Award of Posthumous Degrees and Degrees in Memoriam

Posthumous Degrees

A posthumous baccalaureate or graduate degree may be conferred upon a student who dies prior to but close to completion of all requirements of the degree being pursued. The University of North Carolina Wilmington awards such degrees in recognition of the academic achievement of the deceased student. In doing so it acknowledges the loss to the university, family and friends and extends to them the opportunity to share in the academic success of the deceased student.

To be eligible for the award of a posthumous degree, an undergraduate student generally must have met the following conditions:

• At the time of death, the student was enrolled in his/her senior year.
• The student was in good academic and disciplinary standing and was successfully progressing toward completion of requirements for the degree to be awarded. In particular, at the time of death the student had a 2.0 GPA or better, was within 15 credit hours of completion of all requirements or in the final term of completion of all their requirements, and had satisfied the university’s Residency Requirement as described in University Regulations within the Undergraduate Catalogue.
• The student must have declared a major and completed at least one half of the requirements for the major that will be recorded on the diploma.

To be eligible for the award of a posthumous degree, a graduate student generally must have met the following conditions:

• At the time of death, the student was enrolled in good academic standing and had made significant progress toward academic requirements for earning the degree.
• For degrees requiring thesis, dissertation, or other creative/practicum activity, the student must have completed all course and other requirements pursuant to the degree and must have been near completion of the dissertation/thesis/equivalent product; and the student’s committee must have determined the scholarship to be substantial work and worthy of the degree.
• For degrees requiring primarily coursework, the student should have completed at least 90 percent of academic requirements for earning the degree. This is typically in the last two semesters or year of study.
• In cases where requirements for awarding a doctorate have not been met, a master’s degree could be awarded if an appropriate master’s degree exists within the student’s home department/school, all requirements for the degree have been satisfied, and the action is supported by the student’s committee.

Approval Process

The process for identifying and considering candidates for the award of degrees posthumously shall be as follows:

1. Upon learning of the death of a University of North Carolina Wilmington student, the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs (or designee) will notify the relevant dean.
2. The dean shall ascertain the academic and disciplinary standing of the student. The dean’s office will work with the department chair. The departmental faculty, department head and dean will determine if the student's overall record merits further consideration and if recommendation that the posthumous award be granted; such information will be communicated to the Provost.
3. The Provost will weigh all the information relating to each case independently and will prepare a recommendation to the Chancellor. If the Chancellor supports the recommendation, it will be presented to the Board of Trustees for final approval.
4. If the Board of Trustees approves, the Chancellor's Office will notify the Registrar.

Awarding of Posthumous Degrees

Upon approval by the Board of Trustees, the following procedure will be followed:

1. The family of the deceased will be notified of the approval by the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs (or designee).
2. The degree will be conferred at a future commencement exercise determined by the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
   1. Names of all recipients of posthumous degrees will be listed separately, along with degree and major, in the commencement program.
   2. Special recognition of these students will be made by the Chancellor just prior to the individual recognition of all degree candidates present at the ceremony.
   3. Families who choose to attend commencement activities will be provided reserved seating and the Chancellor will note their presence as he or she recognizes the posthumous degree recipients.
   4. A diploma will be provided to the families who choose to attend commencement activities or mailed to families who choose not to participate.
3. The posthumous nature of the award will be indicated on the diploma, the student's permanent record and in the commencement program.
4. If the major department does so certify, the Registrar shall enter final grades of "P" in classes in which the student was enrolled.

Extraordinary Circumstances

Exceptions to these guidelines may be made when the student's death occurred during or as a result of participation in university-sponsored activities, or when chronic illness prevented current enrollment.

Exceptions may also be considered when extraordinary circumstances prevail. For example, the student died while carrying out a heroic deed, or while performing outstanding service to the University or community, or after having completed an outstanding academic record, piece of original research, or creative project; and other exceptional cases. In such cases, appropriate justification should be prepared and presented as part of Step 2 of the Approval Process (above). All other approval steps remain the same.

Degrees in Memoriam

A Degree in Memoriam is a recognition provided to honor a deceased student’s progress toward the degree. The Degree in Memoriam is not included in the official count of degrees.

For undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificates: Any student who was in good standing at the University at the time of their death and who does not meet the requirements necessary to be awarded a posthumous degree may be awarded a Degree in Memoriam. Degrees in Memoriam will read “Bachelor of Arts in Memoriam,” “Bachelor of Science in Memoriam,” “Master of Arts in Memoriam,” “Doctor of Philosophy in Memoriam,” etc., depending upon the degree the student was pursuing at the time of death. Undergraduate students who have not declared a major will be awarded the “Bachelor of Arts in Memoriam.” The approval process for a degree in memoriam shall be the same as that for approval of a posthumous degree. Degrees in memoriam will be delivered to the student’s family by the Division of Student Affairs.