Oral Defence Examination Regulation

The MRP/Thesis/Dissertation is a culmination of all of the work and effort that goes into researching and preparing for a graduate degree. Please contact your Supervisor, Graduate Program Coordinator/Chair, or the Graduate Studies Coordinator (SGS) for additional information. 

Office of Accountability	Graduate Studies & Research
Office of Administrative Responsibility	School of Graduate Studies
Approving Body	Senate
Approval Date	July 8, 2022
Renewal Date	July 8, 2027

The following regulations outline the process of submitting a major research paper (MRP), thesis, or dissertation for oral defence examination at Nipissing University.

I.     General Information

Students writing a thesis or dissertation are required to have their thesis/dissertation and their Oral Defence Examination assessed and approved by the Supervisory Committee (see Supervisory Committee Policy) and Examiner(s) to determine that the thesis/dissertation meets the degree program learner outcomes.  Not all Master’s-level graduate programs require an Oral Defence Examination for students writing a major research paper (MRP). Students should contact their respective Graduate Program Coordinator to learn the assessment requirements of their MRP. Graduate programs that do require an Oral Defence Examination for students writing an MRP will fall under this regulation. 

 I.I     Glossary of Terms

Term	Definition
Chair	Refers to the Chair of the Oral Defence Examination. The Chair is a non-voting member of the Examination Committee who presides over the Oral Defence Examination ensuring procedures are followed in a cordial and timely manner.  The Chair of the Oral Defence is the respective Graduate Program Coordinator or designate.
Supervisor(s)	The Supervisor (or Co-Supervisors) refers the student’s primary MRP/thesis/dissertation advisor. The Supervisor guides the student throughout the course of the research project including advising on courses, assisting with research design, filing Research Ethics Board applications, etc.
Committee Member(s)	Refers to the second, third, or fourth reviewers of the MRP/thesis/dissertation.
Supervisory Committee	Refers to the Supervisor(s) and Committee Member(s) as a whole.
External Examiner	Refers to an arm’s length reviewer who is an expert in the student’s research area of the MRP/thesis/dissertation, as defined in the External Examiner Policy.
Internal Examiner	In PhD Dissertation Committees, the Internal Examiner refers to a Nipissing University Graduate Faculty Member who has not been involved with the supervision or direction of the dissertation and is in a position to render an objective and impartial assessment of the quality of the work.
Examiner(s)	Refers to both the External Examiner and the Internal Examiner, where applicable.
Examination Committee	Refers to the Supervisor(s), Committee Member(s), External Examiner, and Internal Examiner (where applicable) as a whole.
Graduate Program Coordinator	The Graduate Program Coordinator is an elected faculty member (as per the Nipissing University Faculty Association Collective Agreement) who assists graduate students in their programs and works with the academic administrator of Graduate Studies and the relevant Deans to ensure that graduate regulations, policies, and procedures as approved by Senate are followed.

II.     Prior to the Oral Defence Examination Process

The Supervisory Committee should follow the internal Graduate Program Committee procedures for determining if the MRP/thesis/dissertation is ready to be sent to the Examiner(s) and/or Oral Defence Examination. Then, the Supervisor(s), in consultation with the rest of the Supervisory Committee, will recommend an External Examiner for the MRP/thesis/dissertation (see External Examiner Recommendation Form). For PhD programs, the Supervisor(s) will also recommend an Internal Examiner (see Internal Examiner Recommendation Form).  

The Supervisor(s) will contact the recommended Examiner(s) to see if they meet the eligibility requirements (see External Examiner Policy) and are available during the proposed Oral Defence Examination time frame (see III and IV).  The Supervisory Committee will sign the Examiner Recommendation Form(s) and send them as instructed to the SGS. The SGS will collect the Graduate Program Coordinator and Dean, Graduate Studies and Research signatures, as required.

III.     Oral Defence Examination Process: Master’s Level (approximately Seven Weeks)

The Oral Defence Examination process for Master’s-level candidates typically requires up to seven weeks to execute. The seven-week process begins when the Supervisor submits the Oral Defence Examination Request Form to the Graduate Program Coordinator. The process is complete once the student receives a successful outcome in the Oral Defence Examination and completes the final library submission requirements (see III.V).

In order to be eligible for graduation, students will need to complete any revisions arising from the Oral Defence Examination and the School of Graduate Studies final library submission requirements (see Final Submission Requirements). Students and Supervisory Committees may need to consider additional time beyond the seven-week Oral Defence Examination process to complete revisions. Students entering a new term of study to complete revisions or the final submission requirements may be subject to additional fees.

