Important Dates
Thesis Defense Timeline Planning: Note the office closures and blackout periods during the summer term and over winter break. Office closure dates are not included in the minimum submission requirement. There will be no thesis defenses during the blackout periods. Blackout dates are not included in the SCA validity period. Please contact GradStudies@twu.ca to determine your thesis submission deadline if your anticipated thesis date overlaps a blackout period or university holiday.
Dates subject to change. For the most current information, refer often to the table below.
See the Office of the Registrar webpage for more important TWU Academic Calendar dates.
| Conference, Scholarship & Thesis Items | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
WINTER | ||
| Winter Reopening | January | Office of Graduate Studies reopens after the New Year’s Day Holiday |
| Thesis Defence Scheduling | January–May | Master’s thesis defences anticipated for the coming year may |
| SSHRC Storytellers Application Deadline | January | SSHRC’s Storytellers contest challenges postsecondary students to show Canadians, in three minutes or 300 words, how social sciences and humanities research is affecting our lives, our world and our future for the better. |
| Application for Graduation | January 31 | See the Office of the Registrar for further details. |
| Mackenzie King Open Scholarship Application Deadline | February 1 | Eligibility open to graduates of Canadian institutions entering or enrolled in graduate or doctoral programs in Canada or elsewhere. |
| Mackenzie King Travelling Scholarship Application Deadline | February 1 | Eligibility open to graduates of Canadian institutions entering or enrolled in graduate or doctoral programs in the US or UK, within specific fields. |
| Submission of final Master’s Thesis for participation in spring convocation | Feb. 28 | See the Thesis Guidebook for further information and Forms & Procedures for current forms. |
| TWU's 3MT Competition | March | See Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition for more Event Contact: GradStudies@twu.ca |
| Canadian Nurses Foundation Scholarships Application Deadline | March | The Canadian Nurses Foundation provides scholarships for nursing students across Canada at the baccalaureate, masters, and Ph.D. levels. |
| Grade Entry Due | March | All final grades are due five weeks prior to the convocation date in order to participate in spring convocation. |
SUMMER | ||
| Canada Research Training Suite (CRTAS) – Research Travel Supplements Application Deadline | May 6 | The Canada Research Training Awards Suite – Research Travel Supplements (CRTAS-RTS) provide additional funding to active master’s and doctoral award holders to help offset the costs of undertaking research travel within Canada or outside Canada for a defined period. NOTE: TWU's institutional due date is five weeks in advance |
| Submission of final master’s thesis for May 31 conferral | May 15 | See the Thesis Guidebook for further information and Forms & Procedures for current forms. |
| Completion of all degree requirements for May 31 conferral | May 31 | See the Office of the Registrar for further details. |
| Summer Thesis Defence Blackout Period | June 15 – Sept. (Labour Day) | Thesis defences are not scheduled during this time. The blackout period is a result of office closures and limited faculty member availability to attend and to chair examinations during this time period. |
| Application for graduation | July 15 | See the Office of the Registrar for further details. |
| Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral (CGRS D) Program Competition Launch | July | The Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral (CGRS D) program is a federal program of scholarships awarded through national competitions by the granting agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Visit the CGRS D Overview webpage for further details. Applicants applying directly to an agency must apply by the agency due date posted on the respective agency's webpage. |
| Competition launch for CERIC Graduate Student Engagement Program | August | CERIC is dedicated to the advancement of education, research, and advocacy in the field of career counselling and development. |
| Submission of final master’s thesis for participation in fall convocation | Aug. 31 | See the Thesis Guidebook for further information and Forms & Procedures for current forms. |
FALL | ||
| Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Master’s (CGRS M) Program Competition Launch | September | The objective of the Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Master’s (CGRS M) program is to help develop research skills and assist in the training of highly qualified personnel by supporting students who demonstrate a high standard of achievement in undergraduate and early graduate studies. Visit the CGRS M Overview webpage for further details. |
| Thesis Defence Scheduling | September – December | Master’s thesis defences anticipated for the Fall semester may be scheduled to occur between September (First week of classes) and Dec. 15. |
| Grade Entry Due | September | All final grades are due five weeks prior to the convocation date in order to participate in spring convocation. |
| PEO International Peace Scholarship Fund Competition Launch | Sept. 15 | The International Peace Scholarship (IPS) Fund provides scholarships for international women students to pursue graduate study in the U.S. or Canada. |
| Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral (CGRS D) Program Application Deadline | Oct. 17 | Visit the CGRS D Overview webpage for further details. |
| CERIC Graduate Student Engagement Program Application Deadline | October | CERIC is dedicated to the advancement of education, research, and advocacy in the field of career counselling and development. |
| Soroptimist Foundation Grants for Women Graduate Students Competition Launch | November 1 | The Soroptimist Foundation of Canada annually offers grants to female graduate students in Canada who are pursuing careers that focus on improving the quality of women’s lives. Examples of such careers include, but are not limited to providing medical services, providing legal counselling and assistance, counselling mature women entering or re-entering the labour market, counselling women in crisis, counselling and training women for non-traditional employment, and positions in women’s centres. |
| WorkSafe BC Research Training Awards Application Deadline | November | Research Training Awards are designed to foster the development of occupational health and safety research expertise in B.C. by supporting the training of new researchers today who will be able to help answer the critical research questions of tomorrow. Research Training Awards are available to highly qualified graduate students at the master’s and doctoral level. To qualify, applicants need to be engaged in a full-time graduate studies program with a B.C. university. International students who are attending a B.C. university are welcome to apply. These awards enable students to undertake research training with a focus on workplace health and safety. |
| WorkSafe BC Ralph McGinn Postdoctoral Fellowship Application Deadline | November | Ralph McGinn, former chair of the WorkSafeBC Board of Directors, was a lifelong advocate and leader in the field of occupational health and safety. To commemorate his tremendous contributions, the Ralph McGinn Postdoctoral Fellowship award was established in 2021. This award is designed to foster the development of occupational health and safety and work disability research in B.C. and Canada. The fellowship award supports doctoral graduates who are training for careers as academic researchers in occupational health and safety or work disability. |
| Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Master’s (CGRS M) Program Application Deadline | December | Visit the CGRS M Overview webpage for further details. |
| Submission of final master’s thesis for December 31 conferral | December 5 | See the Thesis Guidebook for further information and Forms & Procedures for current forms. |
| 3MT Participant Registration | December 15 | Students wanting to participate in TWU's 3MT Competition in the following spring semester must submit their registration form by this date. |
| PEO International Peace Scholarship Fund Application Deadline | December 15 | The International Peace Scholarship (IPS) Fund provides scholarships for international women students to pursue graduate study in the U.S. or Canada. |
| Winter Thesis Defence Blackout | December 15 to January (After New Year’s Day) | Thesis defences are not scheduled during this time. The blackout period is a result of the degree completion deadline, office closures, and limited faculty member availability to attend and to chair examinations during this time period. |
| Completion of all degree requirements for December 31 conferral | December 31 | See the Office of the Registrar for further details. |
ONGOING | ||
| Mitacs Funding Opportunities | Various | Mitacs has various programs that help undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows access funding, source research placements in their chosen discipline, and gain invaluable hands-on experience by applying their expertise to real-world projects with leaders in industry and not-for-profit organizations. |
| Health Research BC Funding Opportunities BC | Various | Health Research BC offers a suite of targeted health research funding programs. Using our program learning and improvement cycle, we continue to grow and evolve our health funding programs to ensure they meet the needs of BC’s life sciences sector. |