfer credits or credits from other institutions with whom Mines has formal agreements for this purpose toward fulfilling the requirements of the certificate. All courses applied to a specific certificate are subject to approval by the program offering the certificate.
If a student has earned either a post-baccalaureate certificate or a graduate certificate and subsequently applies and is accepted into a master's or PhD program at Mines, credits earned in the certificate program may, with the approval of the advanced degree program, be applied to the advanced degree subject to all the applicable restrictions on credits that may be applied toward fulfilling the requirements of the advanced degree.
2. Graduation Requirements
A list of prerequisites for each post-baccalaureate or graduate certificate, if required, will be published by each program. If a student is admitted with deficiencies, the appropriate department head or program director will provide the student with a written list of courses required to remove these deficiencies. This list will be given to the student no later than one week after the start of classes of their first semester in order to allow for adding/dropping courses as necessary.
Upon completion of certificate requirements, a student must complete the graduation checkout course by the posted deadlines.
B. Professional Master's Program
Mines awards specialized, career-oriented non-thesis master's degrees with the title of professional master (descriptive title). These are custom-designed degrees, each with a curriculum meeting the career advancement needs of a particular group of professionals in a field that is central to Mines' mission. For more information about these programs, please refer to the sections Departmental Graduate Programs and Interdisciplinary Graduate Programs of this catalog.
1. Academic Requirements
Each professional master's degree consists of a minimum of 30 total credits. Students must complete at least 21 credits at Mines in the degree program. The remaining credits may be transferred into the program. Requests for transfer credit must be approved by the faculty according to a process defined by the student’s home department or program. Transfer credits must not have been used as credit toward a bachelor's degree. The transfer limit includes Mines online courses. Up to 6 credits of special topics, independent study, or internship may be in the form of project credits done on the job as an employee or as a graduate intern. If project credits are to be used, the project proposal and final report must be approved by a Mines faculty advisor, although direct supervision may be provided by the employer. Students must maintain a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or better in Mines coursework.
2. Graduation Requirements
Full-time students must complete the following requirement within the first calendar year after enrolling in a professional master's degree program:
- Complete all prerequisite and core curriculum course requirements of their program.
If students are admitted with deficiencies, the appropriate department heads or program directors will provide the students written lists of courses required to remove the deficiencies. These lists will be given to the students no later than one week after the start of classes of their first semester in order to allow them to add/drop courses as necessary. Completion of prerequisites and deficiencies will be monitored by the department.
Upon completion of the above defined requirements, students must submit a Degree Audit form documenting satisfactory completion of the core curriculum requirements. Deficiency and/or prerequisite courses may not be listed on the Degree Audit form. The form must have the written approval of all members of the advisor and thesis committee, if appropriate.
To graduate, all professional master students must submit all required forms and complete the graduation checkout course by the posted deadlines.