9. The PhD plan

The PhD plan is an overall plan for the PhD project and the other elements included in the PhD programme. The PhD plan must be approved by the PhD Committee no later than 3 months after the start of the PhD, cf. Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 9. The PhD plan must ensure a rapid clarification of expectations between the PhD student and the principal supervisor concerning the project, the supervision and the programme generally. The PhD plan must be as precise as possible, but may be adjusted and defined on an ongoing basis – for example, in connection with the first and second year evaluations. That means that plans for periods spent at other research institutions, course attendance, the form of the thesis, etc., that are not in place after 2 months, may be added subsequently.

The PhD plan must be signed by the principal supervisor, the PhD student and the Head of Department, and must reach the PhD school secretariat no later than 2 months after the start of the PhD programme. The PhD plan has to be approved by the PhD Committee.

The approved PhD plan forms a basis for the ongoing evaluation of the PhD project and how the PhD study is progressing.

The PhD plan may be based on all or part of the project description that was included in the PhD project application.

The PhD plan must include:

1. Information on disciplines, links to institutions and any other connection to researcher training programmes.
2. A schedule for the entire PhD course, detailing the deadlines for the course’s various elements.
3. An agreement on the extent of supervision. The plan must specify the number of supervisory hours expected per semester. If several supervisors are appointed, the agreement must specify role allocation between these people, as well as the extent to which they are available to the PhD student.
4. A plan for the PhD project. A project description for the research project, including specification of research questions, theory and methodology, as well as a description of any subprojects and milestones.
5. Plan for the form the thesis will take (monograph or articles).
6. Plan for PhD courses, cf. section 6. The PhD courses must be determined in consultation with the principal supervisor. Subject descriptions for planned courses should be enclosed if possible.
7. Plan for participation in research activities – including periods spent at other, mainly foreign, research institutions, cf. section 7.
8. Plan for knowledge communication, cf. section 8.
9. Agreements on copyright. If the PhD is conducted in cooperation with several partners, the PhD plan must include an agreement on copyright and rights to data collected. Any restriction of copyright must be approved by the Dean on the recommendation of the Head of PhD School. Unless special circumstances apply, the thesis should be published.
10. A funding plan (budget). Funding of the PhD programme must be approved in connection with enrolment. The plan must specify whether the researcher training is funded by internal or external means.
11. A statement from the principal supervisor on the PhD plan and the PhD student’s requirements in relation to the plan, including an assessment as to whether the student can realistically complete the plan within the PhD period.

10.Ongoing evaluations (5+3 programme)

 

In accordance with Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 10, throughout the PhD programme, there must be regular assessments as to whether the PhD student is following the PhD plan.

10.1. First year evaluation and PhD seminar

After the first year of PhD study, the first regular evaluation of the PhD course is performed. This evaluation forms the background for an assessment of progress made and results achieved, and allows the possibility for adjusting the plans for the remainder of the study period.

This evaluation is based on a status report from the PhD student and the principal supervisor, a supervisor’s statement from the principal supervisor and two assessments by different people of written material prepared by the PhD student, which is presented in a seminar.

10.1.1. Status report

No later than 12 months after enrolment onto the PhD programme, the PhD student and the principal supervisor must submit a status report to the PhD school secretariat. This report must cover:

• A description approximately ½-1 pages in length of the research efforts made so far on the PhD project (progress, results, any obstacles) and the research plans for the remaining part of the PhD period – including a description of any adjustments to the PhD plan.
• The PhD Committee’s form with information on completed and planned courses, communication activities, studying abroad and implementation of work commitments for employed PhD students, as well as information on the form and extent of supervision.
• Information on who will be the assessor and when the PhD seminar is expected to be held.
• Any other information that may be relevant for assessment of progress.

The form is prepared by the PhD student and the principal supervisor together. It is the responsibility of the principal supervisor to ensure that it is submitted on time.

10.1.2. Principal supervisor’s statement

Together with the status report, a statement from the principal supervisor is submitted with an assessment of progress so far and any planned adjustments and amendments to the PhD plan, as well as an assessment of the student’s ability to complete the programme according to the PhD plan. This statement must either confirm that the PhD programme can be completed according to the PhD plan or describe the necessary adjustments. The PhD student shall have a copy of the statement, and has the option of commenting on the statement within two weeks.

10.1.3. PhD seminar and first year evaluation

In order to strengthen the basis for the final first year evaluation and to provide a broad basis for any adjustments to the PhD project, two assessors are involved – one from the department and one external assessor  from outside the University of Southern Denmark – in connection with the first year evaluation.

