School of Social Justice: PhD Structure. Year 1

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1 School of Social Justice: PhD Structure The information set out below will give you an idea of how your PhD studies will progress over the course of your degree. It is based on the aim of completing the PhD in 3 years. Some students need a bit longer to complete, but the University's policy is for full-time students to complete within 4 years. Guidance for part-time students is set out on the final page of this document. Course Requirements Year 1 Students who enter the Ph.D. programme with a Masters in Women s Studies are required to: (a) Participate in the fortnightly PhD Roundtables. Their purpose is to ensure that PhD students have structured support and on-going intellectual stimulation while undertaking their studies. The Roundtables enable us to get to know one another and to learn from each other s work and experiences of doing research. The Roundtables serve two main complementary objectives: First, they give students an opportunity to do presentations on their work and get feedback and support from staff and colleagues. There is a strong emphasis on peer learning and support in the group. Second, the Roundtables provide students and staff with the opportunity to discuss texts of relevance to their research. Both students and staff propose readings throughout the year and all of us read these and discuss them. This gives us a chance to explore new ideas in the field. (b) Undertake such other courses offered by the School or the College of Human Sciences that would contribute to their ability to conduct their research. In addition to (a) and (b) above, students entering the PhD programme without a Masters in Women s Studies may be required to complete additional modules offered on the School's MA in Women, Gender and Society. Supervision All students have an allocated Principal Supervisor and a Doctoral Panel consisting of the supervisor and at least two other staff. Regular meetings with the supervisor are arranged (e.g. fortnightly or monthly depending on whether students are full-time or part-time). Each student is asked to develop a clear and realistic timetable for their work on an annual basis. Each student meets with her or his Doctoral Panel at the end of the academic year to review progress.

2 End of Year 1 Objectives At the conclusion of their first year students should produce a well-developed research proposal approved by the supervisor and their doctoral panel. A core element in this is the development of a sound theoretical and methodological framework for the thesis involving (a) a substantive literature review and (b) a full upto-date bibliography. Students should have also prepared a research design and plan for the thesis. Where an empirical study is involved, the pilot work should be planned in Year 1. At the end of Year 1 students will also have: Made at least one presentation to the PhD Roundtable on their research proposal. Completed required modules to a high academic standard (generally A or B). All students will be expected to demonstrate that they are capable and willing to complete their PhD within an agreed time frame.

3 Year 2 The second year of PhD studies will entail: a. Continued participation in PhD Roundtables b. Undertaking such further modules as may contribute to one s research. c. Continued work with supervisor Full-time PhD students will normally undertake a Transfer Assessment to move to Stage 2 of the PhD. The assessment will be based on their developed proposal and other written work (including courses completed and chapters as appropriate). End of Year 2 Objectives Complete a definitive theoretical/review of the literature for the thesis. This will involve 2 chapters at least. Plan and complete fieldwork, if and as appropriate, and begin preliminary analysis. If a thesis is purely theoretical, the objective for year 2 will be to have drafted 3 major chapters. Give at least one presentation to the PhD Roundtable. Each student meets with his or her Doctoral Panel at the end of the academic year to review progress.

4 Year 3 The third (and normally final) year of PhD studies will entail: a. Continued participation in PhD Roundtables b. Undertaking such further modules as may contribute to one s research. c. Continued work with supervisor End of Year 3 Objectives Final data analysis Final write up of thesis Final Presentation to the PHD Roundtable prior to submission of the thesis

5 Part-time Students It is envisaged that students who are undertaking their PhD on a part-time basis will take 5-6 years to complete. The timeframe for their work will be a modified version of the full-time schedule given above. In particular: a. All students attend the PhD Roundtable in every year of their programme. b. Other course requirements in Stage 1 of the programme are completed over the first two years. c. The Transfer Assessment normally takes place at the end of the second year or beginning of the third. d. All students meet with their Doctoral Panels at the end of each year to review their progress. If you have any questions about these guidelines, please do not hesitate to contact us: