Guidelines and additional provisions for the PhD Programmes at VID Specialized University

Guidelines and additional provisions for the PhD Programmes at VID Specialized University PART 1. INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS These guidelines are additional provisions to the Regulation of 11 December 2015 no. 1666 concerning the PhD Degree at VID Specialized University. The guidelines are determined by the Rector pursuant to 25 of 20 September 2016. For other provisions that regulate conditions related to the PhD Degree, see the Act Relating to Universities and University Colleges (2005), the Norwegian Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning (NQR, 2011), the Regulations for degrees and protected titles (2005), The Regulations concerning terms and conditions of employment for post-doctoral research fellow, research fellow and research assistant (2006) and resident (2010), the NQR-regulations for standards and criteria for accreditation and quality development in the college- and universitysector and the European Charter for Researchers & Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers (2005). 1. The responsibility for the PhD Programmes The Board of the Institution is ultimately responsible for the PhD Programmes. The Research Committee (RC) at VID is the advisory and executive body for the Rector concerning research, research education, development, science communication and innovation. The Rector has given the RC the authority to manage the PhD Programmes and make the necessary decisions within the framework of VID s current PhD Regulations. The PhD Student groups at the two PhD Programmes choose one deputy for each of their representatives in the RC. The term of office for the PhD Students, is one year, with an option for a one-term re-election. The term of office for the other representatives is in accordance with the period of employment. The Library, Learning Center, Archive (LLA), International office (IO) and Centre for Intercultural Communication (CIK) have observer status on the committee. 2. Quality assurance The PhD Programme is governed by the i stitutio s uality syste. The descriptions of VID s PhD Programmes and the academic content of these must be approved by the RC, before being formally approved by the Education Committee. PART 2. ADMISSION 1. Admission Admission is reviewed in of the U i e sity s Regulation for the PhD Degree at VID. The

a) Applications for the announced doctoral research fellowship positions must include an application for admission to the PhD Programme. See the «Guidelines for applicants for PhD positions.» An acceptance assumes that the applicant is qualified for admission to the PhD Programme and therefore, the admission decision also applies to the current PhD Programme. The Research Committee assesses applications consecutively based on academic qualifications. The assistance of either internal or external colleagues may be used. At the admission recommendation, the minimum time and project funding requirements must be satisfied, cf. Admission Agreement to the organized PhD Programme at VID. b) Admission applications are assessed according to the criteria specified in 5 of the regulations applied by The Research Council of Norway, and any additional provisions specified in the respective PhD Programmes. c) Appointment of academic supervisor(s): The appointment of chief supervisor is made by the Research Committee based on the Centre Di e to s academic assessment of the P oje t s scope and requirements, including the necessity of co-supervisor(s) and after the faculty concerned, (if an internal supervisor) or an external expert has been contacted. Possible co-supervisors are appointed administratively by the Centre Di e to s in consultation with the Vice-Rector for Research. If several supervisors are appointed, separate agreements must be made which regulate the individual contributions of each supervisor and their expected scope. 2. Agreements The U i e sity s egulatio s for the PhD Degree, reviews the Admission Requirements in 6. The a) Admission is granted providing funding is guaranteed. Applicants who are not fully funded by scholarships, must document that they will be able to spend at least 50 % of their working hours during the PhD Programme on research education. b) PhD students who are employed by VID, will receive funds for the agreed period (currently NOK 90 0000). This amount must cover travel expenses, literature, courses, conferences and other academic costs. This amount excludes infrastructure such as office, computer and software. c) PhD students with funding from other employers or PhD students without such funding, are expected to guarantee a minimum level of financing (currently NOK 20 000 x 3 years of full time studies, cf. the admission agreement). d) The PhD stude ts o ki g o ditio s a e egulated y «The Regulations concerning terms and conditions of employment for post-doctoral research fellow, research fellow, research assistant and resident» (http://www.lovdata.no/cgi- wift/ldles?doc=/sf/sf/sf- 20060131-0102.html) pursuant to LOV-2005-04-01-15- 6-4. The following additional provisions apply for PhD students at VID: The PhD Programme should normally be completed within a period of three years of full time research education. The PhD Programme can also be completed in four years with 75 % of the time spent on the PhD Programme and 25 % on required duties, or other time distribution agreed upon at admission. A minimum requirement is that the PhD Student commits at least 50 % of his/her time to the PhD Programme.