The assessors are appointed by the Head of Department at the request and recommendation of the principal supervisor, perhaps in cooperation with other supervisors. The assessors must be professors or full-time lecturers, or must have corresponding academic qualifications in the relevant discipline. At least one of the assessors must come from outside the University of Southern Denmark.

Assessors, supervisors and the PhD student agree a date for the PhD seminar. The seminar should normally be held around 12-14 months after enrolment, but it may be postponed for various reasons, for example, to fit in with the assessors’ schedules or a period abroad for the PhD student. The seminar must be held no later than 18 months after enrolment.

The department will ensure that a suitable room is reserved for the seminar and will advertise the seminar on the department’s website.

The evaluation is based on written material prepared by the PhD student. This material could for example be (drafts for) one or more articles or chapters that are expected to form part of the final thesis. It may also be other written material prepared as part of the PhD project (e.g. detailed research plan, questionnaires, interview guides, data summaries, theory summaries, or similar). The material must provide the assessors with the ability to evaluate the research design and the provisional results, and should be 20-50 pages in length.

The written material is submitted as agreed to the assessors, together with the PhD plan and the status report in plenty of time before the seminar, so the assessors have an opportunity to examine the material in detail. The principal supervisor is responsible for the material being forwarded to the assessors.

The seminar is chaired by the principal supervisor. At the seminar the PhD student must have an opportunity to present the submitted material and discuss it with the assessors. The PhD supervisors may take part in the discussion, and the principal supervisor can also allow others present to take part.

Based on the material and the seminar, the assessors prepare a statement on the progress of the PhD so far and the plans for the PhD project. In the statement the assessors may put forward any suggestions and ideas for future work. The statement must be submitted to the PhD school secretariat as soon as possible and no later than two weeks after the seminar.

The PhD student shall have a copy of the statement, and has the option of commenting on the statement within two weeks.

10.2. Second year evaluation

After the second year of PhD study, the last regular evaluation of the PhD course is performed. This evaluation forms the background for an assessment of progress made and results achieved, and allows the possibility for adjusting the plans, if required, for the remainder of the study period.

The evaluation is based on a status report from the PhD student and the principal supervisor and a statement from the principal supervisor.

No later than 24 months after enrolment onto the PhD programme, the PhD student and the principal supervisor must submit a status report to the PhD school secretariat. This report must cover:

• A description approximately ½-1 pages in length of the research efforts made so far on the PhD project (progress, results, any obstacles) and the research plans for the remaining part of the PhD period – including a description of any adjustments to the PhD plan.
• An overview of the expected content of the thesis (list of articles, chapters or similar) with a status report for the various elements (published, written, being proofed, being worked on, being planned, or similar).
• The PhD Committee’s form with information on completed and planned courses, communication activities, studying abroad and implementation of work commitments for employed PhD students.
• Any other information that may be relevant for assessment of progress.

The form is prepared by the PhD student and the principal supervisor together. It is the responsibility of the principal supervisor to ensure that it is submitted on time.

Together with the status report, a statement from the principal supervisor is submitted with an assessment of progress so far and any planned adjustments and amendments to the PhD plan, as well as an assessment of the student’s ability to complete the programme according to the PhD plan. This statement must either confirm that the PhD programme can be completed according to the PhD plan or describe the necessary adjustments. The PhD student shall have a copy of the statement, and has the option of commenting on the statement within two weeks.

10.3. Evaluations on changes to the PhD plan

In addition to the regular evaluations, the PhD must be evaluated if there are major changes to the PhD project or other elements in the PhD plan. Major changes can, for example, be significant changes to the research design, data or theory basis. It could also be significant changes to the schedules, including delays to individual elements. Finally, it could be changes to the form the thesis takes, changes to the location or duration of a period spent abroad, or significant changes to the course programme or communication activities.

In the event of such changes, the PhD student and principal supervisor will together prepare a description of the changes and the reasons for them. The description should be submitted to the PhD school secretariat. It is the responsibility of the principal supervisor to ensure that the report is submitted.

Together with the description of the changes, a statement from the principal supervisor is submitted with an assessment of progress so far and the planned amendments to the PhD plan, as well as an assessment of the student’s ability to complete the programme according to the PhD plan. This statement must either confirm that the PhD programme can be completed according to the PhD plan or describe the necessary adjustments. The PhD student shall have a copy of the statement, and has the option of commenting on the statement within two weeks.

