The research degree process
Graduate research students are required to undertake a program of research that culminates in the submission of an original thesis. At UTS, we consider the journey to the completion of the thesis to be an important part of the overall research process. This program of research is expected to adhere to research management best practice.
The Graduate Research Candidature Management, Thesis Preparation and Submission Procedures is a resource for supervisors and research students to reference throughout the student’s candidature. It also outlines the UTS Graduate Research Education Framework (GREF) which articulates the support students will receive and are expected to engage with while undertaking a graduate research degree at UTS. Here is a snapshot:
Supporting a new student
Supporting the student after they enrol (the first meeting)
Each supervisor-student relationship is unique there is no one right way to supervise. Your relationship with your student may be complex and will evolve over time. However, it is important to clarify expectations of supervisors and students about roles and responsibilities, and develop communication channels very early.
Some things to discuss in the first meeting include:
- how often you will meet and the mode of the meeting (e.g. in-person/Skype/Zoom)
- whether the supervisory panel will meet with the student together or separately
- who will initiate the contact (and meeting requests)
- who will keep notes of the meetings
- timeframes for providing feedback
Working with other members of the supervision panel
In addition to setting up a framework for working with your student, it is important to set up guidelines on how you will work with other members of the supervisory panel and how each member will work with the student. This may depend on the experience and expertise that each member of the panel brings to the team.
If you are an experienced supervisor, you may often find that you are mentoring an early career supervisor to develop her/his supervision skills. This is a relationship that we strongly encourage at UTS, and we suggest developing a mentoring agreement between the (experienced) principal supervisor and the (early career) co-supervisor. The chemistry between members of the supervisory panel can have a significant effect on the student’s outcome.
Some things to consider are:
- Will you meet the student separately or together?
- Do you need to meet with each other separately from meeting the student (or will your communication take place via email/phone)?
- What aspects of the student’s development will each supervisor be responsible for?
Graduate Research Study Plan
A Graduate Research Study Plan (GRSP) is a tool to guide your students’ progression through HDR candidature and an opportunity for them to take ownership of their unique research journey. The GRSP is a structured agreement between you and your research student, which articulates the resources, knowledge and skills development the student needs to produce their research output, as well as the capabilities they'll use to develop their career.
These skills requirements may vary by discipline and by student. An initial GRSP conversation should begin with an assessment of the skills that the student possesses and the skills they need to progress their research and career, using the HDR Capability Framework as a guideline. (Here are some suggestions on engaging with the GRSP and examples of appropriate goals and development activities.)
You will need to complete an initial GRSP in consultation with your student within the first two weeks of their enrolment at UTS. Together, you will need to revisit it at each stage of the student’s candidature to ensure that it remains an accurate reflection of their research goals and development objectives.
The GRSP is an online form in ResearchMaster and can be accessed here, along with help guides.
Candidature stage assessments
Students are required to complete an assessment at the end of each candidature stage. The deliverables for each assessment reflect the student’s research progress and the skills and knowledge they have developed during the period.
Students at each stage assessment will receive one of three possible results:
- Satisfactory
- Reassessment required
- Unsatisfactory
Students who receive an unsatisfactory result may have their candidature discontinued.
Stage assessment requirements
A list of stage assessment requirements can be found in the Graduate Research Candidature Management, Thesis Preparation and Submission Procedures. Please note that stage assessment requirements may vary from faculty to faculty; as such, the information provided should be used as a guide only.
Stage assessment responsibilities
Faculties are responsible for determining assessment requirements, panel composition and appeals processes, subject to the approval of the GRS Board. The faculty must record the results and upload the panel reports to ResearchMaster using the stage assessment online form, within seven business days of the assessment date.
Students are responsible for completing their required stage assessment outputs by the due date. Supervisors are responsible for providing guidance and support to students in preparation for their stage assessments.
Stage 1: Confirmation of candidature
Stage 1 of your student’s candidature roughly maps to the proposal stage of the research lifecycle. Most HDR students write a brief research proposal when they apply for admission. However, in terms of the graduate research lifecycle, this is only a sketch of the research project.
