Université de Montréal Ph.D. in Applied Human Sciences

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Typical path of a doctoral candidate in Applied Human Sciences (AHS)

First Year

1. Registration to the 4 mandatory seminars :
   • SHA7015 Epistemology of Applied Human Sciences
   • SHA7040 Research Methodology
   • SHA7055 Interdisciplinarity
   • SHA7065 Intervention

   * To be noted* : for doctoral students in the bioethics option, the intervention seminar is replaced by another mandatory course : BIE6500 Epistemology of Bioethics.

2. Before the end of fall semester, all students must have chosen their research director.
3. During the months of February and March, together with the research director, formulation of the question for the comprehensive examination. On this matter, refer to the following document : « L’examen de synthèse. Document d’information », available on our website or from the Director's assistant.
4. Before mid-April, the research director must transmit to the program director the question for the comprehensive examination and the name of an external member for the jury, after having verified his availability. The question for the comprehensive examination and the related bibliography, signed by all the members of the jury must be given to the program director latest June 1st.
5. Writing of the comprehensive examination during the summer. The examination* must be sent in to the Director's assistant before the 31st of August in four copies (five when there is codirection). Barring any exceptions, the program director automatically presides over the examination jury.

Attention! The objective of the comprehensive examination is to test  the student's research skills and knowledge of his chosen thesis topic: by responding to a given question, the candidate must demonstrate that he has achieved the objectives of this particular stage of his doctoral course. Considering that it is an examination, several consequences are derived. First of all, the text submitted by the candidate must be an original work, written by the candidate and by him alone. It can in no way be the fruit of collective work. Thus, if it is legitimate for a candidate to ask for some advice from his director, nothing authorizes him to ask for a pre-assessment of his text from the individuals who will sit on the jury. To be valid, the course of the test requires that the members of the jury reserve their first assessment on the written document for the exam itself. Finally, and of course, the individuals called to serve on the jury of a comprehensive examination cannot in any case find themselves in a situation of conflict of interest. Are thus unable to sit co-workers, members of a same family, etc. Consequently, all pre-assessment of the document by the research director or by members of the jury may be considered as a case of plagiarism, and all irregular composition of the jury may lead to the invalidation of the test.

Second year

1. Conduct the oral part of the comprehensive examination after having completed the four mandatory seminars.
2. Registration to the thesis seminar (SHA7100 - or BIE6700 for students in the bioethics option). Only doctoral students who have passed the comprehensive examination are eligible for this seminar.
3. Before the end of the month of December, registration of research topic with the FESP. The form is available on the FESP website
4. At the end of the thesis seminar (SHA7100 ou BIE6700), writing and defense of thesis project. This defense is made before jury. The jury is formed from a recommendation made by the thesis director. He must ensure himself of the availability of the members that he recommends. The seminary thesis supervisor is an automatic member of the jury.

Third, fourth and fifth year

1. Research and writing of thesis. It is possible to write a thesis into articles1.
2. Where research involves human beings, one must file an application for approval by the University ethics approval board, once the thesis project is accepted by the jury. The form is available on our website.
3. Between two to six months before the deposition your thesis (minimum two months), you must send a « notice of deposit » to the program Assistant director after having informed your director. The form is available on the following website : www.fesp.umontreal.ca.
4. Jury formation for the defense of thesis. The thesis director must send the list of jury members proposed by the program director, after having ensured himself of the availability of the recommended members.
5. Deposition of five copies (six if there is codirection) of the thesis to the Assistant director.
6. Minor or major corrections, if necessary, once the jury has evaluated the thesis.
7. Defense.
8. Once the thesis is accepted by the jury and the form signed by it is received, the secretariat sends a notice for the electronic deposition (PDF) on Papyrus.

« So that an application for permission to write articles may be considered, research work must be sufficiently developed to allow to specify, in a reasonable manner, the content of the articles and their authors, as well the general organisation of the entirety of the dissertation or thesis manuscript. ». Such a request requires the approval of the research director and must be addressed to the program director who will forward it to «  the FAS with an appropriate recommendation ». A form is available on the FAS website under the heading « Les études ». For  additional details on the requirements and procedures for a thesis in the form of articles, refer to the following document : Faculté des études supérieures et postdoctorales. Guide de présentation et d’évaluation des mémoires de maîtrise et des thèses de doctorat, FESP.

 

Comments and information : phdsha@umontreal.ca
Update 16-fév-11