Premier rapport du Conseil des visiteurs du CFC

In accordance with the instructions of the Commandant, the Board reviewed the Consultant’s Report on the Master of Defence Studies Program prepared for the OCGS, and additional items which have emerged in the course of our meetings. In the comments that follow, we address directly the items raised in the report of the OCGS.

The Competence of the Faculty

The OCGS reviewers commented positively on the credentials of the RMC faculty appointed to the CFC. We concur in that assessment. Moreover, we strongly endorse the plan to increase the number of tenured academics at the CFC, to ensure that all students in the MDS program have access to qualified academics and proper supervision. As suggested by the OCGS reviewers, a critical mass of academics is essential to the proper functioning of the CFC. In particular, we endorse the plan to increase the faculty to a total of ten over the shortest term possible. We note with some concern that one faculty member has recently resigned, and we urge that a replacement be appointed as soon as possible. We welcome CFC’s implementation of the recommendation that the academic ‘deliverables’ be marked by both military and qualified civilian academics.

Admissions Standards and Procedures

We agree that RMC must maintain high standards of admission, but at the same time suggest that the prerequisite for entry be a BA Honours ‘or equivalent.’ This would accord with standard Canadian university practice and is pertinent in the context of a professional degree. This should resolve the anomalous situation whereby some students complete the pre-requisites for the MDS after the completion of the degree.

It is essential for students registered in the MDS program to have effective writing skills. We note that the OCGS reviewers recommended the submission of a writing sample with the application to the MDS. We believe that a more appropriate alternative would be to have candidates for admission write a précis-style examination immediately following the first six-week component of the MDS course. Students who fail to meet an appropriate standard in this precise should be denied admission to the MDS.

Adequacies and Sources of Student Support

We concur with the reviewers.

Library Resources

Again we concur with the OCGS reviewers and note that the Library has been expanded as planned and that substantial increases have been made to its budget. We also note with approval the Commandant’s personal commitment to the continued expansion and support of library services. In its field, the CFC library is well on the way to becoming a major national resource.

Adequacy of Office Space

We note that construction has been completed as planned, but we have not examined these issues.

Curriculum Requirements, Examinations, and Student Evaluations Procedures

The Board has not had the opportunity to do a comprehensive, systematic review of curriculum materials, including the four deliverables. That said, we do:

• Recommend that the balance between lectures and seminars in the MDS program be shifted in favour of seminars, in accordance with the OCGS reviewers’ recommendations.
• Recommend that clear guidance be given to research essay supervisors to ensure that candidates pursue their projects with a degree of breadth appropriate to graduate work of this kind. This is particularly important because many of the supervisors are drawn from civilian universities and will not be fully aware that CFC research essays are intended to be broadly based and conceptually rigorous. These guidelines should also be made clear to the students.
• Concur with the reviewers’ recommendation that the CFC take a more active role in the dissemination of its work outside the College. We are, therefore, pleased to learn of plans to use the CNSS as a vehicle for this purpose.

This area will be the subject of further examination at our next Board meeting.

Innovative Features and Questions from Consultants

We commend the Commandant for his prompt action on the establishment of the Board of Visitors, as recommended by the OCGS reviewers. We hope that we will be able to provide further useful service to the CFC and intend at our next meeting to focus on the four ‘deliverables’ of the MDS program.

Dr Albert Legault
Chair of the Board of Visitors

13 May 2003