What if I need counselling help for stress or concerns of violence or harassment?
You should not hesitate to contact the Campus Grad Counsellor for confidential and professional assistance (see below). You can also contact the Grad Chair for confidential advice. In addition, a list of safety contact information can be found here.
There are a number of resources to help students who are coping with stress, harassment, or other challenges or safety issues you may be facing:
- Here is a list of safety contact information: Safety contacts and Steps to Follow After a Sexual Assault.
- Here is a link to Queen's Policy of Sexual Violence. This document includes important definitions, advice and contact information; please read it.
- SGPS (School of Graduate and Professional Students) has student advisors available via email at advisors@sgps.ca or telephone at 613-533-3169.
- SGS Embedded Counsellors: Dave Neary and Anja Troje. To book a counselling appointment, call 613-533-2136> (32136). This is a dedicated phone line and has confidential voicemail.
- There is a variety of specialized support services available on campus.
Should I transfer from MSc to PhD?
The transfer from MSc to PhD without completing the MSc is designed to allow a student who has developed a great project during their MSc work to transfer that project into the PhD program. While this can sound pretty attractive there are some distinct disadvantages of doing this. Both the pros and cons of taking such a transfer are summarized below.
Advantages to Transferring From MSc to PhD
- Write only one thesis rather than two graduate theses, and thus have only one thesis defence.
- Move into PhD program without need to have completed a research project.
- Spread the course load over more years as you do not need to complete the required 4 MSc courses before transferring to the PhD program.
Advantages to Completing the MSc Thesis and Degree
- Garner some valuable experience in writing a thesis. Most students have no idea how long it will take them to put together their thesis. Writing up your MSc will give you some valuable insights into both the process and your ability. Such writing also helps tremendously in formulating new research for your PhD as it gets you reading the relevant background, and will provide you with excellent feedback on your organizational, writing and analytical skills.
- Gain confidence in both your work and your writing. Until you have actually written and defended a thesis you have no idea how much confidence you will gain in going through this process successfully. The extra time taken to write up an MSc can certainly be countered by the increased efficiency you will get from this confidence boost.
- Submit a paper or two for publication. If you are planning to stay on to extend your MSc work into a PhD, then focus the MSc thesis on work that can now be written up for publication. This too s invaluable experience but even better, it's a great way to enhance scholarship, and eventually job, applications. Published papers will also introduce you to and raise your profile in your field of research, also invaluable.
- Put some of your research behind you. By writing up some of your research for publication, you will not be tempted to collect more data on the subject of that work. This will allow you to focus your PhD research on more important topics.
- Have a thesis completed and a degree in hand. In the unlikely event that your PhD research flounders, or you change your mind for whatever reason, you will already have a degree completed. If you take this route there is no going back.
Supervisory Committees (SVC)
Who is on my MSc supervisory committee?
For an MSc student, the SVC consists of the Supervisor (and sometimes also a co-supervisor ) and at least two other faculty members, one of whom must be a regular (i.e. not Cross-appointed or adjunct) faculty member in Biology, and one of whom should be from a different research area either inside or outside the department. You can have more people on the SVC if you want.
Who is on my PhD supervisory committee?
For a PhD student, the SVC consists of the Supervisor (and sometimes also a co-supervisor ) and at least two other faculty members, one of whom must be a regular (i.e. not Cross-appointed or adjunct) faculty member in Biology, and one of whom must be from a different research area either inside or outside the Department. In some circumstances a student may have a committee member who is not a member of the School of Graduate Studies, or is not even a faculty member at Queen's. In such cases, a request must be made in writing to the Graduate Studies Committee, stating reasons for the request and qualifications of the proposed committee member. You can add more people to the SVC if you wish, but oversized committees can be cumbersome when it comes to scheduling meetings.
How often should I meet with my committee?
The SVC MUST meet at least once each year with the student. For this meeting the student should send a brief written summary of research progress (usually 2-5 pages) to the SVC at least five working days prior to the committee meeting. This summary should include a month-by-month plan for completion of the thesis. The supervisor will keep copies of these research summaries. It is the responsibility of the supervisor and student to ensure that these meetings take place. Students (or supervisors) should also call a supervisory committee meeting any time there are academic problems or difficulties with the research program, or when a thesis defense or comprehensive exam is to be scheduled in the near future.
When should I hold my first committee meeting?
You should hold your first meeting within 6 months of enrollment in the graduate program.
What if someone from my SVC is on sabbatical?
You are welcome to use Skype or any other method of teleconferencing system to hold meetings, even thesis defense exams, when a committee member is out of town. You should make arrangements with any members of your SVC regarding any deadlines or related issues if a SVC member is expected to be unavailable for an extended period.
What if I want to change the composition of my SVC committee partway through my program?
