Timeline for April Completers in the Master of Arts, Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy (Arts & Science and Health Sciences majors) programs
Completing your degree in the Spring 2021 term:
In the event you are hoping to complete your graduate program by the end of the Spring 2021, the following information will help you prepare for the months ahead. Students completing in April can confer their degree in June 2021 or later.
Depending on which conferral date you want to qualify for, consider the following two timelines.
Scenario 1: If you plan to confer your degree in June 2021, plan ahead and work backwards:
- The final date for Decanal Approval of your thesis in the online repository is April 30, 2021.
- This means that the final date by which we can receive the Recommendation of the Award of the Degree (RAD) form is April 23, 2021. The RAD form is the one signed and submitted to SGS once your supervisor has approved any revisions to your thesis made after your defence.
- For April completers we do recommend completing the oral defence by March 22 for master’s programs and March 15 for PhD programs. Most students need at least a couple of weeks to complete revisions after their defence. Please discuss this timeline with your supervisor to ensure there is sufficient time for completing revisions. If you decide to have two weeks for completing revisions, that would make April 9, 2021 the latest potential date for your thesis defence,
- To have your defence date approved, you will need to submit the Request for Final Thesis Examination form to sgs@uleth.ca at least 5 weeks ahead of the date of your defence for master’s programs and 6 weeks for PhD programs; e.g., the final date for submission of the request form for an April 9, 2021 master’s thesis defence date is March 5, 2021. Prior to submitting the request form, you must ensure all the required signatures are present, including your Supervisory Committee and your Defence Chair.
- By the same 5/6 week deadline (depending on your program), you must also submit your final copy of your thesis to SGS via email (sgs@uleth.ca). This is the version of your thesis sent out to your Thesis Examination Committee and used at your thesis oral defence.
Please note: Considering recent developments, all Final Thesis Examinations will take place virtually.
Scenario 2: If you do not plan to confer your degree in June, but still want to complete in the Spring 2021 term and avoid registering for Summer 2021:
- The final date for Decanal Approval of your thesis in the online repository is May 10, 2021 (the Add/Drop deadline for the Summer term)
- This means that the final date by which we can receive the RAD form is May 3, 2021
- If you decide to have 2 weeks for completing your revisions, that will make the latest potential date for your thesis defence, April 19, 2021
- You will need to submit the request form at least 5 weeks (for master’s programs) and 6 weeks (for PhD programs) ahead of this date; e.g., the final date for submission of that form for a master’s program with a April 19 defence date is March 15, 2021.
Please note that the deadlines mentioned above are final. We do encourage you to follow the recommended completion dates for your program that can be found in the SGS Policies and Procedures document, p. 36.
If you are not completing your program in the Spring term, it’s still a good idea to consider these timelines and apply them in the Summer 2021 term.