SUBMITTING THE PLAN A PAPER
Deadlines: no later than the 20th day of the intended graduation month. For example:
Spring Completion: May 20
Summer Completion: July 20
Fall completion: December 20
*Students who do not meet this deadline will not graduate until the following month
Graduation Packet – should already have this packet!!
- Application for Degree – complete, sign, & submit to HHH 280 (not onestop) by the last
day of month PRIOR to the month you will finish
- Reviewer’s Report form (see below)
- Formatting guidelines – CAREFULLY follow ALL formatting guidelines provided in the
Graduation Packet http://www.hhh.umn.edu/students/forms/pdf/plan_a_guidelines.pdf
Schedule oral exam – as soon as Reviewer’s Report form is approved; all committee members
MUST be physically present; reserve exam room (through front desk in 130)
Example timeline for oral exam scheduled for May 1
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Two weeks before oral, give paper to reviewer’s: April 15
At the same time (April 15) review the formatting requirements for Plan A thesis.
Getting formatting revisions made ahead of time allows you to concentrate on content
revisions after your oral exam.
Committee members and chair sign Reviewer’s Report form after reading the paper draft
to verify that you are eligible to defend your paper in the oral exam; form MUST be
signed PRIOR to oral (May 1)
AFTER obtaining committee signatures on Reviewer’s Report form and BEFORE your
oral exam (so there may only be a 1-day turnaround), go to 316 Johnston with signed
Reviewer’s Report for.
Take Examination Report Master’s Degree form to oral exam.
After oral exam, almost always, revisions will be required; committee members usually
sign the Examination Report Master’s Degree form verifying that you have passed the
oral exam, but the chair of committee HOLDS the form until final revisions have been
submitted and approved by chair.
All revisions and items below must be COMPLETE by May 20 for a May degree
conferral.
If you think you might need longer than May 20, DO NOT ASSUME FACULTY ARE
AVAILABLE!!! CHECK WITH YOUR COMMITTEE!
Submitting the completed paper
From this point on, ignore the Graduate School directions about submitting your paper to them.
Graduate Student Services will collect all your forms and your paper and submit them to the
Graduate School on your behalf.
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
Five items are required by the Humphrey School to document completion of your Plan A paper.
IMPORTANT: Without all five items, you will not be approved for degree conferral.
1. Digital Conservancy Agreement form – submit to HHH 280 (hard copy) with items 2, 3, 4
 The Digital Conservancy Agreement Form must be signed by the paper author
 The form is available at http://www.hhh.umn.edu/students/forms/library.html
2. Title Page – submit to HHH 280 (hard copy) with items 1, 3, & 4
 Title Page must follow the required format (see sample format at
http://www.hhh.umn.edu/students/forms/library.html.)
3. Signature Page – submit to HHH 280 (original, signed, hard copy) with items 1, 2, & 4
 A specially designed signature page, with a sketch of Northrop Auditorium in the
background, is available online.
 The paper advisor (aka committee chair) must sign the Signature Page to verify
completion of final paper, including all revisions.
 The Signature Page must include the ORIGINAL signature – no scanned, copied, or
faxed signatures, no exceptions!!
4. Examination Report Master’s Degree form – submit to HHH 280 (hard copy) with items 1,
2, & 3
 This form was included in your graduation packet.
 If your committee requires revisions to your paper after your oral exam, your paper
advisor will hold your Examination Report Form until the final, fully revised paper has
been received and approved.
 When your paper has been approved, bring this form to HHH 280 (do not take it directly
to the Graduate School, as stated on the form).
5. Electronic copy of final Plan A thesis – email to mixon005@umn.edu
 The final paper should be emailed as a word doc or pdf attachment.
 The document should include a title page, per instructions in the Graduate School
formatting guide.
Thesis Hold Request (“embargo”)
If you are hoping to publish your work in the near future, you may request that the public
availability of the work through the Digital Conservancy be delayed for a limited period of time.
All submission requirements described above must still be followed (to have your degree
conferred), but additional steps to request a Thesis Hold may be found at
http://www.grad.umn.edu/current_students/masters/submission.html (see section titled “Thesis
Hold Request”). Confer with Joel Mixon in HHH Graduate Student Services before taking
action. mixon005@umn.edu, 612.626.9986
**For Spring Completion, please note that faculty may be unavailable after May 27. Do NOT
assume that your paper advisor and committee members will be available in the summer!!!
Pay close attention to your Degree Completion table/checklist for other important information:
http://www.hhh.umn.edu/students/DegreeCompletion.html