General Degree Requirements

 

MSc. Degree Requirements
The degree of Master of Science (M.Sc.) is offered in Marine Biology by full-time and part-time study through the Department of Ocean Sciences. Areas of concentration include: Biological Oceanography, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Functional Biology of Marine Organisms, Marine Biogeochemistry, and Marine Ecology and Evolution.

Admission and Program of Study
Admission into the Master’s degree program in Marine Biology is normally restricted to candidates holding at least a B.Sc. degree with second class Honours. When circumstances warrant, this requirement may be waived by the School of Graduate Studies on the recommendation of the Head of the Department. Each candidate will be assigned a Supervisory Committee consisting of the Supervisor and at least two other members.

  1. Within two months of the first registration in the M.Sc. degree program, a candidate should meet with his/her Supervisory Committee.
  2. Within six months, the student and the Supervisory Committee will agree on a written thesis proposal outlining the objectives, methods, timetable, and funding for the project, and provide the proposal (signed by the student and the supervisory committee) to the Head for inclusion in the student’s file.
  3. At this time, a formal proposal presentation that is open for people to attend, and advertised as such, is required. The presentation will typically precede a regular committee meeting and may be part of the OSC seminar series.

Candidates are required to complete a minimum of 9 credit hours of graduate program courses as follows:

  • Ocean Sciences 7000
  • One of Ocean Sciences 7100 or 7200
  • Three additional credit hours selected from other Ocean Sciences graduate courses or a relevant course in another Department approved by the Supervisory Committee

All course requirements should be completed within four semesters from the date of first registration in the M.Sc. degree program.

Courses
A selection of the following graduate courses will be offered to meet the requirements of candidates, as far as the resources of the Department will allow:

  • OCSC 7000 Graduate Core Seminar (Cross-listed as Biology 7000)
  • OCSC 7100 Biological Oceanography 
  • OCSC 7200 Adaptations to the Marine Environment 
  • OCSC 7300 Plankton Dynamics 
  • OCSC 7400 Fisheries Resource Management 

Annual Program and Supervisory Reports

To ensure progress and timeline completion supervisors and graduate students are expected to complete and submit a Graduate Student Annual Progress and Supervisory Report Form (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/Supervisory_Report.pdf).

Exit Seminar
Near the end of the student’s programme, a seminar on their thesis research will be given to the Department. The thesis committee is expected to attend, and OSC community is invited to do so, but this seminar is not graded. This seminar should be advertised a week ahead and it may be part of the OSC seminar series if a slot is available.

Thesis
Once the thesis committee approves the thesis, it is ready for review by an examining committee. The thesis committee then suggests two examiners (typically 1 internal and 1 external) and submits the “recommendation for thesis examiners form” for review and approval by the graduate committee. Once the thesis committee is approved the student submits the thesis to the Graduate Secretary, together with the “supervisory approval form” and the “appointment of examiners form” (both found on the SGS website). The Graduate Secretary forwards the thesis to SGS, who will send it off to the examiners. Once the reviews are returned and assuming the thesis is passed, the candidate needs to revise the thesis, which then has to be approved by the thesis committee. The final thesis is uploaded electronically using the e-thesis submission form on the my.mun.ca portal and the “award of degree form” submitted by the department with the appropriate signatures. This whole process can easily take 2-3 months.

Thesis Submission Dates & Fees
The final date for departments to submit the “recommendation for award of degree form” in order for graduate students to be deregistered from Graduate Registration 9000 without incurring any liability for continuance fees is by the end of the 3rd week of each semester.

The final date for departments to submit the “recommendation for award of degree form” in order for graduate students to be deregistered from Graduate Registration 9000 and receive a 50% refund of continuance fees for the semester is by the 7th week of each semester.

Key dates can be found either at the following SGS website “Graduate important dates” (https://www.mun.ca/regoff/registration-and-final-exams/important-dates-and-deadlines/) or in the University Diary for the Academic Year (https://www.mun.ca/regoff/calendar/sectionNo=GENINFO-0086).

Details on thesis submission process for supervisors:

  1. The thesis committee approves that the thesis is ready for review by an examining committee and prepares the “supervisory approval form” (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/supervisory_approval_fill.pdf).
  2. The thesis committee suggests names of 2 examiners (typically 1 internal and 1 external) and submits the “recommendation for thesis examiners form” (see https://www.mun.ca/osc/graduate-students/resources-and-forms/) to the graduate committee.
  3. The names are reviewed and approved by the graduate committee and the “appointment of examiners form Master’s form” filled out (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/Appoint.Masters.pdf).
  4. The thesis is submitted to the Graduate Secretary, together with the “supervisory approval form” and “the appointment of examiners form Master’s degree”.
  5. The Graduate Secretary then forwards the thesis to SGS, who will send off to the internal and external examiner.
  6. Once the reviews are returned and assuming the thesis is passed, then the candidate needs to revise the thesis, which then has to be approved by the thesis committee (often committee members will leave it to the discretion of the supervisor).
  7. The final thesis is then uploaded electronically using the e-thesis submission form on the my.mun.ca portal and the “award of degree form” (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/Award.pdf) signed by the appropriate people is submitted to SGS.

Transfer to Ph.D. program
Under exceptional circumstances, MSc. students may apply to transfer directly to the PhD program after a year in the program and having successfully completed at least 2/3 of their MSc course requirements. This would normally be done no later than the 5th semester of their MSc program, unless there were extenuating circumstances. A detailed CV, a 2 page PhD proposal from the candidate, and a 1 page rationale from the supervisory committee explaining why the work is intellectually appropriate for a PhD rather than an MSc (e.g. beyond simply adding an extra chapter) are required to be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee for their review. The candidate is also required to give a departmental presentation of their proposed PhD, attended by a quorum of the Graduate Studies Committee. With agreement from both the supervisory committee and the graduate studies committee, a new program of study form needs to be submitted to the Graduate Officer for forwarding to the School of Graduate Studies. The comprehensive exam shall normally occur no later than the 7th semester of their graduate program (see PhD requirements below).

