Thesis defence guidelines

Refer to the Library's Thesis Resources website for important instructions pertaining to your thesis. If your thesis is not approved by the Assistant for Theses, your graduation will be delayed.

MA Thesis Defence Guidelines

The defence date should be set at least four (4) weeks before the thesis submission deadline to provide enough time for revisions to the thesis.

Four (4) weeks prior to defence

Student to ask Senior Supervisor to email the following to intst@sfu.ca:

1. Completed MAIS Defence Form – student should complete the Student Information section before sending form to senior supervisor for completion;
2. Two to three alternate dates for room booking;
3. Short CV of the examiner, if not from SFU;
4. Pronunciation of examiner’s name.

Student to email the following information to intst@sfu.ca:

1. Title and abstract of thesis;
2. A/V equipment needs (i.e., internet access, projector, screen, computer, if you are not bringing your own);
3. Copy of the Research Ethics Approval issued by Office of Research Ethics (ORE), if applicable

Students are to remind supervisors to email the thesis to members of the examining committee well in advance. MA candidates are not permitted to contact the examiner.

The Graduate Program Assistant will prepare defence documents, obtain signatures and forward them to the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

One (1) week prior to defence

1. Confirm thesis title and abstract with Graduate Program Assistant.
2. Email presentation files to Graduate Program Assistant, if not using own computer.

Defence procedures

1. Chair introduces the examining committee and procedures.
2. Student presentation of approx. 15-20 minutes and no more than 15 slides, assuming a minimum of one minute per slide.
3. First round of questioning begins with examiner, followed by second supervisor, and then finally senior supervisor. In each round, usually two, examining committee members may ask 2-4 questions each.
4. After all examining committee questions have been answered, the chair opens to questions from the public.
5. Chair asks all but examining committee members to leave the room, with student staying relatively close by so as to be called in after deliberations – approx. 10 minutes.
6. Student returns to receive examining committee’s verdict, including specifics on revisions, if any. In the majority of cases, students will need to do at least minor revisions, where “minor” has a range of meanings.

Organizing your presentation

1. Introduce your topic and explain your interest, its relevance, and your main research question. Mention any problems encountered in the field, methodological, practical, etc. (3 minutes)
2. Review the main theoretical positions of your question and explain your own stance on the debate; the latter can be your expectations of your research findings. (3-5 minutes)
3. Briefly describe cases or empirical material and their relations to the theoretical debate and/or your own position. (3-5 minutes)
4. Reveal your main conclusions. Refer to the ways your cases illuminate the debate and offer suggestions for future research. Here you can mention something surprising or unexpected from the initial formulation of your research project. (2-3 minutes)

Other presentation tips

1. Use a dark background and light text for better visibility. Each slide should not contain much more than 3-4 lines of concise text.
2. Use 36-point font in the body text and 44-point font for slide titles.
3. If using images, shorten or exclude text in those slides – the image should be representative of your point, supplemented by your speech.
4. Never show complex tables or charts with small font size that will be illegible to the public.
5. Always refer to material on slides shown rather than discussing other topics; slides and speech should be the same topic.
6. Make it big, keep it short, have a point.

Post defence

1. Ask supervisor to confirm by email that the student has completed all required revisions.
2. Review thesis submission instructions and submit to the Library by the posted deadline.

For more guidance on Master’s Theses and Oral Examinations, consult the Faculty of Graduate Studies website.