Attention:
Doctoral Students and Graduate Departments

MSU policy requires PhD students to be registered in at least one credit during the semester in which the final oral examination is taken. Due to the current restrictions associated with COVID-19, students may not be able to complete their scheduled defenses. This form (fillable PDF - please download form to allow electronic signatures) should only be used for doctoral students who are unable to defend their dissertation during the Spring 2021 semester due to COVID-19 restrictions.

IMPORTANT NOTE for International Students: If an international student’s expected graduation date is extended, please make sure the program end date on your immigration document (I20 or DS2019) is not earlier than the new expected graduation date. Because OISS used an estimated program end date when they issue the initial I20, some students may be fine. Others however may need to have their program end date extended. An extension is a fairly straightforward process done by OISS, but it MUST BE DONE BEFORE the end date on your current immigration document. Trying to do an extension after the end date on the immigration document is a complicated and sometime results in the student needing to leave the US and reenter at a later date.