A thesis is a scholarly work requiring discussion of methodology, conclusions, and significance of the research beyond what might be expected for manuscripts for publication. A thesis must be written in English or French; exceptions are only allowed for specific language units. The University requires that all theses conform to the general requirements for master’s and doctoral theses.

Theses may be submitted at any time during the year. However, for each of the three annual dates for conferring degrees/convocation, there are deadlines for initial submission (when the thesis is sent out to examiners for evaluation) and for the final thesis submission: April 15, August 15, and December 15. Please note that some units enforce earlier submission deadlines than those listed by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, so it is important that students verify these dates with their unit.

A thesis is a public document and once the final thesis has been submitted for the degree, it exists in the public domain in the eScholarship database. To temporarily withhold (embargo) a thesis, please consult the GPS website.

For a master’s thesis, the examiner must be a scholar of established reputation and competence in the field of the thesis research. The examiner may be from inside or outside the University. Units may nominate a member from within the unit, as long as there is no conflict of interest with the student.

The doctoral external examiner must be a scholar of established reputation and competence in the field of the thesis research. They must be from outside the University and must hold a doctorate or equivalent. The external examiner must be at arm’s length from the candidate and have no other conflict of interest.

The doctoral internal examiner is expected to be knowledgeable in the area and topic of the thesis, though not necessarily to the same extent as the external examiner. The internal examiner also ensures that the written thesis meets the standards of McGill University. Normally, the internal examiner is a McGill faculty member (but not the supervisor) affiliated with the student's Unit, but they may also be nominated from other units at McGill.

A nominated examiner must be without conflict of interest to evaluate the thesis. A conflict of interest can be perceived to prejudice the examiner’s evaluation of the thesis. Any contact with examiners by the supervisor or student after the nomination process constitutes a conflict of interest and the examination process will be cancelled.

If one or both examiners determine that the thesis does not meet the requirements for the degree (i.e., an outcome of not passed is designated on the examination report) the student has the option to revise and resubmit the failed thesis. Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies must be notified within six weeks if the student decides to revise and resubmit. When the examiner's report is received by the Thesis Office, the student's transcript will indicate "Thesis Requires Revision". If the revised thesis is subsequently not passed, the thesis will be considered failed and the student will be withdrawn from the University.

If the student does not contact Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies requesting to revise and resubmit the thesis within the designated six-week time period or, once approved to revise the thesis, does not submit the revised thesis by the one-year deadline, the thesis will be deemed to have failed and the student will be withdrawn from the University. Their transcript will indicate "Thesis Revision - Not Passed".

If a thesis has not been passed and the student feels that this judgment is based on bias, error, or serious misrepresentation on the part of the examiner(s), the student may submit a written request for a new examiner for the thesis to the Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, documenting the bias, error, or serious misrepresentation. This request must be made within six weeks of the notification that the thesis has not passed, and may be accompanied by a letter of support from the supervisor and/or unit.

The oral defence committee consists of five or seven voting members, including the Academic Unit representative (chair or delegate), supervisor(s), the internal thesis examiner, other member of the unit, and the external member (external to the unit). The defence committee is designed to ensure that a majority of members have not been closely involved with the thesis research and to have an odd number of members to avoid a tie in case of a vote. The Pro-Dean is a non-voting committee member appointed by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies to facilitate the examination.

There are four possible outcomes of an oral defence: a "Passed" outcome and three "Not Passed" outcomes.

PASSED

• If the committee feels that the thesis and the responses to questions raised in the defence meet appropriate academic standards for the granting of the Ph.D. degree, the student will be judged to have passed the defence.
• If the committee determines that minor revisions (i.e., stylistic or editorial changes) are necessary for the thesis to fulfill the academic standards necessary for partial fulfilment of the Ph.D. degree, the Pro-Dean must delegate one member of the committee, usually the supervisor, to ensure that the student carries out the required changes.

NOT PASSED

If the committee determines that the thesis or oral defence does not meet appropriate academic standards for the Ph.D. degree and would require, for example, major revisions to the text and/or additional study, it must then decide between the following three "Not Passed" outcomes:

• Thesis not passed: The oral defence is satisfactory but the thesis does not meet Ph.D. degree standards. If this is the first "Not Passed" outcome, the student is allowed to submit a revised version of the thesis within six (6) months to the oral defence committee who will then evaluate the revised thesis without another oral defence.
• Oral defence not passed: The thesis is satisfactory but the oral defence does not meet Ph.D. degree standards. If this is the first "Not Passed" outcome, the student is allowed to conduct another oral defence within six (6) months without the submission of a revised thesis.
• Thesis and oral defence not passed: Both the thesis and oral defence do not meet Ph.D. degree standards. If this is the first "Not Passed" outcome, the student is allowed to submit a revised version of the thesis within six (6) months to the oral defence committee, who will then evaluate the revised thesis and conduct another oral defence.