Graduate Course Syllabus Guidelines

Faculty teaching courses administered by the Graduate School should develop syllabi that communicate fundamental information about the course, set expectations for students about course requirements and communicate important university policies.

The guidelines below provide suggestions, though the format of and course information in a syllabus are ultimately driven by instructor preference, discipline and department standards, and student needs. The policy statements are standardized to provide official language. Policy statements should be copied and pasted from this website verbatim.

Guidelines for Recommended Course Information

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Primary Course Information

  • Course prefix, catalog number, and title
  • Number of credits
  • Term and year
  • Class meeting days, times, and classroom location
  • Instructor's name, phone number, and email address
  • Office location and office hours
  • Availability by email, phone, and/or in person

Course Description

Course Objectives

  • Learning objectives, goals, and/or outcomes for the course
  • Cross-listed courses must include learning objectives and that clearly describe and distinguish the expectations of undergraduate and graduate students
    • May be overlapping and/or represent different levels of engagement with the same content
    • Must be communicated explicitly for undergraduate and graduate students

Required Resources

  • Books
  • Lab manuals
  • Technology
  • Supplies
  • Any other materials or resources required or recommended for students to complete the course

Course Schedule

  • Tentative course outline
  • Topical focus for class meetings
  • Dates of field trips or guest speakers
  • Dates for examinations
  • Due dates for assignments, papers, projects, and presentations

Evaluating procedures and grading criteria

  • A description of how students' work will be evaluated
  • Weight of assignments
  • How course grades are determined
  • Late submission policy
  • Exam make-up policy

Policy Statements

Faculty may choose to include policy statements in their syllabi. If so, these statements must be included verbatum from the official policy language statements below.

Official Policy Language Statements

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Attendance Policy

Faculty are required to take attendance on the first class meeting following the Add/Swap a Class deadline. Please refer to the academic calendar for the Last Day to Register for Classes: https://www.marquette.edu/mucentral/registrar/cal_index.shtml.

Students with absences due to legal obligations, religious observances, or participation in Division 1 athletics and other university sanctioned events will be given an opportunity to make up examinations or other graded assignments, if a request is made to the instructor prior to the absence.

Withdrawal Deadline

The University deadlines for students to drop a class or to withdraw from a class with a grade of "W" are listed on the Graduate School academic calendar: https://www.marquette.edu/mucentral/registrar/cal_index.shtml

Students with special needs

If you have a disability and require accommodations, please contact your instructor during the first week of class so that your learning needs may be appropriately met. You will need to provide documentation of your disability to the Office of Disability Services. If you are unsure of what you need to qualify for services, visit the Office of Disability Services' website at www.marquette.edu/disability-services or contact their office by phone at (414) 288-1645.

Academic integrity

Students, faculty, and staff at Marquette University recognize the importance of integrity in all aspects of life and work. We commit ourselves to truthfulness, honor, and responsibility by which we earn the respect of others. We support the development of good character in our academic community, and commit to uphold the highest standards of academic integrity as an important aspect of personal integrity. Our commitment obliges us as students, faculty, and staff to conduct ourselves according to the Marquette University Honor Code. We do this in pursuit of Marquette University's mission, which is the search for truth, the discovery and sharing of knowledge, the fostering of personal and professional excellence, the promotion of a life of faith, and the development of leadership expressed in service to others.

Student obligations under the Honor Code:

  1. To fully observe the rules governing exams and assignments regarding resource material, electronic aids, copying, collaborating with others, or engaging in any other behavior that subverts the purpose of the exam or assignment and the directions of the instructor.
  2. To turn in work done specifically for the paper or assignment, and not to borrow work either from other students, or from assignments for other courses, unless approved by the faculty member.
  3. To give full and proper credit to sources and references, and to acknowledge the contributions and ideas of others relevant to academic work.
  4. To report circumstances that may compromise academic honest, such as inattentive proctoring or premature posting of answers.
  5. To complete individual assignments individually, and neither to accept nor give unauthorized help.
  6. To accurately represent their academic achievements, which may include grade point average, degree, honors, etc., in transcripts, in interviews, in professional organizations, on resumes, and in the workplace.
  7. To report any observed breaches of this honor code and academic honesty.

For more information about academic integrity, please visit the Graduate Bulletin at https://bulletin.marquette.edu/grad/policiesofthegraduateschool/#academicintegrity or review the Academic Integrity Tutorial at https://www.marquette.edu/provost/graduate-academic-integrity-tutorial/.

Emergency Plan

Every Marquette University campus building has emergency shelter and evacuation plans. Please familiarize yourself with the plans of each building in which you take classes or attend meetings. Make sure to note the routes to the lowest level of the buildings for shelter during inclement weather, as well as exits from the building in the event of fire or other emergency.