Course Content
- First year candidates will undertake a research methods module in order to gain a more in-depth background in designing and conducting quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research. The first year (probationary year) is seen as a bridge between undergraduate, postgraduate, and professional experience and the required independent level of research. Candidates spend this year with broadening their knowledge in the area of interest, refining their proposal, developing the methodology, securing ethical clearance, and collecting some initial data. At the end of the first year, this well-developed research proposal and the research skills gained are assessed in a mini-viva with an internal assessor.
- In the second year, candidates collect and analyse data, while continuously engaging with the literature and refining their chapters. The progress made in this year is also assessed by an internal review, where the internal assessor determines whether requisite progress has been made in order to submit at the end of the third year.
- The third year is primarily focused on preparing and writing up the thesis, which is defended in an oral examination (viva voce) by an external examiner who is an expert in the field.
Assessment
- PhD students must present a thesis, maximum 100,000 words, demonstrating originality and innovation on the subject of their advanced study and research.
- The thesis must satisfy examiners regarding knowledge of the general field of scholarship to which the subject belongs.
- They must also present themselves for an oral examination on the subject of their thesis and its general field of scholarship.
