Nomination and Criteria for Appointment of Examiners
Three months prior to a candidate’s submission deadline, the Doctoral College will contact the relevant faculty administrative support team requesting the initiation of the process for appointing examiners. The supervisor, in consultation with the relevant faculty Research Director and in accordance with the following guidelines, will recommend one suitable external examiner (two for candidates who are full time members staff of the University and who have had more than two years’ service with the University), one internal examiner and a chairperson (who is not an examiner). The composition of the Board of Examiners must then be approved by the Board of the Faculty and also by the Doctoral College Board.
In appointing Boards of Examiners, the Doctoral College will consider the overall composition of the Board in order to achieve an appropriately qualified, experienced and independent set of examiners.
Appointment of Examiners and Duties/Responsibilities
Upon appointment, examiners are provided with the following by the Doctoral College:
- formal notification of their appointment
- a link to this Handbook (including rules and regulations for the specific degree programme) and guidance on the expenses policy and procedures
- a copy of the work submitted for examination
- a link to set up a user account within the PhD Manager system
The main duties of examiners of research degrees are:
- to determine whether the submitted work meets the standards of the award and if not, in which aspects it is deficient
- to submit a preliminary report via PhD Manager at least one week prior to the date of examination
- to consult with the Chair of the Board of Examiners if a case has been made for the oral examination to be waived
- to agree with the supervisor a date and time for the oral examination
- to meet with the other examiners prior to the oral examination in order to compare reports and agree procedures for the oral examination
- to finally decide, following the examination of all written and where appropriate oral evidence, if the candidate has met the standards for the award
- in consultation with the other members of the Board of Examiners to make a recommendation to the Board of the Faculty
- in consultation with the other members of the Board of Examiners to write a joint report on the candidate’s performance
- where a thesis is to be revised, to agree with the other examiners a list of the amendments to be make or additional assignment(s) to be completed
- where a thesis has failed, to agree with the other examiners a list of deficiencies in the thesis.
Pre-examination procedures
The candidate will submit an electronic version of their thesis through PhD Manager and may additionally be required to provide the Doctoral College with copies of the thesis in temporary binding for the internal and external examiners if requested. The electronic version of the thesis will also be used in order to facilitate the use by examiners of software designed to detect plagiarism. Examiners should not accept copies of the thesis directly from the candidate.
Once the composition of the Board of Examiners has been approved, the supervisor will consult and arrange with the candidate, the Chair of the Board of Examiners, and the examiners, a suitable date, time and venue for the oral examination, allowing a minimum of four weeks from receipt of the thesis by the examiners to the oral examination date. Where possible, and where the External Examiner is attending in person, the supervisor will attempt to schedule the oral examination to allow the External Examiner to travel to and from the University on the same day. Thereafter, the Doctoral College will make corresponding administrative arrangements.
The examination will be held on the campus of Ulster University where the candidate is registered (unless prior approval has been sought from the Doctoral College Board) and the candidate will be examined in person in a face to face oral examination in the presence of the entire Board of Examiners. In situations where the External Examiner or candidate is unable to attend campus in person, remote viva arrangements will be facilitated by a nominated viva coordinator. Under no circumstances will examination by telephone be permitted.
It is expected that an oral examination will be held in all but exceptional cases. Exceptional cases include instances where the thesis is deemed to be of an acceptable standard for the immediate award of the degree and no amendments, revisions or additional work is required and where the candidate is ill or otherwise incapacitated to the extent that he/she cannot defend the thesis, and in instances where the thesis is a re-submission and the examiners deem it to be of an acceptable standard for the immediate award of the degree and no amendments, revisions or additional work is required.
In the event that an oral examination is not held the examiners should agree the final report. The final report, in instances where the candidate has failed, should include a comprehensive list of the deficiencies of the thesis.
Preliminary Reports
Following receipt of the thesis and prior to the oral examination the examiners are required to submit independent preliminary reports via PhD Manager at least seven days before the oral examination; examiners are asked not discuss the thesis or the report with any other member of the Board of Examiners until such time as all reports have been submitted.
