Registration status for students

At the beginning of their program, students indicate their study status, usually full-time or part-time. During their studies, graduate students sometimes need to change their status.

• Full-time Students
• Part-time Students
• Changing a Students' Status
• Inactive Students

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Full-time Students

Full-time students should not hold paid employment of more than 10 hours a week unrelated to their research.

Students may be eligible for a wide range of internal and external scholarship and bursary awards including Queen's Graduate Awards (QGA), International Tuition Awards (for international students only), and NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR and Ontario Graduate Scholarships (OGS). Many external awards are restricted to Canadian citizens and landed immigrants who have held this status at least one year. Some Queen's internal awards have similar restrictions.

Teaching assistantships (TAs) and research assistantships (RAs) are normally assigned to full-time graduate students.

Part-time Students

Please note that changes from full-time to part-time status, or initial registration as a part-time student requires approval from the program and SGS except for those programs which are designated as part-time.

Part-time students normally enrol in a half-course each term except for programs whose normal course load is four or more courses per term. In those programs, part-time students can take two courses each term.

Changing a Graduate Student's Status

On occasion, students need to change their study status. Please review the regulations about changing status in the Graduate Calendar which is found on the SGS website.

Similarly, please direct students who wish to change their status from full-time to part-time to the SGS. A formal recommendation is required from the program that details the student's academic program and progress to date. This recommendation is brought forward for consideration of the SGS.

Inactive Students

Graduate students can register as inactive to discontinue studies temporarily for personal or other reasons such as maternity and parental leave or medical leave. Permission may be granted only if, on return, the student will still be able to complete the degree program requirements within the allowed time. Master's programs must be completed within five years from the time of initial registration in the program. Doctoral programs must be completed within seven years.

Students granted inactive status usually return to their studies with the status they held (e.g. full-time or part-time) before starting their leave. Term fees are waived for all students who change to inactive status due to maternity, parental leave or medical leave.

The maximum duration of the maternity or parental leave is two terms. Graduate students can apply for a leave of absence on medical grounds for one term and up to a maximum of three terms. Please inform students that they will need to provide documentation from a doctor or health practitioner to support a medical leave of absence for the duration requested.

Awards to students from the SGS -- Dean's Awards, International Tuition Awards, named awards and Queen's Graduate Awards -- will be suspended for the duration of time that the student is registered as inactive. When the student resumes their studies, the award will begin again. The period of funding eligibility is extended by the same number of terms during which the student was registered as inactive.

You should direct students holding externally funded fellowships, or other forms of support derived from sources external to the University, to the regulations prescribed by the granting agency concerned. Students receiving funding support from Teaching Assistantships or Research Assistantships should speak with their direct supervisor.

Use the appropriate form to change registration status.

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