Petition to Extend Your Program – Online DMA Students

As stated in the Graduate Student Handbook:

All programs for the degree Doctor of Musical Arts must be completed within seven years of the date of matriculation.

Requests for extensions of time beyond the seven‐year limit must be made by petition in consultation with your advisor for recommendation to the Graduate Studies Committee. When granted, extensions will be given for only one year at a time. Extensions of time will be granted only in cases where there is clear evidence of progress toward successful completion of the degree and where the student can show extraordinary reason for being granted an extension, such as illness, personal emergency, or the particular nature of the research project already undertaken.

From your first semester of enrollment, you have seven years to complete your program of study. If you believe you have reason to extend your program of study based on the information above, the form at the bottom of this page will allow you to complete an application to extend your program. Timing is important, as you are only eligible to apply for extension during a specified window of time during the last semester of the seventh year of study. Carefully refer to the chart below to see when your specified application window will open and close; applications received outside of the specified windows will not be considered and may result in an Administrative Withdrawal being processed for you without further review.

To request an extension, read the instructions below and fill out the form/upload documents. Please do not submit your petition until the beginning of your allotted window.

First Semester of Study	*Application Period for Extension*
All semesters up to and including Fall 2019	January 1 – April 1, 2026

In addition to timing the application properly, please note the following additional considerations:

Students engaged in dissertation writing must have the unqualified support of the dissertation supervisor or the extension will not be granted.
Extensions are granted only one year at a time, meaning that after one year, a granted extension will expire and another application will be required for further extension to be considered.
If you have previously applied for an extension and you are reapplying for additional extension, you must be able to show evidence of substantial process toward degree completion.
You must be registered every fall and spring in order to request an extension.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding extending your program of study, please contact Brandi Main (bmain@bu.edu) prior to completing the Application for Extension below.

Petition to Extend Your Program - Online Students

Please review the information above before completing this form. * required

Name*
BU ID Number*

Please format your BU ID as "UXXXXXXXX", omitting dashes and spaces.
Email*
Phone*
Both US-based and international phone numbers are acceptable, but be sure to enter the appropriate country code for international phone numbers.
Address
Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country
Have you petitioned for a program extension before?*
- No. This is my first petition to extend my program.
- Yes. This is a petition for an additional extension.
Who is your supervisor?*
Summarize your work with your supervisor to date:*
Please provide a summary of the status of your work (for dissertation phase for example, how many chapters have been reviewed by your committee?):*
Write your letter requesting the extension here:*
Dear Graduate Studies Committee:
Fill in this field as you would if you were writing a paper letter. There is no need to include contact information as the fields above will be included with your application.
Attach the most recent version of your work here, and any supporting documents:
Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, jpg, gif, png, Max. file size: 100 MB.
You may choose to include a supporting document with your request if you wish. It is not required that you do, but in cases where a doctor's note or similar document may support the reason for which you are requesting the extension, use this upload field to include that document.

This form will accept JPG, GIF, and PNG images as well as PDF, DOC, and DOCX file types. Only one file upload is allowed, so if you wish to include multiple items, we suggest using a multi-page PDF or Microsoft Word (DOC/DOCX) document.
Final Review*
- I certify that I, the individual named above, am submitting this form on my own behalf and have read and adhered to all policies as outlined in the Graduate Student Handbook. I understand that this form will officially take the place of a paper letter as my application to extend my program of study at Boston University.
The information and instructions on this webpage are provided only as a courtesy. It is the student applicant's responsibility to review the Graduate Student Handbook independently and contact the College of Fine Arts with questions or concerns prior to submitting this form.