Closure Exercises and Continuing Enrollment Requirement

Master’s degree candidates are required to complete a closure exercise demonstrating mastery of some area within their major field of study. The exact nature and format of these exercises – including theses, projects, and capstone courses – are determined by individual programs, but all of them must have an identifiable academic focus and must include a written component.

UIS has a continuous enrollment policy which states that once the student begins a closure exercise, the student must continue to enroll in the closure exercise each fall and spring semester until the exercise is complete, including semesters in which the student “stops out” of other courses. Enrollment in the summer semester is not required unless mandated by the student’s academic program. If the student does not finish the closure exercise during the number of hours set forth by the student's program, the student will be required to enroll in the program's continuous enrollment course in all subsequent semesters (excluding summer) until the exercise is complete. If a leave of absence is granted for a current or future semester, the student will be exempt from this requirement for that semester. Failure to obtain a leave of absence will, in most cases, require retroactive registration in the closure exercise (or continuous enrollment course) for each semester in which the student was out of compliance.

Some programs have specific requirements concerning how the student should register and complete the closure exercise. The student's program should be consulted to discuss specific program closure requirements.