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All students must have either an interim advisor or an approved Supervisor at the time of first registration, and a permanent Supervisor no later than the second annual registration. It would help the student in program planning if the selection of a Supervisor were completed as quickly as possible. Students are encouraged to think about and select their areas of specialization as early as possible, and preferably before beginning the program.

The initial selection of a Supervisor should be by mutual agreement between student and faculty member, and approved by the Graduate Director. Difficulties or conflicts in selecting or recommending a Supervisor should be referred promptly to the Dean by any of the persons involved.

Continuity of supervision throughout a graduate program is important to a student’s success. Normally, faculty members with Continuing Board appointments in the professorial ranks are chosen as Supervisors. However, there are occasions when it is to the student’s advantage for a program to recommend the appointment of a Supervisor who does not have a Continuing Board appointment. For example, an individual who holds an appointment that is Specific Term (Contingent, Limited Term, Term Certain), Clinical or Adjunct, or Honorary, or has Emeritus status, or is from outside the University, may be appointed Supervisor. In cases such as these, the Faculty of Graduate Studies requires assurance that the proposed Supervisor will be able to provide continuity.

The proposed Supervisor must understand the commitment expected in terms of time and funding and be familiar with current graduate program and Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations. The Graduate Director must ensure that supervision will be provided for the probable time period required for the completion of the degree program.

If the proposed Supervisor is someone from outside the graduate program who does not have a Continuing Board appointment, a Co-supervisor must be appointed.

The Supervisor should be currently active in research in an area related to the student’s interest. Faculty members working on their own graduate degrees cannot be approved in any supervisory capacity without special dispensation from the Dean. For detailed policy and the required forms, see http://www.grad.ucalgary.ca > Policies and Procedures.

The relationship between Supervisor and student is an academic one. Where other relationships exist or develop that might give the appearance of conflict of interest they must be immediately reported to the Graduate Director who can consult with an Associate Dean or the Dean if the Graduate Program Director is unable to resolve the situation. (See Graduate Studies Conflict of Interest Policy: http://www.grad.ucalgary.ca/policies/conflictofinterest).

In addition to those cases noted above in which it is required that a Co-supervisor be appointed, a Co-supervisor may be appointed by the Graduate Director upon the written recommendation of the Supervisor and agreement of the student. A postdoctoral fellow as defined in the Postdoctoral Fellow Policy may be appointed a Co-Supervisor.²

²The Postdoctoral Fellow Policy http://www.ucalgary.ca/postdoc/files/postdoc/University%20Policy.pdf defines a PDF as "An individual, normally within 5 years of completion of a doctoral degree or 10 years of completion of an MD, DDS, DVM or equivalent, who is engaged in a temporary and defined period of mentored advanced training to enhance the professional skills and research independence needed to pursue his or her chosen career path." The Postdoctoral Fellow Policy mandates that "assistance with the supervision of graduate students" requires "the agreement of the Faculty Supervisor."

A Supervisor or Co-supervisor may be from a department, program, or faculty other than the student's home department, program, or faculty. The recommendation must be endorsed by the student. The faculty member's home program should be notified by the relevant Graduate Director whenever the faculty member is asked to supervise or co-supervise outside the home program. Such an "external" Supervisor or Co-supervisor must agree to be responsible to the Graduate Director of the student's home department in all matters related to the supervisory responsibilities.

Students are entitled to continuity of supervision. In the case of the resignation from the University, illness or death of the Supervisor, the Graduate Director must make immediate arrangements to provide continuity of supervision pending the appointment of a new Supervisor.

Regular students are required to have approved Supervisors within twelve months of initial registration. A student admitted as a special case admission must have an approved Supervisor before admission.

Supervisors should be familiar with the rules and procedures of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and program regulations and requirements.

A student and Supervisor have a shared responsibility to meet on a regular basis.

The supervisor should act both as a general academic mentor, with emphasis on guidance, instruction, and encouragement of scholarship and research, and as a judge of the student's performance. Because of their own involvement in research and related professional activities, Supervisors should provide professional guidance and research stimulation to their students. A fundamental duty of the Supervisor is to impart to the student the skills necessary to plan and conduct original research.

