confirmation

extract from handbook:

5.1 Students are registered initially for an unspecified research degree, at which point they will have indicated their intended degree (MPhil or PhD). The application to confirm the degree for which they will be examined will normally take place after a probationary period of 12 to 18 months for full time students and 24 to 30 months for part-time students.

5.2 In making their application to confirm the degree for which they will be examined, students are required to provide (maximum word count 10,000 words):

i. A contextual review (e.g. a literature or practice review) and an analysis of methods employed which may later form a chapter of the final thesis. If the student intends to submit a body of creative, practical work for the final examination, the contextual review will include a practice review. A practice review explains the significance of the student’s own work in the appropriate historical, critical and theoretical context and should include documentation of the project.

ii. a detailed plan of the research project to completion and chapter outlines for the written text (and, if the degree includes a significant body of creative work, an indication of the likely for of the creative work at submission in terms of documentation or exhibition/ event).

iii. an abstract outlining the main thesis of the work.

iv. a comment on any new ethical considerations since Registration.

v. a written health and safety risk assessment (if applicable).

5.3 A formal meeting will be held and the student will be invited to make a short presentation on the work achieved to a confirmation panel.

5.4 The panel will normally consist of the supervisory team and one other member of the University’s academic staff normally from a different College than the student; exceptionally an external may be included if the topic is very specialised. The independent academic is required to have the experience of at least one Research Degree completion. The Director of Studies would normally be expected to chair the meeting. The independent member of the University’s academic staff will lead the questions about the work presented and contribute their judgement on the student’s work to the writing of the report.

5.5 The panel will complete the confirmation report at the same time as the meeting in order to record the supervisors’ comments and recommendations and confirm supervisory arrangements.

5.6 At the Confirmation meeting the Director of Studies and co-supervisor(s) are required to provide in writing:

i. an assessment of the student’s work and progress since registration

ii. comments on; the contextual review; the analysis of methods employed; the schedule for the completion of the research project proposed by the student; and description of chapter headings and (if applicable) creative work to be submitted

iii. details of the progress reviews undertaken during the probationary period, including a report of the meeting held in connection with this probationary report

iv. details of any concerns they may have about the student’s performance and ability to complete successfully a research degree within the maximum registration period

v. details of supervisory arrangements, including details of the division of responsibilities between the supervisors, in relation to the assessment of the student’s written work, frequency and approximate duration of supervisory sessions and the date of the most recent contact

vi. comments on the annual assessment of any new ethical considerations for which th student may need to seek approval

vii. comments on the annual health and safety written risk assessment of the student’s research (if applicable).

5.7 The panel should make a recommendation in their report to the College and University Research Degrees Sub-Committees as to whether the student’s registration for either MPhil or PhD should be confirmed; the probationary period extended by a maximum of 3 months for full-time and 6 months for part-time students (to enable items of further work to be completed – the panel should normally remain the same when reconvened to assess the student’s progress); or their registration discontinued.

5.8 The Director of Studies is responsible for submitting the final report to the College Research Degrees Sub-Committee. The supervisors must ensure that, at the end of the meeting, the student has a chance to discuss any further issues with the independent academic privately. The report will be sent to College Research Degrees Sub-Committee for comment and a recommendation, and then to University Research Degrees Sub-Committee, which will consider the report and confirm the recommendation.

5.9 A copy of the report will be shown to the student after University Research Degrees Sub-Committee has approved it. The student has the right to appeal against the confirmed recommendation, according to the procedure laid out in the Section 11 of these Regulations.

5.10 As part of the confirmation process it is compulsory for the PGR student to present as part of the RNUAL Block 2. If it is not possible for a student to attend for reasons such as ill health, then alternative arrangements need to be discussed with the Directors of Doctoral Training and Development.

Criteria to be considered

5.11 The purpose of this stage is to confirm that:

i. the student has the knowledge and skills appropriate to completing their research programme

ii. that they have completed work of a quality to justify continuation and that the research methods are appropriate and practical

iii. that the proposed research is likely to make a significant contribution to knowledge (as set out in the requirements for the award of a PhD at the University); or that confirmation as MPhil is more appropriate

iv. that a realistic plan is in place for completion of the research within the expected timeframe.

5.12 For those students where practice is to form a significant component of the thesis, the material presented must:

i. clearly articulate the role and purpose of the practice within the overall research project

ii. **identify how the creative/practical work (both achieved and anticipated) are likely to be included in the final submission and how this will be presented (as event or exhibition) and documented for final examination **

iii. identify which research methods have informed their work and present the contexts (both historical and/or theoretical) in which they are working

iv. offer reflection on the development of their practice, with an emphasis on what can be communicated to others (i.e. as a contribution to new knowledge in the field).

PhD-checkpoints-as-ceremonies