The type of work requirement ust e ele a t fo the PhD stude t s esea h work and should, as far as possible, provide varied skills for a future career within the academics, communities, or business. Examples of relevant required duties, are: i. Contribute to teaching and skills training, academic supervision and examination work. ii. Contribute to the collection and preparation of teaching material. iii. Assist other researchers or research groups in various types of research. iv. Participation in other qualifying Faculty/Centre activities, such as science communication and/or reporting v. Participation in committees across faculties/centres vi. Academic-administration in connection with workshops and conferences The employees are governed by current laws and agreements regarding working hours, vacations and sick leaves. I the e e t of do u e ted si k lea e do to s- or self-certification) in excess of two consecutive weeks, the PhD student may apply for an extension of his/her appointment. The application must be sent, no later than two months before the expiration of the appointment, to the Centre Director who will make an administrative decision. Time spent on union representation work, may be counted as work requirement or as an extension of the appointment in accordance with current guidelines. 3. Extended time in the PhD Programme beyond the prescribed period of study The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee, e ie s the te of ag ee e t i.. The a) A PhD student may be admitted to the PhD Programme up to four (4) years in accordance with the prescribed period of study. The prescribed period of study is three years for full time research education and six years for half time. Statutory leaves or disruptions due to documented illness are excluded from these requirements. b) Extensions of the PhD Programme may be granted for one (1) year at a time based on an application to the Research Committee. The application must include a plan for future studies a d ust e e o e ded y the PhD stude t s hief supe iso. The Resea h Committee may deny an extension application if the committee finds that the plan for future studies and/or completion plan is inadequate. c) If the PhD student fails to complete within the prescribed period, he/she can apply for up to 40 hours of extra academic supervision for the remaining time granted beyond the prescribed period. d) A PhD student who has been admitted to the programme during the prescribed period of study and has successfully completed his/her studies, but has left the programme, for whatever reason, may submit his/her dissertation for assessment at any time. PART 3. IMPLEMENTATION 1. The training component The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee, e ie s the ag ee e ts affiliated ith the implementation of the PhD Programme in 8. Please refer to the programme

descriptions for the respective PhD Programmes. The following additional provisions apply: a) During the first two months after admission, an individual education plan must be prepared for each PhD student in collaboration with the study section. The individual education plan may be revised in consultation with the chief supervisor and the academic director for the current PhD Programme, before being approved by the Centre Director. b) The Centre Director approves the required training programme as soon as all the necessary courses are passed, and no later than four weeks after such approval has been requested. 2. Academic supervision The U i e sity s egulatio fo the PhD Deg ee, e ie s a ade i supe isio of the dissertation work in 7. The a) PhD students are entitled to academic supervision during their dissertation work and they are expected to take advantage of this offer. Each student must consecutively present his/her dissertation work at a PhD Workshop. Please refer to the admission agreement to the organized PhD Programme at VID. b) The a ade i supe iso is espo si le fo o ito i g the PhD stude t s a ade i development. c) A total amount of time is assigned for academic supervision (currently 180 hours). This time is shared between the supervisors as agreed in a separate document for each project. The agreement must include preparation, conversations with the students and any supplementary work. d) At least one of the supervisors must be fully employed by VID. Both the supervisors and the PhD student are required to report and are expected to participate in evaluations as specified in the current routines for quality assurance of study programmes at VID. e) Each semester the PhD student and the chief supervisor must make a progress report and plan for the ensuing period on the PhD Programme report form. 3. Mid-term evaluation Please efe to the PhD Regulatio s 9. a d 9. a d the sepa ate guideli es fo idterm evaluation. A Mid-term evaluation is mandatory in the PhD programme and is included as the basis for applying for assessment of the dissertation for public defence. Thus, the mid-term evaluation is governed by 4-7, 4-8 (3) and 4-13 (3) in the Act relating to Universities and University Colleges and 5-5 in the regulations concerning the PhD Degree at VID Specialized University and guidelines concerning cheating or attempts at cheating at VID Specialized University. 4. Dissertation requirements Disse tatio e ui e e ts a e e ie ed i of the U i e sity s PhD egulatio s. The

The dissertation may be submitted as a monograph or several smaller pieces (a socalled article-based dissertation). Please refer to the specifications in the programme descriptions of the respective PhD programmes. a) The dissertation should normally be written in English, Norwegian, Swedish or Danish. Other languages must be clarified at the time of admission. b) The dissertation must be written in accordance with the national guidelines for esea h ethi s i so ial s ie es, la a d the hu a ities a d the U i e sity s guidelines for research ethics. If the dissertation includes the processing of personal data, the Date Protection Official for Research at the Norwegian Social Science Data Services (NSD) must be notified. Data must be collected, processed and stored in a o da e ith the Data P ote tio Offi ial s a d the Data i spe to ate s provisions. Research projects which are governed by the Act on Medical and Health Research (of 1 July 2009) must be approved in advance by the Regional Committees for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REK). c) A monograph is normally 100 000 words. d) The following rules apply to article-based dissertations: The PhD student must be the sole writer of the i t odu to y hapte kappe The scope of the introductory chapter must be 50-100 pages The introductory chapter must account for the context of the dissertation and ensure that it appea s as a hole. The disse tatio s o t i utio to the field of research must be clarified. At the time of submission, at least one of the articles must have been published or approved for publication in a recognised publication. A colleague should be consulted concerning the choice of publication. The other articles must be ready for publication. PART 4. COMPLETION 1. Submission of the dissertation The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee, e ie su issio of the disse tatio i. The a) The dissertation must be submitted in 4 copies, including the following: Application for dissertation assessment A digital version of the dissertation in a PDF-format Documentation of approved training programme. A brief summary in Norwegian and English for press release purposes. If applicable: Declaration of co-authorship b) The disse tatio ill e sto ed se u ely i the U i e sity s i stitutio al a hi e VID Ope. 2. Appointment of the Assessment Committee The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee e ie the appoi t e t of the Assess e t Committee in 14. The