10.4. Assessment of evaluations

The Head of PhD School can opt to call the PhD student and/or the principal supervisor in for an interview to hear further details about the written material.

On the basis of the written material and any interviews, the Head of PhD School will assess whether progress is satisfactory after each evaluation. The results of the Head of PhD School’s assessment will be communicated in writing to the PhD student and the principal supervisor.

In connection with approval of the programme an automatic extension of enrolment takes place.

If approval of the programme is not received, clear reasons for this must be given and the unsatisfactory areas must be specified, so the PhD student is able to concentrate on the deficiencies. If approval of the programme is not received, the PhD student has a deadline of two weeks in which to make any comments. After this the PhD student will be given an opportunity to rectify his or her progress.

10.4.1. Rectification period

If the Head of PhD School concludes that the PhD student is not living up to the requirements of the PhD plan despite any adjustments, the PhD student must be given three months in which to rectify this. These three months must not in themselves lead to an extension of the overall PhD programme.

If the PhD student does not accept this offer of three months within one week, enrolment will come to an end.

If the PhD student accepts the offer to rectify his/her progress, the Head of PhD School appoints an assessment committee comprising two expert assessors and the principal supervisor. The assessment committee shall set concrete targets aimed at rectifying the PhD student’s progress within a period of three months. The committee will also assess whether there is any need for amendments to the PhD plan.

Within a month of the end of the three-month period, the assessors will evaluate afresh whether or not the PhD student has fulfilled the required targets and also whether the programme may continue.

If the evaluation after the end of these three months is positive, the Head of PhD School approves the evaluation and the PhD study can continue. The Head of PhD School will inform the PhD student and the principal supervisor of his or her decision in writing.

If the evaluation at the end of the three months is still negative, enrolment will come to an end. The Head of PhD School will inform any other place of employment that enrolment has been brought to an end. The Head of PhD School will inform the PhD student and the principal supervisor of his or her decision in writing. The PhD student has one week in which to submit comments to the Dean concerning the Head of PhD School’s decision. The final decision will be made in this case by the Dean.

Conclusion of the programme

11. The PhD thesis

The PhD study concludes with the submission, assessment and defence of the PhD thesis. The thesis must document the author’s ability to use the discipline’s scientific methods and to produce a research effort corresponding to the international standards for PhD degrees within the discipline, cf. the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 11.

Separate rules apply for PhD students on the Industrial PhD programme with regard to submission of the PhD thesis and procedures for appointing an assessment committee, etc. Read more in Guidelines for Industrial PhD students in connection with the assessment and defence of a PhD thesis at the PhD school and Guidelines for the Industrial PhD programme.

11.1. Formal requirements for the thesis

The thesis must, as a rule, be in Danish or English and be furnished with an abstract in Danish or English. Furthermore, when the thesis is submitted, an abstract in English must also be submitted in an electronic version (PDF format). This will be posted on the Faculty’s PhD website immediately before the PhD defence.

A PhD thesis is a piece of independent work, which is based on an individual PhD programme, and can therefore not be submitted by several people together for assessment. The underlying research project may, however, have been carried out in cooperation with others.

11.1.1. Co-author declarations

The principal supervisor can decide whether or not manuscripts of other articles, or previously published articles, may be included in the thesis. If the thesis is based on articles, it must include a summary detailing the interconnection and also showing progression and summarising the overall research results. Articles that are included in the thesis may be prepared in cooperation with others on condition that they are accompanied by written declarations from each of the co-authors, specifying the PhD author’s portion of the work. The predominant elements should be prepared independently.

Co-author declarations must be signed by the co-authors and the PhD student.

11.2. Submission of the thesis

 

 11.2.1. Notice two months prior to submission

 

In the interest of adhering to the deadlines for assessment and defence, the PhD student should notify the Head of Department and the PhD school secretariat of submission of the thesis in good time and no later than two months before the expected submission date. It is important that this deadline be adhered to, so the assessment committee can be appointed by the submission date.

11.2.2. Activity overview and principal supervisor statement

On submission of the thesis, the student prepares, on the basis of the PhD plan, an updated overview of the completed educational activities during the PhD programme. This activity overview should be prepared in both Danish and English to aid in issuing the PhD certificate. This activity overview must be submitted to the principal supervisor no later than two weeks prior to submission of the thesis.

Based on the activity overview, the principal supervisor prepares a statement concerning the overall progress of the PhD student, including a report on the execution of the individual parts of the PhD plan, cf. the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 9. This statement must be in English.