III.I     Request an Oral Defence Examination: Master’s Level

Week One

When the Supervisory Committee agrees that the MRP/thesis meets the degree program standards and learner outcomes, the Supervisory Committee will complete the Oral Defence Examination Request Form and send it, along with a copy of the Committee-approved MRP/thesis, to the respective Graduate Program Coordinator.  The Graduate Program Coordinator will review the Request Form and if approved will sign and send it, along with a copy of the Committee-approved MRP/thesis, to the SGS at least six working weeks before the intended Oral Defence Examination.

III.II     External Examiner Review: Master’s Level

Week Two to Four

Upon approval of the Oral Defence Examination Request Form, the SGS will send the MRP/thesis and instructions to the External Examiner. The External Examiner has up to three weeks to submit their report to the SGS.

The External Examiner assesses the MRP/thesis based on these categories, where applicable:

• Importance of the work to the field of study
• Literature review
• Results, conclusions, recommendations
• Methodology
• Organization
• Conventions

III.III     External Examiner Report: Master’s Level

Week Five

When the School of Graduate Studies receives the External Examiner report, the SGS will email the full report to the Supervisor(s) and copy the Graduate Program Coordinator. The Supervisor(s) may share the External Examiner report with the Committee Member(s), as needed. The SGS will email the “Comments for the Candidate” directly to the student and copy to the Supervisor(s) and Graduate Program Coordinator. The SGS will first verify that the comments for the candidate are cordial in nature before sending them to the student. If the comments are not cordial, the SGS will not send the “Comments to the Candidate” section to the student. Instead, the Supervisor will discuss that section with the student.  

The student has at least one week with the report prior to the Oral Defence Examination. The student and Supervisor will discuss the report and how, if applicable, to factor in the External Examiner’s comments into the MRP/thesis and/or Oral Defence Examination.

If the External Examiner does not recommend that the MRP/thesis proceed to the Oral Defence Examination stage, the Supervisory Committee will have final decision as to whether to recommend that the MRP/thesis proceed to the Oral Defence Examination (see V).

III.IV      The Oral Defence Examination: Master’s Level

Week Six

The SGS sets aside up to 3 hours for an Oral Defence Examination The duration and order of events of each defence varies by program. Generally, Oral Defence Examinations consist of the following:

1. The Chair of the Examination Committee will deliver a brief introduction and will clarify the procedures and/or agenda of the examination process (5 to 10 minutes).
2. The student will make a presentation of the MRP/thesis (approximately 30 minutes, depending on specific program requirements).
3. The Examination Committee will ask questions in rounds (1 to 2 hours total).
   • Round One of Questioning: (up to 10 minutes per committee member)
   • Round Two of Questioning: (up to 10 minutes per committee member)
   • Round Three of Questioning: (optional - only if needed)
4. The Chair invites questions from the audience.
5. The student may give closing remarks, if desired (5 minutes).
6. After the questioning has been completed the Examination Committee will deliberate in camera to decide on the outcome of the defence.
7. After deliberations the Chair will inform the student of the outcome.

The possible Oral Defence Examination outcomes are (see Examination Committee Report):

• Unconditional Pass
• Conditional Pass with minor revisions
• Conditional Pass with major revisions
• Fail
• Adjourned

III.V       After the Oral Defence Examination: Master’s Level

Week Seven (unless additional time for revisions is required)

If an “Unconditional Pass” is granted at the Oral Defence Examination, the student will begin their final library submission requirements. If revisions are required, the final submission requirements may be delayed until the Supervisor(s) (or full Examination Committee, if required) approves the revised MRP/thesis document.

The process after the Oral Defence Examination is as follows:

1. The Chair of the Examination Committee signs the Certificate of Examination, the Examination Committee Report, and Signature Page and sends the three forms to the SGS.
2.     a) The SGS collects the remaining Examination Committee member signatures on the Examination Committee Report and Signature Page. The Supervisor(s) is the last person to sign the forms.
           b) If there are required revisions, the Supervisor(s) is responsible for ensuring the student makes all required changes by the date determined by the Examination Committee and shared on the Examination Committee Report. Once final version of the MRP/thesis has been reviewed and approved by the Supervisor(s) (and Committee Member(s), if required), the Supervisor(s) will then sign the Examination Committee Report and Signature Page and send the forms to the SGS.
3. The SGS will send the signed and completed Examination Committee Report, Signature Page, and Certificate of Examination to the student. The student will then insert the Certificate of Examination into the final version of their MRP/thesis. At this point the student will also receive instructions for the Final Submission Requirements from the SGS.
4. The student submits final copy of the MRP/thesis and all required documentation electronically to the SGS.
5. The SGS reviews all required documentation (verifying for completeness, formatting, and any copyright concerns) and submits a grade for the Dean’s approval.
6. The SGS sends all required documentation to the Harris Learning Library for cataloguing.

IV.     Oral Defence Examination Process: Doctoral Level (approximately Eight Weeks)

The Oral Defence Examination process for Doctoral-level candidates typically requires up to eight weeks to execute. The eight-week process begins when the Supervisor(s) submits the Oral Defence Examination Request Form to the Graduate Program Coordinator. The process is complete once the student receives a successful outcome in the Oral Defence Examination and completes the final library submission (see IV.V).