As long as the composition fulfills the requirements (see above), you are welcome to change the composition of your SVC at any time. Make sure that the graduate administrator is made aware (in writing) of the composition of the revised SVC.
What if, due to personal conflicts, I want to change supervisors during my program?
Occasionally, situations arise where it may be in the student’s best interest to seek external advice/support about changing supervisors. Go to the SGS site for further information.
Teaching Assistantships
How many hours am I expected to work for each TAship?
65 hours.
Does that 65 hours include preparation time, including attendance at lectures if the prof thinks I need to?
Yes. Each course instructor completes a TA-agreement form that indicates time-on-task and expectations. This form is signed by both the TA and the course instructor.
What do I do if it looks like I am going to do a little (or a lot) more (or less) than 65 hours?
TA commitments may vary a bit from the TA agreement as unexpected issues arise (e.g. equipment problems in labs, more-than-expected student emails, etc.). It is important that TAs keep track of their hours and communicate with the course instructor if their hours are deviating by more than 10% (collectively) from the agreed upon plan. It’s a good idea to evaluate how much time you are spending at about the 6-week mark and inform the instructor or professor if you think you are doing more than you are being paid for. Please talk to the Graduate Studies Coordinator if you think you are doing too much work but do that early rather than when the course has finished or is nearing completion.
Courses
What courses do I have to take?
All graduate students (both MSc and PhD) must take AODA 800, a 1-h module on equity training associated with disabilities in the workplace. A link (poorly) entitled Accessible Customer Service Training on the Queen's Equity Home page will take you to a login site and the module. You will not be permitted to TA until you have completed this module. It takes about 1 hour to complete—if you try to do it faster, it will not recognize your effort and, frustratingly, you will have to redo it. Even if you are not TAing, you need to complete this module ASAP because of potential liability concerns associated with working in a public sector (university) environment and the need for disability awareness. You will receive an email from the Equity Office after you complete the module—forward this to Joanne so that she can keep a record of it in your file.
All graduate students should also have WHMIS training, and those who work with animals must have animal care training. MSc students are also required to take 4 graduate (half) courses, usually drawn from the list of graduate courses offered in the Biology Department.
PhD students are not required to take graduate course in addition to AODA 800, WHMIS and animal care training, unless their supervisory committee specifies course requirements.
Thesis
Can I submit my thesis as a PDF to my examiners?
Ask each of your examiners what they prefer.
Is there a maximum page length?
For an MSc thesis, 100 pages inclusive of everything but appendices and front matter (title page, tables of contents, etc.). For a PhD thesis, 175 pages inclusive of everything but appendices and front matter. If you wish to submit a thesis longer than these maxima, you must obtain written permission from each member of your supervisory committee before submission. See Section 13.3 in the Department Guide to Grad Studies.
What are the formatting requirements?
There are two acceptable formats: (i) traditional thesis format or (ii) manuscript format. See section 13 in the Department Guide to Grad Studies for details. The School of Graduate Studies also has important information on thesis formatting to help you out.
Note that there is also the gaelsdown package, written by a former MSc in Biology, which can convert R markdown documents to a final, formatted thesis following SGS guidelines.
Do I have to include a general introduction and discussion?
Yes, even if you are using a manuscript format. Several pages of general discussion can be a useful place to speculate, to point to future directions, to raise new questions, etc. It is also a good place to present ideas that may fall outside the realm of what would be included in any manuscripts.
Can my data chapters be in a format that I would submit to a journal for publication?
Yes, see the above notes on ‘manuscript format’ for theses. But keep in mind that you are still required to abide by the formatting regulations provided by the School of Grad Studies (see link above for SGS format rules).
What are the formatting requirements for graphs?
You should use the format that is most commonly found in journal articles in your field of research.
Can I use colour on my graphs?
Yes, but be sure to use high-contrast colours and avoid colours that may not be distinguishable to someone who is red-green colour blind.
Where should I put my figures?
Figures should be embedded in the results section(s) of your thesis. They must be numbered and each figure should be embedded at the point-of-1st-mention in the text describing that figure. The same rule applies for Tables. Extensive data tables (e.g. raw data) can be place in an appendix. Captions should be placed directly below a figure (or above a Table) wherever possible. When the image/table size prevents this, the caption should be on the facing page of the Table/Figure. Images and text within a figure must be legible so be sure to check this if you are using small fonts within your figures—use a minimum font size of 8.
Are there guidelines about the expectations of MSc and PhD degrees?
Yes, there are some basic guidelines, expectations, and learning outcomes described in documents of our Forms and Info page. These are simply general guidelines however and the specific expectations associated with your project should come from formal discussions with your supervisor and supervisory committee associated with your annual meetings and progress reports.
Thesis Defense
When should I schedule my defense?
