- When beginning work on the dissertation all students are advised to refer to Trent's School of Graduate Studies formatting guidelines for theses and dissertations.
- The final copy of the dissertation presented for defence must be carefully proofread and all errors corrected. A final copy with mistakes of fact, grammar, or spelling will not be approved for defence.
- The student must ensure that draft copies are distributed for the Dissertation Advisory Committee’s certification that the dissertation is ready for defence. This draft, identified by the student and Dissertation Supervisor as the one they wish to have considered by the committee for final approval prior to defence, should normally be read within 4-6 weeks of submission.
- The Dissertation Advisory Committee’s approval will be indicated on a form signed by all members of the committee, and submitted to the Director of the Frost Centre. This form indicates that the committee accepts that the same, common final draft is ready for defence and is free from major or frequent flaws. This approval is required before the dissertation is distributed to the External Examiners for approval to proceed to defence. After the dissertation is submitted, there can be no changes in committee membership, without the approval of the Dean of Graduate Studies. The approval from the committee should be received at least six weeks before the intended date of the defence.
- In preparation for defence, a copy of the dissertation is required and must be submitted to the Director of the Frost Centre at least six weeks in advance of the intended date of defence. Students are responsible for informing their Dissertation Supervisor and the Director of the Frost Centre of the date they intend to submit the six copies of the final dissertation for defence. This notice is expected to be given at least two weeks in advance of the submission date.
- The Examining Committee, appointed by the Dean of Graduate Studies at Trent, consists of the Dissertation Advisory Committee, one eligible member from another department and one External Examiner from outside Trent who is a recognized authority in the subject of the dissertation. Copies of the dissertation are distributed by the Director of the Frost Centre to the members of the Examining Board. The Dean assigns a Chair of the defence and corresponds with the external examiner about his/her responsibilities only, as well as distribution of the signed off notice. The date, location, and composition of the examination committee, are the internal departmental responsibilities and should be dealt with as the Director instructs. The date of the announcement must be at least 14 days in advance of the date of the defence. The Dean will require the submission of written comments from the External Examiner before allowing the defence to take place.
- At the oral defence the student is asked to present an oral summary (no more than 20 minutes) of the major arguments in their dissertation.
- The dissertation may be accepted as submitted, with minor revisions, with major revisions, or rejected. Time limits may be set for corrections or re-submission of a revised dissertation. The dissertation is marked “satisfactory,” or “unsatisfactory,” and the oral defence is graded separately as “satisfactory” or “unsatisfactory.” The Chair of the Defence is expected to convey in writing to the student any modifications required by the Examining Committee. In the case of a split vote on the dissertation, it is permissible for the Chair to approve the defence as ‘satisfactory’ if the majority makes this recommendation. The External Examiner must be included in the majority.
- If major revisions are required, the Chair of the Examining Committee will arrange a sub-committee from the Examining Committee, usually including the Dissertation Supervisor as Chair, to ensure that all the required revisions, specified in writing by the Defence Chair, are made. The Examining Committee may choose to require a second defence by the student before the sub-committee. Upon written certification by the sub-committee that the required revisions have been made to their satisfaction, the Chair of the Defence will then authorize acceptance of the dissertation.
- Minor revisions will be supervised by the Dissertation Supervisor who will certify in writing to the Director of the Frost Centre that the required revisions have been made.
- Any revisions must be completed and accepted within the time limits established for the completion of the Ph.D. degree.
- The final approved copy of the dissertation must be uploaded to the University's thesis repository.
- The Chair will ensure that the Members of the Examining Committee will sign the “Ph.D. Dissertation Defence Final Report” and that it is submitted to the Director of the Frost Centre upon completion of the Ph.D. oral dissertation defence.
