ChapterIII-updated11-10-11

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and

(b) to make a significant original contribution to knowledge or understanding. The thesismust be up to the standards of criticism, scholarship and bibliography which apply in

its field.

The length recommended is about 60,000 words and should not normally exceed 80,000.

This word limit includes quotations and footnotes, but excludes bibliography and plate/figure

captions. If candidates expect to exceed the recommended length they should seek

permission well in advance of their submission date from the Graduate Chair.

Theses of which a substantial portion is an edition: when a substantial portion of the thesis

(more than 25,000 words) is an edition of a previously unedited text, the edition is included

as part of the body of the thesis, rather than being added as an appendix. (A thesis with an

edition of a text up to 25,000 words long should be treated as an ordinary thesis with the

edition in the appendix.) In these instances where the thesis is a substantial part, the

relationship of introductory and critical text to edition should be approximately 1:2(introduction being one-third of total word count), except in cases of exceptionally long

edited texts. Thus the introduction and critical analysis would normally be between 30,000

and 40,000 words, with the edited text taking up the rest of the thesis. In the case of lengthy

edited texts, the word limit for the thesis would thus be extended to accommodate the length

of the edited text, provided that a) the introductory and critical introduction did not exceed

40,000 words, as a maximum, and b) that the length of text to be edited had been decided

upon in consultation with the supervisor or supervisors who would determine on an

individual basis whether the student would have time to complete the edition of the text

within two years (leaving a third year for the introductory and critical portion).

In these theses of which a substantial portion is an edition, for purposes of the word-countand ratio given above, each portion should normally contain the following:

Introduction and critical analysis: a description of the primary source material to be edited

(the manuscript, manuscripts, or documents); the context of the edited text (e.g., a discussion

of its literary genre or class of document); the relationship of the edited text to others of the

genre or class; an argument for its importance, thus the reason for editing this rather than

another text or texts; an explanation of editorial procedures. The introduction would then

normally develop an argument or analysis which would vary from one thesis to another in

relation to the distinct character of the text or document(s).

Edition and apparatus: text, glosses, textual and/or explanatory notes, glossary, index, andany other textual apparatus.

C. CONFIRMATION OF PHD ENROLMENT

An application for confirmation of PhD status will normally be made in the third or fourth

term of full-time registration. Confirmation for full-time PhD students should take place by

the end of their second year (i.e. before the end of Term 6) and for part-time students by the

end of their fourth year. The initiative for setting the procedure in motion will normally rest

with the supervisor. Where a graduate thinks he or she is ready to seek confirmation and the

supervisor does not, the graduate may appeal directly to the Department Graduate Chair.

Whilst such an appeal need not lead to a breakdown of relations between supervisor and


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supervisee, it could lead to the confirmation being recommended only if there were someone

in the Department competent and willing to support the application and take on supervision.

An application for confirmation must be supported by:

(a)

the supervisors approval;

(b) a detailed plan, outline or synopsis of the proposed thesis, defining the field of studyand its particular scope, and making clear what will be its contribution to knowledge

or understanding. A plan of the probable chapters, with an indication of the research

likely to be involved in their preparation, and a statement of their rationale is

normally asked for;

(c) a substantial draft of work in progress, e.g., ideally a complete chapter or verysubstantial part of a chapter, normally of at least of 10,000 words but certainly no

more than 12,000 words; in the case of editions, at the discretion of the members of

the TAP and as agreed at the preceding TAP, a substantial portion of the edition, notjust a transcription but a regularized text with textual and explanatory notes, may be

substituted for a chapter.

(d) a selected bibliography giving some indication of the primary and secondary readingalready undertaken and the authority of the primary texts used;

(e) a timetable for completion of the thesis. The timetable should refer clearly to thedetailed plan, which must include a submission date within three years of initial

registration.

The confirmation meeting will take the place of one of the Thesis Advisory Panel meetings

(see D below); it will be convened by the Director of the Research School to which the

applicant belongs, who will act as chair for the meeting. Where the Director is also the

supervisor, the Graduate Chair will appoint a chair in consultation with the supervisor. If

necessary and if circumstances permit, the Director may delegate convening the meeting to

another member of the Research School. If the TAP member is also the Director of the

Research School, s/he can delegate convening the meeting to another member of the School.

If no one else can be found, the Graduate Chair will convene the meeting. The chair of the

meeting will forward the appropriate forms to the Graduate Chair for signature, via the

Graduate Studies Administrator, after the meeting, after which the recommendation will go to

the Universitys Registry Services for approval. If the chair of the meeting is not the

Graduate Chair, s/he should make clear on the form the role s/he has taken.

Both the usual TAP forms should be completed, in addition to the Registrys form, available

online at http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/research/phd/

along with their notes on this process.

The supervisor is responsible for providing the Director with at least one months notice of an

impending application, and for notifying the other panel member. The applicant should

provide each member of the committee with a copy of the written material, retaining a copy

for his/her own use, and prepare the relevant TAP form in advance, including a detailed

timetable for completion. Students must ensure that a hard copy of all confirmation materials

is with the panel members at least two weeks, and preferably one month, before the meeting.
http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/research/phd/http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/research/phd/http://www.york.ac.uk/staff/supporting-students/issues/academic/research/phd/


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Confirmation meetings should not normally be held outside term time. Requests to schedule

confirmation meetings must be made well in advance, as it is usually not possible to

accommodate all candidates in the last two weeks of the summer term.

