Finishing Up & Final Oral Examination (FOE)

• SGS FOE guidelines for the criteria to select an External Examiner (EE); criteria are strictly enforced by SGS.
• Approval for the EE can be requested in advance of requesting the FOE; otherwise this must be done at the same time. At OISE, normal practice is the supervisor submits electronic versions of the proposed EE’s CV and of the thesis abstract (including the title) to the student's Department for approval. After the Department approves, ROSE will facilitate SGS final approval for the EE.
• The thesis must not be sent to the EE until SGS approval is secured.
• The candidate must not have any communication with the EE until the start of the FOE. The candidate should not send their thesis to the EE.
• At OISE, normal practice is the supervisor sends the thesis. This should be done at least six weeks prior to the date of the FOE. When sending the thesis, it is best practice to informally tell the EE the due date for the appraisal (which is two weeks before the FOE).
• ROSE will send a formal notification to the EE that includes the deadline and detailed instructions. Guidelines for preparing the external appraisal.

• SGS FOE guidelines for criteria to select FOE participants. These criteria are strictly enforced by SGS. In particular, all members of the committee (except the EE) must hold a Graduate Faculty Membership (GFM).
• At OISE, normal practice is that the supervisor requests the FOE by completing the FOE Nomination Form (available in the "Graduation" section of our student forms webpage) and submitting it to the candidate’s Department for approval. After Department approval is secured, ROSE will facilitate SGS final approval for the FOE.
• The Department should submit the approved FOE Nomination form to ROSE at least 8 weeks in advance of the FOE, and must submit it no less than 6 weeks in advance. Due to the Winter break, for FOEs held in January and February these deadlines are 10 and 8 weeks in advance, respectively. SGS and ROSE reserve the right to refuse an FOE request that does not meet these deadlines.
• Please ensure that the FOE Nomination Form is filled out completely and correctly. ROSE returns forms with incomplete or incorrect information to the Department, which may result in the FOE having to be delayed.
• The FOE will be prepared using the thesis title as entered on the FOE Nomination form; no changes will be considered. After the FOE, in consultation with the supervisor, the candidate may revise the title (no form is necessary for this; SGS will simply publish the thesis with the title used in the thesis submitted by the candidate).
• ROSE schedules FOEs at either 10:00 AM or 2:00 PM (Toronto time), and normally has resources and staff to support a maximum of two simultaneous FOEs. ROSE and SGS reserve the right to refuse a request for a FOE scheduled at another time, or that would cause resource or staff availability to be exceeded.
• The following rules determine whether the FOE has achieved quorum (otherwise, it must be delayed or rescheduled):
  • At least 4, and no more than 6, voting members must participate.
  • At least 1, and no more than 3, voting members must have supervised the thesis.
  • At least 2 voting members must not have supervised the thesis.
  • *Temporarily lifted, please refer to Temporary Procedures for Remote Final Oral Examination. 
    • No more than 2 members may participate remotely (the candidate must participate in-person).
  • No more than 2 non-voting members may participate.
• To help ensure quorum, it is strongly encouraged that the FOE committee include an Alternate Internal-External Examiner (identified on the FOE Nomination Form). This member must agree to be on hand to participate if needed to achieve quorum; otherwise, their participation is welcome but not required.
• If the Supervisory Committee has more than 3 members who wish to participate, the additional members may participate as non-voting members. They must be identified as such on the FOE Nomination form and approved by SGS. They may question the candidate, stay in the room when the candidate is asked to leave, and participate in the discussions, but do not have a vote.
• The FOE committee must vote on the version of the thesis that was distributed for evaluation. If the candidate makes any revisions after distribution, they are not permitted to distribute the revisions to the committee prior to, or during, the FOE. The candidate can use the revisions as a basis for answers to questions during the FOE.

Review Temporary Procedures for Remote Final Oral Examinations.

• SGS maintains an online Doctoral Examination Schedule.
• Detailed procedures for conducting the FOE are included in the SGS guidelines, and are distributed to all participants prior to the FOE. Brief summary:
  • The candidate may be present for preliminary introductions at the start of the FOE, but must leave while the Chair and committee discuss the thesis, the appraisal, and the order of questioning. Typically, this is a relatively short interval.
  • The Chair will then admit (or re-admit) the candidate, who will have a maximum of 20 minutes to present a summary of the thesis.
  • The Chair will then invite committee members to question the candidate.
  • After this, the candidate must leave again while the committee deliberates and votes. The Chair will explain the rules for voting (these are also included in the detailed procedures that will have been distributed).
  • Typically, the Chair will then re-admit the candidate and inform them of the result of the vote, but the candidate can instead be notified of the result by other means.
• There is no length of time defined for a FOE. At OISE, the typical length is between one-and-a-half to two hours from start to finish, but it is not unknown for a FOE to fall outside the typical length.
• If the thesis is not accepted, the FOE is adjourned and must be reconvened within one year (except for the Chair, the committee must remain identical, to the extent possible). Otherwise, the thesis can be accepted: 
  • As it stands (no revisions required or expected; the thesis is to be submitted within one week).
  • With minor corrections required (typically merely typographical, grammatical, or stylistic, and to be completed within about one month).
  • With minor modifications required (to be completed within about three months).

• Candidates must continue to register until all program requirements are complete. For most, this is when the final, approved version of the thesis is submitted. This includes completing required revisions (if any) that arise from the FOE.
• Information about preparing and submitting the thesis.
• Candidates can request an embargo to be placed on the public release of the thesis for one or two years after graduation, with the approval of their Department Chair (further embargoes require approval from the Dean of SGS). The candidate must still submit the thesis within the appropriate deadline.
• Some candidates may be required to remain registered after submitting the thesis.
  • Examples include if an internship course is still in progress, or if an EdD student has not yet completed the required one year of full-time study.
• Information about final-year doctoral fees.
• Candidates should verify their official email address on ACORN and update it if necessary, as this email address will be used for official communications about Convocation.
• Candidates must graduate in the Convocation period following when they complete their program requirements; delaying graduation is not permitted. Candidates eligible to graduate in March may choose to graduate in June instead, as there is no Convocation ceremony in March.
• At least three months before graduation, candidates should check the graduation checklist. They should review their name as it appears on ACORN, as this is the name that will appear on the diploma.
• The degree is not conferred until graduation. In the meantime, candidates who have completed all program requirements may request an official letter from ROSE to certify that they have done so, and when their degree is expected to be conferred.
• SGS updates official transcripts to show the degree has been conferred within a couple of business days after the end of the appropriate Convocation period. After that, alumni who need it can request a Certification of Degree from the Office of Convocation (not the OISE Registrar's Office & Student Experience).