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Appendix B

THESIS/DISSERTATION PREPARATION AND DEFENSE PROCEDURES 

Note: The word thesis as used throughout the text of this document pertains to both the master’s and doctoral level; the term dissertation is not used to distinguish doctoral theses from that of master’s theses.

Thesis Format and Preparation
The appropriate thesis format is laid out in the Guidelines for the Preparation of Graduate Theses/Dissertations (Appendix C) available in the FGSR office or on the FGSR website. Students should contact their academic unit regarding matters of style specific to the discipline.

Thesis Proofreading
The thesis is to be carefully read before printing the final version, as the version submitted to the FGSR should be free of typographical, grammatical and other errors. This is primarily the student’s responsibility, but supervisors and committee members should not sign off on a thesis until it is of an acceptable standard. A thesis not meeting an acceptable standard of English will not be forwarded to the External Examiner and will be returned to the student via the graduate program coordinator for revision and verification by a proof-reader.

Thesis Submission
The completed thesis is given to the Supervisor (or Co-supervisors) by the student for final assessment. Once the student and supervisor (s) are satisfied that the thesis is of high standard and acceptable in form and content, the work is presented to the committee (consisting of one or more individuals previously selected) and to the Head of the academic unit or designate. The term Committee is used here to collectively describe the Supervisor(s), members of a Supervisory Committee as may have been in place, or members added solely for the purpose of the examination. The Head of the Academic unit or designate is ex officio on all postgraduate committees.

When the committee is satisfied that the work meets the standards of the academic unit and the FGSR, the members sign the Thesis Committee Release Form (available from the FGSR web site). At this point, one copy of the thesis (for master’s candidates) and two copies (for doctoral candidates) along with the completed and signed Thesis Committee Release Form, the Nomination for External Examiner Form and the Checklist Form are submitted to the FGSR office.

Thesis Timelines for Defense
Determining a suitable date for the examination might require additional time and students should take this into account when planning for completion and graduation. At least four weeks for master’s candidates and six weeks for doctoral candidates should be targeted as the minimum time required from the time of submission of the thesis to FGSR to the date of defense.

Selection of External Examiners
The academic unit/Faculty is responsible for recommending an External Examiner that is well-qualified, objective, and experienced. The External Examiner for master’s candidates is usually a member from within the University, but outside the academic unit (with the exception of Education and Engineering who may nominate an External within their Faculty, but outside the program area). An External Examiner may also be any suitably qualified individual from private or public institutions or from comparable institutions outside of Regina. An External Examiner for a doctoral thesis is from outside of the university and nominees are to have an established reputation in the area of the thesis research. When the proposed External is not an accredited member of FGSR, a condensed CV, containing contact information and relevant recent research/supervisory experience, must accompany the recommendation. A brief rationale in terms of the special field(s) of expertise and achievements is required on the nomination form.

The External Examiner may not be:

• a current or recent (last five years) collaborator (i.e., co-supervisor, co-author, co-grant holder)
• an adjunct or associate member of the academic unit
• a family member of the student or of a member of the student’s supervisory committee

The foregoing is not intended to be an inclusive list. Any situation that is deemed by the Dean of FGSR to be a compromise to the academic integrity of the examination process will preclude approval of a given nominee.

Apart from acknowledged expertise in the domain of the thesis topic, the minimum acceptable academic qualification of an external examiner is a degree equivalent to that for which the candidate is being examined. The Associate Dean of FGSR will review the nomination for External Examiner (form available at http://www.uregina.ca/gradstudies/forms/index.shtml), and following approval will notify the Head of the academic unit /Graduate Coordinator. If on occasion, the nominee is not acceptable, the Associate Dean will consult with the Head to select an alternate examiner. The notice of approval will be accompanied by an Evaluation of Thesis Form for the External Examiner and an information form on the role of the External Examiner. The Department is then responsible for ensuring that the master’s thesis and the accompanying forms are delivered to the External Examiner. The forms and the thesis for doctoral candidates are sent by the FGSR Office.

A thesis may NOT be given to the External Examiner until the formal approval letter and evaluation forms, which must accompany the copy of the thesis given to the External Examiner, are received from FGSR. The External Examiner will normally have two weeks for master’s and four weeks for doctoral, to read the thesis and respond in writing regarding acceptability for defense.

Thesis judged acceptable for Defense
If acceptable, the External Examiner is to notify FGSR who in turn will advise the head (or designate), and the supervisor. Additional contact between the academic unit and the External Examiner prior to the defense should not occur, but should special circumstances arise, any proposed further contact must be approved through FGSR.

