Admissions Criteria

Applicants to the part-time LIS PhD program must meet all same admissions requirements as for the full-time program, including meeting minimum TOEFL scores (if applicable), having already completed and ALA-accredited master's degree, and a previous four-year Honors-level academic degree with a minimum 78% average.

Expectations of Part-Time Students

• Students usually take one course per term, though two is permissible, throughout the first two years of enrollment
• Students are required to be physically present and active on campus for at least two full terms (can be consecutive or non-consecutive terms)
• During the residency period, students are expected to participate fully in the life of the Faculty and doctoral program, including activities such as attending class, seminars, conferences and talks, conducting research, being involved with doctoral student events, interacting with faculty, consulting with advisors, and participating in committee work
  
  

Degree Requirements and Timeframe

The requirements for the part-time LIS PhD program are the same as for the full-time program, but they are spread out over a longer time period (usually six years).

Normally, a part-time student will be expected to complete the degree requirements within the following timeframe:

• Terms 1 to 6: Course work
  > 3 required courses + 3 electives are required to proceed
• Term 7: Qualifying Examination
• Term 8: Thesis proposal submission
• Terms 9 to 18: Thesis research, writing and defense
  
  

Financial Information

Funding: Part-time PhD students are not eligible for School of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies (SGPS) funding such as Teaching Assistantships and Western Graduate Research Scholarships (WGRS). They are also not eligible to hold external scholarships such as SSHRC or OGS awards. As such, part-time PhD students will need to source their own funding options.

Part-time Fees: Part-time fees are half of the rate of full-time fees, including both residency (on campus) and non-residency (off campus) terms.

Part-time students enter in the fall term, with the incoming full-time students. Usually part-time students take one course per term, although two would be permissible.

Conversion to Full-Time Status

Part-time students can convert to full-time status if they choose. In this case, the student is eligible for Teaching Assistantship and Western Graduate Research Scholarship funding only if there is funding available that is not already allocated to other students. There is no guarantee that funding will be automatically provided through conversion from part-time to full-time.

Once a student has converted to full-time status, all SGPS regulations governing full-time students apply. The student will not be allowed to change status back to part-time, except as allowed by SGPS regulations governing full-time students.