PhD QUALIFYING EXAMINATION
⌚ 10 min read
📆 Last updated: October 2023
📝 Added: Updated QE Results form
As of Summer 2022, internal examiners are required to be present during examinations. Research proposals have been shortened to 10 pages (previously 40 pages), and examinations have been opened to the MSE community. Please see below for details.
All PhD students in the School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering must submit a concise written research proposal, and defend their proposal orally to their supervisory committee within the first 6 terms (2 academic years) of admission or transfer to the PhD program.
Qualifying Examinations are evaluated according to the:
- feasibility and scientific merits of the proposed research,
- sufficient breadth and understanding of the material in the student’s major area of research, and
- a good preparation to perform the research.
A sound background knowledge associated with senior undergraduate and first year graduate course material is expected.
Due within
6 terms (2 years)
of admission/transfer into the MSE PhD program
PhD candidacy
PhD students need to pass their Qualifying Exam and complete their course requirements to be considered PhD candidates.
💻 Writing Your Research Proposal
Send your proposal to your supervisor for approval.
How to format your proposal?
File type: PDF
Font: Times New Roman
Font size: 12pt
Line spacing: 1.0 (minimum)
Page format: Single column
Page length: 10 pages maximum (excluding title page, references and appendices)
Proposal consists of the following components (maximum recommended length of each component is given in brackets):
1. Title Page (1 page)
- Student Name
- Student number
- Proposal title
- Academic Program (Doctor of Philosophy)
- School name (School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering)
- University name (Simon Fraser University)
2. Introduction (2 pages maximum)
- Background and motivation
- Review of prior work in the field
- Statement of need for proposed work and specific problem definition
3. Research Proposal (6 pages maximum)
- Objectives of research and research hypothesis
- Study design
- Brief review of theoretical background
- Research methodology
- Define variables and approach
- Data Analysis
- Anticipated problems and solutions
- Impact of proposed research
4. Research Plan (1 page maximum)
- Clear workplan and schedule (Grantt chart or similar)
5. References (no page limit)
Note: At this stage of the PhD program, students may not have produced any new findings/results, however clear objectives, expected contributions and the research plan/methodology should be presented. Any preliminary results should be summarized.
👪 Examining Committee
- The examining committee will consist of your supervisory committee as it appears on your student file, and one internal examiner who is an SFU faculty member. The internal examiner can be from Mechatronics or another department.
- The examination will be chaired by your supervisor.
- The Director of the School, the Associate Director of the School and/or the Graduate Program Chair may attend the examination at their discretion but will not vote on the exam outcome.
- Attendance is required for all members of the Qualifying Exam committee. Participation in absentia is not permitted.
Role of the Internal Examiner
- The internal examiner’s role is to uphold the standard and rigor of the MSE Qualifying Exam process. They will objectively assess the overall readiness of the student to conduct the proposed research, the feasibility, merits and novelty of the proposed work and the student’s ability to engage in communication.
- The internal examiner is not expected to be an expert in the specific research domain of the student, the supervisory committee members should serve that role.
- The internal examiner for the Qualifying Exam should remain arms-length from the research project and may also be asked to serve as the internal examiner for the thesis defense.
Composition of the Qualifying Examination Committee
If your supervisory committee members have changed recently, you must notify the University at least 2 weeks prior to submitting your Qualifying Exam request (at least 4 weeks ahead of your exam). For instructions please refer to the Supervision and Progress page.
Qualifying Examinations are chaired by a member of the examining committee (usually the Supervisor) or a faculty member appointed by the Graduate Program Chair. In the event that the examining committee chair is not a member of the supervisory committee, they will be a non-voting member.
📅 Scheduling Your Exam
📅 Date
The defence should be scheduled no later than the last day of classes of the term. This is in order to have enough time for your exam results to be approved by our GPC and your MSE 890 final grade to be entered.
⌚ Time
It is recommended to schedule your exam during MSE admin staff's office hours, Monday to Friday 9am-4pm (excluding Canadian statutory holidays, when the university is closed). Should you wish to take your exam outside of this window, your Supervisor will be responsible for facilitating the meeting.
📥 Submitting Your Qualifying Exam Request
The scheduling of the examination should be arranged at least two (2) weeks prior to the proposed date. Your room/Zoom call will be booked by your GPA, and calendar invites will be sent to you and your examination committee members.
👩🏫 Attending Your Exam
Qualifying Examinations are no longer held in camera.
Examinations are open to MSE students and MSE faculty members who wish to attend. Students and faculty members from other departments will not be allowed to attend. In addition to the examination committee members, the Director of the School, the Associate Director, and/or the Graduate Chair may attend the examination without prior notice.
- The oral presentation consists of a brief (15-20 minute) presentation of the research proposal by the student, followed by questions and then a deliberation of the examination committee.
- The duration of the examination should not exceed two (2) hours.
- Each member of the examination committee, starting with the non-senior supervisory member(s), will be given an opportunity to question the student in two rounds of questions.
💬 Deliberation
Immediately after the completion of the oral examination, the student will be asked to leave the room. Assessment is performed in two steps. First, before discussion, each examiner identifies their provisional recommendation (pass/marginal/fail) to provide a framework for a full discussion.
Following this, a full discussion takes place. Upon completion of the deliberations, a formal vote shall be taken. The result can be:
- Passed as submitted.
- Marginal: The student will be required to re-submit the research proposal and present it for the second and final time within six months time from the original exam. and/or take more courses.
- Failed: The student will be required to withdraw from the PhD program.
Supervisors should communicate examination results to students immediately after the deliberation.
Failure
In case of a failure, a copy of the completed PhD Qualifying Examination Results form should be forwarded to the Associate Director, and, within seven days, each examiner must submit a written assessment of the overall performance of the student to the Graduate Chair and the Associate Director, with a copy to the Graduate Studies office as supporting material for the termination of the student’s PhD program.
📥 After the Exam
Your QE result will be submitted to the MSE admin office by your Supervisor.
Your Supervisor will be assigned a CourSys form to submit your results. No action is required from you as the student.
GPC Approval
MSE Graduate Program Chair will review and sign the QE results. Students will receive the final version of the form via email.
Grade Entry
Your MSE 890 grade will be entered into the system at the end of the term by your Graduate Program Assistant.
