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Thesis: Master's Degree
There are a number of steps, forms and resources to assist you through writing your thesis and to a successful defence.
All degree requirements are governed by the .
Guidelines
A thesis is a piece of substantial intellectual work that demonstrates the student has mastered a field of study and, in the case of a doctoral thesis, advanced knowledge in that field. The Faculty of Graduate Studies strongly discourages students from using agentic and generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) tools to create textual elements of their theses, including for summarizing or synthesizing the work of other scholars.
Agentic and GenAI tools should be employed only with the prior and explicit approval of the student鈥檚 thesis supervisor. Students who want to use agentic and GenAI tools for thesis research and/or writing support should get prior approval in writing from their academic supervisor describing the specific uses that are approved. Evidence that a student had approval to employ specific AI tools can help protect a student from accusations of violating academic integrity.
Students and their academic supervisors need to be aware of, and take into consideration, agentic and GenAI鈥檚 propensity for distortions, hallucinations, and plagiarism, as well as the fact that many commercial agentic and GenAI applications compromise the confidentiality of research data. Agentic and generative AI tools may be used for thesis data collection, data analysis, and/or writing support only with appropriate safeguards.
Regardless of whether or not a student has used GenAI tools, the student is always responsible and accountable for the content of their thesis.
As with the use of a proofreader, all uses of agentic and generative AI in thesis research and writing must be disclosed in the Acknowledgements and/or Methods sections of the thesis.
Use of a Proofreader
While the student is ultimately responsible for writing quality and the thesis presentation, the use of a proofreader is acceptable for a thesis. The proofreader must be acknowledged in the thesis, either on the acknowledgement page or at the end of a project or extended essay.
A student鈥檚 use of a proofreader should be discussed with the academic supervisor and written approval to use a proofreader must be obtained from the academic supervisor.
Proofreading is defined as the correction of errors in spelling, grammar and sentence construction, referencing, and punctuation, and may include identifying passages that lack clarity or are poorly written. The proofreader must 鈥榯rack changes鈥� and make liberal use of comment boxes in any electronic versions of the thesis.
The University expects that academic supervisors of theses will provide discipline-appropriate editorial comments including advice on the form, arrangement, thesis length, referencing, tables, figures, and headings. Academic supervisors should advise on whether the elements within the thesis are complete and consistent.
Additional reference: for thesis editing.
Thesis Editing and Proofreading
See the library's resources on Thesis Editing and Proofreading.
Postponement of Publication
All theses produced to meet 51社区黑料鈥檚 degree requirements are subject to open publication, and are normally capable of standing as academically complete works. The open-access principle must be kept in mind when selecting a research topic. However, in some instances a portion of a student鈥檚 thesis might involve research whose publication in the library must be temporarily postponed because:
- it would jeopardize the safety of the researcher and/or research participants
- it contains patentable material or other intellectual property that requires protection, or
- the student has entered into a publication agreement with a publisher whose guidelines state that prior publication in a university repository will be a barrier to publication.
Students are expected to seek guidance from their academic supervisory committee whenever there is a possibility that certain findings might be subject to embargo for any of these reasons (see GGR 1.11.3). In coordination with their committee, students should communicate any anticipated or known restrictions on the publication of their research to Graduate Studies as soon as possible.
The formal request for postponement of publication must be submitted to Graduate Studies a minimum of 30 days in advance of the defence.
NOTE: If you are unsure whether your capstone work needs to be deposited to the Library repository, consult with your academic unit.
Thesis Corrections
Prior to your examination
Once the thesis has been distributed to the examining committee, any changes made will not be redistributed in advance of the thesis examination. However, if a significant content-related error has been made an email from the academic supervisor outlining the error should be sent to defence@sfu.ca with a copy of the revised thesis. Graduate Studies will make a decision if it warrants redistribution.
After submission to the library
Changes cannot be made to the thesis after the academic supervisor has "signed-off" on the thesis/revision or after the thesis has been submitted to the Library.
However, if significant content-related errors that must be changed are found, permission for the student's academic supervisor and approval from the Faculty of Graduate Studies are necessary. If the change is deemed significant, the Faculty of Graduate Studies will authorise the Thesis Office to accept the change.
Submission to the Library
Be sure to note the to the 51社区黑料Library. If the deadline is not met, registration in the subsequent term is normally required.
When your thesis is ready for submission, go to and follow instructions on the page.
NOTE: You may before you defend and before your thesis is accepted by the Library.