Among the most critical elements of any doctoral exam, from the perspective of those who coordinate these complexities, is the search for a strong Chair. Yet this search serves as a perennial challenge to the Doctoral Examinations team. We consider ourselves very lucky indeed if we issue fewer than 10 invitations before confirming 1 chair for an upcoming exam. It is not at all unusual in some disciplines to invite 30 or more chairs before some gracious faculty member agrees to help us out.
If you would like to contribute your time and wisdom to UBC’s doctoral exams:
- Please have a look at the list of upcoming exams below and if one interests you, please send us an email to graduate.doctoral@ubc.ca
- Or send us an email detailing the areas that interest you and days/times that you might be generally available and we'll contact you as new exams are scheduled. Again, send an email to graduate.doctoral@ubc.ca
Please bear in mind that the chair cannot be affiliated with the candidate’s graduate program, or a member of the supervisor's department..
Wednesday, April 1, 2026 9:00 AM - 2263, Diamond Health Care Centre, 2775 Laurel St
Tina Afshar
(Population and Public Health)
Effects of Acute E‑Cigarette Cessation on Young Adults Who Use Nicotine E‑Cigarettes Regularly
Supervisor(s): Professor Christopher McLeod, Professor Christopher Carlsten
Monday, April 13, 2026 12:30 PM - Room 200
Jiayang Ren
(Chemical and Biological Engineering)
Advanced Optimization Methods for Interpretable Machine Learning Models and their Applications in Chemical Engineering
Supervisor(s): Professor Yankai Cao
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 9:00 AM - 14th floor meeting room, BC Cancer Research Centre, 675 W 10th Ave
RAWNAK HOQUE
(Genome Science and Technology)
Identification of Protective Genetic Mechanisms in Healthy Aging: From Genome‑Wide Association to Buffering Epistatic Interactions
Supervisor(s): Professor Angela R Brooks-Wilson
Friday, April 17, 2026 9:00 AM - 240, West Mall Annex (WMAX), 1933 West Mall
Meghna Mohandas
(Community and Regional Planning)
Renting to the Visible ‘Other’: The Politics of Housing, Racialization, and Gender for Northeastern Migrant Women in Bengaluru, India
Supervisor(s): Professor Leonora C Angeles, Julia Harten
Monday, April 20, 2026 9:00 AM - Room 203
Seja Elgadi
(Chemistry)
Design Strategies for Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Materials: Donor Modification and Heavy Atom Effects
Supervisor(s): Professor Zachary Hudson
Monday, April 20, 2026 12:30 PM - Room 203
Marcella Cross
(Botany)
Temperature Responses of Plant Gas Exchange From Leaves To Ecosystems
Supervisor(s): Professor Sean Michaletz
Monday, April 27, 2026 10:00 AM - 146, ICICS, 2366 Main Mall
Rudra Saha
(Computer Science)
On Explainable Stance Detection, Distribution, and Claim Verification
Supervisor(s): Dr Laks Lakshmanan, Professor Raymond Ng
Monday, April 27, 2026 12:30 PM - 318, Hennings Bldg, 6224 Agricultural Rd
Shiming Gu
(Physics and Astronomy)
The Cosmic Imprint of Time: Decoding the Evolving Cosmos Through Weak Gravitational Lensing
Supervisor(s): Professor Ludovic Van Waerbeke
Thursday, May 21, 2026 9:00 AM - Room 200
Saif Dababneh
(MD/PhD Program)
Behind the Beat: Understanding the Genetic and Molecular Basis of Rare and Common Cardiac Arrhythmias
Supervisor(s): Professor Edwin D W Moore, Professor Glen Tibbits