Psychology MA/PhD Graduate Program
Policies and Procedures, MA Thesis Defence
This document contains a summary of the policies and procedures for defending and
submitting the MA Thesis in Psychology.
Students, their advisors, and members of the Supervisory Committee are advised to be
familiar with the School of Graduate Studies policy regarding Graduate Supervision (at
http://www.ryerson.ca/graduate/policies/documents/Responsibilities%20August%202011.pdf).
In addition, they should be familiar with Section B “Master’s Supervision and the Thesis” of the
Master’s and PhD Policy and Procedures (at
http://www.ryerson.ca/content/dam/graduate/policies/documents/Masters_PhD_Policy_Proced
ures_May%202011.pdf). The general webpage for all Graduate Studies policies is at
http://www.ryerson.ca/graduate/policies.
Overview of Important Dates for MA Thesis Defence
Given the number of thesis defences to schedule each summer, the earlier students can
defend, the better. Students should discuss possible defence dates as early as possible to
ensure availability of committee members. Note that the “FINAL DATE” deadlines below are
not negotiable--meeting these deadlines is a critical part of the graduation process.
For Fall
Graduation
For Spring
Graduation
Approximate deadline for submitting the Thesis Oral
Examination Scheduling Request Form (on our “forms
page,” at www.ryerson.ca/psychology/graduate/forms)
July 31
November 30
Approximate deadline to schedule an Oral Defence
(i.e., approximately four weeks before defence) and to
provide copies of the final thesis to your Examining
Committee
July 31
November 30
FINAL DATE to complete online application to
graduate – check the Graduate Significant Dates at
www.ryerson.ca/graduate/dates to find out the
exact deadline date, and make a note of this date
Usually by
early or midAugust
Usually by early
or mid-April
August 31
December 23
FINAL DATE to clear outstanding graduation
requirements (e.g., submit thesis) – check the
Graduate Significant Dates at
www.ryerson.ca/graduate/dates to find out the
exact deadline date, and make a note of this date
Usually around
mid-September
Usually around
mid-January
Convocation Date – for the exact convocation date,
please see www.ryerson.ca/convocation
Usually around
mid-October
Usually around
mid-June
Approximate final date to defend
Revised October 18, 2011
Forming the Examining (Defence) Committee
The Examining Committee should be formed by March of MA Year 2, as defence dates must
be scheduled as early as possible to ensure availability of committee members. In consultation
with the student, the Supervisory Committee will recommend to the Program Director the
appointment of a Thesis Examining Committee. The Examining Committee will consist of:
1. The Student’s Supervisor (the Supervisor will generally also act as the Program
Director’s designate as Chair of the committee). The supervisor/committee chair is a
non-voting member of the committee unless his or her vote is needed to break a tie
among other members of the committee.
2. A psychology faculty member who is a member of YSGS (typically from the student’s
supervisory committee)
3. A faculty member who is not involved in the student’s research and is not on the
student’s supervisory committee, but who is a member of YSGS (either in Psychology
or in another department)
4. Upon request from the Program Director, the Dean of Graduate Studies may appoint an
expert professional in the field of the thesis, or a Ryerson University faculty member
who is not a member of the School of Graduate Studies, to serve as fourth member of
the Examining Committee. Supervisors should inform the Program Director if such a
request is to be made.
The Program Director shall forward his/her recommendation regarding the composition of the
Master’s Thesis Examining Committee to the Dean for approval and appointment. When the
committee is appointed, the Supervisor will set the examination date.
Scheduling the Thesis Defence (Oral Examination)
Once a tentative date for your thesis defence has been agreed upon by you and your
examining committee members, it is a good idea to tentatively book Room SBB238 for your
defence—if your defence date changes, please change your room booking as soon as
possible.
After your supervisory committee has decided that your thesis is ready to be defended, please
complete the Thesis Oral Examination Scheduling Form (available on the “forms page,” at
www.ryerson.ca/psychology/graduate/forms, under “T” for Thesis). At the latest, this form
should be submitted to the Graduate Program Administrator by around July 31 for Fall
graduation, or by around November 30 for Spring graduation (given the number of thesis
defences to schedule each summer, the earlier students can defend, the better), and by
around 3 or 4 weeks before your oral exam. At this point, you will need to distribute a copy of
your draft thesis to each your examining committee member, for review—please ask the
members if they would prefer electronic or hard copies.