By the end of Stage 1, your student should be able to write a detailed proposal that can convince an assessment panel that their proposed research is worthy of being pursued and to demonstrate that they are capable of undertaking it. The amount of detail will vary by discipline; in some disciplines, it may include preliminary results.
During Stage 1, you should provide guidance on managing the proposal process and guiding the level of detail that is appropriate for your discipline.
Timeframe
Students are expected to complete Stage 1 within the following timeframes:
- Master’s degree (full time): Within six months of enrolment
- Master’s degree (part time): Within 12 months of enrolment
- PhD (full time): Within 12 months of enrolment
- PhD (part time): Within 24 months of enrolment.
Research integrity modules
You will also need to ensure that your student has completed the compulsory UTS Research Integrity Module within the required timeframe (six months for PhD students and three months for master’s by research students), as well as the Respect.Now.Always module on Consent Matters.
Stage 1 assessment
At the end of Stage 1, your student will need to complete a formal written and oral assessment. As the supervisor, you will play an important role in helping your student prepare for their assessment, and ensuring that reviews of progress and assessments are scheduled and completed on time. You will need to work with the Faculty Research Administrator to schedule the assessments and ensure that all procedural requirements are completed.
Stage 2: Confirmation of advanced progress
Chief investigators of most funded research projects are usually expected to report on their progress midway through the project. The assessment at the end of Stage 2 of your research student’s candidature is expected to play similar role. It also provides your student with the opportunity to reflect on their progress, obtain feedback from the wider UTS research community and take any actions required to stay on track to the completion of their degree.
Timeframe
Students are expected to complete Stage 2 within the following timeframes:
- Master’s degree (full time): Within 12 months of enrolment
- Master’s degree (part time): Within 24 months of enrolment
- PhD (full time): Within 24 months of enrolment
- PhD (part time): Within 48 months of enrolment
Stage 2 assessment
At the end of Stage 2, students will need to complete a written piece of work (such as a draft conference or journal paper or a draft thesis chapter) along with an oral presentation. This work should demonstrate substantial progress via the presentation of results and should include a reflection on how these fit with the research project/program.
Stage 3: Confirmation of readiness to submit
Stage 3 is the advanced stage of the student’s research candidature. At this stage, their research should be almost complete, and the student should be recognised as a researcher both at UTS and in the wider research community.
Timeframe
Students are expected to complete Stage 3 within the following timeframes:
- Master’s degree (full-time): Within 18 months of enrolment
- Master’s degree (part-time): Within 36 months of enrolment
- PhD (full-time): Within 36 months of enrolment
- PhD (part-time): Within 72 months of enrolment.
Stage 3 assessment
Prior to submitting the thesis for external assessment, your student’s work will be assessed internally. The purpose of this assessment is to ensure that the work meets the standard expected for the UTS degree for which they are a candidate. As with the Stage 2 assessment, it also provides an opportunity to obtain and incorporate feedback from the UTS research community before the thesis is sent out for external assessment.
Students will be required to submit a written piece of work and an oral presentation that represents a completed draft of their thesis. The draft thesis should be appropriately structured; written in clear and cohesive terms; and use accurate grammar, spelling and punctuation.
Students should also have a clear plan to complete the thesis before their EWS date. The oral presentation should contain a well-argued description and defence of the thesis, and should demonstrate that the work makes an original contribution to knowledge.
Nominating examiners
As the principal supervisor, you are responsible for nominating thesis examiners once your student has submitted their Intention to Submit form via ResearchMaster. A minimum of 2 and maximum of 3 examiners are required for PhD theses. 2 examiners are required for masters by research theses. All examiners must be external to UTS.
You and your student should form a long list of potential examiners in consultation with other members of the supervisory panel and consider potential conflicts of interest. During this conversation, your student or any member of the supervisory panel may indicate a preference to exclude a potential examiner from the list. Once a potential list has been agreed upon, your student should use the Nomination of Examiners form in ResearchMaster.
