Examinations

To confirm exam details, students must submit the Exam Request Form and submit their major research paper (MRP) to the committee and graduate office (graduate.geography.utoronto.ca) a minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam. For clarity, this timeline does not include the day of the exam, or any days which the university is closed. The MRP must be sent by 9am in order for that day to count as a full working day. If the MRP is not distributed by this deadline, the graduate office will cancel the exam. 

Master’s exams can take place remotely or on in person/on campus. For remote meetings, the supervisor or student should create an online meeting link (preferably using university Zoom or MS Teams account) to share with participants or request a Zoom booking from graduate.geography@utoronto.ca. We recommend that supervisors “host” the meeting so that the student can be placed in a “waiting room” while the committee discusses the exam result.  

To book a room/AV for the exam at STG, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for up to 1 hour. 

The Major Research Paper (MPR) must be read and evaluated by: 

1. The supervisor/co-supervisors 

2. One geography graduate faculty member 

Additional graduate faculty members can be added if necessary. Students enrolled in a collaborative program may be required to have a collaborative program faculty member participate in their exam. Please consult with the collaborative program office for instructions. 

SGS Deadline	Details
September 15, 2023	For students starting a PhD program at U of T, this is the final/latest deadline to complete master’s degree requirements in time to register for the Fall 2023 session.
September 27, 2023	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission in order to avoid fall fees and to be eligible for November 2023 convocation. Master’s students who intend to meet this deadline are not required to register for the fall session and can ignore their fees invoice in ACORN.
January 19, 2024	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission in order to avoid winter fees and to be eligible for March (in absentia – no ceremony) or June 2024 convocation. Students who complete by this deadline will have their winter fees cancelled in ACORN.
April 12, 2024	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission to be eligible for June 2024 convocation.

Timeline	Dates	Details
5-6 weeks prior to the exam	Fall Date: 19 July 2023	The student should confirm the second reader in consultation with their supervisor.
	Winter Date: 20 October 2023
	Summer Date: 19 January 2024
3-5 weeks prior to the exam	Fall Date: 26 July 2023	The student will schedule a presentation (MRP) meeting date/time in consultation with the faculty members. The MRP presentation must be booked for 1 hour. Room and equipment (projector/laptop) bookings can be made through the front office – mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca.
	Winter Date: 27 October 2023
	Summer Date: 26 January 2024
2 weeks (10 working days) prior to the exam date	Fall Date: 16 August 2023	The student must submit the Exam Request Form to the graduate office (graduate.geography@utoronto.ca).    The student must provide each participating faculty member and the graduate office (graduate.geography@utoronto.ca) with an electronic copy of their major research paper a minimum of 2 weeks (10 working days, not including any days the university is closed) prior to the exam date. This deadline may be earlier at the discretion of the supervisor/committee members. If the MRP is not received by all participating faculty members and the graduate office 2 weeks prior to the presentation meeting date, the meeting will be cancelled by the graduate office. Students should also be prepared to provide printed copies if requested. The MRP must follow the SGS formatting guidelines.
	Winter Date: 17 November 2023
	Summer Date: 1 March 2024
Day of the exam	Fall Date: 30 August 2023	Exam results forms will be provided to the supervisor, to be returned to the graduate office immediately following the exam.
	Winter Date: 1 December 2023
	Summer Date: 15 March 2024
2-4 weeks after the exam	Fall Date: 27 September 2023	Corrections/revisions must be completed. The supervisor must approve the final corrected presentation by email to the department. The student may then submit the final copy.
	Winter Date: 19 January 2024
	Summer Date: 12 April 2024

The outcome of the exam is one of the following: 

• Pass. MRP is accepted as-is. 

• Pass with minor corrections. MRP is acceptable subject to minor corrections such as typographical errors, punctuation, etc. to be reviewed and approved by the supervisor. Deadline for completion of corrections is a maximum two weeks from the date of the exam. 

• Pass with modifications. MRP is acceptable subject to modifications such as changes in style or less than major revisions to be reviewed and approved by the supervisor. Examples of modifications are clarification of textual material, qualification of research findings or conclusions. Deadline for completion of modifications is a maximum one month from the date of the exam. 

• Major revisions required, examination adjourned. Exam must be reconvened a maximum three months from the date of the exam. An exam can be reconvened once and the result must be ‘pass’ (with or without corrections or modifications) or ‘fail’. 

• Fail. If this is the first failure, the student can repeat the exam within six months. If this is the second failure, the department may recommend termination of the student’s registration. 

