Registration
Grad students are responsible for maintaining their enrolment through registration and paying the required fees applicable to their program of study. You can register for courses through Dal Online. When registering, make sure to use the correct CRN numbers for your courses as these change every semester.
Students are encouraged to register early to avoid scholarship payment delays.
Every Faculty of Agriculture grad student must register for the following course every semester:
REGN 9999 Registration Course (when looking in the Academic Timetable, look under All > Registration Course – Graduate.)
MSc students must also register in AGRI 9000 Master’s Thesis every semester.
PhD students must also register in AGRI 9530 Doctoral Thesis every semester.
Course requirements
Master's Students
MSc students have a minimum requirement of four graduate level courses (3.0 credit hours each for a total of 12.0), including the required AGRI 5700 Communications Skills and Graduate Seminar. The electives will be selected in consultation with the graduate supervisor based on the area of specialization.
Administrative Courses
MSc students must register in the following courses in the semester they are fulfilling the requirement:
AGRI 9402 Teaching Assistantship - Masters
AGRI 9408 Research Day - Masters
AGRI 9410 Admission to Candidacy - Masters
Doctoral Students
PhD students must complete a minimum of the two required graduate courses (3.0 credit hours each), including AGRI 6700 Research Methods in Year 1 and AGRI 6800 Advanced Research Seminar at some point between Years 2 and 3.
Administrative Courses
PhD students must register in the following courses in the semester they are fulfilling the requirement:
AGRI 9403 Teaching Assistantship - PhD
AGRI 9409 Research Day - PhD
AGRI 9411 Preliminary Examination
AGRI 9413 Comprehensive Examination
Other course info
Elective and additional courses should be chosen after discussions with your supervisor and/or supervisory committee.
Faculty of Agriculture graduate students can take courses from other academic departments, including ones in Halifax. They may also request to take a course at a different institution by completing the FGS “Letter of Permission” form.
Students can take a maximum of two “Special Topics” or “Directed Studies” courses during their program. Speak with a potential instructor and register for the course online.
Module courses offer flexible learning through topic-based modules tailored to diverse research interests.
Graduate students may audit a course with supervisor and instructor approval. Finally, students who need to take undergraduate courses should note that these are considered ancillary courses and do not count towards your minimum number of graduate courses.
Teaching assistantships
Serving as a teaching assistant at Dalhousie is a valuable opportunity to develop your instructional skills, deepen your subject knowledge, and support student learning in a meaningful way.
About the TA requirement
All MSc students must complete a teaching assistantship in one half-credit course.
All PhD students must complete a teaching assistantship in two half-credit courses. If you have TA’d, or taught, the equivalent of two half-credit courses previously you can apply for a waiver. Please email the graduate studies office for more information.
Compensation
Students will be paid for completing their teaching assistantship according to the CUPE TA salary scales.
How to become a TA
Contact the TA coordinator in your department, look at the advertisements for positions on campus, or contact department administrators or instructors. You can TA additional courses beyond those required, but students who have not fulfilled their requirement have priority.