The specified duration of full-time master’s degree studies is six semesters (two years). However, an application for extension can be made after two years have passed. See the regulations concerning the length of graduate and doctoral studies and absences.
A master’s degree has 45 credits, composed of 15 course credits and 30 credits of research activity (thesis). The Planning a Research Project course (MTR801) is required for all master’s programs with a thesis, and must be taken during the second semester of the program at the latest. Some programs include one or two more required courses, and most programs offer the opportunity to take up to four elective courses.
To ensure that all students plan their choice of courses properly, a curriculum must be agreed upon with the student’s thesis supervisor beginning in the first semester, usually before the period in which courses are chosen for the next semester. Your curriculum is determined at the same time that you complete a research topic identification sheet. To this end, it is important that you identify your research topic and your thesis supervisor as early as possible in your studies.
To help you choose your courses from among those offered at the graduate level, see course schedules and planning for graduate programs.
Required form :
Student actions:
Thesis supervisor action:
You are responsible for your own registration each semester through My ÉTS in accordance with the deadlines of the university calendar. Please visit registration for graduate programs for full details about registration.
Before you can register for research credits, you must first identify your research topic, in collaboration with your thesis supervisor, using the Research Topic and Curriculum form. You must indicate whether your project is confidential or involves human subjects. This form must be submitted during the first semester, at least three weeks before the registration period for the next semester.
Required form:
Student actions:
Thesis supervisor action:
Co-supervisor action (if applicable):
Your thesis must adhere to the writing and design standards set out in the Style Guide for project reports, theses or dissertations.
To make things easier, use the layout template and view the page layout checklist. In the case of theses, the layout's compliance must be approved by the Graduate Program Office before it is submitted for evaluation.
A thesis is an individual work. If the report was written in collaboration with another student or a research team, the thesis author must explain the context of the project and clearly identify his or her own contribution to the project in the report.
Please note that it is possible to use a “by articles” format to write your thesis (see section 1.7 of the Style Guide).
Your thesis must be written in French. However, if the student makes a request in writing, and the thesis supervisor approves it, the Dean of Studies can authorize the student to present his or her work in English. In such cases, the document must include a French summary.
No matter which language you use, you must ensure that your report is well written. The thesis supervisor will check the grammar and spelling of your report and is authorized to refuse its submission if language use is not up to standard.
In order to submit your thesis, you must
Before you have your thesis evaluated, you must have its layout approved by the Graduate Program Office. You will first need to get a form from the Graduate Program Office titled “Initial Approval Prior to Submission.” It is important that you validate the title of your thesis at that point (since it may have changed since you submitted the research topic sheet).
Required form:
Student actions:
Thesis supervisor action:
Co-supervisor action (if applicable):
A thesis is evaluated using the Individual Thesis Evaluation form (which is provided to all jury members) which includes an evaluation grid (section 1a) and a comment sheet (section 1b)
Forms (sent with a copy of the thesis for each jury member):
Evaluator actions:
Thesis defence is a required activity. The Dean of Students convenes the defence on the date suggested by the thesis supervisor in consultation with the jury members. It is public, unless an application for confidentiality has been made (see section “2. Thesis Defence” in the reference document concerning confidentiality).
A thesis defence consists of a 30- to 40-minute presentation made by the student which presents the highlights of his or her thesis (objectives, results). The jury members then question the student about his or her research, giving the student the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge of his or her field and speak in depth about certain aspects. The defence is evaluated using section 2 of the Individual Evaluation form.
Students are strongly encouraged to bring an electronic copy of their thesis with them for possible reference during the presentation or the question and answer period, along with one or more files that are needed to present the thesis to the jury.
Forms:
Evaluators’ Actions:
Jury chair actions:
After their defence, students who receive an “Excellent” mark can submit an application to the ÉTS Award of Excellence for the best thesis and best doctoral dissertation if they have been recommended by the jury. Recommended students will receive an e-mail from the Graduate Program Office informing them that they are invited to apply for this award. The e-mail contains all the relevant information (rules and a link to access the form).
After a defence, minor corrections are usually requested; under the supervision of his or her thesis supervisor, the student has 20 working days (following the date of defence) to make these corrections, have them approved by the thesis supervisor and proceed with final submission. (Certificate of Compliance for Corrections form).
Form:
Student actions:
Thesis supervisor action:
Once corrections have been made to the thesis, just submit an electronic copy to the Graduate Program Office along with the following required documents:
If students do not make corrections to their thesis and submit it by the end of the semester following the semester during which their defence took place, their file will be closed due to withdrawal from the program.
