6a Status

The PhD thesis is the most visible result of a student's doctoral studies. Pursuant to the PhD Order, the PhD thesis must document its author's ability to apply the appropriate scientific and scholarly methods in order to produce research results that fulfill the international standards for PhDs within the field in question. The concept ”international standards for PhD degrees” is difficult to define in a way that applies to all fields of research, just as these standards are often based on informal traditions and conventions developed over many years within the individual fields of research. In other words, it is to a high degree up to the individual university and to the main academic areas to define this standard. For example, the Faculty of Health Sciences has recently participated in a major project on international standards under the aegis of ORPHEUS [ORPHEUS – Organisation for PhD Education in Biomedicine and Health Sciences in the European System].

Pursuant to the PhD Order, a PhD student must submit his or her thesis within the time of study stipulated for the PhD programme (three years of full-time study). However, it is a fact that many PhD students do not complete their studies on time. Experience shows that it is often difficult for PhD students to complete their studies on time, despite all good intentions to the contrary. It is necessary to investigate the extent of the problem and to increase focus on solving it - first and foremost out of consideration for the students, but also in light of the increasing centrality of ‘completion on time’ as a parameter for the allocation of basic funding.

Some graduate schools have instituted central administrative mechanisms to ensure that PhD theses are completed on time (or with the least possible delay). A few graduate schools reward students whose theses are completed on time and students who publish work with a bonus.

As mentioned above, the PhD Order requires that the thesis should document its author’s ability to apply the scientific and scholarly methods of his or her field in order to produce research results that fulfill the international standards for PhD degrees for the field in question. A PhD thesis can consist of a coherent exposition, articles/manuscripts or a monograph. A PhD thesis based on articles typically contains a number of articles/manuscripts in addition to a summary consisting of a general introduction and a discussion. Monographs vary in length.

It is currently possible to submit a PhD thesis in English, Danish or - in certain cases - other languages. There is also a great deal of variation with regard to format, length and layout, and with regard to how much of the material included has already been published.

The PhD Order lays down requirements with regard to the expert assessment committee appointed to assess submitted PhD theses. The primary task of the committee is to provide a reasoned recommendation as to whether the PhD degree should be awarded on the merits of the work submitted. Some main academic areas have prepared internal guidelines for the form of such recommendations. For example, the Faculty of Humanities has produced detailed practical guidelines for writing PhD recommendations.

The defence of a PhD thesis takes place according to the internal procedures laid down by each main academic area. The rules and regulations of Aarhus University currently require that all members of the assessment committee participate in the defence. There exists a great deal of variation among the main academic areas with regard to how PhD defences are performed, both in terms of content and formalia. At the PhD defence, the PhD student is given the opportunity to explain his or her work and defend his or her PhD thesis. The degree of attention granted the PhD student after the defence varies greatly among the departments - from no celebration at all to a reception financed by the department.

The thesis and its defence are evaluated by an assessment committee with three members. The asssessment committee members must be recognised researchers within the field in question; two members must be external. At least one member should be from outside Denmark, unless the research field in question makes this impracticable. The main academic areas have widely differing procedures for selecting appointment committees and performing the assessment of the thesis. After the defence, the assessment committee submits its final recommendation as to whether the PhD degree should be awarded. The recommendation must be reasoned, but there is a great degree of variation with regard to their length.

Pursuant to the PhD Order, the university must make PhD theses available in due time before the defence. The defence must take place two weeks after the assessment committee’s submission of its recommendation at the earliest and no later than three months after the submission of the PhD thesis. There is no common procedure for making theses publically available; practices range from no distribution at all to assignment of ISBN numbers.

6b Objectives

Generally speaking, the university’s goal is to provide society with young high-qualified PhD graduates. The age of doctoral graduates can be reduced in two ways: by admitting young students to PhD programmes and by ensuring that PhD degree studies are completed within the time prescribed.

A significant proportion of the research performed at Aarhus University is produced within the context of doctorral education. An important objective is therefore to make this research more visible.

The defense is a milestone in a PhD student's career, and it is therefore important to make it a positive and memorable experience, in addition to ensuring a high academic standard. It is therefore important to establish procedures to ensure the quality of both the academic and ceremonial aspects of the defense.