The committee will discuss the submitted materials with the student, including the written

work and the plan for the thesis. The applicant will be expected to show familiarity with therequirements of a PhD thesis, and have: a subject of doctoral substance and scope; a

satisfactory awareness of previous relevant work in the field; a clear sense of the originality

of his or her argument and approach; a provisional overall scheme within which the thesis

might be effectively developed; a quality of critical address, expressive skill and scholarly

habit appropriate to the PhD and a good prospect of completion within the period of time

allowed, ie within three years of initial registration.

It is normally expected that all three members of the committee will reach a consensus in

reaching a final decision. In the event that only two can reach agreement, one of these must

be the chair of the panel. If the supervisor wishes to qualify general approval of the

application with any particular reservations or uncertainties, he or she should notify them tothe chair and the other panel member in advance so that they can give them special

consideration before offering advice. An opportunity will also be given at the confirmation

meeting for the student to comment in confidence to the chair of the panel on the relationship

with the supervisor.

In the case of serious disagreement between the committee members, the Chair of the ad hoc

committee will refer the application and their reports to a further reader competent in the field

an external reader, if necessarywho will make the final decision.

The candidate will be informed of the decision of the panel immediately after the meeting or

as soon as possible thereafter, with written confirmation following from the Graduate SchoolsOffice. The supervisor will communicate to the candidate any recommendations arising from

the meeting.

Where an application for confirmation is refused, a second application is permitted. This

should be made within the period of provisional registration, and special permission must be

sought for any exception. A second refusal will be final.

D. ADVISORY PANELS

It is a University statutory requirement that each student have a supervisory panel responsiblefor overseeing the students progress. This is known as the Thesis Advisory Panel, or TAP.

(a) The panel should consist of the supervisor or supervisors (in the case of jointsupervision) and another appropriately qualified member of staff (the advisor, or

panel member). On exceptional academic grounds, the panel may include two

members of staff in addition to the supervisor.

(b) The panel should be in place by the start of the sixth week of the students first termof registration. The initiative for setting up the panel is with the supervisor, who is

accountable through the Graduate Studies Administrator to the Graduate Chair.


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(c) The Thesis Advisory Panel normally meets twice in each year during the period offormal registration. For full-time MPhil/PhD students, these meetings will normally

take place in the Spring and Summer Terms of Year 1, and in the Autumn and

Summer Terms of each subsequent year. One of the meetings held in the first or

second year will normally take the form of the confirmation of PhD status (see

SECTION C above). The confirmation meeting will normally take place in terms 3 or4, but could be delayed until terms 5 or 6. TAP meetings are initiated by the

supervisor, acting in consultation with the student. For part-time students, TAP

meetings should normally be initiated in the Summer Term of Year 1, and in the

Spring Term of each subsequent year.

(d) For at least one TAP meeting each year, the student should submit a substantial pieceof written work of 12,000 words maximum; and for every TAP meeting, a written

outline of progress to date and plan for completion should be submitted.

(e) The student completes a self-evaluation form which he/she should bring along to themeeting. This outlines the students activities and progress in research, his/hertraining needs, and his/her participation in graduate training programmes. The

supervisor and TAP member complete and sign a short report form during the TAP

meeting (also signed by the student). Both forms are available online at

www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/. After the meeting the panel member

is responsible for ensuring that both forms are submitted with the required signatures

via the Graduate Studies Administrator to the Graduate Chair. The student should

inform the panel member if he/she wishes to keep their discussion confidential.

Part of the TAP meeting should be devoted to a discussion of the students training

needs and participation in graduate training programmes, and should address ways in

which these training needs are being or may be met. Training can be defined in anumber of ways, as the acquisition of useful or necessary skills for the development

of research. It can include, for example, learning a new language, or auditing a

relevant MA course. The supervisor and TAP members reports should reflect this

discussion of training needs and development. The Government and its agencies

increasingly regard graduate training provision and successful student participation in

this training as an indicator of a departments efficient supervision of research, and

failure of students to participate in training activities, as well as failure of TAPs to

discuss and monitor training activities and needs, can affect the departments record

to the extent of jeopardising state funding for future students applying to do research

here.

(f) TAP meetings will not normally take place during the vacations.E. PART-TIME STUDY

Students should note that change from full-time to part-time study (or vice versa) will alter

the length of registration period proportionally, and should consult Registry Services about

this and the implications in terms of awards. The problems of part-time study should not be

under-estimated.
http://userfs/ww2/handbook/grad-handbook/www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/http://userfs/ww2/handbook/grad-handbook/www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/http://userfs/ww2/handbook/grad-handbook/www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/


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F. LENGTH OF REGISTRATION

MPhil and PhD students should plan their work in relation to the Universitys regulations

which stipulate that completion and submission is expected within the period of formal

registration:

MPhil Full-time: 2 years;

MPhil Part-time: 4 years;

PhD Full-time: 3 years;

PhD Part-time: 6 years.

However, while the expectation is that students will normally complete and submit their

thesis within this period, they may have an additional period of up to one year, if required.

Discretionary extensions beyond the writing-up period will be granted only on compassionate

and medical grounds.

For individual students, the completion date may vary if registration has been suspended or

extended. A student needing to suspend or extend his/her registration should consult the

guidelines at www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/extension-suspension/ on the

Departments website.

Government and its agencies increasingly regard completion rates as an indicator of a

departments efficient supervision of research, and two or three late submissions can affect

the departments record to the extent of jeopardizing state funding for future students

applying to do research here.

Up to date details of fees for extended registration can be found atwww.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/research-students/continuation/.
http://www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/extension-suspension/http://www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/extension-suspension/http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/research-students/continuation/http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/research-students/continuation/http://www.york.ac.uk/students/studying/manage/research-students/continuation/http://www.york.ac.uk/english/intranet/postgraduates/extension-suspension/

ChapterIII-updated11-10-11

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