Information for research students

Higher Degree by Research - Confirmation of candidature process

The purpose of the confirmation process is to assess progress and support candidates in the early stages and to determine whether or not work to date indicates a strong likelihood of a quality thesis being completed in the required time. The process will allow candidates to receive objective confirmation that their research direction is sound, the methodologies appropriate and the standard of writing satisfactory. Any difficulties that might impede successful completion can be identified and remedied. The process encourages candidates to start writing early in their candidature to overcome some of the barriers to preparing the thesis in a timely fashion. It also provides an opportunity for candidates to demonstrate oral presentation skills appropriate to the masters and doctoral levels of study. The process should be fair, equitable and supportive.

All HDR candidates are admitted on a provisional candidature basis and must satisfy the requirements for transferring to full candidature, which is referred to as confirmation of candidature. Details of the Deakin University Guidelines for Confirmation are available online.

The confirmation of candidature process will normally take place within the following time frame:

• Masters (F/T): Within six months from commencement
• Masters (P/T): Within twelve months from commencement
• PhD (F/T): Within twelve months of commencement
• PhD (P/T): Within eighteen months of commencement.

Confirmation Panel

A confirmation panel will be nominated by the Principal Supervisor at least three months before the confirmation deadline. The confirmation meeting date will also be set at that time.

The confirmation panel includes:

• the Principal Supervisor
• the Associate Supervisor(s) (and Adviser/Research Supervisor if applicable)
• the Associate Dean (Research) (or nominee)
• the Head of School or Associate Head of School (Research) (or nominee), who will normally chair the meeting and compile a report of the recommendation of the panel, and
• if not represented by one of the above, a Research Active member from another School within the Faculty or University, with subject expertise relevant to the candidature.

It is desirable but not mandatory for an external member to be invited with academic and/or professional experience relevant to the project.

The specific duties of the Chair include:

• Advising the candidate of the panel membership, presentation and meeting date
• writing to inform the candidate of the outcome
• providing a copy of the report and recommendation to Deakin Research

The candidate has the option of inviting additional interested staff and/or students to the confirmation meeting, although they would not be considered panel members.

Confirmation Document

Candidates will present a confirmation document, normally within the range of 10,000 to 15,000 words) for consideration by the confirmation panel.

The document will be forwarded three weeks in advance of the arranged confirmation meeting to the HDR Administrative Officer (eg. MS Word, 1.5 line spacing, 11 or 12 point Times New Roman).

The confirmation document should include:

• a brief statement of the research project/problem/question;
• the rationale for the proposed research and its significance;
• a discussion of relevant theoretical perspectives; and the disciplinary or intellectual context in which the research will be conducted;
• a critical analysis of the relevant literature;
• outline and justification of the proposed methodology and its appropriateness for the particular research topic;
• a statement about the status of any relevant ethics approvals and/or intellectual property agreements, including ownership, location and storage of data;
• a summary of work completed to date and a detailed timetable for completion of the thesis;
• a statement of the resources and facilities required to complete the project within the appropriate candidature period.

Oral Presentation

Candidates will deliver an oral presentation and verbal defence of the research proposal to the confirmation panel. The oral presentation should be no longer than 20 -30 minutes in length.

Confirmation Meeting

The date of the confirmation meeting is set three months prior, as part of the nomination of the confirmation panel.

If the candidate wishes to raise any issues in connection with supervision or with the trajectory of the project during the first year, he or she should contact the chair of the confirmation panel or the Faculty HDR Coordinator at least one week prior to the confirmation hearing.

Confirmation panel members will read the written document provided in advance by the candidate and discuss the document during the confirmation meeting with the candidate and his or her supervisor(s) in order to confirm:

• whether the project is worthwhile,
• whether it needs modification,
• and whether it has the potential to be successful for the award in which the student is enrolled.

Confirmation Meeting - continued

The confirmation panel will confer alone following discussion with the candidate, in order to discuss the project or thesis and its supervision and to make its recommendations.

The candidate will then be invited to join the panel following its deliberations and will be advised of the outcomes of those deliberations.

Although it is strongly preferred that the candidate attend the confirmation meeting in person, in exceptional circumstances, should he or she be unable to attend in person for reasons of distance (residence overseas) or disability, then a voice-point may be arranged.

Possible outcomes of the confirmation process

There are three possible outcomes of the initial confirmation process:

1. Candidature is confirmed, and the candidate's enrolment is converted to full candidature.
2. The candidature is not confirmed, but candidates are given an opportunity to revise their work and submit to a second confirmation process. The Panel will document any aspects that it considers were inadequate, and the updated confirmation document should address these aspects. Details of the second-chance confirmation procedure will be determined by the Chair of the Panel and the candidate will be advised in writing. The candidate will normally be required to undergo the confirmation process again within three months. The Panel may appoint an Adviser to assist the candidate with preparation for the final submission to the Confirmation Panel.
3. The Confirmation Panel deems that confirmation has not been completed satisfactorily. At the conclusion of a second-chance confirmation process following outcome 2 on the first confirmation, outcomes 1 or 3 would be the only options available.

For candidates who do not satisfactorily complete the confirmation process (outcome 3), possible options include:

• for provisional doctoral candidates, a transfer to masters by research candidature;
• withdrawal from HDR candidature (possibly accompanied by enrolment in another course such as a coursework masters or graduate diploma);
• exclusion from candidature.

If the recommendation is that candidature should not be confirmed, the Panel will discuss with the candidate the options available to them. If exclusion from candidature is recommended, the Panel will make that recommendation to the Research and Research Training Committee, providing copies of earlier documentation and all correspondence relating to the candidate's confirmation. Candidates may request a review of the Committee's decision and may also appeal. The review and appeal processes are outlined in the HDR Academic Progress Procedure.

It is important that candidates are aware of their rights and responsibilities under the HDR Procedures and that the process for confirmation is conducted in a fair and equitable manner. All candidates are provided with a copy of the Guide to Candidature: Higher Degrees by Research on enrolment.

The confirmation panel's decision will be conveyed by the Chair to the University HDR Executive Officer, for reporting to the Research and Research Training Committee of the Academic Board and to be recorded on the HDR database.