Thesis advisory committee

Advisory committee appointment

Within the first month of the program, the student should be introduced to the first member of the committee (other than the supervisor or co-supervisors). This will be a full faculty member of the School, who can assist the student if difficult situations arise in the absence of the supervisor(s) and who may chair thesis advisory committee meetings.

Discussion of the project at this point is purely between supervisor and student.

Within the first term, the thesis advisory committee is established by the supervisor in consultation with the student, and the first formal meeting of the advisory committee held (see meeting schedule for details).

The student and the supervisor should complete the Pharmacy thesis advisory committee appointment form and submit it to the administrative coordinator for graduate studies and research (grad coordinator) to obtain the necessary approvals.  

Any changes to an approved thesis advisory committee must be made by submitting a new appointment form for approval.

Composition of the thesis advisory committee

Refer to the Graduate Studies Academic Calendar additional requirements pertaining to thesis advisory committee membership:

• Minimum requirements for the Master's degree
• Minimum requirements for the PhD degree

For both the MSc Pharmacy and PhD Pharmacy degree programs, the advisory committee consists of:

• the supervisor or co-supervisors
• at least two additional faculty members
  • one of the additional faculty members must be a full faculty member of the School of Pharmacy
  • the second additional faculty member may be a faculty member of another department at the University; or a scientist from another university, industry, or government laboratory (subject to approved adjunct status)
    • involvement of any adjunct appointee requires approval by the department the Faculty of Science
    • approval of adjunct appointees is based on the appointee's research productivity and mentoring experience
    • involvement of more than one adjunct appointee requires special permission by the Associate Dean of Science for Graduate Studies.

PhD supervisors should consider the composition of the PhD thesis examination regulations when selecting advisory committee members.  

Meetings with the thesis advisory committee provide an opportunity for discussion and documentation of a student’s progress in their program. The intent is to provide the student with appropriate support and ensure timely and successful completion of the graduate program.

In Pharmacy, meetings with the thesis advisory committee follow a regular schedule and must be documented using the corresponding thesis advisory committee meeting report.

The committee appointment must be fully approved before members participate in formal meetings. The grad coordinator will notify the supervisor and student when the committee appointment has been approved.

Meeting schedule:

TERM 1

First advisory committee meeting

The first formal meeting of the student and the advisory committee should take place before the end of the first term. Any deferrals of the first meeting must be approved by the graduate officer; if approved, the first meeting must take place at the beginning of the second term.

The goal of the first meeting is to ensure that the initial planning between supervisor and student has produced a framework that is on track and that the student has supports in place. It is not necessary that a project is fully defined and planned, but there should be a plan sufficient to convince all members of the committee that the project and overall course plan:

• is feasible
• will have scope and depth suitable to lead to a successful degree
• is structured so that it fits within program time limits
• is manageable for the student
• meets the standards of the graduate program

Details of the meeting are recorded on the Pharmacy Graduate Thesis Advisory Committee First Meeting Report. 

For MSc thesis projects, if research ethics approval is required, the ethics application(s) should be underway by this point.

Term 2 (MSc) or 3 (PhD)

Thesis proposal 

The thesis proposal is the second formal meeting of the advisory committee, and normally takes place in term two (MSc) or three (PhD) of the program. Thesis proposals have their own process and are coordinated with support of the grad coordinator. For details about the thesis proposal, see the Thesis proposal page.   

Annually 

Annual advisory committee meetings

Subsequent meetings must occur at least once per year. Students must prepare and provide a progress report (e.g. written report, slide presentation) to the advisory committee in advance of the meeting. A copy of the progress report should be sent to the grad coordinator (either ahead of the meeting or directly following the meeting) to be added to the student's electronic record as evidence of their academic progress.  

The thesis advisory committee will report on the student's progress using the Pharmacy Annual Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting Report that will be prepared by the student and submitted to the committee ahead of the meeting.  

Additional meetings

Students should feel at liberty to consult their committee on a more casual basis, at any time!

More frequent meetings are required if there are ongoing concerns of any kind, including when students are beyond the normal program time limits. 

Students who are beyond program time limits must submit a petition for extension of program time limits prior the start of the first extension, and each term thereafter. Progress of students who have been granted extensions will be reviewed every term. For more information on time limits see the Enrolment and time limits page. 