The electronic copy of your thesis is sent to the ÉTS library, which will make it publicly available in compliance with its copyright (bound copies are no longer kept at the library).
If the student and/or the thesis supervisor request it when the thesis is submitted for the final time (on the Certificate of Compliance for Corrections form), the Graduate Program Office will send a bound copy of the thesis to the student and/or thesis supervisor (and co-supervisor, if applicable). The student or thesis supervisor can request additional copies, but these copies will be billed to them (at $50/unit).
If it is confidential:
If it is subject to a compliance examination (human subjects, use of animals, dangerous materials, controlled materials, etc.):
The specified duration of full-time doctoral program is twelve sessions (four years). However, an application for extension can be made after two years have passed. See the regulations concerning the lenght of graduate and doctoral studies and absences.
You are responsible for your own registration each semester through Mon ÉTS in accordance with the deadlines of the university calendar. Please visit Registration for graduate programs for full details about registration.
The doctoral examination counts for nine credits and takes place over three semesters. Each step must be completed before you are allowed to register for the next, and you must successfully complete all three steps to obtain a “Success” grade for the doctoral exam on your transcript. The first step must be done in your second semester and the other two in the next two semesters. It is not possible to postpone any phase of the doctoral exam (except in cases of force majeure, see sec. 6.5.2 of the Graduate Studies Regulations).
In case of failure on any step of the doctoral exam (if you have recorded no other previous failure), you will be asked if you wish to retake the failed step. If you do not take this opportunity to repeat the step, the failure is confirmed and you are expelled. Only one failure is permitted in the program, whether in an exam step or in a course.
Because each step corresponds to three credits, you must also register for six credits of courses or research in each semester in order to retain full-time status. It is your responsibility to verify and validate your registration on Cheminot at each stage of the doctoral exam process.
Steps | Semester |
DGA 1031 - Research Problem (3 credit)
|
Second semester |
DGA 1032 - Written Examination (3 credits)
|
Third semester |
DGA 1033 - Oral Examination (3 credits)
|
Fourth semester |
Consult your thesis supervisor, the program director or the Office of Graduate Studies (A-1700) about any question related to the doctoral exam (jury formation, choice of exam subjects, steps in the process, etc.).
The “Research Problem” activity aims to have you define your research topic as early as possible in your program of studies. It includes three steps:
Step 1:
Student’s Actions:
Research Supervisor’s Actions:
Program Director’s Actions:
Designation of a co-supervisor:
Step 2:
Step 3:
Note: During the session in which the DGA1031 activity takes place, the research supervisor will be invited to compose the jury that will participate in the following steps of the doctoral exam, the Written Examination (DGA1032) and the Oral Examination (DGA1033). View the rules for Composition of the Jury.
Research projects that are confidential or those involving human subjects must be declared so that the School can take the necessary protection measures. It is very important to make the appropriate declarations on the Identification of Research Topic form.
The juried written exam activity aims to confirm your basic knowledge in your domain of activity, your general knowledge and your mastery of areas more specifically related to your dissertation topic. This activity has two components:
The supervised exam, which counts for 50% of DGA 1032, takes place in class. You will have 3.5 hours to answer the questions you are given on the spot. Use of documentation being permitted, you may consult in situ any works required to respond to the questions and thus demonstrate your mastery of the domain. Calculators are permitted. Devices permitting Internet access are forbidden (except for groups of students who have received explicit permission from their research supervisor).
The take-home exam, which also counts for 50% of the DGA 1032 grade, is a paper that you must write (within a seven day period) on one or more themes related to specific areas of specialization connected to your research subject. (This refers to what in French is called une dissertation, and should not be confused with the English word dissertation (French la thèse) which refers to the doctoral research report.)
The written examination is held once per semester, during the final exam period. The exact date is published on the ÉTS website approximately one month beforehand, and the location is published approximately one week in advance on your SIGNETS account (under DGA1032; see the pane “Important Dates”). Information on final exams is found on SIGNETS and on the website’s Final Exams page.
The Oral Examination (DGA1033) is primarily used to show the potential originality of the research project, clarify the way in which the subject will be treated and demonstrate the project’s feasibility. The oral examination is also used to expand upon the questions of the written examination. This activity has two components:
The date of the oral examination is fixed by your research supervisor who will inform you. You will be officially convened by the Office of the Dean of Studies which will specify the date and time of the presentation.
Your thesis must adhere to the writing and design standards set out in the Style Guide for project reports, theses or dissertations.
To make things easier, use the layout template and view the page layout checklist. In the case of theses, the layout’s compliance must be approved by the Graduate Program Office before it is submitted for evaluation.