Specifically, the Supervisor should:

• Work with the student to establish a realistic timetable for the completion of the various requirements of the program of study; discuss with the student and establish mutual expectations for the student's vacation time;
• Develop a relationship with the student conducive to research and intellectual growth;
• Guide the student in the pursuit of knowledge and provide constructive criticism in support of the highest standards of research and professional development.

The Supervisor is expected to provide frequent and prompt comments on drafts of the thesis and should attempt to be critically constructive and encouraging but the thesis must be the creation of the student.

(Approved by FGS Council: June 4, 2009)

A program and Supervisor must ensure that the student is provided with adequate supervision during a Supervisor's leave, potentially through the appointment of an interim Supervisor. Students should be informed well in advance about the Supervisor's plans for forthcoming leaves of absence. With current means of communication, continued supervision while on a research and scholarship leave is the expectation for faculty members. These arrangements must be communicated in writing to the Graduate Director, who bears the responsibility for ensuring continuity of supervision for students in his/her graduate program.

When an interim Supervisor is appointed to cover a period of a Supervisor’s absence, the regular Supervisor retains final responsibility for the adequate supervision of the student. Faculty members approved as interim Supervisors must indicate in writing to the Graduate Director their willingness to accept responsibility for the day-to-day supervision of such students.

The Supervisor is responsible for scheduling the thesis oral examination.

Students should first try to resolve problems with Supervisors by talking to the Supervisor. Supervisory Committee members might be able to give helpful advice in this situation. Problems that are not resolved in this fashion should be discussed with the Graduate Director, and then the Department Head or equivalent. If it appears that a solution cannot be reached, the student and/or the Graduate Director may consult the Faculty of Graduate Studies for advice about a resolution to the matter.

The Dean of Graduate Studies approves the initial appointment of a faculty member to supervisory duties. If a complaint is made against a Supervisor, the Dean will first discuss the matter with the Department Head or equivalent, and then with the faculty member concerned. The issue may be resolved informally. If the Dean decides that a more formal approach is needed to resolve the dispute, the Dean will inform both the Head and the faculty member of his/her conclusions in writing. If the result of the Dean's investigation is curtailment of the supervisory duties of the faculty member, the Dean will inform the faculty member in writing.

A Supervisory Committee at the Master's level is not normally appointed unless required by the program or requested by the Graduate Program Director.

The Faculty of Graduate Studies will recognize a formal Supervisory Committee at the Master's level once an Appointment of Supervisor/Supervisory Committee form is filed. A Master’s Supervisory Committee will be governed by the rules applying to doctoral Supervisory Committees (see Article 3.0 in Handbook of Supervision and Examination Part III: Doctor of Philosophy / Doctor of Education Degree).

Members of a Supervisory Committee should provide support to both the student and the Supervisor by expanding the range of expertise and experience available to advise and assess the student. Members should provide constructive criticism and discussion of the student's ideas, methods and performance as the program develops; should be accessible to the student for consultation and discussion; should suggest other sources of information to the student; and must participate in examinations and in periodic meetings with the student and provide regular assessment of the student's progress as required by the program regulations.

The thesis should demonstrate that the candidate is acquainted with the published literature in the subject of the thesis; that appropriate research methods have been used; and that appropriate levels of critical analysis have been applied. The research embodied in the thesis should make some original contribution to knowledge in the field.

The general form and style of thesis may differ from program to program, but a thesis should be a coherent document. This means that if a thesis contains separate manuscripts, there needs also to be introductory and concluding chapters that explain how these separate manuscripts fit together into a unified body of research. If previously published materials are included, it should be made clear what exactly is the student’s own work and what the contribution of other researchers is.

While it is expected that a portion of the thesis could be the basis for a publication, the Supervisor and examiners should recognize that even an excellent thesis may not be perfect in all respects. "Perfection" is not a prerequisite for acceptance of the thesis as a "partial fulfillment of the requirements for a degree." The thesis may vary in quality from passable to outstanding.

