Special consideration may be given to awarding a degree to an undergraduate student not meeting the criteria above or a graduate/professional student due to extraordinary or rare circumstances that prevented progress towards degree completion. These situations are extremely rare and unusual and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
Requests for degrees granted under special circumstances which describe the extraordinary and rare circumstances may be initiated by the student, if applicable, the student’s family, the
faculty of the department/school/college, or an MSU administrator. Requests from the student, if applicable, and/or student’s family should be made to the department/school/college for initial review. The Provost will be notified by the Dean or Vice Provost for Undergraduate or Graduate Education of the request for a Degree Granted under Special Circumstances. Requests require approval of the respective Dean, the Provost, and the President. If approved, the degree will be noted, as appropriate, as either “Posthumous” or “Degree Granted under Special Circumstances” on the transcript.