While it is appropriate to discuss potential examiners with your student, the examination process is confidential and the final short list must not be revealed to the student.
Examiners must:
- have relevant expertise in the field and methodological approach, as shown by their research track record, positions held, publications, professional standing etc
- hold qualifications of at least the level of the thesis being examined. Formal qualifications may not be necessary in all cases; however, evidence of academic standing will need to be provided
- be an academic at a tertiary institution or employed in a research-related position
- have demonstrated experience as an examiner
- not have a conflict of interest with student or members of the supervisory panel.
If the examiner does not meet this criteria, other evidence of their examination expertise will need to be provided to the faculty.
Once you have finalised the list of preferred examiners, you should contact them to determine their availability to examine the student’s thesis.
Submitting the nomination form
Once an examiner has agreed to participate in the thesis examination process, you must complete your part of the Nomination of Examiners form. The Nomination of Examiners form must be submitted 2 months prior to the student's intended thesis submission date. If your student has submitted a paper Nomination of Examiners form please continue through the paper process. If your student has submitted their Nomination of Examiners form through ResearchMaster then the instructions can be found here:
Nomination of Examiner - Supervisor Instructions
Conflict of interest
To ensure the examination process remains impartial, examiners must not have the potential for real or perceived conflict of interest, as outlined in the Australian Council of Graduate Research ACGR Conflict of Interest in Examination Guidelines and the Nomination of Examiners (FAQ)
Conflict of interest—student
People who might be perceived to have a conflict of interest with a student include, but are not limited to:
- someone who has a working relationship with the student (e.g. if the examiner has acted as a referee for the student to gain employment)
- current or former colleagues or friends (e.g. if the examiner is a friend, associate or mentor of the student)
- family members (including family by law, e.g. if the examiner is step-father, sister-in-law, etc, to the student)
- other professional or social relationship (e.g. if the examiner has had personal contact with the student that may give rise to the perception that the examiner may be dealing with the student in a less than objective manner).
Conflict of interest—supervisors
People who might be perceived to have a conflict of interest with supervisors include, but are not limited to:
- co-authors of joint publications (e.g. if the examiner has co-authored a publication with the supervisor in the past five years)
- current or former colleagues or friends (e.g. if the examiner has had personal contact with the supervisor that may give rise to the perception that the examiner may be dealing with the candidate in a less than objective manner)
- recent graduates (e.g. if the examiner was a student of the supervisor within the past five years)
- employees or honorary members of the university (e.g. if the examiner is a current member of staff or has a current Honorary, Adjunct or Emeritus position with the university or has had such a position during the candidature of the student, or in the past five years)
- external members of the student’s supervisory panel
- long-term visitors to the university (e.g. if the examiner has a current professional relationship with the university, such as membership of a board or committee)
- family members (including family by law, e.g. step-father, sister-in-law).
Mitigating factors may occur where, for example, a grant in question is held by a large consortium of relatively independent researchers or; a paper in question has a large author list and where the examiner and supervisor have not collaborated directly.
Conflicts of interest—faculty
To ensure the examination process remains impartial, examiners must not have the potential for real or perceived conflict of interest, as outlined in the Australian Council of Graduate Research’s Conflict of Interest Guidelines.
People who might be perceived to have a conflict of interest with the faculty include, but are not limited to:
- an examiner who is currently in negotiation with the university for a work contract (other than examining theses)
- an examiner who is a current member of staff or has a current Honorary, Adjunct or Emeritus position with the university, or has held such a position during the candidature of the student, or in the past five years
- an examiner who has a current Visiting position with the university or has held such a position during the candidature of the student, or in the past five years.
Thesis submission and examination
Thesis submission
Students can submit their thesis for examination at any time during the year. However, they must provide GRS with their Intention to Submit form 2 months before their intended submission date. Along with other information about the students candidature, this form will ask students to provide information regarding any research internships they may have undertaken while an HDR student. If the student has signed an agreement, contract, or other internship project proposal, they will be asked to upload a copy of the document. The date on which the thesis documents and nomination of examiners are received by GRS is the date recorded as the official thesis submission date.