In order to be eligible for graduation, students will need to complete any revisions arising from the Oral Defence Examination and the School of Graduate Studies final library submission requirements (see Final Submission Requirements). Students and Supervisory Committees may need to consider additional time beyond the eight-week Oral Defence Examination process to complete revisions. Students entering a new term of study to complete revisions or the final submission requirements may be subject to additional fees.

IV.I     Request an Oral Defence Examination: Doctoral Level

Week One

When the Supervisory Committee agrees that the dissertation meets the degree program standards and learner outcomes, the Supervisory Committee will complete the Oral Defence Examination Request Form and send it, along with a copy of the Committee-approved dissertation, to the respective Graduate Program Coordinator.  The Graduate Program Coordinator will review the Request Form and if approved will sign and send it, along with a copy of the Committee-approved dissertation, to the SGS at least seven working weeks before the intended Oral Defence Examination.

IV.II     External Examiner and Internal Examiner: Doctoral Level

Week Two to Five

Upon approval of the Oral Defence Examination Request Form, the SGS will send the dissertation and instructions to both External Examiner and Internal Examiner. The Examiners have up to four weeks to submit their report to the SGS. Typically, the External and Internal Examiners will review the dissertation concurrently. Otherwise, the defence process may take longer than eight weeks to allow for both Examiners to submit their reports.  

The Examiners assess the dissertation based on these categories, where applicable:

• Importance of the work to the field of study
• Literature review
• Results, conclusions, recommendations
• Methodology
• Organization
• Conventions

• Comparisons to applicable work in the field

IV.III     External Examiner and Internal Examiner Reports: Doctoral Level

Week Six

When the School of Graduate Studies receives the Examiner reports, the SGS will email the full reports to the Supervisor and copy the Graduate Program Coordinator. The Supervisor may share the Examiner reports with the Committee Members as needed. The “Comments for the Candidate” section is emailed directly to the student and copied to the Supervisor and Graduate Program Coordinator. The SGS will first verify that the comments for the candidate are cordial in nature before sending them to the student. If the comments are not cordial, the SGS will not send the “Comments for the Candidate” section to the student. Instead, the Supervisor will discuss that section with the student. 

The student has at least one week with the reports prior to the Oral Defence Examination. The student and Supervisor will discuss the report and how, if applicable, to factor in the Examiners’ comments into the dissertation and/or Oral Defence Examination.

If the Examiner(s) does not recommend that the dissertation proceed to the Oral Defence Examination stage, the Supervisory Committee will have final decision as to whether or not to recommend that the dissertation proceed to the Oral Defence Examination (see V).

IV.IV     The Oral Defence Examination: Doctoral Level

Week Seven

The SGS sets aside up to 3 hours for an Oral Defence Examination The duration and order of events of each defence varies by program. Generally, Oral Defence Examinations consist of the following:

1. The Chair of the Examination Committee will deliver a brief introduction and will clarify the procedures and/or agenda of the examination process (5 to 10 minutes).
2. The student will make a presentation of the Dissertation (approximately 30 minutes, depending on specific program requirements).
3. The Examination Committee will ask questions in rounds (1 to 2 hours total).
   • Round One of Questioning: (up to 10 minutes per committee member)
   • Round Two of Questioning: (up to 10 minutes per committee member)
   • Round Three of Questioning: (optional - only if needed)
4. The Chair invites questions from the audience.
5. The student may give closing remarks, if desired (5 minutes).
6. After the questioning has been completed the Examination Committee will deliberate in camera to decide on the outcome of the defence.
7. After deliberations the Chair will inform the student of the outcome.

The possible Oral Defence Examination outcomes are (see Examination Committee Report):

• Unconditional Pass
• Conditional Pass with minor revisions
• Conditional Pass with major revisions
• Fail
• Adjourned

IV.V     After the Oral Defence Examination: Doctoral Level

Week Eight (unless additional time for revisions is required)

If an “Unconditional Pass” is granted at the Oral Defence Examination, the student will begin their final library submission requirements. If revisions are required, the final submission requirements will be delayed until the Supervisor(s) (or full Examination Committee, if required) approves the revised dissertation document.

The process after the Oral Defence Examination is as follows:

1. The Chair of the Examination Committee signs the Certificate of Examination, the Examination Committee Report, and Signature Page and sends the three forms to the SGS.
2. a) The SGS collects the remaining Examination Committee member signatures on the Examination Committee Report and Signature Page. The Supervisor(s) is the last person to sign the forms.

   b) If there are required revisions, the Supervisor(s) is responsible for ensuring the student makes all required changes by the date determined by the Examination Committee and shared on the Examination Committee Report. Once final version of the dissertation has been reviewed and approved by the Supervisor(s) (and Committee Members, if required), the Supervisor(s) will then sign the Examination Committee Report and Signature Page and send the forms to the SGS.

