Log into GRADFORMS (https://gradforms.osu.edu) using your OSU username and password.
Select Graduation and Examination Forms, locate the ‘Application to Graduate’ and then click on the green ‘+Create New Application to Graduate’ button.
Check the Student Information section located across the top of the page. Does the information indicate there are missing grades? If so, review your student advising report to see what grades still need to be submitted.
Select the term in which you want to graduate - Spring, Summer, or Autumn and the appropriate year. At this point you have two options: Regular Graduation or End-of-Semester. If your intention is to use the regular deadlines for graduation then do NOT select the end-of-semester option. You can always switch to the end-of-semester if you end up not meeting the regular graduation deadlines.
Only select end-of-semester if you know for sure that you will not complete degree requirements by the regular deadlines but will meet them by the posted end-of-semester deadline in order to graduate the following semester.
Select the appropriate degree track you are following: Doctoral (PhD), DMA, Edu Spec, Master’s - Candidacy, Master’s – Non-thesis, Master’s – Thesis, Master’s - Course based, Professional Doctorate.
Select your graduation plan. Make sure you are selecting the graduate program that identifies with the degree requirements you are completing.
Select the degree you expect to receive with this application.
Complete the Commencement section. Please indicate your preference. If you authorize someone to pick-up your diploma put their full legal name in the space that will be provided. If you have the diploma mailed to your permanent address, check the address that will come up after you select this option. If the address is not correct go to your student center on BuckeyeLink and make the necessary corrections.
In the Committee section, type in your advisor’s last name and wait for a drop down menu to pop-up. Find your advisor’s name from the generated list and click on it. Repeat this process for your Co- Advisor (if applicable) and your Committee Members. If you type in a last name and do not find your advisor or committee member on the list provided, double check the spelling of their last name, and their legal name with OSU. This can be done through Find People on the OSU Home page (www.osu.edu). If their name does not come up, that person is not a member of the OSU Graduate Faculty.
If you have a committee member who is not part of the OSU Graduate Faculty, put that person’s name and e-mail address in the spaces provided under External Members, and click ‘Add.’ If you have more than one external member, repeat the process. External members do not count toward
the required graduate faculty members for a valid committee. For each external member you must submit a Committee and Examination Petition on GRADFORMS explaining why you want this person on your committee.
At this point you can ‘Save’ your application for further review and discussion or you can click ‘Save and Continue’ for the next steps.
When you click ‘Save and Continue’ your application to graduate will be checked for errors. Any errors will appear in a box directly below the application. You can edit your form, submit the application or cancel the application.
Once you submit the application it must be approved by your advisor and graduate program before going to the Graduate School. Allow sufficient time between creating your application to graduate and the deadline by which it must be to the Graduate School for your advisor and program to review and act on it.
Once your application is received by the Graduate School it will be reviewed. Approval of your form only places your name on the Graduation List and is not a guarantee that you are graduating.
If once your Application to Graduate is received by the Graduate School you discover you need to switch to the end-of-semester deadline. Send an e-mail to grad-schoolgraduationservices@osu.edu. In the email you need to include your full name, your student ID#, your OSU e-mail address, your graduate program and your degree. State that you need to change to the end-of-semester deadline.
If you and your advisor later determine that you would be better served by cancelling your current application to graduate and submitting a new application for another semester, log into
GRADFORMS, and select ‘Search Forms’, then click the blue ‘Apply Filters’ button. When the results from the search show up on your screen, scroll down the list and locate your application. Go to the far right column and click ‘View’ and then click the ‘View Application to Graduate’ button. When your application comes on screen, click the blue ‘Actions’ button and select 'Cancel Application'.
You always have the ability to monitor your form, see who has or has not approved it, or if comments have been made at any time by checking the History, Remark and Comments tabs respectively. To do so, log into GRADFORMS and select ‘Search Forms’ and then click the blue ‘Apply Filters’ button.
Locate the form on the list that generates. You can determine the status by looking at the ‘Approval Status’ column (5th column from the left). ‘PENDING’ means your program or advisor need to act on the form. Check the ‘History’; ‘PENDING*’ means the Graduate School has received the form, and;
‘APPROVED’ means the form has been approved by the Graduate School. To check the ‘History’ click the white ‘View’ button in the far right column, then click the ‘View Application to Graduate’ button that will pop up. When the form shows on your computer screen, you should see five tabs: Student Information, form name, History, Remarks, and Comments. Click on the ‘History’ tab to see who has or has not acted on the form or the ‘Comments’ tab to see if there are any issues noted.
GRADFORMS Support
GRADFORMS Help Page
Alternatively, you can reach out to:
The Ohio State University Graduate School
250 University Hall, 230 N Oval Mall, Columbus OH 43210
Phone: 614-292-6031 | Fax: 614-292-3656
Graduation Services Email: Grad-SchoolGraduationServices@osu.edu
Registration Services Email: Grad-SchoolRegistrationServices@osu.edu