General Graduate Studies Requirements The applicant for a graduate program must have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher in an institution accredited by one of the six recognized regional accrediting associations. The six associations are Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Foreign institutions which may not be formally accredited by United States accrediting agencies must be recognized by the Ministry of Education in the country where the institution is located as maintaining high academic standards. A student transferring from another graduate school must have at least a 3.0 (A=4.0) grade point average on all graduate work attempted. Application Admission application forms may be obtained by writing the Office of Admissions and Records, University of Houston-Victoria, 3007 N. Ben Wilson, Victoria, Texas 77901, emailing admissions@uhv.edu, or telephoning 361-570-4110 or toll-free 1-877-970-4848, ext. 110, or downloading and printing an application from www.uhv.edu/oar. The Texas Common Application may be submitted by students who are U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents (LPR) of the United States. To access the Texas Common Application, see the website at www.applytexas.org. International students are not eligible to submit the Texas Common Application, and must submit the UHV application. The application for admission and supporting credentials should be on file as early as possible to ensure time for processing before registration. A student must file a new application for a future semester if the student does not enroll for the semester indicated on the original application. Transcripts One official transcript of all undergraduate and graduate work must be sent directly to the Office of Admissions and Records of UH-Victoria from each institution attended. The single exception is that applicants holding a master’s degree from an accredited institution are required to submit only the official transcript from the U.S. institution which granted the master’s degree. Although unofficial documents may be accepted for course registration purposes, official transcripts showing the last semester of course work and degree earned must be received in the registrar’s office by the 12th day of classes during the fall and spring semesters and by the 4th day of classes during the summer terms. In no case can a student’s application for graduate studies be considered until all transcripts and scores are received. Processing of transcripts of students currently enrolled can begin if not more than one semester of course work is outstanding. The applicant who submits an incomplete transcript must submit a complete official transcript showing the latest semester of course work attempted and the degree earned not later than the 12th class day of a fall or spring semester or the 4th class day of a summer term. Test Scores The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) General Test, or Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is required of all applicants applying for graduate admission. Applicants to the M.Ed. Counseling Program may substitute the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) and applicants to Business Administration must take the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). For students taking the GRE, only verbal and quantitative sections of the General Test are used for determining graduate eligibility. Applicants holding a master’s degree or higher from an accredited institution are not required to submit test scores. Test scores must be sent directly from the testing agency to the Office of Admissions and Records of UH-Victoria. Scores no longer being reported will not be accepted and the student must retake the exam. Information concerning the GRE, GMAT and MAT tests may be obtained from the Office of Admissions and Records or from the testing companies. For GRE call (609) 771-7670, access website at www.gre.org or write Graduate Record Examinations, Educational Testing Service, P.O. Box 6000, Princeton, NJ 08541-6000. For GMAT, Call (609) 771-7330, access website at www.gmac.org or write Graduate Management Admission Test, Educational Testing Service, P.O. Box 6103, Princeton, NJ 08541-6103. For MAT, call 1-800-622-3231 or write The Psychological Corporation, 555 Academic Court, San Antonio, TX 78204-2956. The institutional code number for UHV is 6917 for the GMAT and GRE. Beginning January 3, 2006, the GMAT program code for University of Houston-Victoria will be changed from 6917 to XTI-GJ-55. Requirements for Graduate Admission Students are considered for admission to graduate programs on the basis of an admission index, as indicated below. The academic schools may have additional criteria for certain degree programs and may consider admitting students whose indices are below the minimum but within the range specified. The admission index results from a combination of the following: Grade point average (GPA) over at least the last 60 hours multiplied by 200. Verbal score plus quantitative score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or equivalent scores on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or Miller Analogies Test (MAT).   Admission index of 1,400 or higher: Students are admitted, so long as they meet any additional criteria specific to a particular degree program. Admission index below the 1400    minimum but not lower than 1300:   Students may be admitted by the dean of the school, considering scores on the analytical portion of the GRE (or equivalent), grades in a particular relevant courses, or other relevant indicators of a students potential to succeed in a given graduate degree program. Such admission may be conditional or probationary with initial course work specified.   Students rejected for admission to a graduate program may appeal to the Academic Council (c/o the Registrar). Appeals must specify the program and cite evidence of ability to complete its academic and professional requirements. If you do not meet 1) the minimum GPA and test score or 2) the 1400 admissions index, you do not meet the minimum admission requirements. The dean of the school of your major may make an exception as long as your admissions index is at least 1300. You should base your appeal on your academic record, related experience and notable achievements that attest to your ability to complete a graduate degree. The academic school will respond to you in writing, approving or denying your appeal and stating any conditions that apply to you. In addition to submitting official transcripts (see previous section on transcripts for admission requirements) and test scores, applicants are required to submit supporting documents, as specified by the relevant degree program. See the appropriate school section of this catalog for supporting documents required. Possible documents may include: • A letter of application and/or resume • A recommendation from a practicing professional in the field of study or a related field • A personal essay Applicants also may have to complete prescribed courses prior to admission to the degree program. Please see the particular degree program in this catalog for an explanation of the specific admission requirements for that program. Applications and all supporting documents should be sent to the Office of Admissions and Records at the university. That office determines whether the application is complete and meets the minimal admissions index. It then forwards the file to the relevant academic school. The school reviews the index and supporting qualitative documents and approves or disapproves admission. See the relevant school section in this catalog for specific program requirements. An applicant who has earned a baccalaureate degree after electing to enroll under the “academic fresh start” will have only the courses and grades earned after that enrollment date used in computing the grade point average. No more than 12 credit hours of graduate-level courses completed prior to admission will count toward fulfillment of graduate program requirements. If you are a postbaccalaureate student who wishes only to take certain graduate courses, you should request “temporary graduate student’ admission on your application. As a temporary graduate student, you may take up to 12 credit hours of graduate course work. If you are later admitted to a graduate program, applicable graduate courses you have taken, up to a maximum of 12 credit hours successfully completed within the previous 10 years or the period specified by the degree program, will be included on your degree plan as approved by the school. (Note that all grades in courses applicable to the degree count when a student gains admission to a graduate program.) International students must also meet the requirements for international admission as outlined in this catalog and the International Student Information Brochure. English Proficiency Requirement All graduate students are expected to be proficient in the use of English. Further information concerning English proficiency requirements may be found in the general Admissions section of this catalog. If an applicant for graduate admission demonstrates that he or she satisfies any of the 4 criteria stated for TOEFL exemption, no other evidence or examination is required for admission purposes. Readmission of Former Students A former student of UH-Victoria is not required to file a new application for admission. A former student must submit transcripts from all colleges attended since the last enrollment at UH-Victoria. If the student has earned less than a 2.0 (A=4.0) average over all work completed since attending UH-Victoria, or left the last institution on probation, the student may be readmitted to the university on probation. A student who is not eligible to return immediately to any former institution(s) will not be considered for readmission.