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The doctoral examination counts for nine credits and takes place over three sessions. 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 session and the other two in the next two sessions. It is not possible to postpone any phase of the doctoral exam (except in case of force majeure, see sec. 6.5.2 of the Graduate Studies Regulations, in French). 

In case of failure on any step of the doctoral exam (if you have 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 session 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 of doctoral examination

DGA 1031 - Research Problem (3 credits): 2^nd session

1. Identification of the research subject (5%)
2. Preparation of the research proposal (75%)
3. Oral presentation (20%)

DGA 1032 - Written Examination (3 credits): 3^rd session

1. Supervised examination (50%)
2. Take-home exam (50%)

DGA 1033 - Oral Examination (3 credits): 4^th session

1. Submission of the dissertation proposal
2. Presentation before the jury

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.).

Research Problem (DGA1031) → See detailed procedure

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

• First of all, in collaboration with your research supervisor, you proceed to identify your research topic. This is done by filling in the "Research Subject Identification – Doctorate" form, following these instructions: 

 Student Actions:

• Arrange a meeting with your research supervisor.
• Fill in the topic identification form electronically (handwritten forms will be rejected by the Office of the Dean of Studies).
• Make sure the form has all the necessary signatures.
• Submit the form to the program director.

 Research Supervisor Actions: 

• Sign the Research Subject Identification – Doctorate form.
• Provide the résumé of the co-supervisor, if he/she comes from outside ÉTS.

Program Director Actions:

• Assess the identification of research topics of students enrolled in DGA1031.
• Forward the forms to the Office of the Dean of Studies.

Designation of a co-supervisor:

• The official designation of a co-supervisor is made at the time of filing the Identification of Research Topic form.
• If the co-supervisor comes from outside ÉTS, this form must be accompanied by the co-supervisor’s detailed résumé. 

Step 2

A preliminary research proposal (a written work) must be developed under the supervision of the research supervisor. 

Step 3

Finally, the research proposal will be the subject of an oral presentation to all the candidates registered for this activity as part of the mandatory seminars. Students must not only present their own problem, but also attend other students’ presentations.

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 Subject form.

Written Examination (DGA1032) → View the detailed procedure

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:

1. 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). 
2. 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 (in 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 Final Exams page.

Oral Examination (DGA1033) → View the detailed procedure

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:
 

1. A dissertation proposal must be submitted, which includes a description of the research problem, the objectives to be met, a critical review of the literature, the proposed methodology, the type of results expected, a bibliography and a plan of activities in the form of a schedule.  
    
2. Afterwards an oral presentation of the dissertation proposal must be made to demonstrate and justify the development of the project. 

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.

Style Guide and layout template

Your thesis must adhere to the writing and design standards set out in the Guidelines for writing a project report, dissertation or thesis.

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 Studies 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 Guidelines for writing a project report, dissertation or thesis).

Written language

Your thesis must be written in French. However, the use of the English language may be authorized in so far as the student and the thesis supervisor take appropriate action to ensure the thesis’s language quality. In such cases, the document must include a French summary.

Language quality

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.

Conditions for submissions

In order to submit your thesis, you must:

• Be registered at the time that your thesis is submitted for evaluation.
• Have completed all scholastic activities in your program of study.
• Have a GPA that is equal to or greater than 3.0.
• Have submitted at least one article as the main author in a scientific journal with a peer-reviewed committee, or have filed a preliminary patent in relation with your research subject (in the case of a dissertation by publication with integrated articles, you must give proof of submission for each of the articles; a minimum of 3 articles is required).  
• Previously obtain authorization from your thesis supervisor to submit your thesis.
• Have the approval of the Graduate Studies Office of the compliance of your thesis’s layout.

Approval of your layout

Before you can submit your thesis for evaluation, you must have the layout approved by the Graduate Studies Office. You can submit a PDF of your thesis on the MonDépôtÉTS platform (accessible on the MonÉTS portal) as soon as your research director has confirmed that your thesis is ready to be submitted to a jury. However, it is not necessary to have written permission from your director.

As soon as the thesis is submitted on the MonDépôtÉTS platform, the agent responsible for your file will be automatically notified. The officer will send you her comments and / or an annotated version via MonDépôtÉTS.

• The officer from the Graduate Studies Office has 10 working days to carry out a first check of the layout.
• Following the verification, you will have to submit a corrected version (if some corrections have to be made). For each of the later versions verified (if any), the Graduate Studies Office may take 5 more working days; It is therefore very important to make sure, when writing, that you use the official template and that you consult the Writing Guide.
• Once the layout meets the requirements, you are notified by the Graduate Studies Officer.
• You will then be able to upload the version intended for the jury on MonDépôtÉTS. Take care to upload the correct version because you will not be able to modify the file once submitted!
• Before the Graduate Studies Office can submit your thesis to the jury, your supervisor must have approved the Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation form (see section below).

Student actions:

• Make sure with your research supervisor that your thesis is ready for the layout checking.
• Submit a PDF of your thesis on MonDépôtÉTS.
• If necessary, make the corrections requested by the officer from the Graduate Studies Office.
• Submit the version for the jury on MonDépot ÉTS when ready.

Submitting your thesis for evaluation

The research director (then the co-director, if any) must authorize the official deposit, propose a jury composition and have everything approved by the Dean of studies. To do this, the director must complete all the sections of the “Official authorization to submit for evaluation” form and then submit it to the Graduate Studies Office (via MonDépôtÉTS).