The University's policy governing Integrity in Scholarly Activity applies to the Master's thesis. Plagiarism and fabrication or falsification of research data in a Master's thesis will be considered academic misconduct. (See Plagiarism/Cheating/Other Academic Misconduct section in this Calendar).

Supervisors and Graduate Directors must inform students on a regular basis about their academic progress. If a student's performance is judged to be below an acceptable level, this judgement should be expressed to the student formally and in writing at as early a stage in the program as possible. A student may be required to withdraw from the Faculty of Graduate Studies for reasons of "unsatisfactory progress" (see also section 5.3).

The Supervisor and each continuing student must jointly submit an annual progress report on the student’s performance. This form must be signed by the Supervisor, the Graduate Director, and the student, and must be forwarded to the Faculty of Graduate Studies. The student must sign the report after the Supervisor and the Graduate Director have completed their comments to acknowledge that he/she has reviewed these comments.

Care should be taken to distinguish between Faculty of Graduate Studies examinations and Departmental or Program examinations. The Faculty of Graduate Studies requires a final oral examination of theses. Examiners may participate by teleconference or videoconference (including Voice over Internet Protocol services): telephone backup must be available for video conference examinations. Any requirement for a written comprehensive examination is at the discretion of the department.

The thesis oral examination is an examination of the Faculty of Graduate Studies. No changes in the composition of examination committees may be introduced without prior approval from an Associate Dean of Graduate Studies or the Dean of Graduate Studies.

The faculty of Graduate Studies must be informed of minor changes in the scheduling of the examination (e.g., for illness or weather). Programs are allowed to postpone the examinations by up to two weeks after the scheduled date. Postponements of more than two weeks from the original date can be considered in exceptional circumstances and will require approval of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

A scheduled examination may be cancelled under exceptional circumstances with the approval of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

Program requirements may include examinations that are in addition to the Faculty of Graduate Studies requirements. Programs are entitled to set their own standards of adequate performance in such examinations, provided these are not in conflict with Faculty of Graduate Studies standards. When a student fails to meet either Faculty or program standards, the program may recommend to the Dean of Graduate Studies that the student be required to withdraw (See also section 4.2).

Programs should provide their students, as early as possible, with information about the precise nature and form of program examinations and tests.

A student who has successfully completed all Faculty of Graduate Studies and program requirements has the right to submit and defend a thesis even if doing so may be contrary to the advice of the Supervisor.

The thesis oral examination committee shall consist of the student's Supervisor and at least two other examiners, one of whom shall be external to the student's home department or program. If there is a Co-supervisor but not a formal Supervisory Committee, two other examiners are still required, one of whom shall be external to the program. If there is a formal Supervisory Committee, only one additional examiner external to the program is required. The composition of the committee must be recommended by the Graduate Director and approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.

The external examiner must meet the following criteria:

If from within the University of Calgary, must have a Board appointment outside the student's program but within the professorial ranks, and have expertise in the student's research area or a closely related field;

If external to the University of Calgary, must have a well-established research reputation, expertise in the area of the student’s research, and experience in evaluating theses at a graduate level.

In addition, the external examiner must:

Not have collaborated with the supervisor in the last five years;

Not be related to the student, nor have worked with the student;

Not have been a supervisor in the student's department or program for the last three years.

An external examiner who does not meet all the criteria is not necessarily precluded from serving on the examining committee, but the Graduate Director must provide the Dean of Graduate Studies with a memo explaining the circumstances. Non-Board appointees to examination committees may be designated as external examiners with the approval of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

Persons who are not Board appointees of the University of Calgary may be approved to serve on thesis oral examination committees. A recommendation to the Dean of Graduate Studies by the Graduate Program Director for such an appointment must be accompanied by a curriculum vitae.

The examination is chaired by a neutral member of the academic staff appointed by the Graduate Director. He/she is not a member of the examining committee and is non-voting.

