Continuing on for a PhD after the Master's or changing degree programs requires a petition for current graduate students in the department. Depending on what is desired, there are differences in terms of the required supporting documentation and in how the petition is processed. These procedures are described below.

In all cases, the petition and all the required supporting material should be submitted electronically to the departmental advising office (grad-advisor@cs.tamu.edu). The student will be notified by the advising office when the departmental committee has made a decision. If the petition is approved, then the student should proceed to file the necessary petitions required by the Office of Graduate Studies to change their degree objective.

Upgrades:   Continuing on for a Ph.D. after the Master's, or Changing from a Master's program to a Ph.D. program or from a non-thesis Master's to a thesis Master's program

Continuing on for a Ph.D. after the Master's, or changes from a course-work only masters (MCS or MEN) to a thesis masters program (MS) or from a masters degree program (MCS, MEN or MS) to a Ph.D. program will be handled by the Graduate Admissions and Awards Committee (GAAC). The committee will evaluate the application as they do the other applications to that degree program.

Petitions for degree "upgrades" should include the materials listed below. They should be submitted electronically to the advising office at grad-advisor@cs.tamu.edu. The advising office will communicate the committee's decision to the student.

• A statement of purpose for the desired degree program.
• A current vitae.
• 3 letters of recommendation from senior faculty in the Department (additional letters can be provided if the student desires). These letters should be submitted by the recommender directly to the advising office, preferably electronically to grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu.

Downgrades:   Changes from a PhD program to a masters program, or from a thesis masters to a non-thesis masters program

Changes from a Ph.D. program to a masters degree program, or from a thesis masters program (MS) to a course-work only masters (MCS or MEN) will be handled by the Graduate Advisory Committee (GAC). Students should be aware that petitions for such changes in degree objective are normally granted only in exceptional cases, such as the advisor leaving, significant personal hardship, etc. Also, students should understand that such petitions are rarely granted if the student has received financial support from the department in terms of an assistantship or a scholarship.

Petitions for degree "downgrades" should include the materials listed below. They should be submitted electronically to the advising office at grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu. The advising office will communicate the committee's decision to the student.

• A statement from the student describing why they feel they need to change degree programs.
• A statement from the student's advisor, if they have one, commenting on the student's proposed change.
• A listing of the support the student received during each semester they were enrolled in our graduate program. Include assistantships, fellowships, and scholarships, and for each item, list the source of support and, if applicable, the supervisor.

Note: If the reason the student wishes to change is that they could not find an advisor, then the committee will want to know that the student put in a good faith effort to find an advisor. The student should describe this in the statement.

Updated January 8, 2009