Degree Completion

The Graduate College Master’s Degree – General Requirements Policy describes criteria for completion of the Master’s degree.  

At Bowling Green State University (BGSU), all master’s degree programs must include a culminating experience that provides students an opportunity to synthesize knowledge and experiences gained throughout the master’s program.  The Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission (FEPAC) further requires that each master’s student must complete an independent research or capstone project that contributes to the knowledge base of forensic science and is focused on a forensically relevant topic, preferably of a nature to have practical, real-world impacts on operational forensic laboratories. The research/capstone project shall culminate in a thesis or written report of publishable quality.  In addition, FEPAC also requires that each student must present the results of the work orally, in a public forum, before the committee.  While the student will present the results of their work orally, in a public forum, before the committee, the defense is closed to spectators.  The committee may allow for streaming of student’s final presentation to a virtual audience; however, the student is required to attend the defense live/in-person before their committee, not virtually.  While notes are acceptable for the presentation of the student’s research, the defense is an oral examination to determine whether the student has obtained mastery of the topic, and as such, must be completed without the use of notes, reference materials, or a computer.   

Prerequisites & Registration: 

MSFS students must register for and successfully complete the Research Proposal Writing course (FSCI 6790) at least the semester prior to registering for Thesis Research (FSCI 6990).  Students must complete and submit the signed “Thesis Topic Approval Form” prior to registering for FSCI 6990.  Furthermore, students must register for no fewer than three and no more than six credit hours total of thesis research (FSCI 6990) as part of their degree program. Once students begin their thesis research by registering for FSCI 6990, they must continue to register for FSCI 6990 every semester until graduation.  Generally, all MSFS students will complete at least three semesters of FSCI 6990: two semesters when the bulk of their research is taking place and at least one semester for thesis preparation and defense. Please note the following are excerpts from the Graduate College Policies, which detail the requirements for committee formation and the thesis topic approval:

“You and your department's graduate coordinator should work together to select an advisor (also called "major professor") and a thesis or dissertation committee… The minimum size for a thesis committee is two (the advisor and one additional member), and for a dissertation committee, four (the advisor, two additional members, and the outside graduate faculty member).  Although there is no maximum committee size, keep in mind that large committees are cumbersome and may make it more difficult to complete the process.”   

(Please note, the requirement for the MSFS program is a minimum or three committee members.) 

Topic Approval (Master’s Thesis):

1. Identify your thesis advisor and the other members of your committee.
2. Decide on a topic through discussions with your advisor and committee members.
3. Secure departmental approval of the topic, according to the department's procedures.
4. Secure Graduate College approval of the topic and committee membership by submitting the Topic Approval Form with signatures of your committee members and departmental graduate coordinator.

**The Topic Approval Form describing the selected topic must be signed by your advisor, all committee members, the departmental Graduate Coordinator, and the Dean of the Graduate College.**

**Master's students must have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 at the time of topic approval. **

Students wishing to complete a library-based thesis research option may do so.  However, all students should consult their advisor regarding their degree completion plans prior to enrollment in FSCI 6790.  Students who do not successfully complete or pass the Research Proposal Writing course (FSCI 6790), don’t meet the university’s minimum GPA requirements for the submission of the Topic Approval Form (i.e. students must have a minimum 3.0 GPA in order to submit the topic approval form), or whose committee members do not endorse or recommend that they proceed with the research proposal submitted for FSCI 6790, may be required to complete remediation through enrollment in FSCI 6820.  The student’s committee will set requirements for mitigation as part of FSCI 6820, which may include re-writing and/or re-defending the research proposal. Note: Attendance and participation in weekly Research Group Meetings (typically scheduled for Friday afternoons) is required for all MSFS graduate students during the time that they are enrolled in FSCI 6990.  Students may be doing full thesis research, laboratory or other projects, or writing a paper, but all of us need to be informed of what’s going on in the lab space, deadlines, complications, and issues.  We will also use this time for you to practice your oral communication skills by discussing/presenting on your progress and/or brainstorm troubleshooting ideas in a seminar format.

Thesis Committee and University Forms:   

To obtain topic approval for a master’s thesis at BGSU, a student must prepare and present a written proposal outlining a plan for conducting original research in the field, following standards within the student’s program, and have an approved “Thesis Topic Approval Form” on file in the Graduate College.  Each student is required to have a committee of at least three individuals who are responsible for mentoring the project.  All three members of the student’s committee shall have forensic science experience.  One member of the student’s research committee must be a full-time faculty member of the program.  The other two members can include full- or part-time faculty, forensic practitioners, and others with specialized knowledge.  At least one member of the committee shall be external to the department sponsoring the research.  Committee members must be granted Graduate Faculty Status through BGSU.  In order to obtain Graduate Faculty Status, generally, non-BGSU faculty must minimally possess a master’s degree or be similarly qualified through “Tested Experience”.  Students will select their committee members as part of the Research Proposal Writing course (FSCI 6790), prior to their proposal defense.   Students who successfully defend their research proposal will be directed to seek approval to register for FSCI 6990 from their research advisor and to complete and submit the “Thesis Topic Approval Form”, which can be found on the Graduate College website, under Documents and Forms. 

External Representatives on Thesis Committees

Often, students will request that a non-BGSU affiliated person serve on their thesis committee. This could be for a number of reasons, including:

a. By request/requirement of the department/school

b. Expertise of a faculty member at another institution

c. Expertise of a professional in a field outside of the university. Instructions on gaining necessary access/approvals:

1. The first step will be requesting Graduate Faculty Status (GFS) for the external representative.

a. This step will be initiated by the chair of the department/school director. They will begin the form to request GFS.

i. To find the form, go to “Graduate Faculty Status Forms.” Utilize the “Adjunct Courtesy Appointment” form.

ii. The chair/school director will initiate the form, and they must know the external rep’s name and email address. The form will be routed to the nominee (external rep), and they will need to upload a current CV. After that, the form is routed to:

1. Chair of department or school director

2. Dean of the line college

3. Dean (or Dean designate) of the Graduate College.

2.   If Graduate Faculty Status is granted by the Graduate College, a member of the Grad College support staff will initiate the process with Human Resources to get a BGSU ID generated for the external rep.

a. Graduate College support staff will contact the external rep via email (or phone, if preferred) to gather information such as address, phone number, and date of birth.

b. Graduate College support staff will prepare and submit the necessary paperwork for Human Resources.

c. Finally, the external rep must call Human Resources (419-372-8421) to provide them with their social security number. This helps Human Resources to verify their identity. After this step occurs, Human Resources will generate a unique BGSU ID for the individual.

3.   After a BGSU ID is given, the external rep can set up their BGSU username and password.

a. If assistance is needed, the external rep can call or chat with BGSU ITS department.

4.  After the external rep has set up this username and password, they are able to utilize the AdobeSign eform system, which is linked to our BGSU identification system.

a. If an external rep needs to sign a form in AdobeSign, an email will be generated to their BGSU email.