Doctoral Thesis Final Examination

The examining committee consists of the ex-officio examiners, one external examiner, and either one university examiner or one specialized knowledge examiner.

The ex officio members of the committee are the supervisor(s) and the supervisory committee members.

A university examiner is a member of the University of Alberta community who is knowledgeable in the field and comes fresh to the examination. They must not be (or have been) a member of the supervisory committee, or have been connected with the thesis research in a significant way. The examiner should not have been associated with the student, outside of usual contact in courses or other non-thesis activities within the University, nor be related to the student or supervisor(s). Eligible University of Alberta community members include current or retired Academic Staff members, Academic Colleagues, Postdoctoral Fellows, or Executive Members/Academic Administrators who will be appointed or re-appointed as Academic Faculty members on the conclusion of their term (current or retired categories A, B, C, D, and E, as defined in the University of Alberta’s Recruitment Policy (Appendix A) Definition and Categories of Academic Staff and Colleagues).A university examiner should not be a former supervisor or student of the supervisor(s). Except in special circumstances (fully justified in writing to the Dean of the department’s Faculty), a university examiner should not be an active collaborator of the supervisor(s) (see Conflict of Interest Guidelines).University examiners who have served on a student’s candidacy examination committee are eligible to serve on the student’s doctoral final examination committee if the other conditions of being a university examiner remain unchanged.

A specialized knowledge examiner is a person who has knowledge or professional expertise that is relevant to the thesis research (such as a health practitioner or an Indigenous community member) and does not have a full-time academic appointment at a university that confers graduate degrees. A specialized knowledge examiner comes fresh to the examination. They must not be (or have been) a member of the supervisory committee, or have been connected with the thesis research in any way. The examiner should not have a close personal association with the student or the supervisor. Except in special circumstances (fully justified in writing to the Dean of the department’s Faculty), a specialized knowledge examiner should not be an active collaborator of the supervisor(s) (see Conflict of Interest Guidelines).

At least half of the examiners must hold a doctoral degree or higher.

The chair is a member of the NGPC who is not the supervisor and is appointed by the GPA. The chair is not an examiner.

It is the responsibility of the Supervisor to inform the NMHI office of the external examiner and the university examiner.

The exam chair will be appointed by the NMHI office from among the members of the NMHI graduate committee.

The committee will review the thesis document and conduct an oral examination to test the student's knowledge of the thesis subject and of related fields. The final decision of the examination committee will be based both on the quality of the thesis document and on the student’s performance in defense of that document.

The thesis should be prepared following Thesis Preparation, Requirements & Deadlines as outlined by GPS. 

University of Alberta has several services to assist students with academic writing. Please consult the Academic Success Centre.

Eight to nine weeks before the examination the Supervisory Committee chooses the external examiner and the university examiner (or specialized knowledge examiner). The supervisor may contact potential examiners to ascertain their availability and willingness to participate, but must have no further contact with the external examiner after the thesis has been distributed to the examining committee. Any messages received after distribution of the thesis should be referred to the Director of Graduate Studies. Preliminary arrangements for date, time, and place of the exam are done with the potential examining committee.

The Supervisor provides the CV for the external examiner along with the completed "Approve External Reader or Examiner for Final Doctoral Oral Exam" form required by GPS as well as the ‘FoMD PhD External Examiner Conflict of Interest Checklist’. 

The GPA forwards documents to the graduate program advisor in FoMD for Faculty Approval. Once approved by FoMD, the external examiner form is sent directly to GPS.

The GPA will notify the supervisor when the external has been approved.

From that point on, the supervisor and student should not communicate with the external.

At least six weeks ahead of the exam date an official invitation letter is sent to the external examiner from the NMHI signed by the Director of Graduate Studies. In the letter of invitation, the external examiner is requested to prepare and send to the Director of Graduate Studies, at least one week in advance of the examination, an evaluation of the thesis placing it in one of the following categories:

• the thesis is acceptable with minor or no revisions,
• the external examiner wishes to reserve judgment until after the examination, or
• the thesis is unacceptable without major revisions.

In all cases, the external examiner is asked to provide a written commentary (approximately two to three pages) on the structure, methodology, quality, significance and findings of the thesis for the reference of both the student and supervisor. 

At least six weeks ahead of the exam date the student submits their final draft thesis to their supervisory committee for review. The supervisory committee has 2 weeks to read the thesis.

Six to four weeks before the date of the exam the supervisory committee is required to recommend, on the ‘Preliminary Acceptance of Thesis’ form, that the thesis is acceptable for examination. The committee members do not have to all sign the same form. The student sends to the GPA the signed “Preliminary Acceptance of Thesis” form(s) and a copy of the final thesis.

