Graduate supervision and teaching are the backbones of graduate student success. Each year, the Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies invites nominations for the David Thomson Award for Graduate Supervision and Teaching. This award acknowledges outstanding contributions to promoting graduate student excellence through supervision and teaching by a faculty member who has been supervising for 10 years or more.
Nomination Procedure
A nomination must include:
- A completed Nomination Form
- A substantial letter of support from the nominee's Department Chair/ Unit Director
- Nominee's statement of graduate teaching philosophy and approach to graduate supervision (maximum 1 page)
- Two letters of support from current graduate students
- Two letters of support from former graduate students
- An abridged curriculum vitae (CV) that includes:
- A list of all students supervised to degree, with start and completion dates, and their current position
- A list of all publications under the nominee's supervision to date (joint publications and solo publications by students)
- A list of all graduate courses taught by the nominee with years courses were taught
- A list of service commitments and/or accomplishments which promote excellence in graduate education or directly benefit graduate students (e.g., leading a new initiative, planning a departmental event for graduate students, etc.)
PLEASE NOTE: No more than the specified number of support letters will be accepted.
Eligibility
To be eligible, a professor must:
- have been eligible to supervise for 10 years or more
- have been involved in graduate student training at McGill for a minimum of three years
Criteria
Nominees will be evaluated based on their statement of teaching philosophy and graduate supervision, the CV, and the following information provided in letters of support:
The letter of support by the Department Chair/Unit Director should be a maximum of two pages long and address:
- Evidence of the nominee's excellence in graduate supervision
- Unit norms with respect to graduate supervision (i.e., average number of supervisees per professor, expectations regarding supervision, help with publications, etc.)
- The nominee’s contribution(s) to the Unit’s graduate program (e.g., participation in departmental committees, innovative curriculum or course design, or projects dealing with graduate education)
- The nominee’s teaching history (e.g., course evaluations, teaching methods/ approaches)
Letters of support by former and current graduate students should be a maximum of two pages long and may address the nominee’s:
- Ability to engage and challenge students to achieve excellence in graduate courses;
- Ability to motivate and support students to achieve excellence in graduate-level research and make timely progress towards graduation;
- Mentorship in developing academic and professional skills (e.g., critical thinking, independent research, grant writing, etc.);
- Assistance and encouragement in publishing, presenting, and/or disseminating work;
- Support for pursuing opportunities that expand students’ professional horizons within and beyond academia.
Deadline and submission process
Please send an electronic version (PDF) of the nomination form and supporting documents to communications.gps [at] mcgill.ca (GPS Communications).
The extended deadline for nominations is Monday, 15 January 2024 (late or incomplete submissions will not be accepted).
Selection Committee
The selection committee has the following composition:
- The Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies or delegate (Chair)
- Two academic representatives, including:
- Former winner of the Award
- Director of Teaching and Learning Services
- One graduate student, selected by the Post-Graduate Students' Society
Presentation
The award is presented at Spring Convocation. The recipient receives a plaque, and their name is inscribed on a permanent plaque in Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
Nominees and Winners may also be considered for external Supervision Awards.
Past Winners
| Award Year | Award Winner |
|---|---|
|
2023 |
Nancy Heath Educational & Counselling Psychology |
|
2022 |
Elena Bennett Natural Resource Sciences |
|
2021 |
Fabien Gélinas Law |
|
2020 |
Robert E. Kearney Biomedical Engineering |
|
2019 |
Chantal Autexier Anatomy and Cell Biology |
|
2018 |
Juliet Johnson Political Science |
|
2017 |
Victoria Talwar Educational Counselling and Psychology |
|
2016 |
Joelle Pineau School of Computer Science |
|
2015 |
Julie Cumming Schulich School of Music |
|
2014 |
Robert Pihl Dept. of Psychology |
|
2013 |
Henri Darmon Mathematics & Statistics |
|
2011 |
Christine Ross Dept. of Art History and Communication Studies |
|
2010 |
Masad José Damha Chemistry |
|
2009 |
Bruce M. Shore Educational and Counselling Psychology |
|
2008 |
Alberto Pérez-Gómez Architecture |
|
2007 |
Vijaya Raghavan Bioresource Engineering |
|
2006 |
William Straw Art History and Communication Studies |
|
2005 |
Hong Guo Physics |
|
2004 |
John Galaty Anthropology |
|
2003 |
Lydia White Linguistics |
|
2002 |
Michael Makkai Mathematics & Statistics |
|
2001 |
Godfried Toussaint Computer Science |
|
2000 |
Lawrence A. Mysak Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences |
|
1999 |
Ian S. Butler Chemistry |
|
1998 |
Eric Mountjoy Earth & Planetary Sciences |
|
1997 |
Ronald Melzack Psychology |
|
1996 |
David Harpp Chemistry |
|
1995 |
Musa Kamal Chemical Engineering |
|
1994 |
A.E. Williams-Jones Earth & Planetary Sciences |
|
1994 |
Brian Collier Pharmacology & Therapeutics |
|
1994 |
Michael Bristol English |
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