The student must submit a digital copy of their thesis to the faculty for examination. If their examiners prefer hard copies, the student will need to supply them. Hard copy theses should use temporary binding (either perfect bind, comb bind or spiral bind) to prevent damage during postage and handling.
The thesis must include a certificate of original authorship, student statement and supervisor certificate stating that the work is ready for examination. This is now an online process, please go to our Policies, guidelines and forms page for more information.
Once the student has submitted their thesis, they are officially ‘under examination’. The examination process can take 3-6 months to complete. In order to ensure independence of the examination process, you are not allowed to contact the examiners while your student is under examination. Any query or clarification that you may require should be addressed to the Graduate Research School.
Thesis result recommendations
(for theses examination forms created prior 31 December 2023)
After examining the thesis, the committee will write a report recommending whether or not it should be accepted. There are 6 possible recommendations (see corresponding Procedures):
- Recommendation 1
That the candidate be admitted to the degree, subject to the correction of typographic errors without any amendments. - Recommendation 2
That the candidate be admitted to the degree subject to the correction of any nominated minor clarifications and textual amendments to the satisfaction of the Responsible Academic Officer. - Recommendation 3
That the candidate be admitted to the degree subject to specific criticisms of the thesis as recommended by the examiners being addressed to the satisfaction of the Responsible Academic Officer, and any rewriting not changing the substantive conclusions of the thesis. - Recommendation 4
That the candidate be not admitted to the degree but be permitted to re-submit the thesis in a revised form for re-examination following a period of further study. - Recommendation 5
- PhD students: That the candidate be invited to revise and resubmit the thesis for a research masters degree.
- Research masters students: That the candidate not be awarded the degree and not be permitted to resubmit. - Recommendation 6
That the candidate not be awarded the degree and not be permitted to resubmit.
Thesis result recommendations
(for theses examination forms created from 1 January 2024)
Possible recommendations for both masters by research and doctoral degrees are (see corresponding Procedures):
- Pass - No amendments to content required; or only amendments involving typographical errors, formatting issues or other edits that have no bearing on the intellectual quality of the overall thesis. The RAO verifies the edits have been addressed.
- Pass with amendments - Amendments to content are required. In this case, Examiners must provide a list and explanation of each required revision. The student must address the examiners’ criticisms to the satisfaction of the RAO. These revisions will be reviewed and verified by the RAO in consultation with the supervisory panel.
- Resubmission and re-examination – Substantial and/or considerable changes to in the content of the thesis are required but can be resolved with major revision. Examiners must provide a list and explanation of the required changes. Based on the examiner recommendation on the revised thesis, the RAO in in consultation with the supervisory panel, makes a recommendation to the TEC. A resubmitted thesis may only be awarded a result of 1, 2 or 4*.
- Fail - The thesis has serious irredeemable flaws and is not of a standard to be awarded the degree.
Final examination process
Once GRS has received and compiled all examination reports, they will be forwarded to the faculty Responsible Academic Officer (RAO). The RAO is to consult with the supervisory panel and prepare the Thesis Examination Resolution template, which will go before the Faculty Research Degree Committee (FRDC) for review and decision or referral to the Thesis Examination Committee (TEC).
Please refer to the Graduate Research Final Examination Procedures which outlines responsibilities and expectations for managing the range of options of examiner reports, reconciling disparate reports, moderation and re-examination.
If a student is to make revisions to their thesis, they must complete the Thesis Revision Response template to accompany the revised work.
All actions should be completed within the timeframes specified in the procedures and the UTS Student Rules (11.20).
Thesis examination committee
The TEC, acting for the Graduate Research School Board, establishes and oversees the thesis examination process. This includes (but not limited to):
- setting the examination criteria and reporting requirements
- setting the requirements for faculties to make recommendations related to examination outcomes
- consideration of examination outcomes, including consideration to UTS Student Rules 11.20.5 to 11.20.7
- setting re-examination procedures
- recommending to admit/not to admit candidates to degrees
Communication between the TEC and faculties is facilitated by the GRS.