The Supervisor arranges scheduling of the examination. The Neutral Chair presides over the thesis oral examination and reports the results to the student. The Neutral Chair gives the report to the Graduate Director who ensures that it is submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies within 24 hours of the examination.

Normally, the composition of the examination committee will remain the same. Upon the recommendation of the Graduate Director and approval of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, an examiner may be replaced.

The deadlines for the recommendation of the examination committee are as for the original examination.

The Supervisor is responsible for scheduling the thesis oral examination.

The official Notice of Thesis Oral Examination form, indicating the title of the thesis, the time and place of the examination, the names of the recommended examiners, and confirming that the candidate has completed all program requirements, endorsed by the Graduate Director, must be received in the Faculty of Graduate Studies office at least four weeks prior to the time of the examination. The membership of the examination committee must be approved by the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

A Notice of Thesis Oral Examination form, bearing the names, but not signatures of the student, the Supervisor, the Graduate Director and the Dean of Graduate Studies, or designate, must be posted at least two weeks before the date of the examination. The Graduate Director must ensure that copies of the Notice are sent to the student and to members of the examination committee.

The format of the University degree parchment presented to successful candidates shows the degree, the department or area of study, and the approved area of specialization. Students should ensure that the approved area of specialization identified on the Notice of Thesis Oral Examination form is correct, before it is sent to the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

The thesis submitted to the members of the examination committee for final examination must be in all respects a final, complete copy and not a draft.

The student must ensure that the thesis is in the hands of the examiners at least three weeks prior to the proposed date of the oral examination. The examination begins when the thesis is distributed. The examiners should not discuss the thesis or their evaluation of it with each other (or anyone else) prior to the oral examination. The Examiner's Report is considered a confidential document and must not be shared with the candidate or the other examining committee members before the final decision of the examining committee.

If an examiner suspects that academic misconduct, including plagiarism or fabrication/falsification of data, has occurred in the thesis, he/she must notify the Dean of Graduate Studies immediately. The examination will then be suspended until such time as the Dean or his/her designate determines whether academic misconduct has occurred and what penalties will be applied. Depending on the Dean/designate’s determination, the exam may proceed as scheduled, be rescheduled, or be cancelled.

Normally, final thesis oral examinations are open, but only the examiners may question the student.

The examiners' deliberations are private and confidential. Only the Neutral Chair, the examining committee, and, if present, the Department/Program Head and the Dean of Graduate Studies or the Dean's Representative may be present.

(Approved by FGS Council: Nov. 2, 2009)

Before the oral examination, each examiner is required to prepare an assessment of the thesis on the official Examiner's Report on Thesis form. The oral examination cannot proceed until all of the Examiners' Reports are submitted to the Neutral Chair. These assessments are to be submitted to the Neutral Chair of the examination committee before the oral examination begins. The assessments are CONFIDENTIAL: they are not to be made available to the student or to the examination committee before the final recommendation of the examination committee. After the examination, the Neutral Chair should submit the reports to the Graduate Director who ensures that they are forwarded to the Faculty of Graduate Studies. After the examination, the graduate program must make the Examiners' Reports available to the student, upon request.

The oral examination is a formal examination, not an informal discussion with the candidate.

No one other than an examiner (as identified on the Notice of Thesis Oral Examination form) is allowed to question the candidate. All examiners must be given an opportunity to question the candidate early in the examination, e.g., by rounds of questioning.

The oral examination should not exceed two hours. This does not include deliberation time of the committee.

Examiners' editorial comments on the thesis should not be discussed at the oral examination. It is recommended that each examiner hand the student a list of any such comments for post-examination final thesis revisions.

It is common practice to ask the student to present a brief (up to fifteen minutes) opening summary of the thesis. Although this is not mandatory, students may appreciate the opportunity to introduce their research work and summarize its significance.