a) Prior to submission of the dissertation, the chief supervisor must submit to the Research Committee, a reasoned recommendation of names for members of the Assessment Committee. The recommendation must demonstrate how each member represents relevant expertise and how the committee, as a whole, represents the academic discipline of the dissertation. b) The Research Committee must ensure that the suggested members are impartial and have no close relationship with any of the parties in the doctoral dissertation. All parties are required to specify any relationship with the suggested committee members which may have significance for the evaluation of partiality. This requirement is applicable not only to the PhD student and potential committee members, but also to academic supervisors. Participation in the mid-term evaluation does not prevent participation in the Assessment Committee. c) The PhD student will be notified of the suggested composition of the committee and is entitled to comment on the suggestion within one week. d) The Vice-Rector for Research appoints the Assessment Committee based on the Research Co ittee s dis ussio o suggested o ittee e e s, a d he/she ay also appoi t members who have not been suggested if this is considered necessary to obtain a committee that is composed in compliance with current criteria. The Assessment Committee should normally be appointed two weeks after the submission of the dissertation. 3. The Assess e t Co ittee s work with the recommendation The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee e ie the Assess e t Co ittees o k ith the recommendation in 15. The a) The administrator of the Assessment Committee is responsible for organising the committee, ensuring that there is no delay in getting started and that its recommendation is completed no more than three (3) months after the committee has received the dissertation. The administrator is also responsible for determining a possible date for the disputation as soon as the committee has started their work. The administrator must help coordinate the o ittee s e o e datio a d o ga ise the a ious tasks et ee e e s of the committee during the disputation. The administrator must ensure that the committee operates in accordance with both the regulations for the PhD Degree at VID, the additional provisions, and «Guidelines to assessment of Norwegian PhD Degrees», recommended by the Norwegian Association of Higher Education Institutions 22 March 2007. b) The e o e datio ust e se t to the U i e sity s Resea h Co ittee. 4. Publication of the dissertation The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee e ie the e ata list a d pu li atio i. and 18. The a) After submitting the dissertation, the PhD student may apply for permission to correct formal errors. Application and errata list must be submitted no later than four (4) weeks efo e the o ittee s e o e datio su issio deadli e a d a o ly o u o e. b) When the dissertation has been approved for public defence, VID will print a limited number of the disse tatio fo the U i e sity s se ies of disse tatio s. c) The dissertation must be available to the public no later than two weeks prior to the disputation. The dissertation can be downloaded as a PDF-file o the U i e sity s e site.

The Section for Library, Learning Centre and Historic Archive will assist in the digital publication. d) The disse tatio is also su itted digitally fo sto age i the U i e sity s i stitutio al a hi e VID Open. 5. Implementation of the trial lecture and disputation The U i e sity s egulatio s fo the PhD Deg ee e ie the t ial le tu e a d disputatio i 19. The a) The Assessment Committee determines the subject for the trial lecture and submits it to the Centre Dire to s a ade i oo di ato fo the espe ti e p og a e o late tha three weeks before the disputation. The doctoral candidate will be notified of the subject 10 working days before the disputation. The chairperson of the defence will also lead the trial lecture. b) The trial lecture can be the same day, or the day before the disputation. The disputation leader welcomes and introduces the doctoral candidate. The whole assessment committee is expected to be present at the trial lecture. c) The trial lecture is scheduled to last 45 minutes. After the lecture, the candidate may take questions. d) The trial lecture is designed for the doctoral candidate to demonstrate his/her ability to communicate research based knowledge. The lecture should normally be arranged so that an audience with an education equivalent to that of advanced students would find it beneficial. e) The o ittee s assess e t of the t ial le tu e ill e a ou ed efo e the disputation. If the trial lecture is not approved, the disputation can be implemented and a new trial lecture can be given on a new subject. The candidate will neither be titled nor receive a doctoral diploma before a trial lecture is approved. f) The whole assessment committee is expected to be present at the disputation. If a member of the committee is unable to, or does not attend, the Rector is authorised to appoint a substitute member. This member cannot be first opponent during the disputation. If it is not possible to find a substitute member for the disputation, the disputation must be postponed.