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Note: University regulations apply to all students at Laurier. If there is any discrepancy between the program or progression requirements outlined on this page and those in the university's academic calendars, the academic calendars are the official sources of information. The information below is from the latest calendar, and you may be following progression requirements from an earlier calendar. Students are responsible for checking the appropriate calendar. Contact your program coordinator should you notice any discrepancies.
We offer BA and BSc degrees with the following programs covering a broad spectrum of discovery. You should contact your undergraduate officer who will confirm your path to graduation.
Requires the successful completion of eight units* of credit composed as follows:
To meet the program requirements, students must satisfactorily complete the required coursework, the comprehensive examination and must successfully defend the dissertation.
The course load at the doctoral level is normally one research seminar (selected from GG600: Seminar in Spatial Data Handling, GG620: Seminar in Human Geography, GG640: Seminar in Physical Geography, GG660: Perspectives in Resource and Environmental Management). Additional course work may be assigned subject to the needs of individual candidates. To continue in the program, students will be required to attain a minimum grade of B+ in each course.
GG691: Graduate Student and Faculty Seminar in Geography is required of all students. While in residence, all doctoral candidates must participate in GG691.
GG891: PhD Comprehensive Examination focuses on the student's field of specialization and includes both a written and an oral component. The comprehensive examining committee includes the student's advisor and three other members, one of whom will be from outside of the program. At least two members of the comprehensive examining committee must be members of the Waterloo-Laurier Graduate Program in Geography. A chair of the comprehensive examination is appointed by the graduate dean or designate (University of Waterloo) or the departmental graduate coordinator (Laurier).
The examination will normally be completed by the end of the fourth term of registration in the doctoral program. (This requirement assumes continuous registration once admitted into the program.)
A candidate has only two opportunities to complete the Comprehensive Examination successfully. Any appeal by the student concerning a negative evaluation should be made to the appropriate appeals committee of the university in which the student is registered.
Passed: the student successfully completed all requirements of the examination.
Passed conditionally: the student will be considered to have completed the exam successfully upon having satisfied conditions established by the examining committee. The conditions shall:
Failure to satisfy the conditions within the designated time limit shall result in an outcome of Re-examination.
Re-examination: The student will be required to repeat the exam. In this case, the student shall be provided written communication that identifies the deficiencies in the exam that led to this outcome and the deadline by which the re-examination must take place. In the case of re-examination it is anticipated that the committee membership will be the same as the initial committee. Any changes in membership must adhere to committee guidelines and be approved by the Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, or designate.
When a student is re-examined, the outcomes are limited to:
Passed
Exam Unsuccessful: the student will be deemed to have failed to satisfy the program's comprehensive exam requirement. In this case, the student shall receive written communication identifying the deficiencies in the exam that led to this outcome.
A student who is deemed to have failed to satisfy the comprehensive exam requirement (Exam Unsuccessful) may not continue in the current PhD program. The student's status will change to Required to Withdraw in the term immediately following the term in which the examination took place.
The regulations and procedures at the university in which the student is registered will govern both the dissertation (GG899: Doctoral Thesis) and the examination formats.