Thesis Oral Defense Arrangements
The academic unit co-ordinates a date for the defense of a master’s thesis, and is also responsible for arranging a Chair for the defense. The Chair is to be chosen by the supervisor, or the committee, in consultation with the head (or designate), who is to notify FGSR of the name of the proposed Chair. In the Faculties of Education and Engineering & Applied Science, if the External Examiner is nominated from within the student’s Faculty, the Chair must be from outside the student’s Faculty. The Chair is to be external to the department, or in faculties without formal departments, from outside the program area. FGSR provides the Chair with a copy of the thesis and the relevant forms to be signed following the defense. (Note: should the Dean or Associate Dean deem the person suggested as Chair unacceptable, the Head [or designate] will be contacted immediately). FGSR makes all arrangements for doctoral defenses and these are chaired by the Associate Dean of FGSR or the Associate Dean’s designate.

The notice of oral defense is completed and signed by the head (or designate), stating date, time, place, and title of the thesis. The notice of oral defense may not be sent out until the academic unit has been notified by FGSR that the report of the External Examiner has been received and a Chair for the defense has been arranged. A copy of the notice is to be sent to all committee members, the Chair, the External Examiner and the student and must be sent to FGSR at least five working days prior to the date of the defense. The Notice of Oral Defense of Thesis Form is on the FGSR web site.
For a Master’s defense to be held the External Examiner must participate and the following must be in attendance: Chair, supervisor or one co-supervisor, and at least one member (other than a co-supervisor) of the committee who has signed off on the acceptability of the thesis for defense. Some academic units require more than one member of the supervisory/examining committee to be in attendance.

For a Doctoral defense to be held, the external examiner must participate and the following must be in attendance, Chair, supervisor or a co-supervisor, and two members of the supervisory committee (other than a co-supervisor) who have signed off on the acceptability of the thesis to go to defense.

FGSR must be notified prior to the defense if the required number of examiners is not in attendance, as the defense may have to be cancelled.

Although individuals not on the examination committee are welcome, the Chair may limit the number who may attend. Members of the candidate’s family may not attend the defense. If there is considerable interest in the thesis topic, it is expected that the academic unit will have the candidate present a seminar, separate from the defense.

External Examiner's participation at the Defense.
The physical presence of the External Examiner at the defense is encouraged, but not required. Video-conferencing and tele-conferencing are options as is a formal report with a slate of prospective questions (to be asked by the Chair) which should be forwarded to FGSR as part of the overall report.

Post Defense
Following the defense, the student may have access to the External Examiner’s evaluation of the thesis in order to assist with any revisions required. After a successful defense, a student has until the end of the next semester to submit two corrected, unbound copies of the thesis to the head of the academic unit and subsequently to the Associate Dean of FGSR. The thesis will then be sent to the Library. After Library approval, the student is notified by email and is sent a copy of the Examining Committee form to include in the bound copies of the thesis. The student is normally expected to provide a minimum of two bound copies, one for the academic unit and one for the supervisor. The number of additional bound copies required may differ from one academic unit to another. The student is advised to wait for Library approval before having copies of the thesis bound.

Thesis Judged Unacceptable for Defense

• By Supervisor, Supervisory Committee, Head of Academic Unit or Dean’s Office

If the thesis is considered unacceptable by the supervisor, the supervisory committee, the head of the academic unit or the Dean’s Office, it will not be sent to the External Examiner and provisionally is deemed to have failed.

Petition for Defense
The student may opt to petition to defend the thesis:
A formal written letter of application with accompanying rationale should be sent to the Associate Dean of FGSR.
A Hearing Panel will be assembled of three accredited members of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. In consultation with the Chair of the PhD committee the Associate Dean chooses these members, one Dean and two faculty members. The Hearing Panel is advisory to the Dean of FGSR
If the petition should fail, the student’s program will be terminated.

• By the External Examiner

If the thesis is judged unacceptable, the External Examiner is to provide the Associate Dean of FGSR with specific reasons and suggestions for remedy (as appropriate). The Associate Dean will immediately contact the supervisor and head (or designate) to discuss matters. The External Examiner’s evaluation of the thesis will be given to the department head who will then convene a meeting of the supervisory committee and the student to discuss the Examiner’s report and reach a decision on a course of action. The Associate Dean of FGSR is to be notified of the committee’s decision within one month. The student and committee may agree to make the required revisions and resubmit the document to FGSR who will then request that the External Examiner re-evaluate the revised document to determine if it is suitable to go to defense. If the student and a majority of the committee members disagree with the External Examiner’s evaluation, a meeting with the Associate Dean is to be arranged to discuss matters including possible alternatives. Among possible alternatives, the committee may request that the un-revised thesis be sent to a second external examiner. It is important to note that should the thesis fail in this second attempt, the student may be required to discontinue. A decision of whether the student’s program is to be terminated, or if the student will be provided an opportunity to do further research or rewriting will be made at that time.