Once the signature forms have been received, the GPA will inform the supervisor that the date, time, and place of the exam can be confirmed.

The GPA arranges for the examining committee chair from among the members of the NGPC and informs the supervisor and student of the chair of the committee.

At least four weeks ahead of the exam the GPA sends the official final draft of the thesis to the external examiner.

Once the examination has been set and the chair arranged, the administrator will email the supervisor the GPS form ‘Notice of Examining Committee & Examination Date.’ The supervisor is required to sign and return the form back to the administrator for the Director of Graduate Studies’ signature. 

The Supervisor provides a hard copy or PDF of the thesis, whichever is preferred to the rest of the members of the examining committee, including the chair. 

At least three weeks prior to the exam the GP must provide GPS with the ‘Notice of Examining Committee & Examination Date’ form.

At least two weeks ahead of the exam the student sends the title and picture for an NMHI poster for advertisement of the public seminar.

The examination will be preceded by a 30 minute to one hour public seminar and question period that will be attended by the examining committee and other interested individuals. The student must provide a seminar title and short abstract to the NMHI office at least 2 weeks in advance of the exam so that the seminar notice can be circulated. The seminar is usually held in the same room as the exam if the room is appropriate.

After a brief break following the public seminar the examining committee and the student reconvene for the formal final examination. After initial introductions are made, the student leaves room while the committee discusses the student's performance in the program and establishes the order of questioning. 

It is generally agreed that the most time should be allotted to the external and university examiners and the least to the supervisor. In this way new and challenging questions are asked in place of reiteration of questioning already utilized to develop the student and enhance the research. Examiners should avoid discussions among themselves that exclude the student. They should not lecture but should ask detailed questions about the thesis and occasional broad, disciplinary questions. Typographical and stylistic errors should not take up examination time. 

At the close of the examination the student is asked if they have any final questions or comments before they are asked to withdraw. 

For the adjudication, no final verdict should be rendered without each examiner having given an opinion. Two opinions will be sought: (1) on the acceptability of the thesis; and (2) on the acceptability of the defence. 

The Student is invited back into the room and the Chair announces the decision and provides feedback on the committee's discussions regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the thesis and the thesis defence.

The decision of the examining committee will be based both on the content of the thesis and on the student’s ability to defend it. The final examination may result in one of the following outcomes:

• Adjourned
• Pass
• Pass subject to revisions
• Fail

There is no provision for a final examination to be “passed subject to major revisions”. If the Examining Committee fails to reach a decision, the NMHI will refer the matter to the Dean, GPS, who will determine an appropriate course of action.

Following completion of the final oral examination at which the thesis is passed or passed subject to revisions, the student shall make the appropriate revisions where necessary and submit the approved thesis to the GPS within 6 months of the date of the final oral examination. The NMHI may impose earlier deadlines for submitting revisions.

If the final oral examination is adjourned, the 6-month time limit will take effect from the date of completion of the examination where the thesis was passed with or without revisions. To be eligible for convocation, all doctoral students must submit their thesis to the GPS for approval before the deadline dates set out in the Academic Schedule of the Calendar. Students must also ensure that they are registered in the appropriate thesis course in their last registration prior to convocation.

There are thesis submission deadlines for each convocation period and registration requirements when submitting your thesis. We recommend you submit your thesis a minimum of 3-5 working days before any deadline, as corrections may be required. Please review the various deadlines below for more details.

After the supervisor has approved the thesis revisions and signed the Thesis Approval/Program Completion form, the form is given to the Director of Graduate Program to complete the program completion section and will send it to GPS. GPS must receive this form by the listed deadlines in order to avoid future registration and fees.

If the thesis is not submitted to the GPS within the 6-month time limit, the student will be considered to have withdrawn from the program. After this time, the student must apply, be readmitted to the program and register again before the thesis can be accepted.

‘To be eligible for convocation, all students in a thesis degree program must present and defense a thesis embodying the results of their research’ – GPS.  The NMHI has a permanent library of thesis documents from our students. We would be most appreciative if you were able to provide us with a bound copy of your thesis (book binding for Neuroscience is dark green) to add to our growing display.

Please visit GPS’s website for academic requirements for your thesis preparation, requirements & deadlines.

• Neuroscience Students will be required to submit a hard copy of the thesis to the Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute office.
• Students may choose to have additional copies printed for Supervisors or personal use but this is not required.
• Please submit your ‘University of Alberta Thesis/Dissertation Non-Exclusive License’ and decide if you will be restricting access to your thesis which will be required before submitting your thesis to GPS.