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Securing a supervisor

You must secure a thesis supervisor before applying to the honours program. The role of a supervisor is to help you define, develop, undertake and write up a research project.

Once you have identified your general area of interest, approach faculty members who teach or conduct research in your area of interest. Any faculty member or adjunct faculty member is technically eligible to serve as a supervisor.

Be sure that the potential supervisor will be on campus and available for the 2 terms you will be doing your honours project. You should meet with them early to check the compatibility of working styles and their willingness to serve as your supervisor. The honours adviser and undergraduate adviser can also provide advice on potential supervisors.

Each faculty member normally supervises PhD, master’s and honours students so they can only take a limited number of students on.

After applying

After you apply, the department will confirm that you meet the GPA requirements. If accepted, they will send an email of acceptance to the Advising Centre for Humanities, Science and Social Science and will let you know about your acceptance so that you can declare an honours program.

To complete the application process, you must declare the geography honours program as your major. You will then be registered by the department in GEOG 499A and GEOG 499B and be added to the Brightspace site for the course.

Procedures & processes

The specific process of your program will depend on your research design and supervisor. However, the following guidelines apply to all students.

1. Meet with your supervisor early in the first semester of your program to formulate and refine your thesis topic and scope. Avoid choosing a very broad, unmanageable topic for the thesis.
   
   

2. Consider applying for a to support the completion of your honours program. You can also apply to the department’s Ross Fund for funds to cover research expenses. Contact the honours program assistant for more information on the Ross Fund.
   
   

3. Secure a second reader early in your program. Their role is to provide additional advice on the research and thesis and to participate in the oral exam.
   
   

4. Working with your supervisor and second reader, prepare a research proposal. You will receive a deadline and more information on this from the honours adviser in the 499A syllabus. At a minimum, the research proposal should include:
   
   
   • a rationale/problem statement/motivation for your research – why your research is relevant/important
   • research goal/objectives/questions – what you want to find out
   • literature review – what has been written about your research objectives or question that is relevant to your thesis
   • methods – how you will gather and analyze primary or secondary data to answer your research questions
   • timeline – how you will budget your time to meet the completion deadline
   • ethics application (if applicable)
     
     
5. Complete your ethics review, if applicable. If your research methodology may involve human or animal subjects, you’ll need to work with your supervisor to develop an ethics proposal for approval by the UVic Human Research Ethics Board or the UVic Animal Care Committee. Approval may take several weeks. You may need to re-submit your application, so plan to complete this as soon as possible.
   
   
6. Start data collection. Note “data” or “evidence” may take different forms depending on the nature of your research.
   
   
7. At the end of the first term and upon completion of the proposal, the honours adviser will consult with your supervisor to ensure that you have completed the requirements for GEOG499A to your supervisor’s satisfaction. You will then receive an ‘INP’ grade for GEOG499A and be registered in GEOG499B for the second term. 
   
   Extensions to GEOG499A will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. You must submit a request for academic concession to avoid receiving an ‘N’ grade.
   
   
8. Continue data/evidence collection, analysis, interpretation and writing.
   
   
9. Keep your supervisor and second reader informed of your progress throughout the research and writing. Meet with at least your supervisor regularly.
   
   
10. Discuss with your supervisor and second reader a schedule for submitting drafts and an allowance for revisions leading to your oral exam. Oral exams will be scheduled no later than the last date of final exams in the respective term.

Your supervisor will help you by giving you feedback on your writing as you go. You should still strive to make your drafts as polished as possible before submitting them to them for revision.

Carefully proofread your thesis. Ask peers to read your thesis for consistency, spelling and grammar. Do not rely on spellcheck and don’t expect your supervisor to be your copy editor. It is typical to have some revisions and submit more than one draft.

Make sure to give your supervisor and second reader enough time to adequately review your thesis and give yourself enough time to complete revisions. Some supervisors prefer that you submit sections of your thesis as you complete them.

Participation in GEOG 499A & 499B

One of the main benefits of undertaking an honours program is that you get to explore your interests with a community of other students who are all working on original research projects that inspire them.

The group meets regularly over the course to brainstorm ideas and support each other’s research and future goals. In this way, it is a mini experience of what it is like to be a graduate student in a research community. New students coming in join the group and have opportunities to be mentored by students who are already there.

Participation in the group is scheduled as 499A and 499B class meetings.

Please note: Completion of 499A & 499B are in addition to your other degree requirements. They do not satisfy the requirement for 3.0 units of 400-level GEOG courses in geography degree programs.

Honours thesis final oral exam

1. Discuss potential dates for your oral exam with your supervisor. Coordinate with your second reader and the honours adviser for a date and time when everyone is available.
   
   Once you have a date, contact the honours program assistant to book a room for your oral exam and then confirm this with everyone. If you have an external second reader who is not on campus, you should arrange for the booking of the videoconferencing facility with the honours program assistant. This must be done early to ensure a room. Be sure to invite others to your oral presentation and to celebrate your work.

