DSAAI Doctoral Thesis Proposal

Doctoral Thesis Proposal

The Doctoral Thesis Proposal consists of a written document defining the specific problem addressed, relating it to the state-of-the-art literature, reporting on the hypothesis, goals, and any initial results, and outlining the proposed research methodology and validation procedure(s). The proposal summarizes what has been done so far and what is expected to be completed in the final dissertation. The Thesis Proposal must identify the final dissertation’s expected contributions and how these contributions will be validated. The Doctoral Thesis Proposal process also includes an oral defence.

Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee and Scheduling the Oral Defence

The Supervisor must establish the Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee, which consists of the following:

• The Supervisor(s)
• Two additional Carleton faculty members
  • At least one of the two additional Carleton faculty members must be a DSAAI Faculty member.
• Chair
  • Must be a DSAAI Faculty member who is familiar with Graduate Studies rules and regulations.

The Supervisor formally indicates the committee members and the date/time of the oral defence using the Scheduling a Doctoral Proposal Defence form. This form should be submitted at least four weeks before the proposed oral defence.

The Graduate Director must approve the composition of the Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee.

The Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee is responsible for evaluating the written Doctoral Thesis Proposal, conducting the oral defence, and recommending the final grade.

Submission of the Written Thesis Proposal

The student must complete and submit the Written Thesis Proposal at least four weeks before the scheduled oral defence.

The student must provide an electronic copy of the Thesis Proposal to the Supervisor(s).

The Supervisor(s) are responsible for ensuring that the proposal is distributed to all members of the Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee. Alternatively, the Supervisor(s) may request that the Graduate Administrator circulate the Thesis Proposal to the committee members.

Format of the Oral Defence

The Chair invites the student to make a succinct presentation (15-20 minutes) to the committee members. After the presentation, committee members ask, in turn, questions to the student about all aspects of the Thesis Proposal. Questions are asked in two rounds, where the first round is one-on-one questioning, and the second round has no set format. The student’s job is to convince all the committee members that what is being proposed is worthy of a doctoral thesis. The oral defence typically runs for 90-120 minutes.

Grading

After the oral defence, the committee deliberates on the acceptability of the Doctoral Thesis Proposal. The Chair of the Committee documents the results using the official grading sheet provided by the Graduate Administrator. The final grade is either Satisfactory (SAT) or Unsatisfactory (UNS). If the Thesis Proposal is Unsatisfactory, the Doctoral Thesis Proposal Committee will recommend appropriate actions on the grading form.