M.Cog.Sc. Prospectus and Thesis Preparations – Thesis Stream

This page describes the process of getting a Masterʼs of Cognitive Science (M.Cog.Sc.) in the thesis stream. There is also a Project Stream, described elsewhere. In brief, the process works like this: 

• In the first year, coursework is completed and the thesis topic is selected in consultation with the thesis supervisor; the research topic is selected (literature review is conducted on the topic, gaps are identified, and research questions are formed) 
• At the start of the second year, a thesis proposal is defended in a formal meeting with the supervisor and one additional committee member 
• By the end of the second year, the research is completed, culminating in a final written document and an oral defense

This page goes over these steps, focusing on the thesis component. Information on the course work component is here <insert link>

Your Supervisor

Masterʼs students are mentored by a supervisor. Supervisors are assigned upon acceptance to the program, but can be changed later. Graduate Studies has developed guidelines for supervision, found here: <add link>. Minimally, the supervisor must have the expertise on the student’s research topic. Supervisors are expected to meet with their students on a regular basis and to be available for consultation even when they are away for extended periods.  Students should have the opportunity to present and discuss their work in small group settings (lab meetings or informal groups), and at conferences.

Your Responsibilities

Similarly, Graduate Studies specifies the responsibilities of the student. Students are expected to communicate with their supervisors, to participate in jointly-agreed upon research activities, to carry through on research assistantship duties, and in general, to participate in the scholarly activity of the department more generally (e.g., attend colloquia, provide support for other students through knowledge sharing etc.). Students also need to balance course work requirements with research activities.

Determining the Subject of Research

A Master’s Thesis is an independent research project in which a student works with a faculty supervisor to investigate a research question of interest. Through this process, students develop expertise in their topic area and gain experience designing and conducting research, analyzing evidence, and communicating their findings.

Masterʼs Prospectus – 1st Steps

The Masters prospectus corresponds to an oral defense during which you give a presentation on the research proposal (this includes a literature review, research questions positioned in that review, and a description of the proposed work) and answer questions about the proposal. Your supervisor may additional require a prospectus document.

Prior to the prospectus defense, in consultation with your supervisor, a thesis committee is formed that must include one additional faculty member, typically from Cognitive Science (but does not have to be); there can be more than one committee member. Rules around who can be a committee member are in the above mentioned Graduate Studies Thesis Examination Policy. 

Masterʼs Prospectus Defense (by October)

 The prospectus defense  should take place by the end of October in year two of your program.

Steps required in scheduling your Prospectus Defense

1. In consultation with your supervisor(s) and committee members, decide on a date and time for the defense.
2. Fill out the M.Cog.Sc. Prospectus Defense Approval Form and the M.Cog.Sc.Supervisory Committee Approval Form and submit at least three weeks in advance of the prospectus defense to the graduate administrator. If you require any equipment, let the graduate administrator know, so that they can inform you on the procedure to book it.
3. If you wrote a prospectus document (not required by the department but may be required by your supervisor), forward it to your committee 2 weeks prior to the defense.

After the prospectus defense, the student does the research and writes the thesis. When that is nearing completion, the examination committee is set up. 

Thesis Document

All theses need to conform to the guidelines presented by the Faculty of Graduate and

Postdoctoral Affairs, Graduate Studies. Additional guidelines specific to Cognitive Science are presented here. Note that all Carleton University theses are available for viewing online through the library. It is helpful for students to look at a few to see how they are typically organized.

The traditional thesis consists of a series of chapters (Chapter 1, 2, … to Chapter X). Each Chapter follows sequentially from the one before and constitutes a major section, such as Introduction, Methods, Experiment 1, .. General Discussion, and so on (or other titles as appropriate). Most of the theses in the Department are in this format.

The length of a thesis varies but is typically between 40 and 70 pages long before references. Length is of less importance than whether or not the student has addressed an interesting question and provided a reasonable attempt to answer that question. 

Thesis must be in final format before they are sent to the external and internal examiners . The thesis should be in final form, including all tables of contents, references, appendices etc; it should be presented in double-spaced, with the appropriate margins, with figures and tables embedded in the text. The one exception is that the acknowledgements page is usually not included in the version sent to the committee, as it will be finalized after the defense.

The Thesis Examination Committee

This committee typically has all of the members from the prospectus committee, plus an internal examiner and an external examiner. The internal examiner is a professor who is not in Cognitive Science (not even a 0% faculty.) The student and the supervisor can discuss who this should be.

Lead-Up to the Defense

Five Weeks Before: Student submits the M.Cog.Sc. Thesis Defense Examination Approval Form to the graduate administrator. This form should only be submitted after there has been confirmation from your supervisor that all the members of your committee including  the Internal Examiner have confirmed their availability for this date and time.  

Three Weeks Before: Student uploads the examination copy of their thesis through Carleton Central. This copy must be the final version of the thesis rather than a draft. Once this has been done, the Examination Copy will be available for viewing by your committee members. 

Masterʼs Defense

Defenses are typically done in person but occasionally happen over Zoom in extraordinary circumstances. The defense has these stages:

1. The chair describes what will happen. 
2. The chair excuses the candidate (the Masterʼs student) and any guests from the room (or is put in a zoom breakout room). 
3. The chair gets verbal confirmation from the committee that the defense can proceed.
4. If it can proceed, the spectators and student are brought back in. The student gives a 15 to 20 minute presentation, summarizing the research. After this point, spectators must leave, unless the candidate and the committee agree that they can stay.
5. The chair facilitates two rounds of questioning. In the first round, each committee member gets roughly 15 minutes to question the candidate without interruption from other committee members. The supervisor takes notes throughout both rounds of questioning. 
6. The second round of questioning is more like a discussion, where others can jump in. 
7. After question periods is done, the student is allowed to make an optional final statement. 
8. The student is excused from the room again and the committee deliberates. 
9. The student is brought in and told the outcome of the examination: Accept without revision, accept with minor revision, accept with major revision, or reject. 

After the Masterʼs Defense

If the defense passed without any required revisions (which is very rare!) the student might correct a few typos and then upload the final version of the thesis. 

If minor or major revisions are required, the student works on these based on the revision list approved by the committee. If revisions are minor, only the supervisor has to confirm that the changes have been made. If revisions were major, some subset of the committee must review changes before final approval is made. After final approval, the student uploads the final version of the thesis. Once the final copy has been uploaded, the supervisor has to approve it. Once approved, you have completed your Program Requirements for the Masterʼs in Cognitive Science.