Format of the MA Thesis Manuscript
As you are working on your thesis, please keep in mind that the thesis formatting should be
consistent with all technical guidelines from the School of Graduate Studies, as outlined in the
Graduate Studies Thesis and Dissertation Submission Requirements (at
http://www.ryerson.ca/content/dam/graduate/documents/Thesis%20and%20Dissertation%20R
egulations%202011.pdf). Formatting of references and other elements of the manuscript
Revised October 18, 2011
should also be consistent with the most recent edition of the American Psychological
Association’s Publication Manual. The recommended length and scope of the thesis
manuscript should be discussed with your Supervisor.
The Oral Examination (Defence)
The Supervisor will need to bring a copy of the Thesis Oral Examination Report Form
(available from the “forms page,” at www.ryerson.ca/psychology/graduate/forms, under “T” for
thesis) to the Defence. After the defense, the Supervisor and the other examination committee
members will sign off on the form and return it to the Graduate Program Administrator (usually
immediately after the Defence).
According to YSGS policies, the examination is public, but the Chair has the authority to
exclude persons whose conduct disturbs the examination. Notice of the examination will be
posted publicly at http://www.ryerson.ca/graduate/exams/. It is recommended that the student
brings a copy of the thesis/report to the oral examination, as questions from the members of
the Examining Committee may refer to specific pages of the thesis/report.
Presentation
 The examination begins with an oral presentation of the thesis by the candidate using
whatever aids are required to make an effective presentation. This presentation should be
limited to no more than 20 minutes, with the focus being on the main contributions and
conclusions of the work.
Questions (following the oral presentation)
 The Chair gives priority to questions from members of the committee. Usually the external
examiner’s questions are presented first followed by those of the committee, with those of
the supervisor last.
 The Chair must ascertain that all of the questions from an absent committee member have
been adequately presented by the delegate who may also pose any additional questions
deemed necessary.
 If found to be appropriate or relevant, the Chair may ask questions that have been
previously submitted to the committee by non-committee members in attendance.
Deliberations
 Only the Examining Committee will be present during deliberations.
 If the external examiner is absent, the deliberations commence by having the Chair of the
Committee read the external examiner’s full report of the thesis.
 If the external examiner is present, there is no need for the examiner’s full report to be read.
It is left to the external examiner to refer to the written report.
 Acceptance of the thesis will be based on a vote by the committee.
Decisions

The decision of the examining committee shall be by vote and shall be based on the thesis
and on the candidate’s ability to defend it. The “Report of the Oral Examining Committee”
should be completed and signed by the members of the committee, one copy should
immediately be given to the student, and a copy should be delivered to the School of
Revised October 18, 2011
Graduate Studies as soon as possible. The following decisions are open to the examining
committee:
Oral Examination:


Satisfactory
Unsatisfactory
Written Thesis:
i) Accept
Any minor revisions ranging from typographical errors to specified insertions or deletions
that do not radically modify the development/argument of the paper shall be clearly
specified in writing and the student’s Supervisor shall ensure that they are made. When
the Supervisor confirms that the changes have been made, the examination requirement
has been met.
ii) Major Revision
Detailed reasons for referring the paper for major revision ranging from re-writing a large
part of a chapter to including additional work will be supplied in writing by the Chair of the
examining committee to the Dean, the Program Director and the candidate within one week
following the oral examination. The examining committee must give final approval to the
major revisions by reconvening the examination or by consultation.
iii) Fail
Detailed reasons for the decision will be supplied in writing by the Chair of the examining
committee to the Dean, Program Director, and candidate within one week following the oral
examination.
Final Submission of the Thesis
Before final submission, it is the responsibility of the student and the Supervisor to ensure that
the thesis formatting is consistent with all technical guidelines from the School of Graduate
Studies, as outlined in the Graduate Studies Thesis and Dissertation Submission
Requirements (at
http://www.ryerson.ca/content/dam/graduate/documents/Thesis%20and%20Dissertation%20R
egulations%202011.pdf). Formatting of references and other elements of the manuscript
should also be consistent with the most recent edition of the American Psychological
Association’s Publication Manual.
Once all of the necessary corrections and revisions have been completed (and provided the
Oral Examination was successful), the student’s Supervisor must send an email to
gradthesis@ryerson.ca and to the Graduate Program Administrator at
psychgrad@psych.ryerson.ca (copied to the student), to confirm that the thesis is ready for
final submission, and that all corrections and revisions are complete.
At this point, you can submit your final thesis by email in pdf format only to the Graduate
Program Administrator at psychgrad@psych.ryerson.ca. No hard copies of your thesis are
required by our Department or by Graduate Studies; however, if you wish to bind copies of
your thesis, the Graduate Program Office can suggestion some companies that offer this
service. Please see http://www.ryerson.ca/graduate/thesis-and-dissertation-submissions.html
for more details on submitting your thesis.
Revised October 18, 2011