Skip to main content

Graduate Division Policies

The IU School of Medicine Graduate School has established official policies for graduate students, and students are expected to follow professional standards of employment. Some aspects of program participation (including time off and vacations) are left to the discretion of the student’s mentor. The program advisor or departmental chair may be consulted if necessary.

Continuous Enrollment

PhD students must be continually registered each semester until the degree is conferred and also for the semester in which the degree is conferred. For PhD students, continual enrollment means registration for the summer session as well. Failure to observe the registration requirements may lead to non-payment of stipend checks for students on fellowships or to the withholding social security taxes from checks of student assistantships (who are viewed as employees for tax purposes if not enrolled as a full-time student). The total number of credit hours above the minimum can be decided upon between the mentor and student (and fellowship director if applicable).

Vacation/Time-Off Policy

The IU School of Medicine Graduate Division has established an official vacation/personal/medical/time-off policy for graduate students. The amount of time off and vacations are left at the discretion of the student’s mentor; the program advisor or departmental chair may be consulted if necessary. An institutional policy for maternity/paternity leave, which is six weeks, is available on the human resources website as a guide.

Credit Transfer

A student with prior graduate training may transfer up to 30 hours of non-research courses with a grade of “A” or “B” with approval of the Advisory Committee and the Graduate School.