Final thesis oral examinations are open.
Oral Candidacy Examinations
Following the completion of all course work, the research paper and the language requirement, doctoral students sit the Candidacy Examination.Ìý In the Biological Anthropology Graduate Specialization, the Candidacy Examination consists of two parts in sequence, as follows: (1) a written component and (2) an oral component.
The oral candidacy examination is required by University regulations and must be held no later than twenty-eight months following initial registration as a full-time graduate student in a Ph.D. program.Ìý Students entering the doctoral program with a Bachelor's degree, or transferring into a doctoral program from a Master's program before the Master's program is completed, must attempt the candidacy examinations no later than 36 months after initial registration in the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
The Candidacy Examination in the Biological Anthropology Graduate Specialization consists of a written plus an oral examination administered by the Candidacy Examination Committee, composed of the Supervisory Committee plus two additional members, one of whom must be external to the Specialization if the External is not already a member of the Supervisory Committee.
The Candidacy Examination is an examination of the student's knowledge and abilities to reason, utilize the relevant literature, and to solve problems within the three fields or areas which have been set out.
In consultation with the student, the Supervisory Committee will determine three areas of knowledge for which the student will be responsible in his or her Candidacy Examination. These topics will be communicated (in writing) to the student, with copies to other members of the Supervisory Committee.
These topics will also be communicated to the two other members of the Candidacy Examination Committee, who must be selected no later than eight weeks prior to the oral examination.
Members of the Candidacy Examination Committee will each submit one or two questions, so that there are at least two questions within each of the three areas. The supervisor will select six questions fromÌý those submitted, and provide them to the student at least five weeks prior to the Oral Candidacy Examination. The student will select one question from each of the three areas for a total of three questions. The student will have two weeks in which to prepare answers to these questions as a take-home, open-book exam. Each answer should be approximately 6000 words. Copies of the completed examination will be distributed to all members of the Examination Committee. The Committee will assess the written exam on a Pass/ Fail basis. The oral examination is conducted in accordance with Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations.
In the oral component of the Candidacy Examination, the written examinations will serve as the basis from which the examination shall proceed, but examiners are not limited to the written component in framing the questions asked, and questioning may range into cognate areas, at the discretion of the Neutral Chair.
Students must pass both the written and oral exams in order to pass the candidacy exam.