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 897 and LING 899 are for master’s students only. LING 997 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 997 Doctoral Dissertation
Students who have completed their required 90 credits and are in the fourth year of their program, or students who will reach their 90 credits in their fourth year with less than 9 credits left may, with the approval of the Dean of GEPA, register for LING 997 Doctoral Dissertation.
This registration category serves to maintain full-time in-residency status for the student but does not carry an associated fee or tuition. (LING 997 doesn't bear any credits, but it “automatically” gives students full-time status.) It doesn’t count towards the required number of credits.
LING 997 can only be used one time. No exceptions!
Under this registration category, students remain eligible for federal student loans and university sponsored health insurance.
LING 999 Doctoral Dissertation
From the fifth year onwards, students who have completed their 90 credits must register for LING 999 Doctoral Dissertation, which does the same thing as LING 997 (“automatically” gives students full-time status), but LING 999 has a fee/tuition attached. The fee as of AY23-24 is $1,070. If a student registers for LING 999 in their fifth year, the dissertation fee is covered by GEPA; however, if a student registers for LING 999 after their fifth year, the dissertation fee is not covered by GEPA. Some departments cover this fee, and others don’t. As of AY23-24, the Department of Linguistics is not able to cover students’ dissertation fees.
Under this registration category, students remain eligible for federal student loans and university sponsored health insurance.
Frequently asked questions
Although it's not technically tuition, the dissertation fee—also sometimes called a continuation fee—is considered tuition in this instance.
If a student is registered for LING 999 in their fifth year, the dissertation fee is covered by GEPA as a part of the student's funding package, just as if the student were taking a normal course in their first four years.
After a student's fifth year, the dissertation fee associated with LING 999 will not be covered by GEPA. Some departments take on this expense, and some don't. As of AY23-24, the Department of Linguistics is not able to pay students' dissertation fees.
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.
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.
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.