PhD. Degree Requirements
The Degree or Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) is offered in Marine Biology by full-time and part-time study through the Department of Ocean Sciences. Areas of concentration include: Biological Oceanography, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Functional Biology of Marine Organisms, Marine Biogeochemistry, and Marine Ecology and Evolution

Admission and Program of Study
Admission into the Ph.D. program in Marine Biology is normally restricted to candidates holding a Master’s Degree or its equivalent. In exceptional circumstances, a candidate with a B.Sc. (Honours) Degree who has spent not less than 12 months in an M.Sc. Degree program may be recommended for transfer into a Ph.D. program, provided that the candidate can demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the Department of Ocean Sciences, his/her ability to pursue research at the doctoral level. Each candidate will be assigned a Supervisory Committee consisting of the Supervisor and at least two other member.

  1. Within three months of the first registration in the Ph.D. degree program, a candidate will meet with his/her Supervisory Committee.
  2. Within nine months, the student and the Supervisory Committee will agree on a written thesis proposal outlining the objectives, methods, timetable, and funding for the project, and provide the proposal (signed by the student and the supervisory committee) to the Head for inclusion in the student’s file.
  3. At this time, a formal proposal presentation that is open for people to attend, and advertised as such, is required. The presentation will typically precede a regular committee meeting and may be part of the OSC seminar series.

Candidates are required to complete a minimum of 6 credit hours of graduate program courses as follows:

  • One of Ocean Sciences 7100 or 7200
  • Ocean Science 7000 or relevant courses as approved by the Supervisory Committee

All course requirements should be completed within five semesters from the date of first registration in the Ph.D. program.

Normally upon completion of required course work the candidate shall undertake a mandatory comprehensive examination, following the General Regulations, Comprehensive Examinations, Ph.D. and Psy.D, Comprehensive Examination. The comprehensive examination will be both written and oral. Students should consult the Departmental guidelines for further information and a detailed description of the content of the Comprehensive Examination.

The Ph.D. program will conclude with the examination and oral defense of the completed thesis in accordance with the School of Graduate Studies General Regulations, Theses and Reports.

Courses
See M.Sc. Degree Requirements for the selection of courses offered to meet the requirements of candidates, as far as the resources of the Department allow.

Annual Program and Supervisory Reports

To ensure progress and timeline completion supervisors and graduate students are expected to complete and submit a Graduate Student Annual Progress and Supervisory Report Form (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/Supervisory_Report.pdf).

Thesis
Once the thesis committee approves the thesis, it is ready for review by an examining committee. The thesis committee then suggests three examiners (typically 2 internal and 1 external, though a second external may be suggested in place of an internal) and submits the “recommendation for thesis examiners form” for review and approval by the graduate committee. Once the thesis committee is approved the student submits the thesis to the Graduate Secretary, together with the “supervisory approval form” and the “appointment of examiners form doctoral degrees” that requires an anticipated date for the oral defence (both forms found on the SGS website). The Graduate Secretary forwards the thesis to SGS, who will send it off to the examiners. Once the reviews are returned to SGS and assuming the reviewers have recommended that the candidate be allowed to proceed to oral defence, then things move onto that stage (for further detail see: https://www.mun.ca/sgs/faculty-and-staff/edefence-departmental-procedures/). An overview of the oral defence procedures can be found at https://www.mun.ca/sgs/current-students/defence/phd-candidates/. Following the defence and assuming the candidate has passed, they will in all likelihood need to revise the thesis based on the examiners’ reviews, which then has to be approved by the thesis committee. The final thesis is then submitted (uploaded electronically to SGS), along with the “award of degree form.” Like the M.Sc., whole process can easily take 2-3 months.

Thesis Submission Dates & Fees
These are the same as described above under M.Sc. Degree Requirements.

Details on thesis submission process for supervisors:

  1. The thesis committee approves that the thesis is ready for review by an examining committee and prepares the “supervisory approval form” (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/supervisory_approval_fill.pdf).
  2. The thesis committee suggests names of 3 examiners (typically 2 internal and 1 external, though a second external may be suggested in place of an internal) and submits the “recommendation for thesis examiners form” (see https://www.mun.ca/osc/graduate-students/resources-and-forms/) to the graduate committee.
  3. The names are reviewed and approved by the graduate committee and the “appointment of examiners form doctoral degrees” filled out including an anticipated date for the oral defence (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/phd_appoint.pdf).
  4. The thesis is submitted to the Graduate Secretary, together with the “supervisory approval form” and the “appointment of examiners form doctoral degree”.
  5. The Graduate Secretary then forwards the thesis to SGS, who will send off to the internal and external examiners.
  6. Once the reviews are returned to SGS and assuming the reviewers have recommended that the candidate be allowed to proceed to oral defence, then things move onto that stage.
  7. The oral defence may be held in person, remotely (virtually) or as hybrid between the two, and all is organized by SGS.
  8. Following the defence and assuming the candidate has passed, they will in all likelihood need to revise the thesis based on the examiners’ reviews, which then has to be approved by the thesis committee (often committee members will leave it to the discretion of the supervisor).
  9. The final thesis is then uploaded electronically using the e-thesis submission form on the my.mun.ca portal and the “award of degree form” (https://www.mun.ca/sgs/media/production/memorial/academic/school-of-graduate-studies/school-of-graduate-studies/media-library/Award.pdf) signed by the appropriate people is submitted to SGS.