Regulations for the Award of a Research Degree

PRINCIPLES

The University’s PhD Research Degree by career and Public Works  in Coaching Psychology consist of the presentation of a submission and the defence of the submission at an oral examination. The  submission is made up of the candidate’s published works undertaken prior to enrolment for the degree, and a context statement undertaken at the University under supervision.

A candidate must satisfy the examiners both in respect of the submission and orally in order to be awarded the degree.

Works accepted for publication but not yet published are considered eligible with a letter of verification from the publisher. Other forms of works accepted for public display or for the public domain require similar verification from an appropriate authority.

The context statement shall normally be not less than 10,000 words and not more than 30,000 words.

ELIGIBILITY

The University shall consider applications from staff of the University and from persons who have no connection with the University.

The University shall consider an application from a person based outside the UK provided it is satisfied that the arrangements proposed for supervision enable frequent and substantial contact between the candidate and supervisor(s) based in the UK and/or its regional offices.

APPLICATION

A candidate shall apply for the research degree in coaching psychology by public works by completing the appropriate form and sending this together with the current non-returnable application fee to the University through NECP.

A candidate whose list of publications or other public domain works includes works of joint  authorship shall submit a signed statement to clarify his/her own contribution to these works. In the case of works of art, the collaborators shall sign such a statement.

ACCEPTANCE

A candidate’s application shall be forwarded to the university where the quality and quantity of the public works shall be assessed and verified. (The standards required for the PhD by career and public works is given in the Notes of Guidance).  In cases where the outcome of the assessment is positive, the candidate shall be interviewed. The outcomes of the assessment of all applications received, whether positive or otherwise, shall be communicated to the applicants in writing.

 PREPARATION FOR REGISTRATION

The  appropriate  School  shall  appoint  a  supervisor  to  prepare  the  candidate  for registration. This shall consist in assisting the candidate in selecting the publications or other public domain works for the degree, in formulating the scheme and rationale of the context statement, and in advising on any further reading.

The supervisor shall also advise the candidate on whether he/she should be examined for the degree of PhD by Public Works.

The supervisor appointed by the School shall be experienced in supervising candidates for  research degrees by thesis, or shall have supervised previously candidates for research degrees by public works. Adequate supervision shall normally be taken as a minimum  of  three  research  degrees  by  either  route.

Where a candidate fails to make progress towards registration that is judged satisfactory by the supervisor(s), the School Research Team shall advise the candidate of this fact in writing, and  identify a reasonable timescale (not normally less than 4 months) for improvements to be made. Should the progress be judged insufficient at the end of the stated period, the School Research Team may require either that the candidate transfer to a different degree (M Phil by Public Works) or withdraw.

REGISTRATION

No later than 6 months after enrolment, the School Research Team, either through a registration  panel  or  alternative  informal  process,  shall  ensure  the  quality  of  the submission for the proposed degree, with particular regard to the content, rationale, and length of the context statement, and its relation to the public works.

PUBLICATIONS IN NON-WRITTEN FORM

The University shall also consider work for the degrees of PhD by Public Works in non-written form.  These may include creative works that have been made public by presentation or display, scholarly editions, software and research reports, or translations that embody research. The work must be available in a suitable form for perusal by supervisors and examiners.

Work in non-written form shall be the core work, constituting the point of reference and principal mode of enquiry, but supplemented by a shorter submission of written work. This published written work shall constitute a reasoned commentary on the other forms.

The combined works shall constitute the equivalent of a complete PhD, as relevant, with the written content constituting at least half the intellectual contribution. The acceptance of forms of work other than a conventional set of published works does not imply any relaxation in the academic standards for the award concerned. The normal registration process also applies to non-written submissions.

The works shall be supplemented by a context statement.

EXAMINERS

When the supervisor is satisfied that the candidate is prepared for the examination, examination  arrangements shall be proposed to Research and Research Degrees Committee.

There shall be two external examiners.  These shall not currently hold any appointment of the University or of an associated institution, nor have been a co-author of any of the works on which the candidate’s application is based, and shall not be selected from an institution where the candidate is currently employed or has been recently employed.

Additionally, there may be an independent internal examiner. Th independent internal examiner shall have had no supervisory or advisory contact with the candidate during the period of registration. The oral examination shall have a Chair.

SUBMISSION OF PUBLIC WORKS

The candidate shall submit two or three copies, appropriately bound, of all the public works on which the application is based (dependent on the number of examiners).

Normally, where journal articles form the main body of the submission, these should be bound in behind the context statement. The contents page should give details of all the articles that are included.

Where the body of written work is supplemented by work in another form, a record of that  work shall also  be  submitted in  appropriate form(s), such as  video or  audio recordings, CD, or any appropriate medium. Two or three copies of this record shall be submitted (dependent on the number of examiners).

PREVIOUS SUBMISSION OF WORKS

The candidate shall declare if any of the works on which the application is based have formed part of the submission for any other degree awarded to the candidate.  Works submitted for another degree awarded to the candidate shall not form a substantial part of the candidate’s submission for the award of either the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Public Works.

 EXAMINATION

The candidate shall be examined viva voce. The examination board shall be composed of  a  Chair  and  examiners  duly  appointed  by  Research  and  Research  Degrees Committee. Observers shall be present only with the agreement of the candidate and the examiners. The  examination shall be concerned with the content of the works submitted and any matters the examiners deem to be related thereto.

In examining the candidate for the degree of PhD by public works, the examiners shall determine whether the submission fulfils the standard for this degree:

Prior  to  the  oral  examination,  each  examiner  shall  be  required  to  complete, independently and without prior consultation a preliminary report form on the public works  and context statement.

EXAMINERS’ REPORT

After the examination the examiners shall report collectively on the works submitted and on the viva voce examination.  They shall preferably present a joint report but are at liberty to  present separate ones if they so wish.   They shall jointly make one of the following recommendations to Research and Research Degrees Committee:

i that the degree be awarded;

ii that the degree be awarded subject to revisions to the context statement or other revisions required by the examiners;

iii  that the degree be not awarded.

iv  that, in the case of a PhD by Public Works examination, the candidate be awarded the degree of MPhil by Public Works.

The recommendation of  the  examiners shall be considered by the Research and Research Degrees Committee.

If the Committee agrees that the degree should be awarded its ecommendation shall be considered by the Academic Board.

If the examiners are unable to agree on a recommendation, the Research and Research Degrees Committee shall appoint an additional external examiner and shall consider the public works, the context statement, and the reports of all the examiners.

In cases where it is recommended that the degree be awarded subject to revisions to the  context  statement,  the  revisions  shall  be  approved  by  all  examiners  prior  to consideration by Research and Research Degrees Committee.

A candidate to whom the degree is not awarded may reapply at any time, provided that such an  application includes substantial additional public works based upon further study and research, and a revised context statement.

A candidate to whom the degree of MPhil by Public Works is awarded may reapply for the  degree  of  PhD  by  Public  Works  provided  that  such  an  application  includes substantial additional public works based upon further study and research, and a revised context statement, or may apply to study for a PhD by thesis (see Research Degree Regulations, Section A).

DISPOSAL OF WORKS SUBMITTED