13. Specific rules for the 4+4 programme
This programme is aimed at students who are one year short of completing their Master’s degrees, cf. section 2.3.
Under the 4+4 programme, the PhD programme is standardised to 4 years of full-time study and must encompass the same elements as a PhD under the 5+3 programme, although the course programme must encompass courses equivalent to 60 ECTS points, of which 30 ECTS points may be at postgraduate level, as well as a qualification exam that is equivalent to a Master’s thesis (30 ECTS points).
The programme is divided into two 2-year parts, Part A and Part B. The programme means that the student finishes his or her Master’s degree at the end of Part A as an integral part of the PhD programme.
13.1. Part A
Part A consists of drawing up a plan for research and work activities, as well as of courses, preliminary work on the thesis, work tasks for the department and the qualification exam.
A student on the 4+4 programme will at the point of enrolment still have 60 ECTS points to make up in order to gain a Master’s degree. Part A must therefore encompass PhD and Master’s degree courses equivalent to at least 30 ECTS, as up to 30 ECTS may be taken up in a Master’s subject with full ECTS value in the programme (Master’s section).
It is recommended that the course programme in Part A should cover a significant majority of the overall course programme totalling 60 ECTS points, with possibly the entire course programme being completed in Part A.
Master’s subjects completed during the Master’s degree programme at the University of Southern Denmark that are to be ascribed to the Master’s degree should not be approved separately. Subjects followed at another institution and providing credits for transfer must be approved by the study board in question.
13.1.1. PhD plan and updated PhD plan
Students on the 4+4 programme must submit a PhD plan for approval by the PhD Committee no later than 2 months after enrolment, cf. section 9. The plan may be more provisional than PhD plans under the 5+3 programme, but the plans for courses in Part A should be clarified and the PhD plan must cover considerations of all points in the plan and must encompass a statement from the principal supervisor.
After approximately one year’s enrolment on the PhD programme, the PhD plan must be updated. The updated PhD plan must be sent to the PhD school secretariat no later than 14 months after enrolment on the PhD study. At the same time, a statement from the principal supervisor must be submitted with an assessment of progress so far and the updated PhD plan, and an assessment of the student’s ability to complete the programme according to the PhD plan. The 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.
On the basis of the updated PhD plan and the statement from the principal supervisor, the Head of PhD School will assess whether progress is satisfactory, cf. section 10.4.
13.1.2. Status report and principal supervisor’s statement at the end of Part A
No later than 22 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. Results (grades) for courses that are to be ascribed to the Master’s degree section and which are therefore not to be approved by the PhD Committee.
- Information on who will be the assessor and when the qualification exam and the PhD seminar are to take place.
- 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.
13.1.3. Qualification exam and PhD seminar
Part A concludes with a qualification exam and a PhD seminar. The qualification exam should demonstrate that the PhD student has achieved a level of qualification equivalent to a Master’s degree exam, and the PhD seminar should provide a broad basis for assessment of the PhD student’s ability to complete the PhD programme and adjust the PhD project if necessary.
Two external assessors are involved. 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 associate professors, or must have corresponding academic qualifications in the relevant discipline. The assessors should be appointed no later than 22 months after enrolment on the 4+4 programme. At least one of the assessors must come from outside the University, and also acts as external examiner for the qualification exam.
Assessors, supervisors and PhD students agree a date for the qualification exam and the PhD seminar. The qualification exam and the PhD seminar must be held no later than 24 months after enrolment on the 4+4 programme. The department will ensure that a suitable room is reserved for the seminar. Once the seminar has been agreed, the PhD secretariat must be informed of the time and venue so that they can advertise it via the PhD school website.
The qualification exam is based on a part of the PhD thesis, which must be in completed form. There must be at least one chapter or one article to the thesis in completed form. This may take the form of a literature survey or a method review. The content of written work must be of such a nature and scope that it is at least equivalent to a Master’s thesis. This means that if there is only a bibliography, the requirement for the scope of written work may be the same as for a Master’s thesis. The PhD student must submit the material for the qualification exam to the principal supervisor and the assessors no later than one month before the agreed assessment date.
Other items that should be submitted for use at the PhD seminar include the most recent version of the PhD plan, the status report and any supplementary written material prepared by the PhD student, for example (drafts of) further articles or chapters that are expected to be included in the final thesis, detailed research plans, questionnaires, interview guides, data summaries, theory summaries or similar. The collected material must provide the assessors with the ability to evaluate the research design and the provisional results, and the supplementary material should not exceed 50 pages.
