Academic Rights & Responsibilities

Language Technologies Institute Policies for Graduate Students

There are significant differences between departments in philosophical approach, procedures, policies and regulations. Each department issues a handbook that informs graduate students of their program requirements and procedures and ensures that students have written access to the standard information outlined below. Copies of department handbooks are also available through the Hunt Library Reference Desk.

Please bear in mind that you are responsible for knowing and abiding by your department and college policies.

Reasonable Person Principle (RPP): One of the best traditions of the School of Computer Science is the "Reasonable Person Principle". Essentially, this says that we expect members of our community to act reasonably, and therefore we try to keep formal, written policies to a minimum (this handbook not withstanding!) The faculty tries not to burden the students with thousands of rules, and in return we expect the students to not try to find technical loopholes that violate the clear intent of these guidelines.

All LTI policies not explicitly described in this document conform to School of Computer Science (SCS), and/or university policies, as defined at the official University Policies website (including policies on cheating and graduate academic disciplinary actions).

DEGREE ATTAINMENT

For MASTERS Students: Achievement, timeline and format requirements for the following:
(See also the narrative description of the LTI Masters program.)

Courses and grades:

For the remaining elective units, see the description below under "Policy/On courses taken outside the department..."
Twelve of the remaining elective units may consist of 11-910 Directed Research.
(Until Spring 2001, there were course requirements regarding "LTI core courses". This distinction has been abolished, but there may be some old references to core courses in the LTI webpages. These should be considered obsolete, replaced by the current requirements. We have recently [May 2001] discovered that the new requirements are not strictly more liberal than the old ones; students who began under the "LTI core course" scheme are of course grandfathered, and may graduate under either set of requirements.)

• Advising
• The definition of

a. the role of the advisor (course work and thesis)


(Adapted from the CSD's PhD document:)
With the possible exception of their first month in the program, each student has a faculty advisor charged with guiding the education and monitoring the progress of the student through the program. This personal student-advisor relationship ensures that every student receives the necessary faculty mentoring. Throughout the program, the advisor is responsible for guiding the student's research and education. For Masters students and beginning PhD students, the advisor guides the student along some research initiative and helps with strategic planning for courses and other educational activities. For PhD students, the advisor later helps to focus the student's research interests towards a thesis topic. Toward the end of the program, the advisor chairs the student's thesis committee, and helps to select the other members of the committee. The advisor also provides the student with career advice.
During a PhD student's first two years, he or she should be doing directed research at least half time; once all coursework is completed and before doing thesis research, full time (except when teaching). Different students, and different advisors, have different ideas of what directed research means and how progress can be demonstrated. It is the responsibility of both the student and his or her advisor to formulate for each semester a set of reasonable goals, plans, and criteria for success in conducting directed research.
(There is also some helpful "advice for advisors" at Indiana University, as part of the student advice cited below. Other helpful advice is also available on the web. Note that since these links are outside CMU, anything contradicting CMU/SCS/LTI policies should be ignored.)

b. the role of the student


(Adapted from the CSD's PhD document:)
There is flexibility in the kind of relationship a student has with his or her advisor. Some students work more closely with their advisors than any other faculty member, and some students work more closely with another faculty member on a particular research project. A few students have two advisors. It is also relatively easy to switch advisors and is usually done because of a shift in the student's research interests.
(There is also some helpful general advice for graduate students available from Indiana University, as part of a list of pointers there to helpful advice. Note that since these links are outside CMU, anything contradicting CMU/SCS/LTI policies should be ignored.)