Students will have two weeks to make any minor corrections. Once corrections have been reviewed, the supervisor will confirm by email to the graduate office that they have been satisfactorily completed and the final MRP is approved.

Students will have up to one month to make any modifications. Once modifications have been reviewed, the supervisor will confirm by email to the graduate office that they have been satisfactorily completed and the final MRP is approved.

If the MRP requires major revisions, the exam must be reconvened within 3 months. The supervisor will confirm by email to the graduate office that the result is pass or fail.

If the MRP is found to be unacceptable, the exam can be retaken once, with 6 months. The supervisor will confirm by email to the graduate office the results.

An electronic copy of the MRP must be submitted to the graduate office by email to graduate.geography@utoronto.ca immediately following the supervisor’s approval of the final copy, within the deadlines noted above. 

Students are not required to submit a bound copy to the department; however, the supervisor may request a bound copy. If a bound copy is requested, it is the student’s responsibility to have one produced and delivered. If the student is enrolled in a collaborative specialization they may be required to submit an electronic or print copy of the final MRP to the collaborative program office (please consult collaborative program staff for instructions). 

Once the final MRP has been submitted to the graduate office, the department will submit a recommendation for convocation to SGS for the next convocation date. 

Please refer to the Masters Program of Study page for the program completion requirements.  

Students who require a letter prior to convocation which confirms all degree requirements have been completed can request a Confirmation of Degree letter from SGS. 

Fees adjustments for students who complete in time to avoid fall or winter fees are usually made within 2-3 weeks after the recommendation for convocation has been submitted to SGS.

Students who have outstanding fees as of the deadlines above will be permitted to attend convocation. Students who owe fees who attend convocation will receive an empty envelope, which will be identical to other envelopes containing diplomas. However, such students will not receive their diploma and a financial hold is placed on the student’s financial account. Transcripts and confirmation of degree letters will not be issued until fees have been paid. 

Information about convocation will be emailed to the student approximately 3 weeks prior to the convocation date. Please visit SGS Graduation and Convocation for more information. 

Students will take a written and oral PhD Comprehensive Examination administered by the supervisory committee between June of year one and no later than December of year two. The examination requirements are slightly different for human geographers than they are for physical geographers reflecting the different needs of the discipline. The purpose of the exam is to ascertain whether a student has obtained an adequate knowledge base to continue in the PhD program; to ascertain any knowledge gaps and suggest remedial action; and to provide a student with the opportunity to get a broad perspective on their chosen field of study. The scope and three (human geography and planning) or four (physical geography) areas of concentration of the examination are to be jointly determined by the supervisory committee and the student. They are to be laid out in the draft comprehensive reading list and are to be confirmed in the first progress meeting. It is the responsibility of the supervisory committee to review and approve the draft reading list by a deadline established jointly by the supervisor and student. The scope of the exam cannot be changed after this stage.

The student should seek the advice of all committee members in preparing for the comprehensive examination. In consultation with the supervisor, the student should compile an appropriate draft reading list for each area of concentration by June of year one. The draft reading list should be circulated to all committee members for their comments and should form the basis of the examination. Normally, the total number of readings is approximately 100, but may be shorter or longer depending on the number of books included in the list. Students may wish to consider sub-dividing each area of concentration into 2-4 themes and should include a summary of what they see as the major issues covered in each area.

The supervisor is responsible for preparing the examination paper on the basis of input received from the committee members. The detailed instructions should be finalized in consultation with the student and committee members.

To confirm exam details, students must submit the Exam Request Form to notify the graduate office of the exam details prior starting the written exam. For clarity, this timeline does not include any days which the university is closed. The graduate office will prepare the examination file that can be collected just before the exam and returned immediately following the exam. 

To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for up to 2 hours. 

The department recommends that students take a written and oral PhD Comprehensive Examination administered by the supervisory committee between June of year one and no later than December of year two. The School of Graduate Studies requires candidacy to be achieved, completion of the comprehensive exam, proposal exams and coursework, by the end of year three.

Options	Human Geography
One-Day	The student writes the exam over eight hours in a closed room on campus. The examination is open book and internet access is not permitted. Citations should be included from the comprehensive exam reading list, where relevant. These can be cited in text, i.e. (Harvey, 2008). The expected length of each of the three answers for human geographers is 2000-2500 words.
Five-Day	The student writes the exam over a five-day period (including weekend days if the exam period includes a weekend) either on or off-campus. The examination is due at the same time of day it is collected by the student (e.g. an exam that starts at 9am on a Thursday will be due at 9am on the following Tuesday). It is expected that students will cite their work, citations will be drawn exclusively or primarily from the reading list. There is no need to attach a list of references for books or articles included in the examination reading list. The few, if any, additional references to works cited that are not on the reading list can be attached to the end of each answer. Responses will be more in-depth than the one-day exam. The expected length of each response is 3500-4500 words for human geographers (not including the list of references/bibliography).

