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Thesis Information
Introduction
Developing a thesis proposal and then researching, writing, and submitting the thesis are challenging
mandatory components of your PhD degree. In order to assist you in the successful completion of these
tasks, the procedures and guidelines as required by the Institute of Islamic Studies and Graduate and
Postdoctoral Studies (GPS) are presented below.
The overall process: A summary
The process of completing a thesis moves from selecting a topic in consultation with your supervisor(s) to
then developing a suitable proposal, which in turn must be submitted to and approved by the Institute
Faculty at one of the scheduled staff meetings during the academic year. Once approved, research and
writing commences. When the final draft of the thesis is ready, the thesis is submitted to GPS, which
forwards a copy to the External Examiner. Once the External Examiner has submitted his/her report with a
Pass, the oral defense examination is organized by the Institute. Following the successful pass of the oral
defense, the candidate is required to make any stylistic and/or other minor corrections indicated by the
Externals report and the Oral Defense Committee for the final electronic submission.
The overall process: The details
1. PhD Dissertation
2. Thesis Proposal
3. Language of the Thesis
4. Preparation of the Thesis
5. Initial Thesis Submission
6. Oral Defense
7. Final Submission
8. Appeals
PhD Dissertation
Students must begin their dissertation research as early as possible. Having completed all the course and
language requirements and passed the Comprehensive Examinations, the PhD candidate may proceed to the
writing of the dissertation proposal. The PhD dissertation is expected to consist in original research that is
based on the relevant primary and secondary sources.
The dissertation for the PhD must display original scholarship expressed in satisfactory literary form and
must be a distinct contribution to knowledge. Its originality may lie in the discovery of new facts or the
reaching of new conclusions by the exercise of independent critical power. Its content must reflect complete
understanding and control of the subject based on the latest data, and must show skill in orderly exposition
and ability to marshal and organize evidence and draw logical conclusions.
The average length of a doctoral dissertation accepted at the Institute is 250 double-spaced typewritten
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pages (inclusive of footnotes and appendices, but exclusive of bibliography). The length, however, may vary
with the nature of the topic.
Thesis Proposal
The Institute of Islamic Studies maintains specific procedures for the development and submission of thesis
proposals prior to research and writing. The thesis proposal should be defended no later than the end of the
students third year of study.
The procedures involve the following:
1. Selection of topic
PhD students should begin considering possible thesis topics early in their programmes, in consultation with
their supervisor(s). Ideas can be tested by writing papers in your courses to explore the potential of your
topic(s). PhD students are expected to develop ideas during their course work and while preparing for their
comprehensive examinations.
2. Writing a Thesis Proposal approved by your supervisor(s)
The purpose of your proposal is to demonstrate the viability of your research topic to the Faculty of the
Institute. This entails developing (a) specific research question(s), along with the reasons and importance of
the proposed research, suitable methodologies to answer your question(s), an outline and a detailed
bibliography.
The dissertation proposal should state the title of the dissertation, the problem to be discussed, the value or
importance of the problem and the method that will be used to bring the research to its logical conclusions.
The proposal must also mention what materials will be used and whether they are available at McGill or
elsewhere and are accessible to the student. A sample outline is provided below for your guidance, but please
consult with your supervisor(s) as to the format they prefer.
Sample outline
Thesis Title
Thesis Question(s)
Reasons and Importance of the Research
Literature Survey
Historical Context/Introductory Material in support of thesis
Methodology
Outline
Bibliography
Format: The maximum length accepted is 6 pages, excluding bibliography. The proposal must be double
spaced, with 1-inch margins, in size-12 font. In addition, all proposals must be typographically,
grammatically and diacritically correct. Submissions that fail to comply with these requirements will be
rejected.
Please keep in mind that many funding agencies require concise, well thought out research proposals, and
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that the writing of research proposals will therefore become an integral part of your academic career.
Once your proposal is written and approved for submission by your supervisor, the proposal needs to be
approved by the Institute Faculty at one of the scheduled staff meetings during the academic year.
3. Completing the Thesis Proposal Form
In addition to your written Thesis Proposal, you need to complete the Islamic Studies Thesis Proposal
Form [.doc] in which you offer a timetable for the completion of your thesis.
4. Submission of the Thesis Proposal and the Thesis Proposal Form to the IIS office
Please ensure that your written Thesis Proposal and bibliography are completed properly, and that your
Thesis Proposal Form is approved and signed. It is preferable to submit the documents electronically (PDF
format) to the Student Affairs Coordinator one week prior to the monthly staff meeting (dates of staff
meetings for 2011/2012 to be determined). Late submissions will be held over for the next staff meeting.
Students must report their progress to their supervisors in accordance with the schedule of work. Each
student must report at least as follows: once before the staff meeting in mid-January, and once by mid-April
before the final staff meeting at the end of the winter term in May.
