June 2017
Dear First Year Students,
Welcome to the Institute! Attached is some information for registering in the M.A. program in Political Economy for the upcoming academic year. Please follow carefully the instructions that are outlined in this letter and the accompanying enclosures. The online graduate calendar, at http://www.carleton.ca/calendars/grad/current/, contains course descriptions. The class schedule is now available at https://central.carleton.ca/, the site where you will go to register online.
Registration for graduate students begins June 23rd. The actual time of day will depend on the last two digits of your student number. You may register anytime thereafter. The registration schedule for graduate students is online at http://www.carleton.ca/registrar/registration/time-tickets.
August 25th is the last day to complete your registration, including fee payment, without incurring a late registration fee, however you have until September 20th to change courses without penalty. In the first week of classes, you may wish to informally attend or investigate other courses that you may consider taking in lieu of the optional ones in which you have registered.
Before you can register, you will need to consult with Donna or me concerning your courses. We can meet in person or talk over the phone, or communicate via email. If you wish to meet in person or have a phone conversation, email us at donna.coghill@carleton.ca or cristina.rojas@carleton.ca to set up a time. Before emailing or meeting with us, please draft a list of courses that you are interested in.
Your registration will be for the fall and winter terms. If you were to write a thesis, then you will require three full credits of coursework, or six courses. If you do a research essay you will require four full credits, or eight courses. The Methodology course (PECO 5001W) in the winter term will help you decide between a thesis and a research essay. The normal (and recommended) course load is three courses per term. Each full-time student must register in the political economy theory course (PECO 5000) for the fall term, and the methods course (PECO 5001) in the winter term. Almost all graduate seminars are three hours in length. Unfortunately, the graduate portion of the class schedule is still undergoing revision, Ȿand days and times of courses may not be accurate until shortly before you are expected to register.
Other courses may be selected from the
attached list of approved courses for fall and winter (just click on the link for a short course description) but you may take courses that are not on this list, if you wish, after consultation. We also offer a placement course, PECO 5907, which, if you are interested in pursuing this option, we recommend you take in the second term or beyond.
There may be occasional difficulties in enrolling in courses outside of the Institute. Spaces usually become available once the school year begins. Attached is a guide for how to get into courses in other departments. Please contact Donna if you have any questions about course registration.
As for your thesis/research essay, do not register in this until the term in which you will begin writing. When you do register for your thesis/research essay, you will need to register in every term thereafter until you finish it.
Important note. Some of you have not yet completed your undergraduate programs. You will not be able to register until you have completed all requirements for your B.A. Honours degree (or equivalent) and provided an official transcript confirming your graduation. Please do this as soon as possible because generally the list of available courses shrinks as registration continues. Please check with your Registrar to make sure your transcript states that your degree has been conferred. This usually happens a day or two after convocation. The transcripts should go directly from your Registrar’s Office to:
Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs
512 Tory Bldg.
Carleton University
1125 Colonel By Drive
Ottawa, ON K1S 5B6
On the afternoon of Tuesday, September 5th there will be a compulsory orientation and training session for all new graduate students organized by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs. This will be followed by orientation for new teaching assistants. More information on times and locations will be sent to you as it becomes available. We plan to hold our own departmental orientation on the morning of September 5th. Details to follow.
Please note there will most likely be an additional TA orientation for the academic department to which you have been assigned.
This is a lot of information to absorb – don’t hesitate to contact myself or Donna should you require any clarification.
We look forward to working with you over the course of your program – and to seeing you at the start of term (if not before)!
Sincerely,
Cristina Rojas,
Director