Options	Physical Geography
One-Day	The student writes the exam over eight hours in a closed room on campus. The examination is open book and internet access is not permitted. Citations should be included from the comprehensive exam reading list, where relevant. These can be cited in text, i.e. (Harvey, 2008). The expected length of each of the four answers for physical geographers is 1500-2000 words.
Two-Day	The student writes the examination over two periods, amounting to eight hours in total, at least one day apart. Student receives questions for two areas on day 1, and two areas on day 2. All other conditions for the exam are the same as the one-day examination.
Five-Day	The student writes the exam over a five day period (including weekend days if the exam period includes a weekend) either on or off-campus. The examination is due at the same time of day it is collected by the student (e.g. an exam that starts at 9am on a Thursday will be due at 9am on the following Tuesday). It is expected that students will cite their work, citations will be drawn exclusively or primarily from the reading list. There is no need to attach a list of references for books or articles included in the examination reading list. The few, if any, additional references to works cited that are not on the reading list can be attached to the end of each answer. Responses will be more in-depth than the one-day exam. The expected length of each response is 2500-3500 words for physical geographers (not including the list of references/bibliography).

Options	Planning
One-Day	The student writes the exam over eight hours in a closed room on campus. The examination is open book and internet access is not permitted. Citations should be included from the comprehensive exam reading list, where relevant. These can be cited in text, i.e. (Harvey, 2008). The expected length of each of the three answers for planners is 2000-2500 words.
Five-Day	The student writes the exam over a five day period (including weekend days if the exam period includes a weekend) either on or off-campus. The examination is due at the same time of day it is collected by the student (e.g. an exam that starts at 9am on a Thursday will be due at 9am on the following Tuesday). It is expected that students will cite their work, citations will be drawn exclusively or primarily from the reading list. There is no need to attach a list of references for books or articles included in the examination reading list. The few, if any, additional references to works cited that are not on the reading list can be attached to the end of each answer. Responses will be more in-depth than the one-day exam. The expected length of each response is 3500-4500 words for planners and 2500-3500 words (not including the list of references/bibliography).

In 2015, PhD students in the department produced a compilation of tips and information, Demystifying the Comps Process. 

Timeline	Dates	Details
Jan-June (Year 1)	Date: 30 June 2023	Identify areas of concentration and prepare draft reading list to be presented to the supervisory committee at the first progress review meeting.
2 months prior to the exam	Date: 29 August 2023	Establish a date for supervisory committee approval of the final reading list.
2 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 31 October 2023	Student to schedule the exam and submit the Exam Request Form to inform the department of the exam details.
Day of the written exam	Date: 14 November 2023	Supervisor to send the written exam instructions and questions to the student, with cc to the department.
Variable (1-5 days, depending on exam format)	Date: 15 November 2023	The student will submit their written exam to their supervisory committee, with cc to the department.
Within 1 week of the written exam	Date: 22 November 2023	The oral exam must take place. This should be booked for 2 hours.
Within 1 month after the oral exam	Date: 20 December 2023	Any conditions set by the committee for a conditional pass must be satisfied.

At the time of the oral examination, the committee should base its evaluation of the student on the following criteria: 

• The quality of the written responses: mastery, coverage, and communicative clarity for all questions on the examination; 

• The quality of the oral defense of written responses and to questions not answered in writing: in terms of capturing the essence of the questions posed; ability to address the concerns raised and to deliver reasoned answers to legitimate criticisms; 

• Oral responses to any questions related to the scope of the exam. 

The supervisor should ensure that each committee member is satisfied with the answers to questions that he or she submitted for the examination. The outcome of the comprehensive exam is one of the following: 

• Pass. 

• Conditional Pass. Student must satisfy conditions specified by the exam committee within one month, subject to final approval of the committee or a subset of the committee, which must include the supervisor(s). Failure to satisfy conditions by this date shall result in a failure of the exam. Conditions typically imposed for a conditional pass can include re-writing one or more questions or clarifying all or part of an oral answer in writing. 

• Fail. If this is the first failure, the student can repeat the exam within six months. The department will recommend the termination of a student’s graduate program if the student fails the repeat exam. 

