PhD Postgraduate Research

COURSE OVERVIEW

Students may register for an MPhil/PhD. Subject to satisfactory progress, students must undergo an examination which comprises two inter-related elements - a presentation of written or creative material and a viva voce assessment.

For students registered for a PhD failure in either component may prevent progression and an exit award of MPhil may apply.

Each student's work is managed in collaboration with a supervisory team, which is led by a Director of Studies together with a second supervisor(s) and may also include specialist adviser(s), especially in the case of interdisciplinary research. This supervisory team supports the student and oversees the development of the research programme through regular supervision sessions. Alongside the production of the thesis, students undertake research training through the Research Training Programme and by attending appropriate seminars, conferences or other events as advised by their supervisory team. This leads to the production of a thesis or, in the case of candidates in Creative Writing or Creative Practice, the production of creative work supported by contextual materials.

Preparation for research

If your research proposal needs further work before you embark on the MPhil/PhD, a Preparation for Research course is available. For a one-off fee, you receive up to six supervisory meetings, IT and library access in order to develop a research proposal.

PhD by Publication

This degree is currently available only to members of staff and to people who have an existing relationship with the University.

The PhD by Publication allows researchers who have a substantial body of published research to gain a PhD on the basis of that research and a contextual statement. The contextual statement is developed under the supervision of a supervisory team. The same requirements of originality and the same definition of research apply to this work as to the PhD thesis.

Assessment

At the University of Winchester validated programmes may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances. The University is committed to ensuring that all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes. Further details on assessment types used in the programme you are interested in can be found on the course page, by attending an Open Day/Evening, or contacting our teaching staff.