Cratis D. Williams School of Graduate Studies

To officially complete your program, you MUST apply to graduate even if you don't plan to attend the commencement ceremony. You are eligible to apply for graduation if you have completed or will complete ALL of your program's graduation requirements, including internship, comprehensive exam, product of learning, and thesis/dissertation, by the end of the term.

It is your responsibility to monitor your DegreeWorks record to make sure you have met all of the requirements for your graduate program. Your advisor's role is to assist you. Once you apply to graduate, the Graduate School will perform a graduation audit and you will receive an email explaining what remains to be completed if there are shortages. If you see unexpected shortages in your record, you should talk to your program director.

The University of North Carolina requires that graduate degree-seeking students be enrolled for at least one credit hour during the semester in which they graduate. If you are not enrolled during the semester in which you plan to graduate, the Graduate School will automatically enroll you for one hour of graduate research credit (GRD 5989/7989). The tuition and fees charged for this one-credit course will be based on your student status and your program's campus location (i.e., tuition depends on whether you are a North Carolina resident.  Fees depend on whether your program is a Boone campus program or an online program.  Where applicable, the tuition differential for selected programs applies. Non-residents will be charged at the out-of-state tuition rate).

All students must submit an application to graduate from a degree or certificate program. If you are graduating from multiple programs, you MUST submit a separate application for EACH program. Follow these instructions to submit your application in AppalNet by the below application deadline.

If you will not finish all requirements in the term for which you applied and need to move your graduation application, or if you need to make any changes to your application after it has been submitted, please contact graduaterecs@appstate.edu.

Deadlines and Fees

It is recommended that students apply early in the semester in which they plan to graduate. Each application requires a non-refundable/non-transferrable application fee of $20. A late fee of $5 will be assessed on all applications submitted after the initial deadlines. Applications submitted after the final deadline WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED and graduation will be deferred to a later term. Note: The application for graduation will be closed for billing purposes on the first business day following the deadline dates noted below.

The signed paperwork documenting successful completion of the comprehensive exam and the product of learning must be received by the Graduate School at least 1 day before final exams begin in the semester of graduation. All other work (classwork, internship, proficiency, etc.) must be completed no later than the official date of graduation for that semester, as set by the Registrar.