The research proposal should be prepared when the student has settled on a research topic; completed a preliminary exploration of the sources; and identified the problem and defined a research strategy. Ideally, the research proposal should take the form of a paper of about twenty to forty pages in length which includes a statement of the problem, research questions, a discussion and literature review of the research context in which it is set, research objectives or hypotheses, a brief outline of the data sources and methods, a draft survey or guiding questions for interviews (where appropriate) and a suggested timetable for completion. There should be a discussion of methods and methodology that makes reference to the literature on methodology. The proposal should provide a rationale for the choice of methods and discuss any ethical issues stemming from the research (if appropriate). The research proposal should be defended prior to extensive research. It should not constitute a draft of the final thesis.

To confirm exam details, students must submit the Exam Request Form to notify the graduate office of the exam details minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam. For clarity, this timeline does not include any days which the university is closed. The proposal must be sent by 9am in order for that day to count as a full working day. If the proposal is not distributed by this deadline, the graduate office will cancel the exam. 

The graduate office will prepare the examination results form that will be sent to the supervisor to be returned immediately following the exam. 

To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for up to 2 hours. 

The department recommends that students defend the research proposal between June of year two and no later than September of year three. The School of Graduate Studies requires candidacy to be achieved, completion of the comprehensive exam, proposal exams and coursework, by the end of year three. Normally, all required coursework will have been completed by the time of the research proposal exam but in some cases the research proposal can be presented earlier with the agreement of the supervisory committee.

Timeline	Dates	Details
2 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 23 June 2023	Students must submit the Exam Request Form and submit their proposal to the committee and graduate office (graduate.geography@utoronto.ca) a minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam.
Day of the proposal exam	Date: 7 July 2023	The research proposal exam must take place. To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for 2 hours.
Within 1-3 months after the exam	Date: 29 September 2023	Any conditions set by the committee for a conditional pass must be satisfied.

A Research Proposal must be submitted and defended before the supervisory committee at the research proposal examination. The committee will advise the student on the acceptability of the proposal and will decide on any further steps to be taken in shaping the dissertation research project. The outcome of the proposal exam is one of the following: 

• Pass. 

• Conditional Pass. Student must satisfy conditions specified by the supervisory committee (within three months) subject to final approval of the committee or a subset of the committee, which must include the supervisor(s). Failure to satisfy conditions by this date shall result in failure of the exam. 

• Fail. The student must repeat the exam within six months. 

The conditions will be attached to the research proposal examination form and typically include requests for revisions to theory and methodology. Examples of requested revisions might include additional reading on theory, reconceptualization of the theoretical approach, or additional research into the feasibility or appropriateness of the methodology. 

The completed PhD thesis will first be examined by the supervisory committee in an internal Departmental Thesis Examination.

The exam must be scheduled for 2 hours. The student may give a short presentation of about 20 minutes summarizing the major contributions of the thesis. This presentation will be followed by questions from the committee members. At the end of the examination, the student will leave the room while the committee reaches a decision. The committee will recommend (or not) that the thesis be accepted and may require revisions prior to submission to the department for the SGS Final Oral Examination.

To confirm exam details, students must submit the Exam Request Form to notify the graduate office of the exam details minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam. For clarity, this timeline does not include any days which the university is closed. The thesis must be sent by 9am in order for that day to count as a full working day. If the thesis is not distributed by this deadline, the graduate office will cancel the exam. 

The graduate office will prepare the examination results form that will be sent to the supervisor to be returned immediately following the exam. 

To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for up to 2 hours. 

The School of Graduate Studies requires the completion of internal and external defense examinations by the end of year six.

Timeline	Dates	Details
2 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 15 December 2023	Students must submit the Exam Request Form and submit their thesis to the committee and graduate office (graduate.geography@utoronto.ca) a minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam.
Day of the proposal exam	Date: 19 January 2024	The departmental thesis exam must take place. To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for 2 hours.
Within 1-3 months after the exam	Date: 12 April 2024	Any conditions set by the committee for a conditional pass must be satisfied.

The thesis must be formatted using the SGS formatting guidelines. The supervisor must approve a final copy prior to distribution to the examiners. The complete thesis (including all references, appendices, etc.) must be provided to the all examiners and the graduate office a minimum of 10 full working days prior to the exam date (or earlier, up to 4 weeks prior, at the discretion of the exam committee). 

The outcome of the exam is one of the following: 

• Pass, accepted as-is. 