Questions to the candidate should be relevant to the subject matter of the thesis, and should be clearly and succinctly phrased in order to minimize doubt in the candidate's mind as to what is being asked. The student should be given reasonable time to answer. If the student has understood the question but cannot answer, the examiner should pass to another question and not attempt to extract an answer by prolonged interrogation. The Neutral Chair should guard against any tendency of examiners to interact with each other instead of concentrating on the examination of the candidate.

At the end of the thesis oral examination, everyone except the Neutral Chair, the members of the examination committee, the Department/Program Head or designate and the Dean of Graduate Studies and/or Dean's representative, is required to withdraw from the room. Before any discussion of the candidate's performance, each examiner must identify, by secret ballot, whether he/she favours recommending a pass or fail on each of the thesis and the oral defence. This procedure provides the committee with a frame of opinion upon which a full discussion of the student's performance may then be based.

Following a count of the straw vote the Neutral Chair will facilitate a post-examination discussion in which the Department/Program Head and the Dean of Graduate Studies or their representatives may participate although they have no vote. At the conclusion of the discussion, each examiner must write his/her final recommendation on the official Report of Master's Thesis Examination form. Unanimous decisions are required for both the thesis and the oral defense. If the examiners are unable to achieve unanimity regarding one or both components, there must be no further discussion regarding that component of the examination and the Neutral Chair must immediately inform the Dean of "lack of unanimity". The final decision will be at the discretion of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

Thesis oral examinations are designed to establish a level of achievement consistent with the standards of the Faculty of Graduate Studies as outlined in section 3, "Thesis Quality Requirements." The following section (9.4) defines the official Faculty recommendations to the Dean of Graduate Studies respecting outcomes of thesis oral examinations. In each case, the committee recommendation must be reported to the Dean on the official Report of Master's Final Examination form within one working day of the completion of the examination. Immediately following the conclusion of the examination, the Neutral Chair must report the outcome to the student.

Thesis examinations must be judged to be either acceptable or unacceptable with respect to the thesis itself and, with respect to the oral defence, if the thesis is judged acceptable.

If the unanimous final decision is that the thesis conforms to the requirements for a Master's thesis (see section 3) then all members of the examination committee shall sign the signature page except the Supervisor, who will sign after reviewing and approving any necessary minor corrections on behalf of the committee.

If the unanimous final decision is that the underlying research reported in the thesis is judged to be sound, but the presentation of or analysis in the research requires attention that one or more members of the examination committee wish to review personally, then those members will not sign the approval page until they have seen and approved the revisions. Other members of the committee should sign immediately after the examination. The Report of the examination should specify who has withheld his/her signature.

If the examining committee unanimously determines that the underlying research is not acceptable, then the examination committee recommends a failed thesis to the Dean of Graduate Studies. The final decision will be at the discretion of the Dean of Graduate Studies. Should the Dean of Graduate Studies uphold the recommendation of "fail", the candidate will have a second opportunity to present and defend an acceptable thesis. No judgment should be made on the oral defence, because the revised thesis will need to be defended anew.

If the examiners fail to arrive at a unanimous final recommendation, the Neutral Chair must adjourn discussion on this component of the examination, and that same day inform the Dean of Graduate Studies of "lack of unanimity." The final decision will be at the discretion of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

For either a unanimous decision to fail the thesis or a lack of unanimity, within five working days the Neutral Chair must submit a written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies, describing the examination procedures and copy it to the Graduate Director. Within five working days, each examination committee member must provide a confidential written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies explaining the reasons for his/her recommendation and copy it to the Graduate Director and the Supervisor. After consultation with the Supervisor, the Graduate Director then summarizes the essential points in a written report to the student, copied to the Supervisor.

In the case of a failed thesis, whether by committee or Dean's decision, only one re-submission will be allowed and a new defence will be required. In view of the magnitude of the revisions required, a second oral exam must be held no sooner than six months and no later than twelve months from the date of the first examination. This new examination will normally be conducted by the original examination committee.

