Ph.D. Program
A Ph.D. program in Earth Sciences was approved by the B.C. Government in the fall of 2004. Currently there are several Ph.D. students in the department and all department faculty would consider applicants to conduct Ph.D. research under their supervision. As for M.Sc. candidates, anyone who is considering applying to our department is strongly encouraged to first contact the faculty member or members whose research area overlaps with the desired area of Ph.D. research. The department does not generally accept students into our graduate studies programs unless a faculty member has already indicated they will serve as senior supervisor to that student.
See the "Graduate General Regulations" section 1.3.4 for minimum University requirements for admission to a doctoral program. Students whose primary language is not English may be required to demonstrate an adequate command of English to the university and the graduate program committee. (See also section 1.3.12).
You can also get detailed information about graduate studies at SFU on the SFU website as well as at the Office of the Dean of Graduate Studies. Additional information is also contained in the online SFU Academic Calendar ( http://students.sfu.ca/calendar/ ) .
Course Work
For students entering with a BSc or equivalent: 15 credit hours of graduate courses in addition to EASC 600, 900, 901 and 998. For students entering with a master's degree: six credit hours of graduate courses in addition to EASC 600, 900, 901 and 998 are required. Courses should be chosen from the Graduate Course list, or with the graduate chairs approval, from related graduate courses in other departments including Geography, Chemistry, Physics, Biological Sciences, and Resources and Environmental Management. Course selections will include no more than six credit hours from 700 level EASC courses. Students must maintain a 3.0 CGPA in course work (section 1.5.1 of the Graduate General Regulations). Failure to do so is taken as evidence of unsatisfactory progress (section 1.5.4 of the Graduate General Regulations).
With advance approval, a PhD student may take up to one-half of the above course requirements at another university for credit toward the PhD degree at Simon Fraser University.
Additional course work may be assigned by the supervisory committee, based on the results of the Oral Candidacy Examination.
In addition to their normal course work, PhD students must present two research seminars (EASC 900 and EASC 901). At least one of these seminars should be based on completed or nearly completed thesis work. One seminar may address any Earth Sciences topic approved by the supervisory committee. PhD students are expected to attend all the research seminars in the department.
Oral Candidacy Information
Every PhD graduate student in the Department of Earth Sciences must complete an Oral Candidacy Examination prior to the end of the fourth semester of registration, or in the first semester after transferring from the MSc program. The candidate must submit a written thesis proposal to the supervisory committee and present it at the beginning of the Oral Candidacy Examination, which will be followed by an oral examination.
The student must demonstrate an ability to conduct independent research, and have a sufficient command of the studied discipline to explain the research proposal and defend it. The Oral Candidacy Examination must be successfully completed prior to undertaking any significant thesis research. The Oral Candidacy Examination concentrates on the student's major area of research and two minor areas, as agreed upon by the supervisory committee and the student.
The examination is graded satisfactory/unsatisfactory by an examining committee consisting of the supervisory committee and one member external to the committee. Students with an unsatisfactory grade must pass a second exam within six months; a student receiving a second unsatisfactory rating will be required to withdraw from the program.
Thesis
Students define and undertake original research, the results of which are reported in a thesis and defended before an examining committee (section 1.9.3 of the Graduate General Regulations). Students must conform to residence requirements (1.7.3 of the Graduate General Regulations). The program will normally be completed in 12 semesters (4 years) and not more than 15 semesters (5 years).The student's progress will be reviewed every 12 months by a supervisory committee consisting of three or more faculty members (as per section 1.8.1 of the Graduate General Regulations).
The senior supervisor will be an Earth Science faculty member approved by the department's graduate program committee. At each annual review, the student presents a summary of his/her work to date, with the first review being the Oral Candidacy Examination, when the Thesis Proposal is to be presented. Students not making satisfactory progress in their research, or failing to demonstrate satisfactory knowledge and understanding of recent publications in their general area of research, or failing to have their revised research proposal approved by the supervisory committee within 18 months of admission may be required to withdraw as per section 1.8.2 of the Graduate General Regulations.
Transfer from the MSc Program to the PhD Program
Students accepted to the PhD program have normally completed a master's degree in science or engineering. Admission to the PhD program is governed by the minimum University requirements ( see “1.3.4 Admission to a Doctoral Program”). For students entering the PhD program without a master's degree, the following additional requirements apply:
- at least 12 months in the MSc program
- a cumulative grade point average of 3.67
- completion of a thesis or other scholarly work
- approval of the student's supervisory committee and departmental graduate program committee