• Pass with corrections. Thesis is acceptable subject to minor modifications such as typographical errors, punctuation to be reviewed and approved by the supervisor. Deadline for completion of corrections is a maximum of one month from the date of the exam. 

• Pass with minor modifications. Thesis is acceptable subject to minor modifications such as changes in style or less than major revisions to be approved by a subcommittee including the supervisor and at least one additional committee member. Examples of minor modifications are clarification of textual material, qualification of research findings or conclusions. Deadline for completion of minor modifications is a maximum three months from the date of the exam. 

• Major revisions, examination adjourned. Thesis requires major revisions which cannot feasibly be completed within 3 months, examining committee to reconvene within 6 months. The exam can be reconvened once and the result of a reconvened exam must be ‘pass’ (with or without corrections or modifications) or ‘fail’. 

• Fail. Thesis is not acceptable and requires more than 6 months to revise. If this is the first failure, the student can repeat the exam within one year. 

After the internal Thesis Defence Examination, the completed PhD thesis will be examined by the supervisory committee in an external Final Oral Examination. 

Both student and examiners should read the full SGS Exam Guidelines in preparation for scheduling the exam. The guidelines include information about the committee requirements and exam outcomes. Information on exam procedures are found on pages 9-14 of the guidelines. Information is also found in the SGS Calendar. 

To confirm exam details, the supervisor must submit the FOE Request Form to notify the graduate office of the exam details minimum 8 weeks prior to the exam. For clarity, this timeline does not include any days which the university is closed. The thesis must be sent by 9am in order for that day to count as a full working day. If the thesis is not distributed by this deadline, the graduate office will cancel the exam. 

The graduate office will prepare the examination forms that will be sent to the examiners. 

To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for up to 3 hours. 

The School of Graduate Studies requires the completion of internal and external defense examinations by the end of year six.

SGS Deadline	Details
September 15, 2023	For students starting a PhD program at U of T, this is the final/latest deadline to complete master’s degree requirements in time to register for the Fall 2023 session.
September 27, 2023	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission in order to avoid fall fees and to be eligible for November 2023 convocation. Master’s students who intend to meet this deadline are not required to register for the fall session and can ignore their fees invoice in ACORN.
January 19, 2024	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission in order to avoid winter fees and to be eligible for March (in absentia – no ceremony) or June 2024 convocation. Students who complete by this deadline will have their winter fees cancelled in ACORN.
April 12, 2024	Deadline to complete all requirements/submission to be eligible for June 2024 convocation.

Timeline	Dates	Details
7-8 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 12 April 2024	The supervisor submits a request to approve/schedule the FOE to the graduate office. The request must include:   The exam date and time   The thesis title   The composition of the exam committee, which must include:   1 to 3 members from the supervisory committee, including the supervisor(s). For clarity, in cases where co-supervision exists, each supervisor counts as 1 examiner.   1-2 external examiners (not previously involved with the dissertation) from the University. A minimum of 1 is required, 2 is recommended.   A list of 3 possible external appraisers. The supervisor should contact their first choice to confirm they are available and willing to write an appraisal prior to submitting their name. A CV for the appraiser must be provided. The external appraiser must be a recognized expert on the subject of the thesis and external to the University. They must be at arm’s length from both the candidate and the supervisor. They must be an Associate or Full Professor and should be experienced as a successful supervisor of doctoral candidates through their defense. An appraiser from outside the academic sector may be approved in exceptional circumstances if they possess the qualifications to be appointed to an academic position at this level.   Please note: Quorum for the exam is at least 4 voting members, of which at least 2 must be external examiners (this can include the appraiser). SGS recommends a minimum of 5 examiners.   The Associate Chair will review and approve the appraiser and other examiners. The graduate office will submit this information to SGS for final approval of the SGS Vice-Dean and if approved, will schedule the exam date/location with the SGS Doctoral Exams Office. Once approved and scheduled, the graduate office will send an appointment letter to the appraiser and will send a confirmation of all details to the examiners and student.
6-7 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 19 April 2024	The student must provide an electronic copy of the dissertation to the graduate office. The dissertation must follow SGS Formatting Guidelines. If the thesis is not available a minimum of 6 weeks prior to the exam date, the exam may be cancelled.        The graduate office will distribute the dissertation to the appraiser and other examiners.
2 weeks prior to the exam	Date: 24 May 2024	The graduate office will forward the 1) program, 2) abstract and 3) appraisal to the examiners and student.
2 days prior to the exam	Date: 5 June 2024	The graduate office will send a reminder for the exam.
Day of the exam	Date: 7 June 2024	The FOE must take place. To book a room/AV for the exam, please contact mainoffice@geog.utoronto.ca prior to submitting the exam request form. The exam should be booked for 3 hours.
Within 1-3 months after the exam	Date: 30 August 2024	The student will have 1 month (minor corrections) up to 3 months (minor modifications) to make any revisions to the dissertation. The supervisor (or convener of a subcommittee for minor modifications) will confirm in writing to the SGS Doctoral Exams Office and cc to the department Graduate Office that the final dissertation is approved for submission. Once approved, the student may submit the final copy online. See the SGS Submission Guidelines for instructions.