Before scheduling a defense, you should meet with your SVC and get their approval to submit and defend your thesis. Please indicate on the committee meeting report form that your project is essentially completed and ready to be written up in the form of a thesis. Once your supervisor deems your thesis complete, you should then schedule your defense. It is always your right to submit your thesis at any time whether or not your supervisor and committee approve.
Who will be at my MSc defense?
The thesis examination will be OPEN unless a request based on justifiable reasons has been approved by an Associate Dean (SGS).
You can choose to have an ‘open’ or ‘closed’ defense. For an open defense, an audience (e.g., labmates, friends) is permitted to attend following your seminar presentation, but they are not free to ask questions. In a closed defense, only the examining committee is present. The MSc examining committee is comprised of a minimum of 5 faculty, as follows:
- 1 Chairperson (chosen by the Graduate Studies Assistant in consultation with the Graduate Coordinator)
- 1 Head’s Delegate (usually a member of the Graduate Studies Committee)
- 1 or 2 Biology faculty members (usually from the student's supervisory committee)
- 1 Internal-external Examiner (a faculty member from a different research area)
- 1 Supervisor (or, in some cases, 2 Co-supervisors)
Either the Chair or the internal-external examiner must be from a different department.
What is the role of the Chair during my defence (or comprehensive) exam?
The Chair is a university representative, from outside of Biology, who ensures that the regulations established by SGS are followed. Simply put, they ensure the process is fair, thorough, and all the required paperwork, procedures, etc. are looked after.
What is the role of the Head's Delegate during my defence?
The HD ensures that the quality of thesis and defence are up to departmental standards. The role of the HD is not to scrutinize your thesis for grammatical errors, formatting issues, etc—that is the role of the student and supervisor. The HD judges the examiners as well as the student to ensure that the exam is rigorous and challenging at the level expected of grad research in our department.
Who will be at my PhD defense?
See the note above for ‘MSc defense’. In addition, a PhD examination committee has an external examiner, who is an expert in your field from a different university (i.e. they cannot be Queen’s faculty). All committee members must be approved by the Coordinator of Graduate Studies.
How long do I have to revise my thesis and submit my thesis after my defense if revisions are needed?
In the case of a successful defense, but where thesis revision are required (very common), revisions should be done as quickly as possible and are expected to be completed and the thesis resubmitted within a week. Officially, however, you have up to one year to submit revisions but you will be charged tuition until the final version is submitted.
How late can I defend in each term and avoid all tuition fees?
Usually the thesis must be defended and corrections submitted before the end of the first month in a term if you want to avoid tuition fees for that term.
Stipends
What is the minimum guaranteed annual stipend?
This changes from year to year, usually in consideration of inflation. As of September 1, 2019 the minimum stipend is $24,300/yr. for MSc students and $24,800/yr. for PhD students.
Where does this money come from?
The salary is a combination of funding from: TAships, QGAs (Queen’s Graduate Awards – generally guaranteed to every in-time student), supervisor’s research grant and, if available, internal or external scholarships. Students who have major scholarships are not given first preference for TAing.
When do I get paid?
Typically, payment is monthly, on the last business day of the month, in equal installments.
Can I earn more money if I want or need to?
Depending upon the availability of TAships, and/or supervisor’s willingness/ability to contribute additional funding, it may be possible to earn more than the minimum stipend.
How long do I get this stipend for?
The guaranteed stipend for full-time students covers 2-years for MSc and 4-years for PhD students, from time of first enrollment. After these periods, students are considered ‘overtime’ and continued funding is at the supervisor’s discretion.
Expenses
Who pays for my books and supplies?
Stationary supplies should be provided by your supervisor. You will probably have to pay for additional texts, journal subscriptions (for journals not found in Queen’s library system), or other related books.
Who pays for my research expenses?
Your supervisor will probably pay all of your research expenses from their research grants but students often get (usually small) research grants on their own that will help to defray some of the costs.
How is the amount available for my research determined?
Supervisors are expected to anticipate and budget for all research-related expenses.
Who pays for me to go to conferences?
Funding for conference attendance is covered by research grants but a small amount is available each year from the Biology Department and/or the School of Graduate Studies. Typically, students must be presenting data at a conference in order to be eligible for this financial support. In addition, many professional societies (who organize conferences) set aside competitive funds for student travel.
Finishing Up
What is the normal length of time required to complete my degree?
The expected times-to-completion are 2 yrs for the MSc and 4 yrs for the PhD degree.
Will I get paid if I go overtime?
Students who are overtime need to consult with their supervisors about the possibility for continued funding after the date for the minimum guaranteed stipend has passed.
When and how do I apply for an extension if I go over the time limits?
Students need to apply to the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) for time limit extensions. A one-semester extension is usually accommodated without an issue. Thereafter, more documentation and rationale for the extension may be requested by SGS.
Update October 19, 2019.
Still need more help?
If you need more information, or want to arrange a meeting with an Academic Advisor, please contact the Graduate Assistant Joanne Surette.