The supervisor is also required to submit a short report prior to the oral examination; the purpose of this report is to confirm that the thesis is the researcher’s own work, to inform the panel of any circumstances that may have affected the production of the thesis and to comment on the impact of the research.
In their reports the examiners may, exceptionally, recommend that the requirement to hold an oral examination should be waived although the University would advise that an oral should be held unless the circumstances strongly suggest otherwise. The Chair of the Board of Examiners must gain agreement from all examiners and the candidate if the oral examination is to be waived under this provision.
Assessment Criteria
Examiners are asked to bear in mind that theses must be completed within strict time limits, adherence to which is monitored by the Doctoral College Board in consultation with those responsible for the progress of individual candidates. Theses constitute the outcome of a period of training in research methods and, in order to present a satisfactory thesis; candidates must exhibit a capacity to apply appropriate techniques successfully at master’s or doctoral level.
In assessing the thesis and preparing the preliminary report, the examiners may wish to give consideration to the following:
- the thesis must be essentially free of plagiarised material, from whatever source; such material will be discounted in the assessment of the merit of the research
- the title of the thesis is accurate and succinct; describing the work carried out, and contains appropriate key words for electronic abstracting
- the abstract accurately describes the outcomes of the research without extraneous discussion and is of appropriate length, at less than 300 words
- the aims of the research are clearly identified and the extents to which these aims have been met are fully discussed
- the context of the research is well developed through reference to contemporary and historical material where appropriate
- the volume of effort reflected in the piece of research is appropriate to the length of the research programme
- the thesis reports a piece of independent and original work carried out by the candidate and where collaborative work is included the relevant contribution of all participants is clearly identified
- the thesis contains clear evidence that appropriate methodologies have been selected and justified, that they have been correctly applied and that the results have been properly interpreted
- where results are presented in other than textual form these use suitable formats that are intelligible, unambiguous and not repetitive
- the candidate must demonstrate in the thesis a critical understanding of the outcomes of the research and its significance
- the use of reference materials in the thesis must be appropriate to the field of study, must be correctly used and cited and should contain the most relevant research
- the overall presentation of the thesis must be of a standard that makes assessment of the work readily possible; the language use, organisation and layout and absence of errors must be of a high standard
- the research contained in the thesis must represent a level of practical and intellectual achievement by the candidate suitable for the award of a doctoral degree
The degree of MPhil is awarded to researchers who have demonstrated:
* a systematic understanding of knowledge, and a critical awareness of current problems and/or new insights, much of which is at, or informed by, the forefront of their academic discipline, field of study or area of professional practice '
* a comprehensive understanding of techniques applicable to their own research or advanced scholarship
* originality in the application of knowledge, together with a practical understanding of how established techniques of research and enquiry are used to create and interpret knowledge in the discipline
* conceptual understanding that enables the researcher: to evaluate critically current research and advanced scholarship in the discipline; to evaluate methodologies and develop critiques of them and, where appropriate, to propose new hypotheses
Typically, holders of the qualification will be able to:
* deal with complex issues both systematically and creatively, make sound judgements in the absence of complete data, and communicate their conclusions clearly to specialist and non-specialist audiences
* demonstrate self-direction and originality in tackling and solving problems, and act autonomously in planning and implementing tasks at a professional or equivalent level
* continue to advance their knowledge and understanding, and to develop new skills to a high level
The viva
The Chair of the Board of Examiners will check to ensure that the room booked for the oral examination has been appropriately laid out. In advance of the oral, the Board will discuss the preliminary reports of the examiners and the report of the supervisor. Any aspects of the work that require clarification, and any doubts or concerns about achievement of the criteria for the award will be identified. These key issues must be addressed during the oral examination of the candidate, who must be afforded reasonable opportunity to clarify and/or defend the work presented.
The examiners should, nonetheless, agree on a line of questioning which provides opportunity for exploration of the breadth of study and its context. The Chair will encourage the examiners to adopt a strategy which will (a) help the candidate to settle down initially, (b) include discussion of any key issues which they have already identified, (c) achieve suitable breadth of cover, and (d) give the candidate a clear indication where the strengths and weaknesses lie. Questioning by the external examiner(s) should predominate yet provide opportunity for periodic contribution by the internal examiner.
