For those students entering with a master's degree, the Graduate Director will review the student's transcript, evaluate course transfers, and devise a course plan. Students entering the program with a master's degree may transfer up to 16 hours of credit so long as these credits were not used for any other degree program (see graduate school guidelines).  The student's doctoral advisory committee will handle the student's admission to candidacy and the requirement of submitting a journal article for review. The student with the master's degree will not be required to make an oral defense of her/his thesis work from another institution.