Current MA students

Theses must:

• be informed and motivated by theory, research and practice in the area relevant to the planned research project
• be designed to make a contribution of new knowledge within the scope of child and youth care
• include research interests, literature review, conceptual framework, methodology, data collection and analyses, findings, conclusions, and references.

The committee is composed of at least two members, including the academic supervisor. Your supervisory will meet with you to confirm your second committee member. This will normally be completed by the end of your second term.

1. Statement of the topic area.
2. Description of how the topic is conversant with current research literature.
3. Outline of the research goal of research question.
4. Description of the proposed methodology/research design.
5. Working bibliography.
6. Timeline for completion of thesis.

The most important thing to remember is that from start to finish, the defence process takes approximately two months once your thesis has been completed. There are a number of important deadlines to be met before you can graduate.

Be sure to read the following:

• Thesis and dissertation info
• Final oral examinations
• Degree completion and graduation

You must be registered in your thesis, CYC 599, at the time of oral defence.

You may proceed to an oral examination when your supervisory committee is satisfied that the thesis represents an examinable document for the degree requirements. Expect this to take one or more rounds of editing.

When the committee agrees that the thesis is ready, they will confirm this by signing the request for oral examination form. This form must be submitted to the Dean of Graduate Studies, accompanied by a copy of the thesis and HREB approval certificate or waiver at least 20 working days before the anticipated date of the oral examination.

Distributing copies of the thesis

It is your responsibility to distribute a copy of the final draft (examination copy) of the thesis to each committee member and to provide the graduate program assistant with a PDF copy. Ask Supervisor and committee member if they prefer a printed unbound copy or an electronic PDF copy. Students need to upload a PDF copy to the GS 599 Course spaces site.

The school can print the examination copies under special circumstances (student living outside of Victoria) but will have to charge the student $ 0.25 per page.

• Before proceeding to the oral examination, all courses taken for credit in the faculty must be completed with a cumulative grade point average of not less than 5.00 (B).
• The Dean of Graduate Studies will appoint a chair for the final oral examination. Any member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies is eligible to serve as the dean’s nominee.
• Oral examinations are open to the public. Notice of examination will be given to all faculty members involved and each academic department.
• You and all members of your supervisory committee are expected to be present at the oral examination.
• Rooms with teleconference capabilities are available in cases where the external examiner cannot be on campus.

It is recommended the exam be held no later than one month before the deadline for convocation requirements.

UVicSpace preserves and provides access to the digital scholarly works of UVic faculty, students and staff. UVicSpace is a quick, easy and innovative way to increase the visibility and impact of your research. Learn how to submit your thesis to UVicSpace.

The following checklist is a guide only, based on a full-time course load with the goal of completing your degree with two years.

By the end of your first year you should:

• develop research interests
• discuss research ideas with faculty members
• find a supervisor
• find a supervisor committee

By the beginning of your second year you should:

• create a thesis proposal
• obtain approval from the supervisory committee
• obtain approval from the human research ethics board

Later in your second year you should:

• conduct the research
• write up the findings
• near completion of the full thesis

When you're nearing the end you should:

• fill out an application for graduation
• complete a thesis final draft

At least two months before you want to defend:

• You must obtain approval from the supervisory committee that the thesis is ready for defence.
• Your supervisor will identify potential external examiners for your oral and contact the external directly. You cannot communicate directly with the examiner before the defence.

At least 20 working days before you want to defend you must:

• submit a request for oral exam form
• distribute a copy of the final thesis as described above

At least two weeks before the degree completion deadline:

• Defend the thesis in an oral exam

Projects must:
a.    Be informed and motivated by theory, research, and practice in the area relevant to the project.
b.    Be designed to make a useful contribution within the scope of Child and Youth Care.
c.     Involve a process of creating knowledge and designing, implementing, and/or evaluating a set of actions. The range of possible projects within Child and Youth Care is diverse, but in all cases the conceptualization, proposal, and reporting of projects should refer to a relevant sampling of theory, research, and practice, with associated bibliographic referencing.
d.    Include some aspect(s) that is/are new to the student (e.g., original evaluation of a pre-existing program approach, new approach to creating a training or service manual).
e.    Be validated through affirmative client feedback and, where relevant, formative evaluation of one or more aspects of the project.

Projects as Individual Efforts

Each student must undertake his/her project as an individual piece of work; no group projects will be allowed. However, collaboration among students working on projects that share similar issues or approaches is encouraged, and there may be some similarities or even overlap between projects. No student’s progress on his or her project should depend on progress made by another student.

