Current Students FAQ

Graduate students register for courses on UWinsite Student by the deadline set for each semester. Be sure to contact your academic department for academic advising and guidance on course selection. Graduate students register for courses by the deadline set for each semester.

Current registration information and guidelines are available at ask.uwindsor.ca

Questions regarding course completion and the degree audit should be directed to the Registrar’s Office or the Academic Unit where the program resides.

Current registration information and guidelines are available at ask.uwindsor.ca

Please ensure that there are no conditions of your admission that have not been met (English language score, transcripts, etc).

Also double-check that all fees have been paid and the time limit to complete the program has not passed. If it has, the please request a time limit extension.

If the issue persists, please contact the Faculty of Graduate Studies at gradst@uwindsor.ca.

A student requesting an extension to a program must submit the Time Limit Extension form through the UWinsite Student portal.

To get started, visit the "Student Forms" webpage and select "Time Limit Extension Form" under the Enrolement and General Use Forms dropdown.

All academic standing issues should be directed to your program.

These services are offered by the graduate student society (GSS). Opt-outs can be completed on their website.

Graduate students can apply for a leave of absence up to the posted registration add/drop deadline for each semester.  Use the leave of absence form available on the Graduate Studies website and submit it as a Service Request in UWinsite Student, as follows: Login to your student account - select Research Tracking - then Service Requests - create NewService Request - select Program Activities - select Leave of Absence - Choose your program - Add attachment - Upload this form and any attachments - Add any relevant comments to text box - Click Submit

Time limits vary depending on the type of program (master's/doctoral) and registration type (full-time or part-time).

Students who wish to take courses at other institutions outside of Ontario and have the course count as credit towards their program at Windsor must make a request in writing to their department (prior to the beginning of the course).

The Graduate Coordinator makes a recommendation to Graduate Studies.

A decision is made in Graduate Studies and the student is advised by e-mail, with a copy to the program and the registrar’s office, who will record the substitution on the student’s record.

Students completing courses at other institutions are responsible for providing official transcripts to graduate studies upon completion of the approved courses.

A request via the Course Substitution form must be submitted through the UWinsite Student system. The student advisor and graduate coordinator makes a recommendation to Graduate Studies.

A decision is made in Graduate Studies and the student is advised via UWinsite. The student will be enrolled into the course and upon successful completion, the student's transcript will be updated.

Individuals who are not interested in admission as a degree student may be allowed to register for individual courses on a non-degree basis. The normal maximum of courses taken on this basis is two. The student submits the non-degree study application form and also signs a letter of understanding (on the reverse of the form) indicating that he/she recognizes that the course(s) cannot be used for credit towards a graduate degree at the University of Windsor.

Students have the right of appeal under Senate bylaw 55, Section 1.12.  Formal grade appeals, along with any supporting documentation, must be submitted in writing to the Dean of Graduate Studies, along with the appeal fee of $20 (refundable if the appeal is successful). Note that not liking a grade is not a basis for appeal;  you must be able to show evidence of incorrect evaluation or procedural irregularity, and have first tried to resolve the issue informally with the instructor before submitting a formal appeal.  

Refer to Senate bylaw 55. If you feel you have been treated unfairly, and are unable to resolve it informally in your department, you may submit an appeal to the Dean of Graduate studies - refer to bylaw 55, section 1.12.3.

Before the beginning of the term each department will post notices of available assistantships - contact your department for an application and deadlines.

Only full-time, registered, eligible students can hold a graduate assistantship (GA)

Graduate assistantships are paid as a salary and considered employment.

Each year in September graduate studies holds an orientation workshop for GAs and TAs. Individual faculties and departments hold their orientation sessions as well. 

Funding is available for students who have a demonstrated financial needs as evidenced by the costs required for their studies and their available resources.  Examples are OSAP loans, work-study and bursaries from various sources. Such funding is administered through the Office of Student Awards and Financial Aid. Work study is also available to graduate students, however, be aware that since full-time graduate students may only work 10 hours per week on campus, if you have a GA for 140 hours per term you will not be eligible for this program in the same term.  ​

Our academic and financial aid year begins in the Summer term (May) and runs to the end of the Winter term (April) each year. You are only able to view installments of your scholarship that are to be paid out in the current year. In this case you can see Fall and Winter only. You will be able to see your third installment once we roll over to the next aid year next May.

You must remain registered as a full-time student in order to continue to receive a graduate entrance scholarship.

For external scholarships see below:

OGS and QEII-GSST

The following information is from the OGS and QEII-GSST program guidelines:

"Recipients must remain enrolled as a full-time student in an eligible program. Recipients who withdraw, transfer to part-time studies, or fail to complete the term are required to repay the award for incomplete and future terms. A withdrawal in a subsequent term will not require repayment of the award for any completed terms. A recipient who graduates during a term in which they hold an award is permitted to keep the award for that term."

Tri-council awards (NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR)

For details refer to the Tri-Agency Research Training Award Holder’s Guide.

For students registered in a master’s thesis or a doctoral dissertation, a thesis committee must be approved prior to the second term of registration in the thesis or dissertation.

Each program has specific procedures about the interim steps leading to the final oral defense (e.g. Thesis proposals, seminars, progress reports, etc.) - your thesis committee will provide guidance about the proper procedure. The graduate calendar specifies requirements for PhD Dissertations, Master's theses and major research papers that are common for all departments.

All graduate students must register and pay appropriate fees until actual completion of their degree requirements. Tuition refunds are available if all degree requirements, including the deposit of the major paper/thesis/dissertation, are completed by the posted Phase I and Phase II Deadlines at the beginning of each term.

If you met the eligibility requirements for Phase I or Phase II and you have paid tuition fees for that term, the Faculty of Graduate Studies will request a tuition refund be processed in accordance with the tuition refund policy. The refund process is initiated by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and not by the student.

After the student accounts office has processed the tuition refund request, the refunded amount will be credited back to your student account.

When you see the credit has been posted on your UWinsite account, you can request to obtain the refunded amount - review the information on the cashier's website about how to request a refund.

After a processing period (which may take 6-8 weeks), a digital copy of the deposited document will be available as open access in ProQuest (theses and dissertations only) as well in the University of Windsor digital repository:

1. theses and dissertations will be placed in the Scholarship@UWindsor ETD repository 
2. major papers will be placed in the Scholarship@UWindsor Major papers repository.

Review also the digital thesis copies FAQs.

In order to be evaluated for degree completion all students must have applied to graduate by the posted due date for each Spring or Fall Convocation.

For any graduation related questions including applying to graduate and obtaining an official letter to confirm degree completion, please review the relevant askUWindsor.ca article.

Convocation information is also posted on the Registrar's website at: www.uwindsor.ca/graduation-convocation.

You will receive your diploma at the convocation for which you have applied to graduate. For any graduation related questions including obtaining an official letter to confirm degree completion, please review the askUWindsor.ca graduation related KBA articles.