In reporting the results of the second examination, the committee will be limited to recommending either pass or fail. A recommendation for "fail" requires that each examiner submit within five working days a confidential written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies, copied to the Graduate Director, and the Supervisor detailing the reasons for his/her assessments. Within five working days, the Neutral Chair must also submit a written report of the examination procedures to the Dean of Graduate Studies, copied to the Graduate Director. If the Dean of Graduate Studies upholds the recommendation to fail, the student will be required to withdraw from the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

If the unanimous final decision is that the oral defence is acceptable, the recommendation regarding the oral defence is a pass.

If the examining committee unanimously determines that the oral defence is not acceptable, then the examining committee recommends a failed oral defence to the Dean of Graduate Studies. The final decision will be at the discretion of the Dean of Graduate Studies. Should the Dean of Graduate Studies uphold the recommendation of "fail", the candidate will be allowed a second, final attempt to present an acceptable oral defence of the thesis.

If the examiners fail to arrive at a unanimous final recommendation, the Neutral Chair must adjourn discussion on this component of the examination, and that same day inform the Dean of Graduate Studies of "lack of unanimity." The final decision will be at the discretion of the Dean of Graduate Studies.

For either a unanimous decision to fail the oral defence or a lack of unanimity, within five working days the Neutral Chair must submit a written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies, describing the examination procedures and copy it to the Graduate Director. Within five working days, each examination committee member must provide a confidential written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies explaining the reasons for his/her recommendation and copy it to the Graduate Director and the Supervisor. After consultation with the Supervisor, the Graduate Director then summarizes the essential points in a written report to the student, copied to the Supervisor.

In the case of a failed oral defence, whether by committee or Dean’s decision, the candidate will be given only one further opportunity to present an acceptable defence. The second oral examination will be scheduled and normally heard by the original examination committee not later than six months from the date of the first examination. Any necessary revisions to the thesis must be completed by the candidate and approved by the committee before the second oral examination is scheduled.

In reporting the results of the second oral examination, the committee will be limited to recommending either pass or fail. A recommendation for "fail" requires that each examiner submit within five working days a confidential written report to the Dean of Graduate Studies, copied to the Graduate Director, and the Supervisor detailing the reasons for his/her assessments. Within five working days, the Neutral Chair must also submit a written report of the examination procedures to the Dean of Graduate Studies, copied to the Graduate Director. If the Dean of Graduate Studies upholds the recommendation to fail, the student will be required to withdraw from the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

When the Neutral Chair of a thesis oral examination does not report a unanimous recommendation, the Dean of Graduate Studies may consult with the Graduate Director, the Supervisor, and the examiners before making a decision. At his/her discretion, the Dean of Graduate Studies may consult with the student as well. A decision should normally be made within seven business days of receiving the required post-examination reports, and all persons involved informed in writing of the result of the decision.

Any procedural irregularities should be reported to the Dean of Graduate Studies within 5 working days of the examination date, regardless of the outcome of the exam.

The names of the candidates who have successfully completed the final thesis oral examination will not be added to the convocation list until the Faculty of Graduate Studies receives two unbound copies of the thesis and a Departmental Clearance Form. Students will continue to be assessed continuing fees until cleared for convocation.

A student requires approval of both the Graduate Director and the Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies to transfer from one area of specialization to another, while remaining within the degree program.

A student requires approval of both the Graduate Director and the Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies to transfer from a Thesis-based Master's Degree to a Course-based Master's Degree.

Program Heads may recommend outstanding Master's students for transfer to the doctoral program. Such recommendations must be endorsed by the proposed doctoral Supervisor and accompanied by the names of members of the proposed doctoral supervisory committee. The transfer must be approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.

Courses credited in the prior Master's program will be taken as fulfilling doctoral requirements where applicable, in accordance with program requirements for required doctoral course work. All students transferring from Master's to doctoral programs will be required to sit the doctoral candidacy examination.

Transfers from Master’s to doctoral programs must be completed within 24 months of the student’s initial registration in the Faculty of Graduate Studies. All transfer students must attempt the candidacy examination within 36 months of first registration in the Faculty of Graduate Studies.