Doctor of Philosophy (Neuroscience)

Program Requirements

Coursework

PhD students who do not have a prior MSc in Neuroscience must complete 9 units of graded graduate coursework. PhD Students with a prior MSc in Neuroscience must complete 3 units of graded graduate coursework.

The program for each student will be determined by their supervisory committee and will be subject to approval by GPC if required. Additional coursework may be required.

PhD students have the option, in consultation with their program supervisor, to complete a lab rotation course. Students may choose either NEURO 500 (two terms; 6 units) or NEURO 501 (one term; 3 units). NEURO 500 involves rotations through three laboratories. Each rotation involves two months of research experience (six months in total). NEURO 501 involves rotation through one laboratory taken outside of the laboratory of the primary supervisor.
Students, in consultation with their supervisory committees, may also select courses in other areas important to their research programs.
Students will be expected to attend weekly Neuroscience seminars.

Ethics Requirement

Students must meet the FGSR Ethics and Academic Citizenship Requirement through the completion of INT D 710 (for both master’s and doctoral students) and INT D 720 (for doctoral students) by the end of the first term of registration in their degree program. Students are expected to complete ethics training within the first year of graduate studies under normal circumstances.

PhD Thesis Proposal

All PhD students, whether entering via the MSc program or via direct entry, must submit a PhD Thesis Proposal to their supervisory committee by 18 months of entering the program. The student will be required to defend their proposal orally to that committee in response to questions.

Candidacy Exam

PhD students must take a candidacy examination which should be completed by the end of the second year in the program. For students who change program category from the Master’s program to the doctoral program, the candidacy examination should be completed by the end of the third year from the beginning of the Master’s program.

Thesis

Registration in 900-level THES. Students must prepare and defend a thesis on an approved research topic.

Language Requirement

No language other than English is required for the degree.

Residence Requirement

The PhD program has a minimum residence requirement of two academic years (where an academic year is defined as the eight-month period from September through April) of full-time on-campus registration.

Length of Program

The time required to complete the PhD will vary with the individual candidate, but the normal period is about four to six years. The maximum time to complete the PhD program as set by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research is six years from the time the student first registers in a doctoral program. In the case of master’s students who are reclassified as doctoral students, all degree requirements must be completed within six years of the time they first register as master’s candidates.