Frequently Asked Questions

We are located inside Woody Hall at 1915 Third Street La Verne 91750. Our cross streets are “Third” and “B.”

MyDegree Tracker (MDT) is the University of La Verne’s online degree audit program for students admitted fall 2017 or later. MDT allows you to check your completed and outstanding degree requirements at any time. View your current requirements anytime and verify when transfer credit or equivalencies have been processed. You can save a PDF of your evaluation prior to visiting your academic advisor for future course planning.

You can view your remaining requirements and keep track of your degree progress in My Degree Tracker. Log into the La Verne Portal and click on “Degree Audit” in Quicklinks.

To apply for Advanced Standing, students must submit an Advanced Standing Application, the required semester hours to advance is as follows:

Application for Graduation, and MyDegree Tracker printout or the Program of Study form (located under “Forms”), to the Graduate Academic Services office or regional campus. The graduation fee must be paid prior to submitting your paperwork. Verification of Advanced Standing is sent to the student’s La Verne email by the Graduate Office.

Main campus graduate students are advised by their academic advisors for their respective program.  Graduate students seeking academic advising should contact the appropriate academic department.

Click here for information on the appeal process.

Students can process a late registration 2/3s into the semester or term, please refer to the Academic Calendar for specific deadlines.  The process requires students to obtain the Program Change Form. Complete the form and have the faculty member sign authorizing the late registration. Once you have obtained all signatures, bring the form to the office of Graduate Academic Services for a second sign off. Students must finalize their late registration by submitting the Program Change Form and all appropriate fees to the Registrar’s Office. There will be a late fee applied to all late registrations.

Dropped classes are not recorded on the official transcript. Withdrawals are recorded on the official transcript as a W. Refer to the Academic Calendars for specific deadlines for drop and withdrawals.

The student must initiate a request for an incomplete, and, if able, complete a formal petition available on MyLaVerne. The Request for Incomplete can be found on the Student Record Menu. By completing the contract, the student agrees to complete the work specified in the contract. The completed contract must be filed prior to the last day of the term. The faculty member will review the contract at the time of grading and can reject or amend it. It is the student’s responsibility to check his or her MyLaVerne account to view the status of the incomplete contract. Refer to the course catalog for specific deadlines for when incompletes turn into a NCR or F grade.

IN PROGRESS grades are reserved for directed studies, independent studies, fieldwork, or graduate culminating activities where the completion date is beyond the term of registration. Students who receive IP grades are considered to be maintaining satisfactory academic progress for financial aid purposes. An IP grade will become an NCR or F, depending upon the grade option, if not cleared within one year following the term of registration.

Most information can be found on the Commencement website. For additional information, please contact the Office of Commencement Services located in the Abraham Campus Center, First Floor, Room 133 (909) 448-4757, or email:  commserv@laverne.edu.

La Verne holds one commencement ceremony each year in  Spring.  A candidate qualifies to participate in the Spring ceremony (usually in May) upon successful completion of all degree and program requirements during the preceding Summer or Fall  term, or when he or she has enrolled in all final courses during the current Spring term. Students must have been cleared for their Advanced Standing in order to participate in commencement ceremonies. If this has not been done, please reach out to your Adviser/Program Chair.

Students are responsible for making sure all required dissertation forms and documentation are submitted and signed. Forms are available at laverne.edu/grad-services/forms. Once completed with all required signatures, submit forms by email to your Program Advisor and to gas@laverne.edu.

Form 1 – Recommendation for Dissertation Committee
Identifies your committee members. A résumé/CV is required for any member who has not served on a ULV dissertation committee and is not currently employed by ULV as full-time faculty or an adjunct professor.

Form 2 – Approval for Formal Study Proposal
Documents committee approval of your study proposal (Chapters 1–3) and requires Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval.

Form 3 – Approval for Oral Defense Date
Confirms committee approval that the dissertation is ready for oral defense. With the Committee Chair’s authorization, students collect signatures and schedule the date, time, and place of the defense.

Form 4 – Oral Defense Status
Records the outcome of the oral defense. Bring a completed Form 4 and copies of the official Signature Page to the defense. A unanimous committee vote is required to pass. After a successful defense, the Committee Chair authorizes the dissertation for post-defense steps, including APA review.

To participate and walk in commencement in the same year as your Oral Defense, you must submit the following by May 1. Students are strongly encouraged to submit as early as possible.

• Form 3
• Application for graduation and fee: $300.00 Required when submitting graduation application.
• Oral Defense announcement page

Form 3 and all supplemental items must be submitted at least two weeks before your Oral Defense. The final deadline to complete the defense for that year’s commencement is May 1.

Submit a copy of your dissertation to Graduate Academic Services (GAS) for APA review. Consult your Program Advisor before submission to confirm whether your program requires a hard copy or an electronic copy. A $450 dissertation ULV fee is required for the degree to be posted.  The University covers the first APA review; each additional review costs $100. Reviews may take three weeks or more once assigned to the APA reviewer and may extend into the next semester. Students must remain enrolled in Continuous Enrollmenteach semester until the degree is officially posted.

Follow these steps to make a payment through MyLaVerne:

1. Go to www.laverne.edu
2. Click on MyLaVerne
3. Log in with your username and password
4. Click on Financial Aid and Student Accounts
5. Select Student Account Services
6. Click on My Student Account Center
7. On the Overview screen, click “Make a Payment”
8. Scroll down and click “View All Items”
9. Click “View Details”, then select the correct option under Pending Charges
10. Enter the total amount
11. Click “Continue” and follow the prompts to submit payment

After submission, students will receive an email once the APA reviewer returns their comments. Students must make the required revisions and, if a second or additional review is needed, pay a ULV $100 fee and resubmit the corrected dissertation. Once the final version is approved, it must be uploaded to ProQuest. This process typically takes one to two months, depending on the extent of corrections. Remember, the process is not complete until the degree is officially posted. Students must remain in Continuous Enrollment until degree is posted or have withdrawn from the program.

Students have a maximum of eight years from their first semester of enrollment to complete the program. 

Students can track their degree and dissertation progress, and review completed and remaining requirements in My Degree Tracker by logging into the Laverne Portal at laverne.edu/mylaverne/ and clicking  “My Degree Tracker” in the left-hand Quicklinks menu.