Placeholders and Full-Time Status for PhD Students
The following dissertation policies detail how PhD students should register as they approach the end of their program. LING 895, LING 897, and LING 899 are for master’s students only. LING 995 and LING 999 are for PhD students only.
LING 995 Continuation of Doctoral Enrollment
Students who are not actively working on their degree requirements (such as during a period when relevant courses are not offered) and are enrolled solely to satisfy the continuous enrollment requirement should be registered for LING 995 Continuation of Doctoral Enrollment.
This registration category is considered less than half-time enrollment for all reporting purposes. It does not satisfy the government requirement for F1 and J1 students to maintain full-time status and will require students to obtain advance permission for a Reduced Course Load, if eligible.
LING 995 has a fee attached to it that must be paid by the student regardless of where they are in their program or what their funding is. This registration category does not qualify students for federal student loans or university sponsored health insurance.
LING 999 Doctoral Dissertation
PhD students may register for LING 999, a placeholder course, to maintain full-time status in specific situations:
Nearing the 90-credit requirement: Students with fewer than 9 credits remaining to meet the 90-credit program requirement.
Exceeding the 90-credit requirement: Students who have completed the 90-credit requirement and are no longer eligible to register for additional credits.
Within the first five years of the program, the dissertation fee/tuition for LING 999 is fully covered by the student’s funding package. Beyond the fifth year, the student is responsible for paying the dissertation fee/tuition associated with LING 999.
Under this registration category, students remain eligible for federal student loans and university sponsored health insurance.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay for the dissertation fee that comes with LING 999?
Within the first five years of the program, the dissertation fee/tuition for LING 999 is fully covered by the student’s funding package. Beyond the fifth year, the student is responsible for paying the dissertation fee/tuition associated with LING 999.
When do I register for a course with my advisor vs. with the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS)?
Courses you'd register for with your advisor as the instructor include LING 591 PhD Reading in Linguistics and LING PhD Research in Linguistics.
The only courses you'd register for with the DGS as the instructor, regardless of who your advisor is are placeholder courses including LING 997 Doctoral Dissertation and LING 999 Doctoral Dissertation.
More information on placeholder policies can be found in the policies section above.
If a student can't finish their PhD by the end of their 5th year, can they apply to be funded for a 6th year?
GEPA firmly only allows PhD stipend funding and tuition coverage for five years. After that period, the financial package expires and PhD students must cover their own expenses.
It's not common practice for the department to cover dissertation fees after the initial five years, and it's expected that students will seek external funding for any year past the fifth one.
If I receive external funding during my first five years, can I receive university funding after the initial five years?
PhD funding packages last five full academic years. GEPA doesn't allow any exceptions for funding to be extended past the five years.
If you receive external funding within the first five years, that doesn't mean because the university isn't paying you that you can make up for those years afterwards. (i.e. if you receive a year of external funding during the first five years, you can't receive a year of university funding after the five years to make up for missing out on that one year of university funding.)
If you want funding for an additional year, you'd either have to get an extension on the external funding you received in your first five years when the time comes or try to find other external funding.