If the principal supervisor’s recommendation in his or her statement is to the effect that the PhD programme has not been executed satisfactorily, the PhD student must be given two weeks to comment on the principal supervisor’s statement.

Based on the principal supervisor’s statement, any comments by the author and the regular assessments, the Head of PhD School will decide whether the student has completed the PhD programme satisfactorily. The thesis can only be accepted for assessment if the overall PhD programme has been completed satisfactorily.

If the Head of PhD School decides that the overall PhD programme has not been satisfactorily completed, the PhD student must be given two weeks to present the Dean with comments on the Head of PhD School’s decision. In this case the final decision will be made by the Dean.

11.2.3. Submission of the thesis

Six copies of the PhD thesis must be submitted to the PhD school’s secretariat (eight copies for Industrial PhD students) no later than the end of the period of PhD study. The principal supervisor’s statement, the activity overview and any co-author declarations must be included.

The PhD student’s enrolment at the university ceases on submission of the PhD thesis.

12. Assessment and defence

12.1. Assessment committee

The thesis is assessed by a three-member expert committee. The members must be professors or full-time associate professors, or must have corresponding academic qualifications in the relevant discipline. Two of the members must come from outside the University, with one of these being from abroad, unless this is not appropriate for academic reasons. For PhD students on the Industrial PhD programme, at least one member of the assessment committee must have company-relevant research experience within the relevant discipline, cf. the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 26, subsection 2. The representative of the University of Southern Denmark acts as chairman for the committee. The PhD student’s supervisors cannot be members of the committee, but the principal supervisor shall participate in the work of the assessment committee without voting rights.

12.1.1. Appointment of assessment committee

The assessment committee is appointed by the Dean on the recommendation of the PhD Committee, which receives suggestions from the Head of Department.

When notice is given that the thesis is to be submitted, the PhD school secretariat will request that the Head of Department provide proposals for composition of the assessment committee.

The Head of Department sends suggestions for composition of the PhD Committee via the PhD school secretariat. The Head of Department must ascertain in advance that the proposed members of the assessment committee are willing to join the committee. CVs must be submitted for external assessors.

On this basis, the PhD Committee will make recommendations to the Dean concerning the composition of the assessment committee, cf. the Danish University Act Section 16b, subsection 7, no. 2.

The PhD school secretariat will inform the student as to who will be on the assessment committee. The student has one week in which to raise any objections concerning the members. If the student has raised no objections within one week, the PhD school secretariat will send the thesis to the assessment committee and to the principal supervisor.

12.1.2 Work of the assessment committee

The committee chairman is encouraged to take the initiative in preparing a time frame for the assessment work, and to agree a provisional date for the defence immediately upon the appointment of the assessment committee. The date for the defence must be agreed with the members of the assessment committee, the principal supervisor, the PhD student and the Head of Department. This date will be passed on to the PhD school secretariat once it has been agreed, but it will not be published until there has been a positive recommendation from the assessment committee.

The PhD student’s supervisors cannot be members of the committee, but the principal supervisor shall participate in the work of the assessment committee without voting rights.

It is incumbent on the chairman of the assessment committee to involve the principal supervisor. The chairman must ensure that the principal supervisor is summoned to assessment committee meetings, kept informed of e-mail correspondence, etc. The principal supervisor will take part in the work of the committee, answering questions on the underlying progress of the PhD, etc. and on the academic progress of the research project. The chairman is responsible for ensuring that the principal supervisor is kept informed of the preliminary assessment of the thesis. The principal supervisor must have the opportunity to comment on the preliminary assessment and to clear up any misunderstandings before it is submitted to the Dean. However, he or she has no voting rights.

12.2. The preliminary assessment of the PhD thesis

No later than two months (the month of July is not included) after submission of the thesis, the assessment committee makes a recommendation to the Academic Council for passing on to the Dean via the PhD school secretariat, as to whether the PhD thesis is suitable as a basis for awarding the PhD degree. This recommendation must be justified, and in the event of disagreement will be determined by a majority vote. The recommendation must be suitable for allowing the Academic Council to decide whether or not to award the PhD degree. The recommendation must be signed by all members of the assessment committee. Following approval by the Dean, the PhD school secretariat will send the student a copy of the recommendation as soon as possible.

If the recommendation finds the thesis to be suitable, the defence can take place and the recommendation can be approved by the Academic Council. The assessment committee can specify a topic for the PhD lecture in connection with the assessment. The lecture topic must give the author of the thesis the opportunity to explain fundamental elements of the thesis, but is not limited to this.