• By Examining Committee

Please refer to instructions in the section on Oral Defense procedures.

Thesis Administrative details
The Dean’s Office provides an honorarium and a fixed amount for expenses for off-campus External Examiners for doctoral students and M.F.A. and M.Mus. Degrees. For other degree programs, the expenses for an off-campus Examiner are the responsibility of academic units or the supervisor.

 

Thesis Examinations

The Chair of the examination committee is impartial and ensures that the treatment of the candidate is fair and equitable and that the examination is conducted at the level expected for the degree. The Chair is not an additional examiner, but rather is the facilitator of the examination process. The defense is a formal event, and appropriate conduct is required of all participants.

Oral Defense
The following is the procedure for conducting oral defenses for Master’s and Doctoral students:

• The Chair introduces the candidate and all members of the Examining Committee, and outlines the examination procedures.
• The candidate will provide a brief overview of the research (approximately 15 minutes for a Master’s candidate; no more than 30 minutes for a Doctoral candidate) concerning the highlights of the research, including findings and conclusions. No questions are allowed at this time.
• The supervisor will be asked if the candidate has omitted any major points in the overview.
• The External Examiner, who is expected to undertake the longest single period of questioning, will begin the examination. This portion of the examination usually takes from 30 to 60 minutes. The External Examiner is expected to deal with major matters of importance to the thesis, leaving non-substantive matters such as concerns about style, typographical errors, spelling, etc. for the discussions after the defense. If the External Examiner has sent questions, the questions will be asked by the Chair and it will be up to the members of the examining committee to decide if the student is responding appropriately.
• The other members of the examining committee then question the candidate, again focusing on the academic substance of the thesis. The supervisor is the last examiner. The Chair will ensure that a faculty seminar does not develop, although some discussion will be allowed to clarify points. Again, the examiners are to concern themselves with the content of the thesis, leaving concerns about style, etc. until later. After the first round of questioning is complete, the Chair will invite further questions. When the questioning is completed, the candidate and all individuals who are not members of the examining committee will leave the room. The candidate will wait nearby to be called to return to the room to be informed about the deliberations of the committee. The examining committee will discuss the thesis and its defense. The acceptability of the thesis and the defense are two different issues. The chair polls the committee, beginning with the external examiner, and asks
• Whether the Thesis                  Whether the Defense was
  Passes without revision            Acceptable
  Passes with revision                 Not Acceptable and must be repeated
  Must be rewritten by (date)      Fails
• The External Examiner has the major vote in this decision; however, there must be agreement from other members, not necessarily a majority of the committee for any decision. The Chair pronounces the final decision after the discussion by the committee.
• If the thesis requires no revision (a very rare event) and the defense was acceptable, the student submits two unbound copies to the FGSR Dean’s Office.
• If the thesis passes with revisions, and the defense was acceptable, it is important that the committee provides the candidate with clear directions about the nature of the expected revisions. The supervisor assists the student in achieving that end. Lists of errors or suggestions compiled by any member of the committee while reading the thesis are given to the supervisor for use in revision of the thesis. Two unbound copies of the corrected thesis, , must be submitted to the FGSR Dean’s Office prior to the end of the next semester, or earlier, to meet convocation deadlines. The Chair asks the committee if they wish to view the revised thesis before agreeing to its final acceptance. Normally the committee will agree that it be left to the supervisor to ensure that their concerns about the thesis are addressed. The Report of the Examining Committee Form, signed by the Chair and the Certification of Thesis signed by all members of the examining committee is then given to the Chair as indication of the acceptance of the thesis and its defense.
• In case of an exceptional thesis and defense the examining committee completes the Committee Assessment for Post Defense Awards which provides guidance to the Scholarship and Awards Office in determining eligible candidates for graduating awards
• A failure on any portion of the examination is considered to be a failed examination. If the thesis fails, which would constitute an exceptional situation given the recommendation by the supervisor and committee members to go to defense, the committee will request information from the supervisor and the head of the academic unit to determine whether the student is to be given an opportunity to revise the research and submit a new thesis for defense. Each member will provide a brief written rationale for his/her decision to the Associate Dean and provide a recommendation for a time limit for resubmission, which should not exceed one year.
• Failure to successfully pass the defense may result in termination of the student’s academic program. If the defense must be repeated, it must be scheduled not later than the end of the next semester. Failure to pass a second examination will result in termination of the student’s graduate program.

Timelines for Defense
Students should be aware that determining a mutually agreeable date for the examination might require additional time and should take this into consideration when planning for completion and graduation. At least four weeks for master’s candidates and six weeks for doctoral candidates is required from the time of submission of the draft of the thesis to the FGSR office to the date of the defense.