5. Defense of Thesis Proposal at a Staff Meeting
Students must be present at the staff meeting when the proposal is discussed to defend their proposals. Once
final approval is granted by the faculty, the student may proceed to work toward the completion of the
dissertation.
6. Faculty approval of Thesis and Recommendation of the External Thesis Examiner
The Faculty will communicate approval of your thesis proposal in writing. You will then work closely with
your supervisor on the completion of your thesis. When you have completed writing the thesis, you and
your supervisor will decide on the name of one possible external examiner who is a specialist in your field
and whose service as your thesis examiner would present no conflicts of interest.
Language of the Thesis
The doctoral dissertation may be submitted in either English or French. Grammatical correctness is
requisite, and felicity of expression is among the criteria involved in judging the dissertation.
Preparation of the Thesis
All thesis submissions must adhere to the guidelines set by GPS. For more information, please consult
the GPS Thesis Preparation and Submission Guidelines.
Submission to Supervisor
Please be aware that Professors need a reasonable amount of time to read and provide comments on your
thesis. This process of submission and feedback should be an on-going activity based on the thesis timeline
that was agreed upon by you and your supervisor(s). If you fail to submit chapters or others sections of your
thesis by the agreed upon timeline, he/she may not be able to ensure that your thesis can be submitted by a
certain deadline. You must consult your supervisor well in advance about dates and availability.
Initial Thesis Submission
Once the thesis has been written, corrected by your supervisor, revised as appropriate and approved for
submission, the candidate may submit the thesis to Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Thesis Office - Room
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400, James Administration Building. Please note:
1. Thesis submission deadlines:
Initial
Submission
Final
Submission
Additional Thesis Graduation
Session Evaluation
April 16-August
15
August 16-
December 15
Summer Fall February
August 16-
December 16
December 16-
April 15
Fall Winter June
December 16-Apr
15
April 16-August
15
Winter Summer October

Initial and Final Submissionin the
same term
Additional
Session
Thesis
Evaluation
Graduation
Apr 16 Aug 15 Apr 16 Aug 15 Summer None October
Aug 16 Dec 15 Aug 16 Dec 15 Fall None February
Dec 16 Apr 15 Dec 16 Apr 15 Winter None June
2. Accompanying documents to be submitted with the copies of your thesis:
Note: All documents and forms listed below can be found on the Graduate and Postdoctoral
Studies' webpage.
1. Nomination of Examiners and Thesis Submission Form, completed and signed by the student,
supervisor and chair of the department.
2. Library Waiver Forms (National, UMI, and McGill), including copyright waivers, if applicable.
3. Thesis Submission Checklist, completed and signed by the student.
If the research for the thesis involved human participants, you should have obatined Research Compliance
Certificates from the Research Ethics Board. A copy of the certificates must be provided together with the
Thesis forms.
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3. PhD candidates should bring at least seven (7) copies of their thesis along with all related documents and
forms to the Institute for verification prior to submission to the Thesis Office. Two copies (copy 6 & 7) are
for the Thesis office; the rest are given to the Student Affairs Coordinator for distribution: one for your
thesis supervisor and the remaining for the members of the Oral Defense Committee. If you have co-
supervisors, each should be provided a copy of your thesis. Once submitted, the thesis is forwarded by the
GPS to the external reader, who will in due course send a reader's report (approximately one month). Based
on this report, there may be additional corrections or changes to be made to the thesis before final
submission.
Examination of the Thesis
Dissertations are read by an External Examiner and by an Internal Examiner.
Following discussions with the student, the supervisor will submit 2-3 names of possible external examiners
for approval to the GPD and Director. Once approved by the GPD and Director, the supervisor will choose
one of the approved externals and contact that external directly. If the GPD is the supervisor of the student,
the final approval of the externals will be made by the Director; if the Director is the supervisor of the
student, the final approval of the externals will be made by the GPD.
Following discussions with the student, the supervisor will submit the name of one internal examiner for
approval to the GPD and Director. Once approved by both the GPD and Director, the supervisor will contact
that examiner directly.
Appeals
If a dissertation is judged unsatisfactory by either of the examiners, the staff of the Institute may in its
discretion recommend either (1) that the dissertation be resubmitted with such changes as may have been
indicated by the examiners, or (2) that the dissertation be sent to a special panel of outside referees for re-
examination, if the decision is challenged, or (3) that a new thesis be submitted within three years. In any
case, the recommendation must be approved by the Dean of GPS. If the dissertation has been passed by the
External Examiner, a final oral examination is held on the subject of the dissertation and subjects intimately
related to it.
Oral Defense
For more detailed information, please see the Oral Defense section of the left sidebar.
Final Submission
For the PhD thesis, once all corrections are completed based on the oral defense and the
External Examiner's report, you submit your final copy electronically on Minerva. For more information on
this, see the GPS e-Thesis Instructions.