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When you have completed your certification, you should print a copy of the
document for committee signatures and final approval by our office and the Chair.
Our office will only take paper copies of this document for approval. If you have
any questions about this form, give Jim Miller a call at 262-9206 or email at
jemiller@wisc.edu.
Initial Course Work Proposal
By the end of a student’s first year of course work they will, in consultation
with their major professor, have completed their initial course work proposal.
By the end of a student’s second year of course work, they will have finalized
their course work proposal and identified all five members of their committee.
When you have completed the initial course work proposal, please keep a copy
for your-self (to aid in creating your certification) and turn in the original to the
Academic Programs Office in Room 70 Science Hall.
A Ph.D. candidate who has completed graduate course work at another
institution may request from the advisor and committee members that this work
be used to fulfill Environment and Resources Program requirements. This
request is usually made at the time of certification, and should be discussed
with the advisor and committee members as soon as possible. Graduate courses
taken at another institution will not fulfill the Graduate School’s minimum
credit requirement.
Environment and Resources Program Ph.D. Degree Final Course Work Proposal Checklist
Before submitting your program certification form, please review its content with respect to the items listed below. These are required
elements. Please do not turn in your certification if any of these are missing:
Every section (A-F) has been completed and/or attached.
All courses are listed, along with semester credits, semester/year taken or anticipated, and grades. Seminars, special topics
courses, and independent study courses are defined with specific titles. Each course is listed only once (except for the double
counted Category 4 courses), and credit totals meet the requirements of each category.
Courses are listed in the most appropriate category. (Note: Although the Environment and Resources course list is a useful
guide in choosing courses, it is by no means an all-inclusive list. However, the courses that are defined for a specific category
according to the course list should not be placed in other categories unless specific reasons for exceptions can be demonstrated.)
Up to 9 credits can be double counted between a breadth category and Category 4: Individual Program Focus. (Please
indicate what courses you are double counting with a #.)
The seminars in Category 4 are labeled as such. The courses that you are using for your seminars in Category 4 should be
marked with a % symbol. The seminar courses DO NOT count towards the 15 credits in Category 4.
All courses listed are graduate-level courses. (Undergraduate-level courses or courses taken as an undergraduate may not be
used to meet program requirements.)
Except for research credits, no more than two credits of "S" graded course work are included on the course list. (All
students are expected to be aware of the program guidelines for satisfactory progress, as described on the program website.
Courses that fall outside of these guidelines should not be included in the course list except as background courses. Courses that
are graded pass/fail, credit/no credit, or audit may not be used to satisfy program requirements.)
All courses taken as a Special Student are labeled as such. (Note: their use is at the discretion of your faculty advisory
committee and the program chair.)
All courses applied toward the Ph.D. degree that were taken before the master's degree was posted are identified as
master's degree credits on the course list. (Normally, no more than 24 credits of such work may be applied toward the Ph.D.
degree unless your committee requests that an exception be considered.)
All course work taken at another institution is labeled as such, and current transcripts are attached; and the credit value of
these courses reflects the credit value of courses taken on this campus. (UW-Madison credits are based on a 16-week
semester. Semesters that are significantly shorter or that are based on the quarter system should be translated into credit values
comparable to UW-Madison; e.g., a quarter hour is about 2/3 of a semester hour.)
Transcripts for international course work, if used to satisfy program requirements, are attached and accompanied by an
official English translation, including conversions of grades into values comparable to UW-Madison grades.
Any requests for exceptions to the above requirements should be made by attaching a memo of support that has been
drafted and signed by the members of your advisory committee. Include copies of course syllabi or any other information that
relates to your request.
Keep in mind that completion of this certification process does not, by itself, ensure completion of the minimum credit
requirement of the Graduate School. All students should be aware of the Graduate School's minimum credit requirement.
ENVIRONMENT AND RESOURCES PH.D. INITIAL COURSE WORK PROPOSAL
Student Name:
ID#:
Major Advisor:
SECTION C.
COURSE LIST
List all courses and seminars that you wish counted or considered in this program. Include department name, course number, title, number
of credits, semester/year taken and grade (if completed). Include name of college/university (or abbreviation) if different from UWMadison. Star (*) courses that are listed for background but not credit; do not include these in the credit totals. Specify course work taken
as a special student, or M.S. course work being counted toward Ph.D. program requirements.
If you are requesting the use of graduate courses from another institution, please identify these as such. The credit value of this work
should reflect the credit value of course work done on this campus (e.g., the value of UW-Madison's credits is based on a 16-week
semester). The initial course work proposal should be filed with the Nelson Institute Academic Programs Office by the end of the student’s
first year.
Dept
Course#
Course Title (be specific)
CATEGORY 1: Natural Science - (Ph.D. requires 9 credits)
CATEGORY 2: Social Science/Humanities - (Ph.D. requires 9 credits)
CATEGORY 3: Measurement and Analysis - (Ph.D. requires 9 credits)
Semester Credits Sem/Yr
Grade
Dept
Course#
Course Title (be specific)
Semester Credits Sem/Yr
Grade
CATEGORY 4: Individual Program Focus - (Ph.D. requires 15 course credits plus two seminars and a variable number of
research credits; Category 4 course work can be continued on the back of this form or on a separate sheet of paper. Up to 9
credits can be double counted with a breadth category, please indicate the double counted courses with a #)
Reviewed by Major Advisor:
Signature
Date