Doctor of Philosophy (Medical Sciences)

Program Requirements

The Departments of Dentistry, Medical Genetics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Paediatrics, and Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging participate in an interdisciplinary PhD in Medical Sciences program.

The requirements for this degree consist of coursework, completion of a research project, and preparation of a thesis.

Required Coursework

For students entering the PhD program after a BSc degree, the minimum course requirement is 6 units of graded graduate level courses approved by the department.
For students entering the PhD program after a MSc degree, the minimum course requirement is 3 units of graded graduate level courses approved by the department.
Course requirements are recommended by the supervisor and supervisory committee based on the background of the student and the area of specialization to be undertaken.

Thesis

Registration in 900-level THES

Department-Specific Program Requirements

Notwithstanding the above, students must fulfill the department’s PhD program requirements as approved and stated in the department’s graduate program requirements. For further information, refer to Graduate Programs in the Calendar.

For department-specific program requirements, see the following pages:

Ethics & Academic Citizenship Requirement

Doctoral students in the Medical Sciences Graduate Program must meet the FGSR Ethics and Academic Citizenship Training Requirement through the completion of INT D 710 and INT D 720 by the end of the first term of their degree program. Doctoral students who completed their Master’s degree at the University of Alberta and previously passed INT D 710 are only required to take INT D 720 (See: Ethics and Academic Citizenship Requirement )

Length of Program

The minimum length of the PhD program is 36 months, or the department-specific requirement, where stated.

The maximum time to complete the PhD program as set by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research is six years.