PGR viva and outcomes
Your examiners will make arrangements for your viva examination in consultation with you and your supervisor
You can expect a period of at least one month to elapse between submission and your viva taking place
The normal expectation is that the viva will take place within 10 weeks of the examiners receiving the hardcopy thesis
Preparing for your viva
Your supervisor will be able to offer support and guidance to help you prepare for your viva.
You may also find the Guidance Notes for Candidates on the Research Services viva webpage helpful as well as the Your Viva section of the ThinkFurther site.
What happens next?
At the end of your viva the examiners will indicate their recommendation for the award of your degree.
Possible outcomes include:
that the degree be awarded without the need for any corrections to the thesis
that the degree be awarded once specified minor or major corrections have been completed to the satisfaction of the examiners
that the degree be not now awarded but that you are allowed to submit a revised thesis with/without oral re-examination
Pass with minor corrections
Examiners will often request minor corrections be made to the thesis before the degree can be awarded i.e. typographical or presentational errors:
Your examiners will confirm the minor corrections that should be completed to you directly
You will have 3 months from the date you are notified of the corrections - this should usually be within a few days of your viva
On or before this date, you should submit your amended thesis to one of your examiners electronically for checking (this will normally be your internal examiner)
Once approved, you should submit a final electronic version of your thesis to the White Rose eThesis Online server. You may also submit an optional hardcopy to Research Services (a hardcopy must be submitted if the electronic version is edited or redacted in any way)
You should also submit an updated Access to Thesis form to Research Services
Pass with major corrections
Examiners may request major corrections be made to the thesis before the degree can be awarded i.e. re-writing sections of the thesis or clarifying arguments:
Your examiners will confirm the major corrections that should be completed to you directly
You will have 6 months from the date you are notified of the corrections - this should usually be within a few days of your viva
On or before this date, you should submit your amended thesis to one of your examiners electronically for checking (this will normally be your internal examiner)
Once approved, you should submit a final electronic version of your thesis to the White Rose eThesis Online server. You may also submit an optional hardcopy to Research Services (a hardcopy must be submitted if the electronic version is edited or redacted in any way)
You should also submit an updated Access to Thesis form to Research Services
Resubmission
Examiners may request that more substantive amendments be made to the thesis before the degree can be awarded:
You will receive a copy of the examiners' report form from Research Services
You will have 12 months from the date of this formal notification to complete the corrections
On or before this date, you should resubmit your amended thesis to Research Services, you should follow the same process as your first submission. A resubmission fee will be payable on submission.
If a further oral examination is required, the same procedure will be followed (as above)
If a further oral examination is not required, examiners will normally aim to complete re-examine within 6-8 weeks of receipt of the thesis
The examiners may recommend the degree be awarded without the need for any corrections or they may require minor or major corrections