1. Confirm the availability of your supervisor and committee members 
   • Contact your supervisor and the members of your thesis advisory committee to confirm their availability; students may find it helpful to use a free online poll such as Doodle.com.
   • Make sure to find out if any of your committee members will need to attend remotely.
2. Book a room
   • Once the meeting date and time are set, send an email to phrlobby@uwaterloo.ca to book a room, if needed. 
     • PHR 7007 is generally used for grad meetings and is the only room equipped for hybrid meetings.
3. Confirm the meeting
   • at least 2 weeks ahead of the meeting the student should send a meeting invitation to committee members through Outlook/Teams, and cc to the grad coordinator
     • for thesis proposals and defences, complete the appropriate meeting request form (see relevant sections of the handbook for details) 
     • For hybrid meetings, send an IT request for training/support using the hybrid equipment, at least one week ahead of your meeting 
4. Prepare a thesis progress report
   • Students must prepare and provide a progress report to the supervisor and the advisory committee, at least one week ahead of the scheduled meeting. 
     • Students should discuss expectations of their progress report with their supervisor; students may refer to the corresponding meeting report form for additional guidance.
   • A copy of the student's progress report should be sent to the grad coordinator (either ahead of the meeting or directly following the meeting) to be added to the student's electronic record, as evidence of their academic progress.   
5. Prepare the Graduate Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting Report*
   • A copy of the fillable report form will be provided to the student upon confirmation of the meeting (see step 2, above). 
   • Student is responsible for completing the student information and advisory committee membership sections of the form and sending it to the supervisor and committee members along with the thesis progress report ahead of the meeting.
   • Student is responsible for collecting committee member signatures after the meeting and submitting the completed form to the grad coordinator further approvals.

*Please complete the form electronically, rather than printing a hard copy. If you need assistance completing the fillable pdf, please send an IT request to phr-it@uwaterloo.ca or contact the grad coordinator.

Evaluation of student progress is recorded on the Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting Report. 

This report must be completed at each formal advisory committee meeting held, and documents such things as the student’s current understanding of the material, ability to handle the discussion, research progress and overall progress.   

Students are responsible for electronically filling in pertinent information on the form (i.e., student information and committee membership) and submitting it by email to the supervisor ahead of the advisory committee meeting. 

The supervisor (or delegate) will complete the progress evaluation section (electronically) on behalf of the committee, circulate by email for signatures and submit by email to the graduate coordinator for department approval and record.  

Students will be notified of their academic progress (excellent/satisfactory/unsatisfactory) along with any comments, as recorded on the thesis advisory committee report form once it is fully signed. 

First Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting Report

The First Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting provides the opportunity for early discussion regarding the thesis topic, research methods, appropriateness and feasibility of the project, as well as other program requirements.  Next steps, including planning for the thesis proposal, are also discussed.  

Annual Thesis Advisory Committee Meeting Report

The Annual Advisory Committee Meeting Report focuses on the student’s current understanding of the material, their ability to handle discussion give their knowledge base, research progress, and general overall progress.  

Student performance is assessed as:

U-Unsatisfactory at this time

S-Fully satisfactory at this time

E-Excellent and exceptional for this stage in the program

Reports should also include:

• Thesis title/topic changes (if any)
• Any requests to program changes, including if a student is going from full time studies to part time studies, or if they are recommended for a program transfer (e.g. from MSc to PhD)
• Comments regarding fulfillment of any program requirements, including PhD proposal requirements (for MSc transfer students) and any conditions arising from the PhD comprehensive examination.
• All questions, concerns, and difficulties, with corresponding corrective measures that are required by the student* 
• An ‘action plan’ outlining what the student is expected to do with a specified date of completion*

*mandatory whenever unsatisfactory performance is noted; unsatisfactory reports must be additionally approved by the Associate Dean of Science for Graduate Studies.

Examples of unsatisfactory progress include:

• Failing to achieve the minimum required grade (>70%) for “good standing” in course work.
• Failing a program milestone, such as the thesis proposal examination or comprehensive examination.
• Unsatisfactory progress reported by the advisory committee.

Potential consequences of unsatisfactory progress

1. Involvement of the graduate officer 

   • The advisor(s) and/or advisory committee may also bring concerns about a student’s academic progress to the attention of the student and, if appropriate, meet with the student and the graduate officer.

   • In such instances, the graduate officer in consultation with the advisor(s) will inform students, in writing, of their unsatisfactory progress and provide the student with an “action plan”; including a reasonable timeline outlining what the student must do to remedy the situation.
2. Student required to withdraw
   • Two consecutive unsatisfactory progress reports may result in requiring the student to withdraw from the program. 
   • Where the advisor feels that the student will have serious difficulties finishing the program, the advisor, in consultation with the advisory committee, will inform both the student and the Graduate Officer, in writing, of the nature of the problem(s), suggested remedies, and may recommend withdrawal from the program. 
   • If the committee recommends that the student withdraw, it must be noted on the thesis advisory committee meeting report that the committee "recommends to the Faculty Associate Dean, Graduate Studies, that the student be required to withdraw."
3. Voluntary withdrawal
   • A student may submit a completed change of enrolment status form (available on the graduate studies forms web page) to voluntarily withdraw from the program, if they are experiencing difficulties that prevent them from continuing their graduate studies.