Academic Program Update Form

Annual updates to Graduate Application form

Annual cycle for 2023

  • Who: Only Graduate Chairs should submit this form.
  • When: Submit this form by April 30, 2023.  Missing this deadline will delay your ability to start collecting AY 2024-25 apps and may limit available updates.
  • For what: Submit this form once per Plan (major+degree/cert) overseen by your unit, or optionally per Subplan (specialization/endorsement) as needed to specify differing application terms, deadlines, or updates.

Graduate Studies will review and log submissions as they are received.  Simple updates will be completed in April and May.  More complex requests requiring new/modified features will be assessed for feasibility, and if doable, handed off in this year's development batch and implemented later in summer when available.
 

Form instructions
We encourage you to sign into the application as "Just Testing" to review the form as an applicant sees it.  If unfamiliar with "Just Testing" accounts, consult graduate@unl.edu.


Terminology:

  • Required: Applicant must complete item to submit app.
  • Optional: Applicant will see the item but may leave it blank.
  • Not Applicable: The item will not be displayed on the app.
  • No Changes (or no selection): Program's current setting will carry forward; for terms and deadlines, dates will be moved forward one calendar year.
Application Requirements
Dual Degree Wrapper

Examples: "It is helpful to select a specialization (instead of this no-specialization option) even if you don't stay with that specialization." "If your objective is teacher certification--initial, renewal, or adding endorsements--select a program from the Teacher Certification sections instead."

Application Deadlines

These per-term selections are "hard" deadlines, enforced by the form and not displayed publicly. To give yourself flexibility to choose to accept late applications, you may set a "hard" enforced deadline later than your "soft" deadline displayed in Help text or elsewhere. If you have questions about hard vs. soft deadlines, consult Graduate Studies before submitting this form.

Application Deadlines
Fall 2024
Spring 2025
Summer 2025

Example: For financial consideration, apply by for Fall by January 15 or for Spring by October 1.
Example: The priority deadline is January 15; applications submitted after that date may be considered if space is available.

Caution:  "No Changes" selected for one or more terms

  • Confirm that your deadlines are what you expect: check Application Text and Deadlines.
  • "No Changes" means we will add 1 year to the prior year's deadline as displayed on that page.
  • For example, if your Fall deadline is normally January 15 but earlier this year you had OGS change it to March 1 to accommodate a late app, then "No Changes" tells us to set your next Fall deadline to March 1 also.
     
Standardized Tests

Specify test options to be presented to your applicants. <em>Praxis usage was impacted by 2022 legislation and may be subject to further changes in 2023.</em>

Tests Grid

Please supply any waiver text that should be displayed to the applicant on the program selection page.

Specify any other standardized tests that are required or optional.

Documents

Select which file upload fields are presented to your applicants and add any program-specific instructions for applicants to follow, if necessary.

Documents Grid
Resume/CV

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Personal Statement

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Essay

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Teacher Certification Requirements

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Assistantship Application

The Office of Graduate Studies will contact the Graduate Chair and Primary Support Staff for more information. Please include any comments below.

Course Worksheet

The Office of Graduate Studies will contact the Graduate Chair and Primary Support Staff for more information. Please include any comments below.

Portfolio

Describe the new option. We may contact you to work through this proposal. 

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Writing Sample

Describe the new option. We may contact you to work through this proposal. 

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Are there other documents that are required to complete the application.?

Please describe any additional documents required and provide help text regarding these added documents. We may contact you to work through this proposal.

Other Questions

Select which, if any, or the following options you would like presented to your applicants. If there are questions not covered in this form you would like added, please indicate that here.

Other Questions Grid Halves
Campus

(Lincoln/Omaha/No Preference)

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Faculty

Identify the faculty with whom you are interested in working (free text).

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Academic Research

Identify academic research interest (free text).

Please provide any program-specific help text that is needed.

Other Questions

Are there other questions that are required to complete the application?

Please describe any additional questions required. The Office of Graduate Studies may contact you to work through this proposal.

Recommendations and References

Select the number of recommenders/references you would like your applicants to provide. Applicants will be required to submit names and contact information for the minimum number of recommenders/references requested here. 

Letters of Recommendation/References

Example: Two recommenders must be academic (faculty); one must be professional.

Major/Certificate

Provide a passing pitch or description of the program. This is a 'billboard' message in one sentence. This summary is limited to 200 characters.

Provide a brief 'elevator pitch' description of the program. This description is limited to 1500 characters.

Select the master's degree options currently offered. 

Place each position title on a new line.

NOTE: Only use a department email when there is no support staff or graduate chairpersons explicitly listed.

This can be used to include a shared department email for those programs that do not explicitly list support staff or graduate chairpersons.

For example, describe what the Personal Statement should contain.

These "soft" deadlines can differ from the "hard" deadlines enforced by the application.  Example: "Apply for Fall by January 15, or by December 15 for financial consideration." ...and the application could be set to enforce the deadline as February 1.

Specialization

This description is limited to 800 characters. Please include how this specialization relates to the major and why a student might be interested in adding this specialization to their study.

*Note: Course lists will not be included unless they are deemed by Graduate Studies to be pertinent to marketing and recruiting.

Graduate Program Faculty

Each graduate faculty member is allowed one bio link to accompany their directory.unl.edu page.

Use this to revise the areas of expertise for the graduate faculty member. List all the areas that you would like to display. Please place each item on a new line.