PhD 2
- Required and complementary course work
- Thesis research
- Academic Integrity Tutorial (by end 1st semester)
- Form AC Committee (by end 1st semester)
PhD 3
- Required and complementary course work
- Thesis research
- Form comprehensive exam committee and schedule exam
- Write full dissertation proposal
- Comprehensive exam (DENT 700 and DENT 701) (by end of PhD 3)
- Obtain PhD candidacy
- Annual AC meeting/Progress tracking
PhD 4-PhD 6
- Required and complementary course work (if not already completed)
- Thesis research
- Write thesis
- Annual AC meetings/Progress tracking. Final AC meeting should be at least 6 months before thesis submission.
- Submit and defend thesis (by end of PhD 6)
Notes:
PhD students enter the program at PhD 2.
While exceptions may be made for Winter or Summer, students are strongly encouraged to apply for admission in the Fall.
Required courses must be taken before the end of the program.
The Comprehensive Exam is composed of two steps: 1) the Written Proposal and 2) the Oral Comprehensive Exam (OCE) that are based on the research proposal. The Written Proposal describes the student's PhD project and should be approximately 20 pages. The Written Proposal will be submitted to the Examination Committee 2 weeks prior to the actual OCE. The Oral Comprehensive Exam is a 20-25 minute presentation based on the proposal followed by a 60-minute closed question period with the Examination Committee.
There are corresponding deadlines for initial and final thesis submission for each of the 3 annual dates for conferring degrees/convocation. Please consult the Thesis Deadlines page.
Students typically complete the PhD program in PhD 5 or PhD 6. McGill requires the final E-thesis to be submitted no later than the end of PhD 7.