•     ‘Client’ or ‘community representative’ of the project. This will be an individual or agency in the world at large beyond the University of Victoria, or a project group or service unit within the University of Victoria.

The most important thing you must remember is that from start to finish, the defence process takes approximately 2 months. Also, there are a number of important deadlines to be met before you can graduate.  Read the next few sections carefully, check the Faculty of Graduate Studies website for deadlines and consult with the UVic Calendar. If you have any questions about deadlines or how long this process takes, contact your Graduate Program Assistant.

Students must be registered in their research project, CYC 598, at the time of oral defence.  Students may proceed to an oral examination when the supervisory committee is satisfied that the research project represents an examinable document for the degree requirements. The supervisory committee confirms this by signing the Checklist for Non-Thesis Oral Examination. This form must be submitted, with the HREB Approval Certificate or waiver,  to the Graduate Program Assistant at least 10 working days before the date of the oral examination. Procedural guidelines are available on the Faculty of Graduate Studies website.

Before proceeding to the oral examination, all courses taken for credit in the Faculty must be completed with a cumulative grade point average of not less than 5.00 (B).

Oral examinations are open to the public. Notice of examination (including room, which is arranged by the department) will be communicated to all faculty members involved and to each academic department at least 7 days prior to the date of the examination. It is the expectation that the student and all the members of the supervisory committee will be present at the oral examination. It is recommended that oral examinations be held as early as possible. For non-thesis programs that require an oral exam it is recommended the exam be held NO LATER THAN 2 WEEKS BEFORE THE DEADLINE FOR CONVOCATION REQUIREMENTS. Please check theFaculty of Graduate Studies website for this deadline.

• Before proceeding to the oral examination, all courses taken for credit in the faculty must be completed with a cumulative grade point average of not less than 5.00 (B).
• The Dean of Graduate Studies will appoint a chair for the final oral examination. Any member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies is eligible to serve as the dean’s nominee.
• Oral examinations are open to the public. Notice of examination will be given to all faculty members involved and each academic department.
• You and all members of your supervisory committee are expected to be present at the oral examination.
• Rooms with teleconference capabilities are available in cases where the external examiner cannot be on campus.

It is recommended the exam be held no later than two weeks before the deadline for convocation requirements.

Letter of Recommendation

The Letter of Recommendation for degree is prepared by the School, usually in advance of the oral examination, to be available to be signed upon satisfactory completion of the examination. The only required signatures are those of the Academic Supervisor and the Director of the School of Child and Youth Care. Other signatures may be added at the discretion of the academic unit. All signatures must be originals (ie. not one person signing for another). The Letter of Recommendation for degree can be submitted to the Graduate Admissions and Records office only after the student has passed the oral examination.

The final document will include an adapted version of the content of the proposal, along with a detailed report of the activities involved in ‘doing’ the project and the outcomes of this work, and a formal or informal evaluation of the extent to which the project is sound and useful within the scope of Child and Youth Care.

The final document should be typed as a formal manuscript (specifications can be developed), following APA manuscript style. 

The primary supervisor and the student will make decisions about the form of the manuscript.  Projects may or may not be presented in the form of ‘chapters,’ depending on the nature of the project. Required written project may be accompanied by additional modes of presentation, such as a CD-ROM, video production, brochure, course or workshop manual, or guidebook, which would be recognized and evaluated by committee members as part of the project.

Students to check with Supervisor, committee member and Client to see if they require a final copy and if so, do they prefer a PDF copy or a printed bound copy.

By the end of your first year you should. . . 
     Develop research interests 
     Discuss project ideas with faculty members 
     Find a supervisor 
     Find a client/community representative
     Find other committee member(s)

During the beginning of your second year you should. . . 
     Create a project proposal 
     Obtain approval from the supervisory committee 
     Obtain approval from the Human Research Ethics Board (if necessary)

Later in your second year you should . . . 
     Conduct the project work 
     Develop written work through multiple drafts 
     Write the project document

When you’re nearing the end you should . . . 
     Fill out application for graduation (see Grad Records for the deadline) 
     Submit an exam draft to your committee, allowing time for review
At least 2 months before you want to defend you must. . . 
     Obtain approval from the supervisory committee that the project is ready for defence 
At least 10 working days before you want to defend you must. . . 
     Submit a “Notification of Non-Thesis Oral Exam” form 
At least 2 weeks before you want to graduate you must. . . 
     Present the project in an oral exam
Before the deadline specified by Graduate Studies you must. . . 
     Complete the requirements for graduation