The qualification exam is conducted as a project exam. The PhD student must have an opportunity to present the outlines of the exam material. Subsequently the student is examined by the principal supervisor and the external assessor from outside the University. The other assessor – and other interested parties, including other supervisors – may attend the project exam but are not permitted to speak.
On the basis of the qualification exam, the principal supervisor and external assessor will award a grade in accordance with the 7-point scale expressing target fulfilment in relation to the requirements for a Master’s thesis. In order to pass, a minimum grade of 02 is required. A re-assessment/make-up assessment is possible, but must be passed within 3 months of the first exam.
The PhD seminar is held immediately after the qualification exam. The seminar is led by the principal supervisor. At the seminar the PhD student must have an opportunity to present his or her research plan and any further 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 an evaluation of the progress of the PhD so far and the plans for the PhD project. In the evaluation the assessors may put forward any suggestions and ideas for future work. The evaluation 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 this statement, and for two weeks has the option of commenting on the statement.
On the basis of the status report, the qualification exam and the PhD seminar, the principal supervisor will prepare an assessment of progress so far and any planned adjustments and amendments, and whether the student is deemed to be suitable for continuing on to Part B and thereby completing the PhD programme. The statement must show what grade the PhD student achieved in the qualification exam. The PhD student shall have a copy of this statement, and has the option of commenting on the statement within two weeks.
Based on the assessors’ and principal supervisor’s written assessments and the grades achieved for completed courses and in the qualification exam, the PhD Committee assesses whether or not the student is to be offered employment for the remaining 2 years.
If the student wishes to withdraw from the course before the qualification exam has been passed, activities passed during the programme for a PhD are transferred to the Master’s degree in accordance with current procedures for the transfer of credits.
Once the qualification exam has been passed, the student will have achieved a Master’s degree and will receive his or her Master’s degree certificate.
13.2. Part B
Part B should be drawn up in such a way that after the conclusion of Part B the student will have completed his or her PhD project by preparing a final PhD thesis and also fulfilling the requirements for courses, stays abroad and knowledge communication.
The composition of Part B thus depends on what parts of the PhD programme have already been completed in Part A.
13.2.1. Third-year evaluation
After one year’s study on Part B, no later than 36 months after enrolment on the 4+4 programme, an evaluation corresponding to the second year evaluation on the 5+3 programme is performed, see section 10.2.
14. Submission of the PhD thesis without prior enrolment
In special cases, the University may decide that a thesis can be assessed without the author having completed a PhD programme, if the University judges that the author has otherwise acquired qualifications that are comparable with a completed PhD programme, cf. the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 15, subsection 2.
On the submission of the PhD thesis without prior enrolment, the Faculty of Social Sciences can demand a fee to cover expenses associated with the work of the assessment committee and the holding of the PhD defence.
Any application to submit a PhD thesis without prior enrolment must be made on a special form, which should be accompanied by an explanation of how the author has in other ways gained qualifications that are comparable to the requirements set out in the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree, with documentation for the activities named in the explanation, as well as a solemn declaration as to whether the PhD thesis has been submitted for assessment previously.
Six copies of the PhD thesis, application form and solemn declaration must be submitted to the PhD school secretariat.
At the request of the Head of PhD School, the relevant programme committee makes a preliminary evaluation as to whether the PhD thesis can be accepted for assessment, and whether the author has gained qualifications comparable with the requirements set out in the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree.
If the thesis is accepted for assessment, the PhD Committee makes recommendations to the Dean as to who should be on the assessment committee. The PhD school secretariat will inform the student who the members of the assessment committee will be. If the author has raised no objections to the members within one week, the PhD school secretariat will send the thesis to the assessment committee. The same rules apply for the composition and procedures of the assessment committee in connection with the defence of the thesis as for the assessment of theses after the end of the PhD programme.
15. Appeals and dispensations
The University’s decisions according to these guidelines for the PhD programme at the Faculty of Social Sciences may be brought before the Danish University and Property Agency if the complaint concerns a legal issue. The deadline for appeals is two weeks from the date on which the appellant was informed of the decision. Those entitled to appeal are PhD students and authors who have applied to have a PhD thesis accepted for assessment according to the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme and on the PhD Degree Section 15, subsection 2.
Appeals must be submitted to the Dean, who will issue a statement; the appellant should have the opportunity to comment on this within one week. The University shall send the appeal to the Danish University and Property Agency with the statement and any comments from the appellant.
In special circumstances, the University may allow dispensations from the rules in the guidelines for the PhD programme at the Faculty of Social Sciences, which are determined by the faculty. Applications for dispensation must be addressed to the PhD Committee and submitted to the PhD school secretariat.