A thesis is an individual work. If the report was written in collaboration with another student or a research team, the thesis author must explain the context of the project and clearly identify his or her own contribution to the project in the report.
Please note that it is possible to use a “by articles” format to write your thesis (see section 1.7 of the Style Guide).
Your thesis must be written in French. However, if the student makes a request in writing, and the thesis supervisor approves it, the Dean of Students can authorize the student to present his or her work in English. In such cases, the document must include a French summary.
No matter which language you use, you must ensure that your report is well written. The thesis supervisor will check the grammar and spelling of your report and is authorized to refuse its submission if language use is not up to standard.
The thesis supervisor is authorized to approve your thesis for official submission. He or she must complete all sections of the Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation form and sign it. If there is a co-supervisor, he or she must sign the form as well.
The form consists of the following sections:
Proposal for composition of the jury
The thesis supervisor suggests jury members. The jury must be composed of at least three people: the thesis supervisor and two regular ÉTS professors or one regular ÉTS professor and an external person. One of the members of the jury acts as the chair; this person must be a regular ÉTS professor, but cannot be the thesis supervisor or co-supervisor.
Confidentiality
To ensure that the Graduate Program Office can monitor your thesis accurately, when you submit your thesis for evaluation, it is important to confirm its confidentiality status, which may have changed since you submitted your Research Topic Identification form. If you are unsure, please refer to the reference document or the Policy and Rules on Intellectual Property (in French).
Date of defence
A date for the defence of your thesis must be determined at the same time that it is officially submitted. The date must be calculated around a minimum time frame of 30 working days: 20 days for the members of the jury to evaluate your thesis and 10 days for the signing process, sending copies to members of the jury, receiving authorizations for its defence and publishing a Notice of Defence.
When the Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation form is completed and signed, the student submits it to the Graduate Program Office with a copy of the thesis for each jury member. Each copy must be spiral-bound and have a plastic cover.
The submission and composition of the jury are only official once they have been authorized by the Dean of Studies. The thesis will then be submitted to the jury by the Office of the Dean of Studies, which has the sole authority to do this.
Required form:
Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation (available at the Graduate Program Office)
Student actions:
Thesis supervisor action:
Co-supervisor action (if applicable):
A thesis is evaluated using the Individual Thesis Evaluation form (which is provided to all jury members) which includes an evaluation grid (section 1a) and a comment sheet (section 1b).
Forms (sent with a copy of the thesis for each jury member):
Evaluator actions:
Thesis defence is a required activity. The Dean of Students convenes the defence on the date suggested by the thesis supervisor in consultation with the jury members. It is public, unless an application for confidentiality has been made (see section “2. Thesis Defence” in the reference document concerning confidentiality).
A thesis defence consists of a 30- to 40-minute presentation made by the student which presents the highlights of his or her thesis (objectives, results). The jury members then question the student about his or her research, giving the student the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge of his or her field and speak in depth about certain aspects. The defence is evaluated using section 2 of the Individual Evaluation form.
Students are strongly encouraged to bring an electronic copy of their thesis with them for possible reference during the presentation or the question and answer period, along with one or more files that are needed to present the thesis to the jury.
Forms:
Evaluators’ Actions:
Jury chair actions:
After their defence, students who receive an “Excellent” mark can submit an application to the ÉTS Award of Excellence for the best thesis and best doctoral dissertation if they have been recommended by the jury. Recommended students will receive an e-mail from the Graduate Program Office informing them that they are invited to apply for this award. The e-mail contains all the relevant information (rules and a link to access the form).
Once corrections have been made to the thesis, just submit an electronic copy to the Graduate Program Office along with the following required documents:
If students do not make corrections to their thesis and submit it by the end of the semester following the semester during which their defence took place, their file will be closed due to withdrawal from the program.
The electronic copy of your thesis is sent to the ÉTS library, which will make it publicly available in compliance with its copyright (bound copies are no longer kept at the library).
If the student and/or the thesis supervisor request it when the thesis is submitted for the final time (on the Certificate of Compliance for Corrections form), the Graduate Program Office will send a bound copy of the thesis to the student and/or thesis supervisor (and co-supervisor, if applicable). The student or thesis supervisor can request additional copies, but these copies will be billed to them (at $50/unit).
If the thesis is confidential, the electronic copy will be saved on the library server, where neither the thesis nor the notice will be visible before the end of the confidentiality period.
As well, bound copies are not produced for confidential theses. Once the confidentiality period has passed, it is the student and/or thesis supervisor’s responsibility to request binding and submit unbound copies to the Graduate Program Office.