2025 TEC meeting dates:
- Thurs 20 Feb (papers due to GRS Mon 10 Feb)
- Thurs 20 Mar (papers due to GRS Mon 10 Mar)
- Thurs 17 Apr (papers due to GRS Mon 07 Apr)
- Thurs 15 May (papers due to GRS Mon 05 May)
- Thurs 19 Jun (papers due to GRS Mon 09 Jun)
- Thurs 17 Jul (papers due to GRS Mon 07 Jul)
- Thurs 21 Aug (papers due to GRS Mon 11 Aug)
- Thurs 18 Sep (papers due to GRS Mon 08 Sep)
- Thurs 16 Oct (papers due to GRS Tues 07 Oct)
- Thurs 20 Nov (papers due to GRS Mon 10 Nov)
- Thurs 11 Dec (papers due to GRS Mon 01 Dec)
Faculty Research Degree Committees
The FRDCs are responsible for considering/approving the recommendation of the RAO for examination outcomes.
Large faculties may establish school-level examination committees, which report to the FRDC. Responsibilities will include considering/approving the recommendation of the RAO for examination outcomes and communicating the outcome to the supervisory panel and graduate research student.
Please contact your faculty research office for further information.
Completion and graduation
Once your student has been notified that their final thesis can be submitted for graduation, they need to prepare the following documents and submit to your faculty:
- thesis abstract
- A digital copy of their thesis and confirmation of digital submission to the library
- A completed thesis revision response
- A final bound copy of their thesis (only if required by your faculty).
After your student has submitted the above documents and received a recommendation from your faculty, the Dean of GRS will recommend to the Academic Board that your student be admitted to the degree. The degree will then be conferred at the next available conferral date.
Please contact your faculty research office for the submission dates for each conferral.
2024 conferral dates and deadlines
Conferral dates, and faculty to GRS submission deadlines:
- September Conferral — Wednesday 4 September 2024
Faculty to GRS deadline — Friday 9 August 2024 - November Conferral — Wednesday 20 November 2024
Faculty to GRS deadline — Friday 25 October 2024
2025 conferral dates and deadlines
- February Conferral — 12 February 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 17 January 2025 - March Conferral — 19 March 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 21 February 2025 - May Conferral — 28 May 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 2 May 2025 - July Conferral — 23 July 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 27 June 2025 - September Conferral — 3 September 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 8 August 2025 - November Conferral — 26 November 2025
Faculty to GRS deadline — 31 October 2025
Thesis abstract
The University requires graduate research students to submit a 100-200 word abstract that must not have texts in italics, bold, super/subscripts and symbols that are not available on a standard keyboard.
Digital copy of the thesis
Students must submit a digital copy of their final thesis to the Faculty and Library. The thesis must include a signed, Certificate of Original Authorship.
Graduate research students must lodge their digital copy before the conferral of their degree, regardless of existing confidential agreement and/or embargo conditions. The Library will suppress confidential material if there is any approved restriction as explained in the Graduate Research Candidature Management, Thesis Preparation and Submission Procedures. The digital copy will be uploaded to the Library website.
Bound copy of thesis
If required by your faculty, a final hard copy of the thesis must be bound in boards, covered with dark red buckram for Doctoral degrees and in University blue (dark blue) for Master’s degrees and embossed in gold lettering on the spine. There are several thesis binding services close to UTS.
Final approval
Upon receiving above documents and faculty’s recommendation for admission to the degree, the Dean, GRS recommends to the Academic Board that the graduate research student be admitted to the degree.
Graduation and conferral
Upon the approval of the Dean GRS of all requirements mentioned above, your student’s degree will be conferred on the next available conferral date. UTS Graduations contacts your student with details about the graduation ceremony. Doctoral students are able to use the title of Doctor once the degree has been conferred.