Graduate policies and forms

You will find the following on this page:

Information on key departmental policies
Links to forms from the department and the registrar's office.

Policies

A complete overview of policies related to graduate studies is available from the Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs website. In addition, students, instructors, and supervisors should be particularly aware of the following departmental policies.

NEW INC grade procedure

Definition and use of INC grades

INC means “Incomplete course work, no credit granted.” This grade should be assigned only in exceptional circumstances, and only by formal arrangement between the instructor and the student, with the approval of the Associate Chair, Graduate Studies. In effect, an agreement to alter the conditions and deadlines of coursework and course credit is an accommodation arrangement, and we wish to ensure that this accommodation is appropriate, timely, and likely to succeed.

It has long been the case that INC grades have—with the very best of intentions—been granted informally and as a matter of course to graduate students. Unfortunately the good intentions of all have not secured good outcomes: many courses listed as incompletes are never actually finished, and many students who are granted incompletes in one term experience a snowball-effect of stress into the next term of study, failing as well to complete their new courses. It has also been the case that instructors are unaware that students securing an INC in their course may well have unresolved INC grades from prior courses, or in other courses the same term. These students flounder invisibly, as their cases can evade the detection of the Associate Chair, who might be able to devise a better plan to support their studies should these difficulties come to light in a more organized, formal, and timely way.

In a “true” INC, the instructor and the student have formalized an agreement to complete the work within a specific period of time, and never any longer than one academic term after taking the course. At that time, any INC grade still unrevised by the instructor will lapse to FTC (Failed to complete). Students with INCs on their records may not be recommended for graduation.

Note: any student attempting to complete missing course work in the following term will in essence be carrying extra courses; under the circumstances, this may not be in the best interest of the student.

Instructions

Please email the Graduate Coordinator for the English Department Graduate Course Incomplete form.

Important Information

To be used at the end of the term, when grades are being submitted. If it becomes clear earlier in the term that a student will be unable to complete the work, the student should be encouraged to drop the course and the matter should be brought to the attention of the Associate Chair, Graduate Studies, to assist in advising the student.
Earned grade: The grade the student would receive if s/he were to receive 0 on the assessment in question.
INC grades should only be submitted if an INC Grade Agreement Form has been submitted.
When there is no accompanying form, approved by the Associate Chair, Graduate Studies, this means there is no agreement to complete the work and instructors should submit the earned grade in the course.

Filling out the Form

Signature from both the student and the instructor are required. This ensures that neither party can initiate and complete the form without the other party agreeing to the terms.
There will be instances where either the student or instructor is unable to physically sign the form: e.g., illness. In these cases, an email clearly indicating the terms of the INC and that both parties are aware of, and agree to, the terms, is acceptable. The email must be attached to the submitted form.

Submitting the Form

Once the form has been completed and both signatures have been obtained, the form will be submitted to the Graduate Coordinator.
INC forms must be completed and submitted by the official grade submission deadline; sooner than that is much better.

Approving the Accommodation

The Associate Chair, Graduate Studies, will review all INC Grade Agreement Forms. Normally, this will involve reviewing the student’s academic record, and meeting in person with the student requesting the accommodation.
If the student is in good standing, and has no other INC agreements outstanding, approval will be granted.
However, other accommodations may be proposed, including withdrawal from the course in question, depending on circumstances.
The Associate Chair, Graduate Studies will inform both the student and the instructor when the INC Grade Agreement Form has been approved, or if it has not.

Course attendance policy

Graduate school is distinguished from undergraduate study both in the amount of independent study you will undertake, from writing capstone projects to weekly readings for seminars, and by the smaller size but greater intensity of coursework. To reflect this intensity, graduate students generally enroll in no more than three courses per term. Graduate seminars are generally limited to a maximum of 15 students, to ensure a rich experience for all. Graduate seminars meet once per week, for three hours, over 12 weeks. Each course meeting comprises a substantial part of the work of the term, and each student is a meaningful participant in the class learning environment.

Diligent attendance as well as careful preparation are thus vital. Students who miss one or two class meetings may find themselves at a significant disadvantage and face penalties related to participation; students who miss three or more class meetings will not generally be granted credit for the course. If you are ill or otherwise must miss one or more classes, be sure to contact the instructor as soon as possible; for more than one absence, please speak to the Associate Chair, Graduate Studies to discuss your options for academic accommodation, to complete or withdraw from the course.

Cross-appointed faculty supervision

Cross-appointed faculty cannot sole-supervise English doctoral candidates, but may act as co-supervisors.

Graduate Policy on the Use of Generative AI

As outlined in the Department of English Language and Literature’s Statement on Generative AI, our Department recognizes the potential for Large Language Models to disrupt the principles of our discipline. This policy reflects those principles while a) adhering to the codes of academic integrity outlined in Policy 71; and b) respecting the guidance on Generative AI for students and supervisors provided by the Office of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (GSPA). It is the responsibility of all graduate students and instructors to familiarize themselves with these documents.

Department of English Language and Literature’s Statement on Generative AI
Policy 71
GSPA GenAI Guidance
Before You Adopt GenAI

Our primary directive for Graduate Students is disclosure, following best practices promoted by professional organizations such as the American Psychological Association and the Modern Language Association. The Department values culminating projects toward a MA or PhD that represent sustained, original, and self-directed intellectual contributions. Any use of GenAI should be discussed between student and instructor or supervisor before its use, including the development of projects that openly experiment with GenAI.

Instructors/Supervisors have the right to prohibit specific uses of GenAI.

Students are responsible for all information they use from Generative AI; in addition to disclosing and discussing use, they should verify sources listed by GenAI searches, including not just titles but citations and entire primary texts produced by the platform. Further guidance on how to cite and format GenAI use can be found through professional organizations:

Departmental forms

Please visit the Graduate Coordinator's office HH 250 for:

Department checklists

Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (GSPA) forms

Please consult the Forms webpage for other graduate forms.

Important deadlines

All Financial Aid and Student Awards deadlines per term basis.

Awards & Financial Aid

Bursaries
GSPA awards and funding
External Awards
International funding
OSAP (Ontario Student Assistantship Program) forms
Research Travel Assistantship
Work study/placement
Travel Advances/Settlement/Claim *note: you will need to download a new form each time you make a claim.