3. The SGS will send the signed and completed Examination Committee Report, Signature Page, and Certificate of Examination to the student. The student will then insert the Certificate of Examination into the final version of their dissertation. At this point the student will also receive instructions for the Final Submission Requirements from the SGS.
4. The student submits final copy of the dissertation and all required documentation electronically to the SGS.
5. The SGS reviews all required documentation (verifying for completeness, formatting, and any copyright concerns) and submits a grade for the Dean’s approval.
6. The SGS sends all required documentation to the Harris Learning Library for cataloguing.

V.I     The Student Submits the MRP/Thesis/Dissertation to the Examiner(s) without the Approval of the Supervisor(s)

It is not advisable for students to submit their MRP/thesis/dissertation to an External Examiner or Internal Examiner (PhD programs only) without approval from their Supervisor(s).  However, students have the right to submit their MRP/thesis/dissertation to the Examiner(s) without approval from their Supervisor(s). In these instances, the Supervisor(s) must state on the Oral Defence Examination Request Form why their approval is withheld. The Graduate Program Coordinator will sign the form and provide the student with the Supervisor’s rationale for withholding approval of the MRP/thesis/dissertation proceeding to the Examiner(s).  Upon reviewing the rationale, the student will sign the Oral Defence Examination Request Form acknowledging that they are submitting their MRP/thesis/dissertation to the Examiner(s) without the approval of their Supervisor(s).

The Examiner(s) will not be made aware that the MRP/thesis/dissertation was submitted without the approval of the Supervisor(s) in order to ensure an impartial review of the MRP/thesis/dissertation. The SGS will submit the instructions to the Examiner(s) as per normal (see III.II and IV.II).

Once the MRP/thesis/dissertation is sent to the Examiner(s), it cannot be withdrawn unless approved by the Dean, Graduate Studies and Research. The version of the MRP/thesis/dissertation that was submitted to and circulated by the SGS is the only version that the Examiner(s) may evaluate.

External Examiner’s and Internal Examiner’s Report will be circulated as per normal (see III.III and IV.III).

V.II     The Student Proceeds to the Oral Defence Examination without the Approval of the Supervisor(s)

It is not advisable for students to proceed to the Oral Defence Examination without the approval of their Supervisor(s). However, students have the right to proceed to the Oral Defence Examination without approval from their Supervisor(s). In these instances, these processes will be followed:

1. If the reason for withholding approval concerns academic dishonesty, then the procedures within Nipissing University’s Academic Dishonesty Policy will be followed.
2. If the reason for withholding approval concerns the quality of the work:
   1. the Supervisor(s) must state on the Oral Defence Examination Request Form their specific concerns they have relating to the quality of the MRP/thesis/dissertation and submit it to the Graduate Program Coordinator.
   2. The Graduate Program Coordinator will provide, in writing, the student with the Supervisor’s concerns about the quality of the work and why they feel it is not ready for the Oral Defence Examination.  The Graduate Program Coordinator will inform the student that the risk of failure is higher when proceeding to the Oral Defence Examination without the approval of the Supervisor(s).
   3. The Supervisor(s) will still be present at the Oral Defence Examination to give the student the opportunity to defend the merits of the MRP/thesis/dissertation.
   4. The student, Examiner(s), Committee Member(s), and the Supervisor(s) may not discuss the content or quality of the MRP/thesis/dissertation until the Oral Defence Examination.
   5. When the Examination Committee deliberates the outcome of the defence in camera, they are reminded to assess the Oral Defence Examination on its academic merits.

If the Supervisor(s) decides to withdraw from the role, the Graduate Program Coordinator (or designate) takes on the role of the Supervisor(s) and attends the Oral Defence Examination in lieu of the Supervisor(s). This involves undertaking any of the steps for the Oral Defence Examination Process as outlined in these regulations.

Once the Graduate Program Coordinator (or designate) assumes the role of the Supervisor:

• The original Supervisor(s) does not attend the Oral Defence Examination and has the right to decline to be recognized as the Supervisor on the published MRP/thesis/dissertation.
• The student, Examiner(s), Committee Member(s), and the new Supervisor may not discuss the content or quality of the MRP/thesis/dissertation until the Oral Defence Examination.
• When the Examination Committee deliberates the outcome of the defence in camera, they are reminded to assess the Oral Defence Examination on its academic merits.

The decision of the Examination Committee is final. The student has the right to submit an Academic Appeal of the decision, if desired.

This regulation is written with thanks to the members of the Ontario Council of Graduate Studies for sharing their policies, with particular thanks to Western University and the University of Guelph as their policies greatly assisted us in writing this regulation.