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In grad school, I got a C+ in one required course. The program gave me credit for the class anyway and awarded me my master's degree. I am now concerned that this was a mistake and my degree could be revoked.

I recently asked the chair about this and she pointed me to the policy (via the Graduate Bulletin), which states that up to three Cs are allowed (I only have the one). But I think she might be incorrect about this; I am not sure whether there is a policy that states grades below a B- could not count towards a degree in a separate policy (like admission to candidacy).

If it turns out that the chair is wrong, could my degree be revoked? I'm aware of this canonical question, but it doesn't cover clerical errors.

zzmondo1
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    It seems a bit strange to say "I am not sure whether there is a policy saying X is false" when the chair has already shown you that there is a policy saying X is true. But regardless, the underlying (title) question is interesting; could make a nice addition to our wiki on degree revocation. – cag51 Mar 28 '23 at 02:01
  • I made an edit that specifies admission to candidacy requirements. The only policy was 3.0 GPA and passing all of the classes (which I did). I see where you are coming from though. Hopefully, this can be helpful you all regardless. – zzmondo1 Mar 28 '23 at 02:12
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    It's not like universities, every few years, go through old files just to make sure degrees were awarded according to the rules of the time. Unless someone complains about it, nobody will ever look -- regardless of whether there was or wasn't a clerical error. – Wolfgang Bangerth Mar 28 '23 at 03:57
  • One thing I'm not clear on after reading several versions of the questions: Are you now in a Ph.D. program at the same institution/department that awarded the master's degree, and is the master's degree considered part of your graduate program there? Or is there more separation between the two programs? – Anyon Mar 28 '23 at 13:08
  • I am at a Ph. D institution different than the one that awarded my Master's degree. My Master's degree was considered accepted since it's in the same field as my Ph.D. So, they are the same field but are different programs at the end of the day. – zzmondo1 Mar 28 '23 at 13:20
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    If the policy explicitly states that "up to 3 C grades allowed", why do you believe this is false or doesn't apply to you? I'm really struggling to understand your problem, unless there're some core details missing. – Neinstein Mar 28 '23 at 16:21
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    This question is vastly improved from the original version I commented on, thank you, but I still cannot make sense of it. The policy is <= 3 Cs are acceptable, you have 1 C which is < 3, your chair pointed you to the policy but even after seeing the policy and hearing it directly from the chair you don't believe it because...why? What would convince you that you are okay? – Bryan Krause Mar 28 '23 at 16:58
  • I think cag51 called out the flaw in my approach, which was confirming that a certain policy did NOT exist. In any case, I obtained confirmation that such a policy did not exist from the program director (who was still around when I was in my program), so I feel better now. – zzmondo1 Mar 28 '23 at 20:35

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Degree revocation is governed by the rules of the degree-granting institution and by the legal system in the country's jurisdiction. They are usually limited to cases of academic misconduct and follow a fixed procedure.

What you are describing is a case where the degree granting university would have applied their own rules incorrectly. In this case, the legal system would provide resources against a degree revocation as the contractual relationship between student and university would be breached. Details would of course depend on the jurisdiction.

However, given that they have a policy to accept up to three classes with a C, given that the chair has assured you that there was no problem with your admission, there is just no danger of degree revocation based on your one C+.

Any reasonable institution would decide that going back on their decision (to admit you) because they suddenly re-interpret or re-write the rule would be a very dangerous and stupid move and probably illegal.

Thomas Schwarz
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  • I am in the US in case that helps. Thank you for your answer. I also got confirmation from my program director so I'm a lot calmer. I also saw my question was closed and the reason is understandable so I hope this goes through and you see it. – zzmondo1 Mar 28 '23 at 17:01