Role of the College of Graduate Studies

The College of Graduate Studies serves several major roles as it relates to graduate education at the University of Central Florida.

1. Provide quality control and institutional oversight for all aspects of graduate education at UCF and establish policies and standards that define best practice in all graduate programs, high quality in curriculum, and excellence in student selection.
   
2. Improve the quality of our programs through a variety of mechanisms, including providing funds to recruit the best and most diverse students, conducting regular reviews of programs, and giving special attention to the promotion of diversity and intellectual collegiality in each of our programs. We pay regular attention to the special needs and issues that pertain but are not limited to international students, students from underrepresented groups, and women in certain disciplines. The Graduate School also assumes an important role in promoting integrity in research and scholarship through courses in ethical conduct of research.
   
3. Serve as the primary advocate for the need of graduate students to be students, so that any service roles they may serve in the university to obtain financial support will be treated as secondary to their need to have time and adequate resources to engage in graduate study. The Graduate School works hard to find the financial and intellectual resources that enable students to successfully complete their degree programs in a timely fashion.
   
4. Play an active role in supporting all aspects of graduate student life, including those that are not precisely academic in nature. We recognize that the quality of a student’s overall life experience while in graduate school is critical to the successful completion of graduate training and to a lifetime of work that can make good use of that training. The Graduate School works with student groups and support offices to promote the interests of graduate students in areas such as financial aid, health care, and counseling. The Graduate School also provides professional development opportunities to explore academic and nonacademic career prospects for recipients of graduate degrees.
   
5. Serve as the main institutional body that oversees and approves all elements related to the matriculation of graduate students in their relevant programs of study. This includes such procedures as monitoring GPA standing, academic appeals, student conduct, and graduation clearance.