If the thesis is deemed to be not suitable, the assessment committee must state in its recommendation whether the PhD thesis can be submitted again in a revised form, and if so, within what deadline.

The student and the principal supervisor must have two weeks in which to comment on the recommendation.

On the basis of the comments of the assessment commitment and, if relevant, those of the student and principal supervisor, the Dean will determine one of the following in consultation with the Head of PhD School:

1. That the defence cannot take place.

2. That the PhD thesis can be resubmitted in a revised form within a deadline of at least three months. If the thesis is resubmitted, it should be assessed by the assessment committee previously appointed, unless special circumstances apply.

3. That the PhD thesis is to be assessed by a new assessment committee.

12.3. The defence

The defence must take place no sooner than two weeks after the assessment committee has announced its recommendation, and no later than three months after submission of the PhD thesis, cf. Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 20, subsection 2. The chairman of the assessment committee will agree a date for the defence with the members of the committee and the author of the thesis, and will inform the PhD school secretariat of this, cf. section 12.1.2.

If special circumstances apply, the Head of PhD School can decide to postpone the defence. A postponement of the defence requires an agreement between the author of the thesis, the chairman of the assessment committee and the Head of PhD School, including the date when the PhD defence will be held, cf. the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 20, subsection 3.

It is the responsibility of the assessment committee chairman to ensure that a room of a suitable size for the defence is reserved. To be agreed with the department secretary. The department is responsible for practical tasks in connection with the defence (reservation of room for the defence, sending out invitations, if appropriate, reception, etc.).

The PhD school secretariat sends notification of the defence and the lecture topic, if relevant, to the student and the members of the assessment committee.

The PhD school secretariat advertises the defence under Future events on the University of Southern Denmark website and the PhD school website, where the English language abstract of the thesis is also advertised. The PhD thesis will be made publicly available at the PhD school secretariat in reasonable time before the defence.

12.3.1. Procedure for defence of the PhD thesis

During the defence, the author shall be given the opportunity to give an account of his or her work and to defend the PhD thesis before members of the assessment committee. The assessment committee may inform the author, prior to the defence, of a topic for the lecture, cf. section 12.3.

The defence may last a maximum of 3 hours, of which 30-45 minutes are set aside for the author’s lecture.

The thesis defence normally takes place as follows:

1. Introduction by the Head of Department or his or her substitute (the chairman), presenting the PhD student and members of the assessment committee. The chairman chairs the thesis defence.
2. A 30-45 minute lecture by the author of the thesis.
3. The three members of the assessment committee comment on the thesis and question the author. The chairman ensures that this opposition is limited to 1 hour and 30 minutes, divided between the members by internal agreement. The opposition must include concrete questions on the central themes in the thesis.
4. The chairman may allow questions from the audience with particular reference to the delivered lecture.
5. The chairman concludes the thesis defence. Before this, the chairman may give the author of the thesis permission to make some brief comments.

Thus no input is expected from the principal supervisor. The chairman may, however, deviate from this rule at the request of the assessment committee. In such a case, the principal supervisor will be permitted to speak for no more than 30 minutes.

12.4. Awarding a PhD degree

Once the thesis defence has been concluded, there is a meeting of the assessment committee. On the basis of the PhD thesis and the defence, the assessment committee will judge whether the requirements for the PhD thesis and defence have been fulfilled. The assessment committee passes the recommendation on to the Dean and the author via the PhD school secretariat. This recommendation must be justified, and in the event of disagreement will be determined by a majority vote. The recommendation of the assessment committee can be announced verbally immediately after the defence and must then be presented in writing as soon as possible. The recommendation must be signed by all members of the assessment committee.

The PhD degree will be awarded if this is recommended by the assessment committee.

If the assessment committee’s recommendation is negative, the Dean may decide to have the thesis assessed by a new assessment committee if the author requests this within one week.

12.5. PhD certificate

The PhD school secretariat draws up PhD certificates in Danish and English. The certificate states in which discipline the PhD degree has been obtained and the title of the PhD thesis. The certificate is signed by the Dean. The certificate is accompanied by a summary in Danish and English of completed courses and stays abroad/research stays at other, primarily foreign, research institutions. The PhD certificate is presented by the Vice-Chancellor at the annual PhD ceremony.

PhD candidates can be issued with a PhD certificate immediately after the awarding of the PhD on application to the PhD school secretariat.

12.6. Documentation for completed elements of the PhD programme

PhD students who finish their programme without having gained a PhD degree may submit a written request to the PhD school secretariat to issue documentation in both Danish and English concerning those elements of the PhD programme completed successfully.