The Viva Process

Paragraph 4: The role of the internal examiner is essentially that of custodian of the College regulations and standards. Staff appointed as internal examiners for MPhil, PhD, EngD or MD(Res) examinations should fulfil the following criteria:  

All staff: 

must have supervised at least one PhD or EngD or MD (Res) student to successful completion and 

must have acted as an assessor for either/or a successful MPhil/PhD transfer, an Early Stage Assessment or a Late Stage Review, normally on at least 3 occasions and 

ideally they must have experience of examining research degrees at Imperial College London. 

In addition, lecturers and senior research fellows must have successfully completed: 

their probation period (including the completion of the mandatory Introduction to Supervising at Imperial College London course and/or their prescribed Faculty courses) 

Senior lecturers, readers, professors and principal research fellows joining the College must have attended an induction course covering: teaching practice; research student supervision; the conduct of College examinations and the adherent regulations; pastoral care 

Paragraph 5: The external examiner should be a recognised international expert normally with experience of examining a research student at a leading university. The external examiner ought normally to be a Reader or Professor (or equivalent in an overseas university or if nominated from outside the higher education sector) and their role is essentially that of the subject expert. If the internal examiner does not have experience of examining at Imperial College, it would normally be expected that the external examiner would have this experience. 

7 

The following persons may not be appointed to examine a research candidate: the candidate’s supervisor(s); the candidate’s mentor; anyone who has played a significant advisory role in the candidate’s research.  

8 

A person who has been involved in the assessment of a candidate’s MPhil/PhD transfer examination, Early Stage Assessment or Late Stage Review, is not debarred from serving as one of the examiners of the final thesis [but see 1.10 above]: this connection must be stated on the nomination form.  

9 

In proposing examiners, supervisors must be mindful of all connections between candidate, supervisors, mentors and proposed examiners. Such connections may be kinship, professional, academic or personal and may include, for example, co-publication, joint holding of grants, etc. Supervisors are asked to declare any such connections in the examiner nomination form. Supervisors are also asked to state briefly why each examiner is appropriate for their role and why the pairing of the examiners is particularly suitable.  

15 

An individual should not normally be appointed as an External Examiner if they:  

a) Have previously been involved in the supervision or assessment of the student in question.  

b) Were previously a member of the same research group as the student in question.  

c) Are a former member of College staff, except where a period of five years has passed, and subject to 15 (a) and (b) above.  

d) Are a former student of the College, except where a period of five years has passed, and subject to 15 (a) and (b) above.  

e) Have previously held an honorary or visiting appointment with the College, except where a period of five years has passed, and subject to 15 (a) and (b) above 

Paragraph 23: 

a) 

Pass 

b) 

Pass, subject to minor amendments to be completed and checked by one or both of the examiners within three months1. 

c) 

Not pass, but candidate allowed to rewrite the thesis and resubmit it within 18 months for examination by the same examiners (a viva voce examination need not be held on re-entry). 

d) 

Not pass, but be allowed to submit to a further viva voce examination within 18 months on the same thesis and by the same examiners. 

e) 

Fail PhD, but either has met the requirements for the MPhil or might after revision of the thesis during a 12 month period be able to meet the requirements for the MPhil. 

f) 

Outright fail. No further entry to the PhD or MPhil degree will be allowed. 

Point 5.1: Thesis for the PhD degree 

5.1.1 The thesis shall: 

a) 

consist of the candidate’s own account of their investigations, the greater proportion of which shall have been undertaken during the period of registration under supervision for the degree;  

[The part played by the candidate in any work done jointly with the supervisor(s) and/or fellow research workers must be clearly stated by the candidate and certified by the supervisor.] 

b) 

and form a distinct contribution to the knowledge of the subject and afford evidence of originality by the discovery of new facts and/or by the exercise of independent critical power; 

c) 

and be an integrated whole and present a coherent argument;  

[A series of papers, whether published or otherwise, is not acceptable for submission as a thesis.  

Research work already published, or submitted for publication, at the time of submission of the thesis, either by the candidate alone or jointly with others, may be included in the thesis. The published papers themselves may not be included in the body of the thesis, but may be adapted to form an integral part of the thesis and thereby make a relevant contribution to the main theme of the thesis.  

Publications derived from the work in the thesis may be attached as supplementary material to the thesis.] 

d) 

and give a critical assessment of the relevant literature, describe the method of research and its findings, include discussion on those findings and indicate in what respects they appear to the candidate to advance the study of the subject; and, in so doing, demonstrate a deep and synoptic understanding of the field of study, (the candidate being able to place the thesis in a wider context), objectivity and the capacity for judgment in complex situations and autonomous work in that field; 

e) 

and be written in English and the literary presentation shall be satisfactory, although a candidate may make application for a thesis in the field of modern foreign languages and literatures only to be written in the language of study, to be considered on an exceptional basis by the Graduate School; in such cases the thesis shall include additionally a submission of between 10,000 and 20,000 words which shall be written in English and shall summarise the main arguments of the thesis; 

f) 

and not exceed 100,000 words;  

[Note: the bibliography is excluded from the word count; footnotes are included within the word count; appendices are excluded from the word count and should only include material which examiners are not required to read in order to examine the thesis, but to which they may refer if they wish.] 

g) 

and include a full bibliography and references; 

h) 

and demonstrate research skills relevant to the thesis being presented; 

i) 

and be of a standard to merit publication in whole or in part or in a revised form (for example, as a monograph or as a number of articles in learned journals).