The proportion of weight attached to the research and thesis may vary, even within a department. Accordingly, the number of presrcribed courses may correspondingly vary. Where the student's program requires a thesis, the number of course credits will not be fewer than 1.5, and must be made up entirely of graduate level courses. Any courses selected that exceed the 1.5 minimum credits must also be acceptable to the department and the Assistant Vice-President (Graduate Studies) for credit towards the graduate degree. The student must obtain an overall weighted average grade of at least ‘B-' in the prescribed course (see Establishment of Program and Prescribed Studies).

In addition to the prescribed studies the candidate may take ancillary courses that support the specific discipline. These courses may be at either the undergraduate or the graduate level.

In some disciplines, the interests of a master's student may be better served through greater concentration on course work than independent research. In such circumstances the prescribed studies will consist of coursework that has research components, such as research papers, to develop the student's analytic, interpretive and communication skills. Where the student's program does not require a thesis, the number of course credits will not be fewer than 3.5. In some departments a major essay or research paper takes the place of 0.5 or 1.0 of the total credits required. OCGS by-laws permit a maximum of 1/3 of the credits to be taken from senior undergraduate courses; however individual programs may require a higher proportion of graduate courses.