Recent Changes to Theses Assessments


In late 2007 and early 2008, there were significant and extensive changes to academic policies and administrative procedures regarding UQ research higher degree theses and these changes are listed below however effective Monday 22 September 2008 there will be a change to how candidates upload their thesis for assessment and award.  Details of this change are also listed below.

September 2008 Update

THESES ARE NO LONGER UPLOADED TO THE UQ PRINTERY - SUBMISSION OR FINAL COPY

Both the submission and final copies of theses are directly uploaded to Theses Assessments where they will be responsible for organising the printing of a submitted thesis (if required) or electronic delivery of a thesis to an assessor.

Due to the change in how candidates upload their thesis for assessment and award we have changed the nomenclature to distinguish between the types of theses that will be uploaded to Theses Assessments as from 22 September 2008:

  • Submission - is an uploaded thesis that is to be sent out for assessment by Theses Assessments
  • Resubmission - is an uploaded thesis that was originally a "Revise and Resubmit" and is ready to go out for re-assessment
  • Corrected Thesis - is when the candidate has made the corrections as advised by the Graduate School and uploaded to move forward with the assessment
  • Lodgement - is when an uploaded thesis is ready to be awarded and lodged in the UQ Library

Thesis assessment and thesis assessors

RHD theses are no longer "examined" by thesis "examiners". UQ changed the terminology to reduce confusion and more clearly emphasise what happens during the review and assessment of a RHD thesis. Talking about a thesis "examination" made some people think that the process of reviewing and assessing the completed thesis is similar to the examination activities carried out in coursework programs, such as assigning marks or a grade to the completed work. For other people, it suggested that the candidate had to be present to undertake the examination, that the assessment process is summative and adversarial rather than formative and collegial, and so on.

UQ has also removed the option of appointing one MPhil assessor who is associated with or employed by UQ. Now, both assessors for both RHD programs (PhD and MPhil) must be external to UQ.

Thesis Preliminary Pages

From May 2008, all RHD theses use the same template for their preliminary pages. The template makes it easy for candidates to include the required Declaration By Author wording; it also contains advice and instructions for including other essential information, such as the Statements about the contributions of others to the thesis and to jointly authored works.

Electronic submission/lodgement directly to Theses Assessments

Candidates are no longer required to provide printed copies of their thesis when they submit. Instead, they are now required to provide an electronic version of the thesis in PDF format to Theses Assessments.

UQ no longer requires that copies of the thesis are printed for assessment. Many assessors ask for a PDF copy of the thesis, so that they can start reading and reviewing the thesis straightaway and don't have to wait for a printed copy to arrive via air mail. Now, Theses Assessments requests a printed copy of the thesis only when an assessor requests it, and the UQ Graduate School pays for the cost of printing.

Assessor Anonymity

For theses submitted from May 2008 onwards, the identity of the thesis assessors is no longer anonymous to the candidate until after the degree has been awarded. Keeping the assessors anonymous made it difficult for candidates to outline any concerns about and/or potential conflicts of interest with individual assessors; it also prevented good practice, such as discussions by the candidate and the assessor about whether a particular correction to the thesis is what the assessor had in mind when they wrote their report and recommended a change.

UQ now requires that:

  • the candidate is not informed who the assessors will be until they have submitted their thesis via the UQ Printery;
  • the candidate is informed of the assessors' identities on the Notice of Submission and Nomination of Assessors form and given the opportunity to outline any concerns;
  • the candidate and the assessors do not make contact with each other until the Dean, UQ Gradate School has reached a decision on the outcome of the thesis assessment.

Theses submitted before April 2008 continue to have anonymous assessors.

Corrections to the Thesis

Candidates are no longer required to provide a printed ("loose leaf") copy of their corrections to Theses Assessments. Instead, candidates provide an electronic copy to Theses Assessments, who distribute the corrections to the enrolling school/institute and assessor(s) as required.

Lodging the Archival Copy of the Thesis - UPDATED 17 September 2008

Candidates are no longer required to provide printed copies of the final version of the thesis to UQ, their school/institute, and their principal advisor. Instead, they are now required to provide an electronic version of the thesis in PDF format via Theses Assessments to the UQ Library. The degree is awarded when the final electronic file has been received by the UQ Library and has been approved by UQ.

The UQ Graduate School covers the cost of the UQ Printery providing the candidate with a complimentary permanently bound hard copy (maximum page limits apply) and a CD copy of the thesis: the candidate must request the complimentary copy and arrange to collect it.  After lodging the final thesis copy it is the candidates responsibility to provide the UQ Printery with a copy of their final thesis to organise production of the complimentary permanent bound copy.

The UQ Library still uploads the electronic file to eSpace and to the Australian Digital Theses project.
feedback