Your thesis must be submitted by midnight on the final day of the calendar month in which it is due, even if that date falls on a weekend or public holiday.
If you're away from Christchurch (either elsewhere in NZ or overseas) on approved extramural study at the time of thesis submission you do not have to return to UC to submit your thesis.
If you have any questions about the process, contact the team by email or drop in to Level 1 Matariki to talk with us.
Step One
Read the Thesis Examination Procedures.
Step Two
Make sure:
- you and your supervisor have completed the forms detailed below.
- you are fully enrolled with all fees paid (your thesis cannot be sent for examination otherwise)
Step Three
Submit a PDF to graduateschool@canterbury.ac.nz after running thesis through Turnitin (AKO | LEARN)
What happens after submission?
Once you submit your thesis you will have completed your enrolment at the University of Canterbury. In the lead-up to this it is a good idea to consider the following in your plans:
- You will lose access to physical spaces at the university, so do talk with your supervisor and department administrator around if you need to organise visitor access to desk or laboratory spaces. Note you retain digital access for up to 270 days post submission
- You will no longer have access to UC Student Services including the Health Centre so do check you have support for any ongoing medical conditions.
Apply to graduate
We encourage students to apply to graduate (via myUC) upon submission of your thesis. You can choose to attend a Graduation Ceremony (these take place in April and August) or you can have your degree conferred in absentia which means you will receive your certificate in the post soon after you are eligible to graduate. If your examination process is not yet complete by the cutoff date for your selected graduation, our Graduation team will contact you to move you to the next available in absentia conferral or graduation celebration. Find out more about Graduations at UC here.
Thesis examination
Once you submit your thesis and all the required documents, your thesis will be sent for examination.
Step One
Te Kura Tāura check all required documents before thesis is sent to examiners.
Step Two
Examiners are given 8 weeks to review a thesis and make a recommendation to Dean of Postgraduate Research.
Step Three
Examiners make a recommendation to Dean of Postgraduate Research regarding outcome of examination.
It can take a further 1-2 weeks to finalise your grade and complete administrative checks .
Step Four
Te Kura Tāura will send you an email confirming your examination process is completed.
Degree is conferred.
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