Petitions in Degree Works are a tool for modifying requirements for a student. Generally, petitions come in the form of substitutions and waivers of major, minor, concentration, or certificate requirements.

Advisors can email the graduation coordinators at graduation@umontana.edu if issues occur that are not covered below.

Petition Guidelines

Be Concise

Limit the number of words in each petition. Length descriptions are not needed. Necessary information includes the requirement being petitioned and the course that it applies to.

Examples:

• Substitute M 121 for M 115.
• Waive BIOB 201N.
• FORS 201 was completed as part of transfer degree.

Add Petitions Right Away

Petitions should be added as soon as they are identified, typically at the beginning of a student's enrollment.

Please do not wait until the student's final semester to add petitions. This makes it difficult for student's to monitor their degree progress along the way and can even delay their degree being awarded.

General Education Requirements

Petitions may only be used on major, minor, concentration, and certificate requirements.

Exceptions to overall degree requirements and general education requirements must go through the graduation appeals committee.

If you see any issues with a general education requirement on a student's audit, please notify a graduation coordinator at graduation@umontana.edu. 

Requirements That Do Not Appear

Petitions cannot be entered for a requirement that does not appear on the student's audit. 

If a petitioned requirement does not appear on the student's audit, the petition will be rejected.

If a student's major needs to be updated, please email graduation@umontana.edu and copy the student's UMConnect email. Please wait for major changes to be processed before submitting the petition.

Courses That Do Not Appear

Petitions cannot be entered for a course that does not appear on the student's audit.

If a petitioned course does not appear on the student's audit, the petition will be rejected. See the protocol for future coursework below.

A common reason for coursework not appearing is that transfer courses have not yet been articulated on the student's UM transcript by the admissions office.

The only caveat to this is if the student transferred in a completed baccalaureate degree from an outside institution. These appear as blocks of 120 credits on the student's audit. In these cases, the advisor must review the transcripts and evaluate transfer work. Then, a petition can be submitted for transfer work. For example, "FORS 201 was completed as part of transfer degree." Feel free to provide more detail about the transfer course and degree as needed.

Future Coursework

If you know a student will need a petition for a future course, you can enter a petition ahead of time. All that is needed is the course subject and number.