Tuition refund policy (Phase I and Phase II) for graduate students in research programs

The Phase I is a grace period at the beginning of each term, to allow eligible research students to complete their final oral defense and deposit their dissertation/thesis/major paper/internship document with the Graduate Studies office at the beginning of the term without having to register or pay tuition fees for that term, provided the rest of the degree requirements have already been completed in prior terms. Review the full Phase I eligibility criteria below.

Students must meet the following eligibility criteria:

1. The student must have completed all coursework and other program requirements in previous terms;
2. The student must be registered in the previous term (e.g. to be eligible for Phase I for Summer term 2024 the student must also have been registered in the Winter term 2024) in one of the following:
   • Doctoral dissertation - course number xxxx-9980
   • Master's thesis - course number xxxx-8970 
   • Master's major paper - course number xxxx-8960  
   • English creative writing project - course number ENGL-8940
   • Kinesiology internship or Political Science internship - course number xxxx-8950.
3. The student must complete the final oral defense and the deposit with Graduate Studies by the posted Phase I deadline for the term. The Phase I relevant deadlines are posted each term on the important dates for graduate students.

In accordance with the above criteria, to be eligible for Phase I for Summer term 2024, the student must have completed all coursework and other program requirements prior to Summer term 2024; must have been registered for Winter term 2024 in the dissertation, thesis, major paper or internship; and must complete the defense and deposit with Graduate Studies no later than May 13, 2024.

Effective Summer term 2024: Students aiming to complete within the Phase I period (May 1 to May 13th) will not be required to register for the Summer term 2024 in the dissertation/thesis/major paper/internship.

Such students are expected to have applied to graduate in the Spring convocation (by Registrar's graduation deadline), and will be eligible to graduate in Spring 2024 provided they meet the Phase I requirements and complete all degree requirements by May 13, 2024. 

Students who do not meet the Phase I eligibility requirements must register for Summer term 2024 by the academic add/drop date for Summer term 2024.

Scholarship holders must maintain fulltime registration throughout the duration of the scholarship. If a student completes the degree requirements within the Phase I period of the term they will not be registered in that term, therefore they will not be eligible to receive a scholarship for that term.

Students who have missed the first deadline, Phase I (one), must register and will remain registered in the current term. The final grade for the dissertation/thesis/major paper will be assigned to the current term.

The second deadline, Phase II (two), is an additional grace period to allow eligible research students a partial tuition refund (50% base tuition fees) for that term when they complete their final oral defense and deposit their document with the Graduate Studies office by the posted Phase II deadline, provided the rest of the degree requirements have already been completed in prior terms. Review the full Phase II eligibility criteria below.

The Phase II adjustment involves:

- assigning the final grade for the dissertation/thesis/major paper to the current term; and

- 50% reduction of the base tuition fees assessed for the current term.

Note that any interest for unpaid tuition for the current term will NOT be removed. Note also that incidentals/ ancilary fees are not included in the base tuition so there will be no refund of incidentals/ancilarry fees for the current term.

The Phase II relevant deadlines are posted each term on the important dates for graduate students.

Students must meet the following eligibility criteria:

1. The student must have completed all coursework and other program requirements in previous terms
2. The student must be registered for the current term only in one the following: 
   • Doctoral dissertation - course number xxxx-9980
   • Master's thesis - course number xxxx-8970 
   • Master's major paper - course number xxxx-8960  
   • English creative writing project - course number ENGL-8940
   • Kinesiology internship or Political Science internship - course number xxxx-8950.
3. The student must also be registered in the previous term (e.g. to be eligible for Phase II tuition refund for Summer term 2024 the student must also have been registered in the Winter term 2024) in one of the following:
   • Doctoral dissertation - course number xxxx-9980
   • Master's thesis - course number xxxx-8970 
   • Master's major paper - course number xxxx-8960  
   • English creative writing project - course number ENGL-8940
   • Kinesiology internship or Political Science internship - course number xxxx-8950.
4. The student must complete both the final oral defense and the deposit with Graduate Studies by the posted Phase II deadline for the term. The Phase II relevant deadlines are posted each term on the important dates for graduate students.

Scholarship holders who complete the degree requirements within the Phase II tuition refund deadline and maintain their scholarship eligibility will be able to retain their scholarship for the term.

Students who do not meet the eligibility requirements for the first phase, Phase I (one), must register for the term by the academic add/drop date for that term.

Fees are assessed upon registration and payable by the posted due date for that term.

Provided a student has registered and paid the fees for the term, if they meet the eligibility for Phase II (two), 50% of the base tuition fees for the term will be refunded.

Note that any interest for unpaid tuition for the current term will NOT be removed. Note also that incidentals/ ancilary fees are not included in the base tuition so there will be no refund of incidentals/ancilarry fees for the current term. If a student has registered but has chosen not to pay the fees for that term, the student will be responsible for any applicable interest for unpaid tuition.

If you have met the Phase II eligibility requirements and deadline, the Faculty of Graduate Studies will request a 50% reduction of the base tuition fees for the current term. The tuition reduction and refund process is initiated by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and not by the student.

Note that any interest for unpaid tuition for the current term will NOT be removed. Note also that incidentals/ ancilary fees are not included in the base tuition so there will be no refund of incidentals/ancilarry fees for the current term.

After the cashier's office has processed a 50% base tuition reduction, any resulting refund will be credited back to your student account. When you see the credited amount posted on your account, follow the information on the cashier's website about how to request a refund.