The meeting of the Board will comprise four parts;
Part 1: The preliminary meeting of the Board members allows for introductions and
* To note the regulations for the degree
* To note the Recommendation of the Examiners report and in particular the sections which must be completed by the Board of Examiners
* To review preliminary reports from the internal and external examiners and from the supervisor
* To determine procedures for the oral examination including the allocation of questions
Part 2: The oral examination includes Board members and the candidate. One supervisor may also attend (with prior consent from the candidate). After introductions, the Chair should enable examiners to ask questions and the candidate should be afforded sufficient opportunity to respond. The Chair should ensure that questioning is appropriate and once concluded should ask the candidate to leave the room for the duration of the concluding meeting.
Part 3: The concluding meeting allows the examiners to decide on the recommendation to the Board of the Faculty and to complete the Examiners Report.
Part 4: The final briefing includes the candidate (and any attending supervisor) and the Examiners should outline their decision and provide feedback, including any requirement(s) for revision to the thesis.
It should be noted that the Examiners should not stipulate that a further viva will not be required in situations of revise and resubmit - this decision will be made by the Chair upon resubmission and on receipt of preliminary reports.
In assessing the candidate’s performance and preparing the report the examiners may wish to give consideration to the following:
- are the examiners satisfied that the thesis presented is the candidate's own work
- did the candidate show a satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the context and significance of the work
- did the candidate show a satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the methods and techniques adopted
- was the candidate able to explain aspects of the thesis which required further clarification
- was the candidate familiar with key literature cited in the thesis
- in the case of a candidate whose research programme was part of a collaborative group project, did the oral examination demonstrate that the candidate's own contribution was worthy of the award
Recommendations of the Board of Examiners
The examiners are required, where they are in agreement, to present a joint report and recommendation to the Board of the Faculty for the award or otherwise of the degree; if the examiners are not in agreement, they are required to present separate reports and recommendations; the Board of the Faculty may then either accept the recommendation of the external examiner(s) or require the appointment of a further external examiner.
Where the decision is that the candidate must revise and resubmit the thesis for examination or where no degree should be awarded and no further submission accepted, the examiners should agree on the wording of the final report, clearly indicating the deficiencies which have prompted the decision.
If the examiners are satisfied that the standard required for the degree has been reached, but are, nevertheless, of the opinion that the candidate should make some corrections or clarifications to the thesis not so substantial as to call for the submission of a revised thesis, they may make their recommendation that the candidate should be awarded the degree subject to the completion of corrections, within either three or six months, depending on the extent of the corrections.
Corrections refer only to those changes which can be explicitly documented by the examiners; these include grammatical or typographical errors, or errors in referencing, minor restructuring, such as faults in subsidiary arguments which do not significantly affect the conclusions of the thesis, or the requirement for an additional piece of work which clarifies and/or enhances the work; any amendments requiring an academic judgement or input from the external examiner(s) should be classified as revise and resubmit.
Post-examination procedures
Once a decision is reached by the examiners, the Chair may indicate informally the recommendation to the candidate but should make it clear that the final decision rests with the Board of the Faculty.
Once formal approval of the Board of the Faculty has been confirmed, the candidate will receive formal notification of the outcome via the PhD Manager system within two weeks of the date of the oral examination.
A candidate has ten working days, from the date of formal receipt of the examiners recommendation, in which to request further clarification of any associated requirements. Any such request should be addressed to the Doctoral College, following consultation with the supervisor.
Where the degree has been awarded subject to minor amendments, the internal examiner will liaise with the candidate to ensure that the amendments have been carried out satisfactorily and confirm this within PhD Manager.
Examiners and supervisors should note that in the event of an appeal by an unsuccessful candidate ALL papers relevant to the examination and supplied to the Appeal Committee will also be supplied to the candidate. This should be borne in mind when preparing preliminary reports and the final report.
In the case of a candidate who is recommended for the award of the degree, candidates shall submit an electronic version of the thesis along with the Ulster EThesis Deposit Agreement via PhD Manager. This will normally be one month after the meeting of the Board of Examiners in cases where there are no corrections, or three or six months after formal notification of the examiners’ requirements for corrections.