Formal evaluation process

Graduate Program Directors, Department Heads or Associate Deans may recommend that a supervisor undergo formal evaluation as part of the five-year renewal process or at any other time: 

• in response to receipt of a written complaint relating to supervision;  
• when the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion has determined that a responsible allegation has been made related to graduate supervision and that this allegation is best addressed through a formal evaluation; and,  
• in response to what the Dean of the teaching faculty perceives to be a pattern of serious conflicts or negative outcomes relating to Graduate Student supervision since the most recent renewal of privileges.  

It is up to the Dean of the teaching faculty to initiate an evaluation of supervisory privileges. The supervisor undergoing evaluation must be informed by the Dean of the teaching faculty that the process has been initiated. Feedback from current and/or former graduate students, graduate program directors and supervisory committee members is collected as part of the process, and a summary of the information is shared with the supervisor. The procedures for a formal evaluation can be found here.

What characteristics in an individual’s supervisory history might prompt a recommendation for formal evaluation during the Supervisory Renewal process? 

• A pattern of graduate student withdrawals and/or changes in supervision 
• A pattern of protracted time to candidacy (beyond the norm in the graduate program and not attributable to specificities of the area of study) 
• A pattern of protracted time to completion of program (beyond the norm in the graduate program and not attributable to specificities of the area of study) 
• A pattern of serious conflicts with students 

If I recommend that supervisor undergo a formal evaluation as part of the automated renewal process, what happens next? 

• The Supervisory Renewal process in PeopleSoft will remain “In Progress”, assigned to a representative of the Faculty of Graduate Studies while an offline formal evaluation process takes place. Once the formal evaluation is completed, the Supervisory Renewal form in PeopleSoft will be updated to reflect the outcome of the evaluation.  
• Refer to the Procedure for Formal Evaluation of Graduate Supervisory Privileges for the steps in the Formal Evaluation process.