Spring 2008 Graduate Calendar

PhD PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Residence: Residence requirements are intended to provide for each student an adequate contact with the University, with the faculty in the field of specialization, and with the library, laboratories, and other facilities for graduate study and research. Every student in a program leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy must be registered in a full-time program of study for a minimum of three calendar years, normally in succession. Credit for one of these years may be given for the time spent in proceeding to a Master's degree.

Credit for no more than one-half of the required courses for a program, taken at another university, may be given at the discretion of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, upon recommendation of the program coordinator.

A full-time residence year indicates that a student is in full-time work under the direction of a faculty member at the University of Windsor. Persons who teach more that three hours a week or who demonstrate in laboratories to such an extent that the total time spent in preparation, demonstration and working exceeds ten hours a week cannot qualify for residence credit.

Time Limit: A student admitted to a Ph.D. program requiring full-time attendance for three years must complete all requirements for the Ph.D. within seven consecutive years.

A student admitted with one year's advanced standing (e.g., holders of Master's degrees) must complete all requirements within six consecutive years.

If an extension of the time limit becomes necessary, the student should address a petition to the Dean of Graduate Studies giving reasons for the request and plans for the completion of the work. A student who exceeds the time limit may be required to take additional qualifying examinations or additional course work, or both.

Course of Study: Course requirements are specified in the program listings. Planning and direction of the student's course of study are the responsibility of the program coordinator or a designated departmental advisor. A specific program of study should be worked out at the time of the student's first registration, in consultation with the program coordinator or an advisor. Training in methodology may be required, at the discretion of the program.

Since in several programs only a few courses listed will be offered each year, students are advised to ascertain from the program coordinator or an academic advisor which courses will be offered in any given year.

In consultation with their advisor or the program coordinator, all students must complete an Annual Report which is to be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies by May 31 of each year.

It is expected that students working toward the degree of Doctor of Philosophy will maintain a superior average in all course work. Normally, graduate credit will be given only for A or B standing in a course. Concerning credit for C grades, see Grading and Dropping Courses.

After consultation between student and professor and authorization by the program coordinator, a graduate course may be recorded INC (Incomplete) when:

1) the student has completed the class work but is unable to take the end of course examination because of illness or other acceptable reason, or

2)
(a) the student is unable to complete the work for the course because of illness or other acceptable reason, and
(b) the student has done satisfactory work in the course, and
(c) in the opinion of the professor, the student can complete the normally required work of the course without repeating the course in class.

Committees: Research undertaken as part of a doctoral program is normally directed and supervised by a doctoral committee.

Within the first term of registration at doctoral level,the program coordinator will recommend the appointment of members of the doctoral committee, whose appointments must be approved by the Executive Committee of the Faculty Council of Graduate Studies. At the same time the candidate will be required to validate the Non-Exclusive License to the University of Windsorauthorizing the University to archive, reproduce, and distribute the dissertation.

The doctoral committee will consist of a research advisor from the program, who is a member of graduate faculty, two other faculty members in the program, and one from another program at the University of Windsor. Additional members may be added with the approval of the program coordinator and the Executive Committee of the Faculty Council of Graduate Studies. This committee will, from time to time, review the student's progress.

The doctoral committee is also charged with conduct of the final examination of the doctoral candidate (see below).

For the defense of the dissertation (final oral examination), the committee will be supplemented by an independent, external examiner who, as an expert in the field in which the candidate's research is carried out, will appraise the dissertation and ordinarily will also be present at the final oral examination.

The external examiner will be recommended by the doctoral committee, subject to the approval of the program coordinator and the Dean of Graduate Studies. The external examiner must not be involved in the preparation of the dissertation before it is submitted to him or her for final evaluation.

If the research involves human ethics, the faculty supervisor is responsible for the conduct of the study, the ethical performance of the project, and the protection of the rights and welfare of human participants. With the signed approval of the faculty supervisor, the graduate student submits an application to the Research Ethics Board. Research involving human subjects, including secondary use of data, cannot begin until ethics clearance has been obtained. (Consult the Office of Research Services.)

If the research involves animal care or biohazards, the supervisor of the dissertation is responsible for obtaining prior approval from the respective committees governing the above topics. (Consult the Office of Research Services.)