Supervisory Committee - Master's Thesis

A supervisory committee should be established by the end of the first year of the student’s program.  The committee must include at least two members: the supervisor and at least one other professor who is eligible to supervise graduate students.  The supervisor is responsible for informing the Graduate Program Office of the composition of the supervisory committee.  The Associate Dean must approve the supervisory committee before the thesis proposal meeting is held.

The main role of the supervisory committee is to provide academic and technical support to the research trainee, so members should be accessible to the student during the program.  Normally, supervisory committee members will be professors at the University of Alberta, and may be from any Faculty.  It is also possible to appoint professors  from  other institutions to serve on a graduate committee, however the majority of the committee members must be from the University of Alberta.  Refer to the FGSR’s Examining  Committee Membership Checklist for further information:  https://www.ualberta.ca/en/graduate-studies/resources/policies-procedures/graduate-program-manual/section-8-supervision-oral-examinations-and-program-completion/8-1-supervision-and-supervisory-committees.html

In some cases, committee members who are not professors (e.g., coaches) may provide clinical or technical expertise that is important to the thesis research.  In this case, the supervisor will present a written request to the Associate Dean detailing the qualifications of the individual and a rationale for committee membership.  Such members of the supervisory committee will be in addition to the two required professors.

The supervisory committee must meet at least annually to review the student’s progress.  A special meeting of the supervisory committee will be convened to review and approve the thesis proposal.  A completed copy of the Working Agreement must be placed  in the student's file following this meeting.  The product of the student’s research training must be submitted in the form of a thesis conforming to the regulations of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research.