The outcome of the exam is one of the following: 

• Pass. 

• Pass with minor corrections. Thesis is acceptable subject to minor corrections such as typographical errors, errors in punctuation, problems in style, etc. The supervisor will inform the student of the deadline for completion of corrections is one month from the date of the exam. 

• Pass with modifications. Thesis is acceptable subject to modifications such as changes in style or less than major changes. Examples of modifications are clarification of textual material, qualification of research findings, or conclusions. The supervisor will inform the student of the deadline for completion of modifications (which is maximum three months from the date of the exam). 

• Major revisions required, examination adjourned. Exam must be reconvened a maximum one year from the date of the exam. An exam can be reconvened once and the result must be ‘pass’ (with or without corrections or modifications). If the result is adjournment, further doctoral candidacy is ineligible.  

Students will have one month (minor corrections) to make any revisions. Once revisions have been reviewed, the supervisor will confirm by email to the graduate office that the corrections have been satisfactorily completed and the final thesis is approved.

The Chair of the Examination Committee must appoint a supervising Subcommittee and Convenor. The Convenor will provide the candidate, supervisor, and graduate office with a copy of the statement of modifications. Students will have up to three months (minor modifications) to make any revisions. Once revisions have been reviewed, the Convenor will confirm by email to the graduate office that they have been satisfactorily completed and the final thesis is approved.

The Chair will report the reasons for adjournment and the Examination Committee’s requirements for the reconvened oral examination to the graduate office. The exam must be reconvened within one year. When the Examination Committee reconvenes, the Chair will resubmit the result.

An electronic copy of the thesis must be submitted to the graduate office by email to graduate.geography@utoronto.ca immediately following the supervisor’s approval of the final copy, within the deadlines noted above. 

Students are not required to submit a bound copy to the department; however, the supervisor may request a bound copy. If a bound copy is requested it is the student’s responsibility to have one produced and delivered. If the student is enrolled in a collaborative specialization they may be required to submit an electronic or print copy of the final thesis to the collaborative program office (please consult collaborative program staff for instructions). 

Students who complete a thesis must also submit the final, approved copy electronically to SGS by the deadlines posted above. 

Once the final thesis has been submitted to the graduate office, the department will submit a recommendation for convocation to SGS for the next convocation date. 

Please refer to the PhD Program of Study page for the program completion requirements.  

Students who require a letter prior to convocation which confirms all degree requirements have been completed can request a Confirmation of Degree letter from SGS. 

Academic fees for doctoral students in the final year of their program are pro-rated based on the 12-month academic year. Incidental fees are charged on a sessional basis. Doctoral students are charged for the full year but at registration they may choose to pay: 

1. The full fee. In the event that the student is not registered for the full year, a refund will be issued for any 
   overpayment after the final thesis is submitted to SGS. 

2. The minimum first payment indicated on the student’s Fee Invoice in Acorn. 

3. The fee based on the expected date of completion. For example, a PhD student in year 5 who plans to complete prior July 15, 2020 pays $6,815.90 according to the 12-month schedule. 

Fees will be adjusted based on the date that the student submitted their final, corrected dissertation to SGS. It may take several weeks for the adjustment to appear on Acorn once the dissertation has been received. 

Please visit the Student Accounts website for fees information. 

Fees adjustments for students who complete in time to avoid fall or winter fees are usually made within 2-3 weeks after the recommendation for convocation has been submitted to SGS. 

Students who have outstanding fees as of the deadlines above will be permitted to attend convocation. Students who owe fees who attend convocation will receive an empty envelope, which will be identical to other envelopes containing diplomas. However, such students will not receive their diploma and a financial hold is placed on the student’s financial account. Transcripts and confirmation of degree letters will not be issued until fees have been paid. 

Information about convocation will be emailed to the student approximately 3 weeks prior to the convocation date. Please visit SGS Graduation and Convocation for more information.