Academic Life at Western

Ontario Visiting Graduate Student Program
^Application

With the approval of their program and the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, students registered at Western may take courses at other Ontario universities under the Ontario Visiting Graduate Student program, without being charged additional tuition. Courses taken under this agreement must be required for the student's degree program and must be taken for credit. For students in course based programs no more than two half-credit courses can be taken at another institution.

Visiting Graduate Students (Research only)
^Application

Visiting Graduate Students (Research only) are allowed to conduct research at the university but do not fall under an approved exchange program. Students are registered as Part-Time Visiting Graduate Students on the condition that they cannot take courses at Western. They are not provided with a Western transcript. If they are international students they pay UHIP (University Health Insurance Plan) fees but no tuition.

Canadian Universities Graduate Transfer Agreement
^Application

Western is a member of CAGS (Canadian Association for Graduate Studies). With the approval of their program and the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, students registered in a program at a CAGS member university (the home institution) may take courses for credit at another CAGS-member university (the host institution). The only documentation required is a single-page request form that is completed by the Deans and Graduate Chairs of the host and home institutions. For students in course based programs no more than two half-credit courses can be taken at another institution.

Exchange Agreement with International Universities
^{International Student Services}

Western has exchange agreements with many International universities. With the approval of their Western program and the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, students may take courses for Western credit at a partner university, subject to the particulars of Western's exchange agreement with the partner institution. Western Students on exchange must register as full-time students at Western, and pay tuition to Western and are not subject to tuition at the international rate at a partner university.

Credit Courses at Non-Partner Universities

Western students may take courses for Western credit at a university that is not covered by an exchange of transfer agreement. This requires the approval of the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies and an offer for admission to the non-partner university. In this case, the student also pays tuition to the non-partner university.

Exchange Postings

Chinese Government Scholarship
(Application)

Leave of Absence

Students who need to apply for a leave of absence due to medical, compassionate, or pregnancy/parental grounds can do so through the secure Graduate Student Web Services Portal.

After submitting an application for leave, requests will be forwarded to your home program for approval and finally to The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for approval and processing. Once a decision has been made, you will receive notification via your Western e-mail address.

http://grad.uwo.ca/section_four.htm

Voluntary Withdrawal

Students needing to withdraw from their graduate program must complete a Change of Status - Voluntary Withdrawal Form and submit the completed form to their home program. The form will be forwarded to The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for processing. Once withdrawn from a program (and the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies), the person withdrawn is no longer a student and may not attend classes, receive supervision, or have access to any resources of the University.

Fee refunds will be made on a pro rata basis to students who withdraw before the end of a term. Detailed information on graduate tuition refunds is available on the Office of the Registrar's Website. Scholarships received from the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies are also subject to pro-rating. Contact the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for details.

http://grad.uwo.ca/section_four.htm

Collaborative Programs

A collaborative program is intended to provide an additional multidisciplinary experience for students enrolled and completing the requirements in one of a number of participating existing OCGS-approved "free-standing" good quality programs (hereinafter referred to as the home programs).

Students register in the participating degree program, and must meet the admissions requirements of that home program, and meet its degree requirements plus those of the collaborative program.

The degree conferred is that of the home program, and the completion of the collaborative program is indicated by a transcript notation and/or adjunct qualifications to the degree, e.g., MA in Anthropology (Migration and Ethnic Relations).

For information on registering in a collaborative program, please contact the program you wish to register in directly. A listing of the available graduate collaborative programs at Western is available within the program listing page.

Residency Reclassification

Students who wish to update their residency status with the University must provide proof of this status change to The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (Room 200, Natural Science Building). Upon confirming your changed residency status (via Record of Landing or Permanent Resident Card), your tuition charges will be reduced to the domestic rate (plus UHIP until OHIP is obtained). Please note that there are deadlines each term to present landing documentation in order to have the current term's tuition rates reduced.

Apply to Graduate

The University holds Convocation ceremonies in the Spring (June) and in the Fall (October) of each year and an In Absentia convocation in February. Degree completion, for purposes of Convocation, requires the following:

Program's submission to the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies of grades for all course requirements.
Acceptance by the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies of the final submission of the thesis (if applicable).
Program's notification to the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies indicating degree completion.

All graduate students are required to apply to graduate via the Student Center. Students' application for graduation may only occur during the term in which they intend to complete the requirements of their degree. Applications must be submitted prior to the end of that term to ensure eligibility.

Procedure to apply to graduate: Log in to the Student Center at student.uwo.ca. The Graduation link will be in the left hand menu. Select "Apply for Graduation" and then follow the instructions to complete the process.

http://grad.uwo.ca/section_nine.htm