The form consists of the following sections:  
 

1. Proposal for composition of the jury
   The thesis supervisor suggests jury members. The jury must be composed of at least four members: the thesis supervisor and two regular ÉTS professors (or one regular ÉTS professor and an external person), plus an independant external member. 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 nor the co-supervisor.
    
2. Confidentiality
   To ensure that the Graduate Studies 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 Confidentiality of dissertation or thesis and the ÉTS intellectual proprerty sections.


3. Date of defense
   A tentative date for the defense of your thesis can be determined when you file the thesis for evaluation. The date must be calculated around a minimum time frame of 45 working days: 40 days for the members of the jury to evaluate your thesis, and 5 days for the signing process, the reception of the authorizations to defend and the publication of a notice of defense.

The submission and the composition of the jury are official only once they have been authorized by the Dean of Studies. The thesis will then be made available to the jury members by the Graduate Studies Office, which has the sole authority to do this.

Required form:

• Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation (this form is available to the ressearch director on MonDépôtÉTS)

Thesis supervisor's action:

• Complete all sections of the Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation form and submit it. 

Co-supervisor action (if applicable): 

•  Verify the Official Authorization of Submission for Evaluation form and submit it.

Thesis evaluation 

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).

The Graduate Studies Office sends each member of the jury:  

• A copy of the thesis
• Individual Thesis Evaluation and Defense Evaluation forms
• A Defense Authorization Form
• If applicable, a Recognition of Confidentiality Agreement form

Jury members have a maximum of 40 working days to evaluate the thesis and submit a Defense Authorization form to the Graduate Studies Office (A-1700).

Once all jury members have responded unanimously in favour of the defense, the Graduate Studies Office will convene the thesis defense. If, three days before the planned defense date, the Graduate Studies Office has not received all Defense Authorization forms, the defense will be cancelled or postponed. ​

If jury members require major corrections, the defense will not take place. The student then has twelve months to make the requested corrections and present a revised version. This is the same jury that will evaluate the thesis for the second time, according to the same procedures and criteria as the first evaluation.

Forms (sent with a copy of the thesis to each jury member): 

• Individual Thesis Evaluation and Defense Evaluation (these forms must be kept until the defense is held).  
• Defense Authorization (must be returned within the specified time frame to the Graduate Studies Office).

 Evaluator actions:

• Evaluate the thesis by completing sections 1a and 1b of the Individual Thesis Evaluation (this form must be kept until the thesis defense). 
• Send the Defense Authorization form to the Graduate Studies Office within the specified time frame and, if applicable, attach the Recognition of Confidentiality Agreement. 

Thesis defense evaluation

Thesis defense is a mandatory activity. The Dean of Studies convenes the defense 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 Defense” in the reference document concerning confidentiality).

A thesis defense 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 defense 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:

• Individual evaluation (Defense - section 2) 
• Notice of Decision (in the defense file that is given to the chair of the jury)

Evaluators Actions:

• Evaluate the thesis defense by completing section 2 of the Individual Evaluation form.
• Submit the Individual Evaluation form (sections 1 and 2) to the jury chair.
• Sign the Notice of Decision form.
• Submit graded copies of the thesis to the jury chair. 

Jury chair actions: 

• Collect the completed and signed Individual Evaluation from each evaluator. 
• Collect copies of the thesis or dissertation from other members of the jury.
• Complete the Notice of Decision form and have all jury members sign it. 
• Submit all documents to the Graduate Studies Office immediately after the defense.

Award of Excellence

After their defense, 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 Studies Office informing them that they are invited to apply for this award. The email contains all the relevant information (rules and a link to access the form). 

Minor corrections prior to submission

Minor corrections are often requested following the defense of the thesis. Under the guidance of their Research Supervisor the student has 40 opening days (starting after the date of the presentation) to have these corrections done and approved by their Supervisor and proceed with the final submission (the “certificate of compliance” form must be filled to that effect. This document is available at the Graduate Studies Office).

Requested form:

• Certificate of compliance (already given to the student after his/her thesis defense and also available at the Graduate Studies Office).

Student duties:

• Meet with their Research Supervisor to know what the corrections requested by the members of the jury are;
• Make the aforementioned requested corrections and submit his/her new thesis version to their Research Supervisor for approval.

Research Supervisor action:

• Approve that the student complied with the requested corrections via the "certificate of compliance" form.

Once corrections have been made to the thesis, an electronic copy must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Office along with the following required documents:

• The “certificate of compliance” form signed by the thesis supervisor (available at the Graduate Studies Office);
• Distribution authorization forms (ÉTS, LAC and ProQuest), in French only;
• Co-authorship authorization form (if applicable).

If students do not make corrections to their thesis and submit it by the end of the session following the session during which their defense took place, their file will be closed due to withdrawal from the program. 

Distribution and binding of non-confidential theses

The electronic copy of the 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 a bound copy of the thesis is requested, please note that the way to proceed is explained in the email sent to the student and research supervisor after the final submission has been approved by the Dean of Studies Office. The Graduate Studies Office will send a bound copy of the thesis to the student and/or thesis supervisor (and co-supervisor, if applicable). Additional copies will be billed (at $50/unit). 

Distribution and binding of confidential theses

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.

Please note that 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 Studies Office.