2. Submit a copy of your final thesis no later than 2 weeks before your oral exam to your supervisor, second reader and honours adviser. Extensions to GEOG 499B will only be permitted in exceptional circumstances and you must submit a Request for Academic Concession to avoid receiving an ‘N’ grade for GEOG 499B.
   
   
3. Your oral exam is a public occasion. The honours program assistant will prepare and circulate a general announcement of the date, time and place of all honours presentations and oral exams (defenses) for the term. You should plan to attend the oral exams of all your honours cohort colleagues.
   
   
4. Prepare a brief (about 20 minutes) presentation. Practice it in front of your friends, particularly for timing, clarity and answering questions. You’ll get assistance with this in 499B.
   
   
5. The oral presentation and exam will be chaired by the honours adviser. It normally lasts about 1.5 hours but is typically booked for 2 hours so each student receives the committee’s full attention. The normal format is as follows:

1. Honours adviser introduces the committee and candidate.
2. The candidate makes a brief presentation.
3. Related comments or questions from the audience.
4. The first round of questions, usually in the following order: second reader, supervisor, honours adviser. Questions may relate not only to the thesis research but also to any aspect of geography in which you have been involved.
5. A second round of questions may follow.
6. The audience and candidate exit the room while the committee deliberates. The grade is awarded based on the thesis, oral exam and your performance throughout your honours program. See honours criteria below.
7. The candidate is invited back into the room and is informed of the result and any required revisions to the thesis before it is considered completed. If applicable, an agreed-upon timeline for revisions will be established.

6. Honours criteria
   
   • Relevance and significance – is this an important question that will contribute to new knowledge in some way in the field? Is the case clearly made for its relevance within the field?
   • Research design – clearly defined research objectives/questions, set within literature context
   • Information gathering – acquired primary or secondary data; the thesis must go well beyond a literature review, e.g., synthesis, theory development, combining knowledge in new and innovative ways.
   • Methodology – appropriate and rigorous Note: some projects may contribute significantly in the area of methodological development.
   • Analysis/discussion – critical analysis, well-supported interpretation and conclusions; depth of analysis and context within the broader literature
   • Writing – well-written thesis (coherent, logical, grammatically correct, consistent referencing/citation style appropriate for the sub-discipline)
   • Images and illustrations (graphs, tables, photos ) appropriate and relevant, of sufficient quality, and appropriately cited/referenced.
   • Oral defence – effective presentation that tells the research story and ability to respond critically and confidently to questions
   • Independence – degree to which thesis is student-led

7. An honours degree requires:
   • a grade of at least B+ in GEOG 499B
   • a graduating GPA of at least 0 (B+)
   • a GPA of at least 0 in 300- and 400-level geography courses.
     
     Students who do not meet these requirements may opt to receive the major degree.

8. You are responsible for clearing up all typographical and other minor errors in the written thesis, as well as changes required by your committee after your oral exam. You must submit it to your committee by the agreed-upon date. The honours adviser will not submit your grade until the supervisor has signed off on agreed-upon revisions.
   
   
9. Submit a final copy of your thesis to the honours program assistant, your supervisor and the honours adviser. It is also a courtesy to send one to your second reader. Ask your committee whether electronic copies are acceptable.

Honours thesis document formatting

1. Print on good quality 8½ x 11 inch white paper
2. Margins should be no less than 1 inch on three sides, with not less than l½ inches on the left
3. 12 point is an appropriate font Use your favourite legible and professional- looking font.
4. Double-space throughout, except for longer quotations, tables, footnotes, bibliographies (but the latter should be double-spaced between items).
5. Pagination: use small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, etc.) for all "preliminary" pages following the title page (which is not numbered). Arabic numerals are used for the main text and endpapers, e.g., appendices.
6. Format includes some or all of:

• title page (see example)
• abstract (1–2-page summary of your thesis including results and list your supervisor and second reader at the end of your abstract. Starts page i.)
• table of contents
• list of tables (with page numbers)
• list of figures (with page numbers)
• list of appendices
• acknowledgements (do not include until after your oral exam)
• dedication (if included)
• main text (starts page 1)
• appendices
• bibliography (or footnotes or literature cited)

7. The main text is generally organized into sections and subsections (check with your supervisor), for example:

1. introduction (rationale/motivation/problem statement and research objectives)
2. literature review
   • topic heading
   • another topic heading
   • etc
3. methods
4. data/results
5. discussion
6. conclusion
7. references, Appendix A, Appendix B
8. etc.

8. Thesis length: 50-100 pages of text, including maps, diagrams, bibliography and appendices. Note: Quality is far more important than If you intend to publish your work, check with your supervisor for the relevant journal guidelines for publication.