• How and when the advisor is selected: In our version of another long-standing SCS tradition, new LTI PhD students are matched to advisors via a "Marriage Process". The LTI faculty present a series of research talks at the beginning of the Fall semester. The new students attend all of the talks, and schedule one-on-one meetings with the faculty that they are most interested in working with. Each student then indicates a 1st, 2nd, and if possible 3rd choice for advisor. The faculty in turn indicate the number of new students desired and their preferences. Finally the entire LTI faculty meets as a "Marriage Committee" to find the optimum match. As a result of this process, the new students all have advisors before the end of September.
  Typically nearly all the new students get their first or second choice. Since some entering students wish to be certain of having a specific advisor in advance, it is worth noting that if a student and an advisor are each other's top choice (and the advisor has full funding for them), the match is guaranteed to happen.
  The matching of new MLT students to advisors is more diverse. Some entering MLT students are "pre-funded", that is, they have already received and accepted a funding letter from a particular faculty member prior to the Marriage Process. (Although they are already "matched", pre-funded MLTs are expected to attend the research talks to acquaint themselves with the variety of research projects in the institute.) The other MLT students are generally interested in being supported, so for them the process looks similar to that for PhDs, except that the MLT students are not guaranteed to get funding.
  Note that even self-supporting MLT students are expected to work on research with a faculty advisor, since experience in research is an important part of our graduate programs. Until a student has found a specific advisor, the Chair of the LTI Graduate Programs serves as their advisor.
• How to change advisors: The initial advisor selection should be made carefully. However, it is possible to change advisors. To do so, the student should identify a potential new advisor, and discuss with them whether they are interested in working with the student, and can support the student. The LTI follows the long-standing SCS policy that both the new and old advisors need to agree to the change; typically this is not problematic, assuming the new advisor has agreed in advance, as described here. It is to the student's advantage to avoid switching advisors, especially late in their graduate studies, since this sets back the progress of their research. It is also very much to the student's advantage to have an advisor at all times, which is the reason for the December 1 deadline mentioned in the point above.
• Procedure for written notification of "inadequate progress toward a degree" This is described under "Semi-Annual Student Evaluation", above.
• Orientation and other professional development courses
  Each Fall semester the LTI provides an "Immigration Course" for new students (and faculty), to familiarize them with the local environment, and to provide an opportunity for research projects to recruit new students. Beginning in Fall 2000, this is a joint activity with other units in the SCS.
  The SCS also presents a series of talks referred to as the SCS "Emigration Course", to assist graduating students in adjusting to the next stage of their careers. LTI students are strongly encouraged to attend these talks.
• Policy
• On courses taken outside the department and how these will be graded: Students are free to take elective courses outside the LTI, at Carnegie Mellon or cross-registered at the University of Pittsburgh, as long as the student fulfills the requirements of their program as described above. The student should discuss any such electives in advance with their advisor; the LTI has also compiled some general advice for students interested in certain areas that might be helpful: Speech, Linguistics, Statistics, and Human-Computer Interaction.
  Note: Such recommended electives outside of the SCS now count towards the SCS course requirement. See the detailed description.
  Note also that students need advance approval for any courses not covered by their normal tuition (e.g., summer courses). The grading of outside courses is the responsibility of the department offering the course; however the LTI's Minimum Course Grade Policy described above still applies ("B" is minimum for PhD, "C" for MLT).
• On when a student is defined as ABD, and ABD in absentia (ABS): Following university policy, an LTI PhD student is considered "All-But-Dissertation" (ABD) when they have completed all requirements for the LTI's PhD degree except for the thesis defense (in particular, this includes having a thesis proposal that has been publicly presented, and accepted by their committee). Note that ABD status is different from ABD in absentia (ABS) status. A student in ABS status does not receive any support from the university (including any research projects within the university), cannot use most university facilities, and does not pay any tuition until they are ready to defend their thesis. ABS students must register for five (5) units of dissertation research in the semester they defend; in keeping with university policy, the LTI (and its projects) will not pay for these five units. The student can (and should) register for these five units only after they defend, just in case the defense date slips to the next semester.
• On Leaves of Absence: The LTI in general tries to discourage Leaves of Absence (LOA), since the student usually does not return, despite good intentions. However, a student in good standing may be granted a LOA of at most 1 year, upon written request to the graduate program administrator, with consent of the student's advisor. It is the responsibility of the student on LOA to contact the LTI and initiate their return.
• On residence requirements: A "residence requirement" applies to students who receive credit for, or exemption from, some of their course requirements due to courses taken elsewhere; it specifies the minimum amount of work that must actually be done at the LTI.
  To clarify the terms exemption and credit:
  • If a student is "exempted" from a required course (such as 11711 for Masters students) due to prior courses/experience, this essentially means they should replace that course with an open elective. They do not get credit for it, but can take any course (that could normally count toward their degree) in its place.
  • If a student receives "credit" for prior coursework (done here or elsewhere), they are counted as receiving that many units of credit, and the total amount of coursework that they are required to take during their graduate study here is reduced by that amount.
  The only residence requirements that the LTI has are those that it inherits from the SCS and the university. The SCS currently has two rules:
  1. All PhD students must take at Carnegie Mellon a minimum of 24 units of the total coursework required by their respective programs.
  2. A PhD or Master's student who uses courses taken as a Master's student (here at Carnegie Mellon or elsewhere) toward their program requirements cannot use those same courses toward any other Master's degree offered by the School without prior approval.
     The LTI (like other SCS units) always allows our PhD students who have passed the requirements for our Masters degree to receive the Masters degree without any additional work. Any other sharing of coursework by an LTI student between more than one CMU degree (e.g., receiving a CALD Masters degree that includes courses taken as an LTI PhD student) must be explicitly approved by the LTI, on a case-by-case basis, in advance.
  For PhDs there is also a university requirement of at least one year of residency at Carnegie Mellon.
• On transfer from master's to doctoral programs: The LTI does not allow direct "transfers" from the Masters to the PhD program. Current masters students wishing to enter the doctoral program must apply. However, they do not need to retake their GREs or other exams, unless they want to try to improve their scores.

• The establishment of a clear form of review/redress for academic conflicts: Graduate students are encouraged to first discuss their concerns with the faculty member(s) involved and their faculty advisor. If they wish, the Chair of the LTI graduate programs, Bob Frederking, and his alternate, Eric Nyberg, and the department head, Jaime Carbonell, are also available at any stage of the process. All discussions will be considered confidential. See also the grievance procedure below.
• The "grandfather" policy: The LTI has a "grandfather" policy that assures students that they can graduate under the policies in effect at the time they entered the program, or choose to change if/as new policies arise. In rare cases, when the student's graduation takes significantly longer than normally expected, it may be necessary to approximate as closely as feasible the original policies, if the original policies cannot realistically be followed exactly.

