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Department of Mathematics milestones for research degrees are administered via Sharepoint: view your milestones progress >>

Milestones for research degrees

PhD Progression Flowchart

‌This chart summarises the Department of Mathematics milestones for research degrees. It is important that students read full guidelines for each milestone in order to fully understand them.

Research Plan Confirmation (RPC - 3 months)

Deadline

  • RPC milestone is to be completed within 3 months of initial registration.
  • It should consist of a brief description of your research area/topic (2-4 pages)

Guidelines

Please read the guidelines carefully before completing the online form:

Exemption is only granted for courses taken as part of the PhD. If the courses were taken as part of the MRes year (as it is for some CDTs), the Graduate School will not grant exemption.

Taught Courses for First and Second Year PhD Students

Early Stage Assessment (ESA)
  • ESA must be completed by 12 months of registration (24 months for part-time students)
  • It is a written report of research problem which is to form the core of your thesis (generally no more than 15 pages) orally examined by at least one independent member of academic staff
  • The report must be submitted via Turnitin Blackboard 
  • The ESA form must be completed via Maths Share Point Milestones submission system 
  • 2 Graduate school credits + Plagiarism awareness course are required for a successful completion of ESA
  • DACR 1 and DACR 2 required unless exempt

The ESA is completed via report and oral assessment. This means that both the ESA report and the oral assessment must be completed prior to the 12-month deadline. You can check your ESA status via Postgraduate Research Milestones tile on  My Imperial.

Guidelines

Please read the guidelines carefully before completing the online form:

Exemption is only granted for courses taken as part of the PhD. If the courses were taken as part of the MRes year (as it is for some CDTs), the Graduate School will not grant exemption.

Taught Courses for First and Second Year PhD Students

Late Stage Review (LSR)
  • LSR must be completed by 24 months of registration (48 months for part-time students)
  • It is a written report of research problem which is to form the core of your thesis; a description of what you have achieved so far on this problem, and what you need to do to complete the work (typically no more than 30 pages). Ideally the report can be turned into a published paper, or into a chapter of your thesis. The report should not be a complete account of all the background you have learned, nor does it need to be a first draft of the final thesis. It should show the background your research is based on, and where the argument is intended to go. The assessors should be able to see that you have a good idea, for this stage, of what you will need to do.
  • The LSR  must be submitted via Maths Share Point Milestones submission system
  • It must be orally examined by two independent assessors (nominated by your supervisor and approved by the Department)
  • 4 Graduate school credits courses are required for a successful completion of LSR (including the 2 credits achieved at ESA)
  • You should have completed 100 hours of courses/activities (this is a departmental requirement)

The LSR is completed via report and oral assessment. This means that both, the LSR report and the oral assessment, must be completed prior to the 24-month deadline.  You can check your LSR status via Postgraduate Research Milestones tile on  My Imperial.

Guidelines

Please read the guidelines carefully before completing the online form:

Taught Courses for First and Second Year PhD Students

Year Three Progress Report (Y3PR) - moving to Writing Up

Following 36 months of full-time study (72 months of part-time study), all research students must discuss their progress with their supervisor and complete a formal progress report (Year 3 Progress Review). You will also be asked to provide a timeline for your planned thesis submission and to confirm your student registration plans for your final year.

Writing Up Status

  • Students who have successfully completed all their experimental work and collection of material relating to their thesis are eligible to enter the Writing Up Status.
  • Students must have successfully completed both the ESA and LSR to enter Writing Up status.
  • Students must have completed Year 3 Progress REview to enter Writing up status.
  • The maximum Writing Up period for full-time students is 12 months from the date of entry to Writing Up status (24 months for part time students). To enter Writing up students must be able to demonstrate that they will be in a position to submit their thesis at the end of their Writing Up period.
  • Students who are in Writing Up are fully enrolled students and retain access to College facilities whilst writing up.
  • Tuition fees are not charged for the Writing Up period.
  • Writing Up Procedure
 

Extension of Registration

  • Students who still have experimental or data collection work to perform at this stage cannot move in to Writing Up status. Students in this position will have their active research period extended until they are ready to move to Writing Up.
  • There will be a pro-rata charge of annual tuition fee for the additional registration period. Students should check their funding schemes as many end at 3 or 3.5 years.
     

Please contact the PG Administrator if you need advice or have any questions prior to completing your Year 3 Progress Review (Y3PR) form. 

Exam Entry Form (EEF) - 4 months before thesis submission

Exam Entry Form and nomination of examiners

Before you can submit your thesis or arrange your viva examination, you will need to complete an Examination Entry Form (EEF) via the Postgraduate Research Milestones tile in My Imperial.

You should aim to submit your examination entry forms at least four months before you would like to submit your thesis, or four months before your final submission deadline. This means submitting your forms no later than 44 months after your start date if you are a full-time student, or 68 months after your start date if you are a part-time student. 

Please note that submission of your thesis is not permitted until you have completed the minimum registration period. The minimum length of programme for the degree of PhD shall be 24 months of full-time study or the equivalent (normally 48 months) in part-time study from the point of registration. The minimum length of programme for the degree of MPhil shall be 12 months of full-time study or the equivalent (normally 24 months) in part-time study. The current MPhil and PhD regulations can be found here.

Before you submit the examination entry forms, you should ensure that you have completed all your milestones and other requirements (e.g. Graduate School courses). You can check your completed milestones via Postgraduate Research Milestones tile on  My Imperial.

The EEF Submission and Appointment of Examiners Process

  • Login to My Imperial and click on the postgraduate research milestones tile. Click on the Examination Entry milestone under 'My milestones.'
  • Enter the required information including your research topic, thesis title and expected thesis submission date. Once you've finished, click on 'submit to supervisor.'
  • Once your supervisor has completed the examination information, the EEF will be sent to the Director of Postgraduate Research (DPR) for approval.
  • Once approved by DPR, the Research Degrees Team will initiate the process of appointing your Internal and External Examiners. 

    Do NOT make arrangements for your viva examination to take place until you have been notified by Research Degrees that the appointments of your Internal and External Examiners have been approved by the College.

Please note: The examination entry has a life of 18 months, during which the thesis can be submitted for examination. After 18 months, the entry will be cancelled, and another entry form will need to be completed. 

Thesis Submission and Vivas
  • Thesis must be submitted by 48 months of registration. It is a strict deadline.
  • If you are concerned about not being able to submit on time, please speak to the PGR Coordinator early.
  • Thesis must be submitted electronically via the postgraduate milestone tile on My Imperial (no need to submit a hard copy of the thesis).

Please read the relevant submission requirements carefully to ensure you submit in the correct format: Research Degrees examination information (including thesis submission, viva, final thesis submission, binding, award and certificate) can be found here.

Postgraduate Research Student Appeals

Terms and conditions

Important information that you need to be aware of both prior to becoming a student, and during your studies at Imperial College: Terms and conditions