 

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Aarhus University’s objectives for initiatives regarding submission of the thesis, the quality of the thesis and thesis defense are to ensure that

 

• students complete their PhD degrees within the stipulated timeframe;
• the assessment of PhD theses ensures a high level of quality;
• PhD theses are an integrated part of the university’s research publication efforts and profile; and
• the formalities connected with the completion of a doctoral programme (thesis and defence) reflect the status of the PhD degree as the highest degree in the Danish education system.

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6c Initiatives

Timely submission of the PhD thesis 

Each graduate school should work to ensure that its PhD students complete their studies within the time stipulated. First and foremost, this is naturally a matter of ensuring that students progress smoothly through their studies, as described in other sections of this plan. But it is also important not to subject the process of submission to unnecessary delays.

Each graduate school should perform an investigation of the extent and causes of late completion. In addition, rigorous enforcement of all procedures which contribute to timely completion of the programme is recommended. Examples include procedures for monitoring student work as the deadline for submission approaches, for the appointment of assessment committee members and for setting the defense date.

On the political level, in connection with the elevation of ‘completion on time’ to a parameter for the allocation of basic funding from the central government,

Aarhus University should advocate flexibility with regard to such legitimate causes of delay as forms of leave to which students are legally entitled, or which result from legitimate scholarly or scientific considerations.

Agents: The graduate schools

PhD theses 

Aarhus University should contribute to all initiatives aimed at the creation of an international consensus on the definition of the concept of ‘international standards for PhD degrees’ within each of the university’s main academic areas. An example of this is the previously described work undertaken under the aegis of ORPHEUS in the area of health sciences. The natural fora for such consensus creation are existing international partnerships and collaborations, either at the level of the university or of individual main academic areas.

If Aarhus University is to make its presence felt in international research circles, it is essential that the university’s research be published internationally. PhD theses have an important role to play in this arena.

General formal guidelines for PhD theses should be developed to ensure that the theses produced at the university contribute to the professional public presentation of its academic achievements. A certain degree of uniformity with regard to layout and cover design would also contribute positively to the Aarhus University ‘brand’. PhD theses submitted at Aarhus University should be written in English unless specific scholarly and scientific considerations justify the use of another language (such as Danish). Therefore, it is important to ensure that each graduate school offers its graduate students an appropriate degree of assistance with regard to training in academic English.

A common set of guidelines regarding such issues as copyright, intellectual property rights and confidentiality in connection with PhD theses should be developed.

Procedures and guidelines for the publication of PhD theses in accordance with Aarhus University’s Open Access guidelines should be developed in order to ensure that all theses are accessible and registered. A shared portal with thesis abstracts and access to all theses could be a way of making graduate student research more visible. Publication could be made part of the online Phd administration system.

A series with a distinct ISBN number should be created for the publication of the university's PhD theses. Abstracts of all PhD theses should be published on the graduate schools' websites.

Agents: AU Human Resources, the electronic PhD administration system and the graduate schools

Assessment of the PhD thesis

The graduate schools should work to ensure the quality of the assessment pro-cess, and should therefore develop clear guidelines for

• the appointment of assessment committees
• the work of assessment committees (requirements regarding academic level) and
• the content and form of assessment committee recommendations.

These guidelines should be made available to the public on the websites of the graduate schools.

Agents: The graduate schools

PhD defences and diplomas

The graduate schools should develop guidelines for PhD thesis defence proceedings, including formalia and a description of the duties and responsibilities of the participants. The description should include a detailed definition of the responsibilities of the assessment committee as well as guidelines for preparing the post-defence recommendation. Each graduate school should strive to ensure that the PhD defense takes place in an appropriately ceremonial fashion which honours the importance of this event in the career of a PhD student and which leaves other participants with a positive impression of Aarhus University.

A shared template for PhD diplomas should be developed based on the new AU design programme.

The PhD Order stipulates that the PhD diploma must contain information on the individual student’s completed doctoral studies. This requirement should be fulfilled in the form of a separate document containing a transcript of the student’s online portfolio.

 

Agents: The graduate schools