• Explicit information about the requirements for the awarding of and expectations of continued funding.
  For all LTI PhD students, full funding (tuition plus stipend) is guaranteed for five years, if they continue to make satisfactory progress. Typically this has been extended longer, as long as satisfactory progress is maintained, as described above.
  For LTI Masters students, funding (if any) is based on individual arrangements with specific research projects. However, if an LTI research project agrees to support an LTI Masters student, the project must give a two month warning before terminating support, as described below.
• Definition of the work required for various sorts of support (grading/teaching assistant/lecturer).
  The LTI's graduate students are typically supported as Research Assistants on LTI research projects. In return for full tuition and a stipend, we expect the student to work twenty (20) hours each week during the semester, and forty (40) hours each week during the summer. (Students can typically expect a two-week vacation in the summer, unless other arrangements are made with their project.)
  In order to document the research done during the semesters, LTI students register for 11-910 Directed Research (typically 24 units).
  In order to document the fact that our students do research in the summers, they now also register for a summer research course (as of summer 2002).
  Since coursework is generally easier at the beginning of the semester, and gets progressively more difficult through the final exams at the end of the semester, it is a good idea for students who are taking classes to try to accomplish more research early in the semester.
  The normal LTI winter break policy is that we expect the student to work forty (40) hours per week for two weeks of the break, and to take vacation for the other two weeks.
  Since Masters students' support is on a case-by-case basis, there may be additional requirements; these must be described in the hardcopy letter that is sent to the student when they are offered support.
  In semesters when a PhD student is TAing (serving as a Teaching Assistant for) a course, TAing for one course counts for one-third of the student's support, so they will be expected to work one-third less than usual for their research project if they are TAing one class.
• Information on tax implications of financial support.
  It is our understanding that while the financial support provided by the LTI is Federally taxable, it is not subject to state and local taxes (exception: a $10/year city "Occupation Tax"). This applies to both PhD students and Masters students supported by LTI research projects.
• Defined procedure for written notification of change in financial support and a stated minimum notice for such change.
  Since LTI Masters students are not guaranteed funding, and loss of funding can lead to a student dropping out of the program, the LTI has a policy that LTI research projects must warn a student in writing two months in advance of any funding cut. The intent here is to give the student sufficient time either to improve performance (if termination is due to poor performance), or to arrange other means of support.
  LTI PhD students are guaranteed five years of financial support, as long as they are making satisfactory progress, as described under "Semi-annual Student Evaluation", above. As described there, PhD students receive a one semester advance written warning of possible loss of good academic standing (and funding).
• Information on recourses if funding is lost or reduced.
  If a Masters student loses their project funding, they are free to seek funding from other projects, or any other source.
  PhD students are guaranteed funding for five years, as long as they are making adequate academic progress. If a PhD student loses funding as the result of the Student Evaluation process, their only recourse is to attempt to meet the requirements of their "N-1" letter, described above, and then petition the LTI faculty for readmission.
• Policies on "outside" employment/consulting.
  Students who are funded by LTI research projects are expected to work primarily for their projects. However, since consulting can be a useful educational professional experience, LTI students are generally permitted to consult at most 1 day per 7-day week, with their advisor's consent.
• Policies on "outside" fellowships.
  Since the LTI, unlike other SCS departments, guarantees summer support for its supported students, we expect that our students will in fact work here on project research during the summer. However, because we recognize that an "outside" internship can be a valuable educational experience, we have developed a policy to allow PhD students in good standing to accept one (1) external internship during their PhD studies here. The detailed policy is described in a separate PhD Internship document. It is important that students read this document before negotiating an internship, and abide by its provisions. Note that unsupported students are of course free to do whatever they want.
• Policies on the availability of summer employment.
  Unlike other departments in the SCS, the LTI financial package includes summer support for all supported students. Students who are offered "outside" (external) summer internships should see the point immediately above.
• Policies on attending conferences and seminars.
  This depends on a student's funding source. Policy for students who are funded by a research project is set by their project. For non-project-funded students, they will have a budget of $700 for a refereed paper, or $200/year without a paper (as of 1998).

Informal Discussion:

Graduate students are encouraged to discuss their concerns with the faculty member(s) involved and their faculty advisor. If they wish, the Chair of the LTI graduate programs, Bob Frederking, and his alternate, Eric Nyberg, and the department head, Jaime Carbonell, are also available at any stage of the process. All discussions will be considered confidential.

Filing a Grievance:

Graduate students who wish to file a formal written grievance should submit it directly to the LTI department head, who will handle it personally, with appropriate consultation with faculty and the SCS Dean's office. The nature of the grievance, the written materials and the findings are considered confidential for all parties involved.