Research student progression and assessment

This page tells you everything you need to know about upgrading from MPhil to PhD status, submitting your thesis and sitting your viva voce oral examination. Different schools have different procedures, so you should always check what is required of you with your principal supervisor, or the MPhil/PhD Programme Director or Administrator. The examination and awarding process for all MPhil/PhD researchers is overseen by the Birkbeck Graduate Research School (BGRS). 

Upgrading from MPhil to PhD status 

• All Birkbeck research students are initially registered for an MPhil degree. 
• To upgrade from MPhil to PhD you must demonstrate that you have reached the required level of progress and achievement for the PhD degree. 
• Upgrading usually takes place during the second year for full-time MPhil/PhD researchers or during the third or fourth year for part-time MPhil/PhD researchers. 
• Details of requirements for consideration of MPhil/PhD upgrades will be provided by your school or department. 
• You will usually be required to submit written work and may be required to take part in an upgrade viva, during which you will present and discuss your work with a panel of academic staff. 
• A decision will then be made about whether you should be transferred to the PhD degree programme.  

WRITING-UP STAGE AND FEES  

• You can apply for reduced fees if you have completed all research/data collection and analysis needed for your thesis, as well as a full draft of the thesis. This means that, in principle, you no longer require full supervision during the writing-up period. 
• Full-time students can be on the writing-up for not more than one year and part-time students for not more than two years. 

Criteria for the award of an MPhil/PhD degree

• The criteria for the award of an MPhil/PhD degree are specified in Birkbeck's Regulations for the Degrees of MPhil and PhD. 

LENGTH OF A THESIS (MPhil and PhD) 

• The maximum word length for an MPhil thesis is usually 60,000 words for most subject areas, which includes footnotes but excludes your bibliography and appendices. You should carefully check Birkbeck's MPhil/PhD regulations to confirm the required word count for your thesis. 
• The maximum word length for a PhD thesis is usually 100,000 words for most subject areas, which includes footnotes but excludes your bibliography and appendices. You should carefully check Birkbeck's MPhil/PhD regulations to confirm the required word count for your thesis. 
• If you are going to exceed the stipulated length of your MPhil/PhD thesis, you will need to submit an application to exceed the stipulated length of a thesis, at least six months before submitting your thesis for examination. 

SELECTING PHD EXAMINERS   

• After the Entry for Examination form is submitted, you and your supervisor should discuss two suitable academic examiners for your final, viva voce (oral) examination. One must be internal (ie working at a college that is part of the Univerity of London) and the other must be external (ie working at a university that is not part of the University of London). 
• Your supervisor will approach possible examiners, but the final decision should be made in discussion between you and your supervisor. 
• These examiners will have to be approved by the College. 

BINDING AND SUBMITTING YOUR THESIS 

• You must submit two final copies of your thesis to the Birkbeck Graduate Research School: either one hard-bound copy and a digital copy (the default for Birkbeck students, but not mandatory), or one hard-bound and one soft-bound copy. 
• Carefully read the instructions and notes on submission, format and binding beforehand. 
• The Birkbeck Graduate Research School will invite you to deposit these final copies of your thesis after your viva voce oral examination and after you have made any corrections suggested by your examiners. 
• You can submit your bound copies in one of two ways: 
• Drop them off at the Student Advice Service on the main Birkbeck campus in Bloomsbury, central London, or 
• Post them to the Birkbeck Graduate Research School, Registry, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HX. 
• The digital copy should be a single PDF file that you email to us. If you wish to embargo your digital copy, please complete the thesis embargo application form. 
• The hard copy will be deposited in the Birkbeck Library. 
• You also need to take one copy of your thesis, paginated in the same way as your bound version, to the viva voce oral examination. 
• Birkbeck doesn't recommend any particular company for binding your thesis, but here is a list of professional binders in and around central London. 

FORMS TO ACCOMPANY YOUR THESIS WHEN SUBMITTING 

• You need to complete two forms to accompany your thesis when you submit it: the abstract and the declaration of word count. Complete and print out these forms, to hand in as hard copies with your bound thesis. 

the viva voce oral examination 

• Many schools offer a mock viva, often with your second supervisor, to give you a sense of the process and an opportunity to practice and receive constructive feedback on your performance. Many PhD researchers find this very useful and reassuring. 
• The viva is a meeting between you and your two examiners, which usually takes about two hours but it may last longer. The viva will usually take place at Birkbeck. 
• Your supervisor may also attend if you wish, but most PhD researchers go into the viva alone. 
• The purpose of the viva is to: 
• establish if your thesis is sufficient to meet the requirements for a PhD degree 
• demonstrate that your thesis is all your own work and that you understand what you have written and argued  
• allow you to verbally defend your work under academic scrutiny 
• corroborate that you understand where your work sits in relation to similar research and the wider academic field 
• respond to the examiners' questions, clarify your arguments and expand on your ideas and findings. 
• It is wise to treat your viva professionally, like a job interview: arrive promptly, dress smartly and take pens and paper. You should take a copy of your thesis as well. 
• Viva tips: 
• Try to remain calm. 
• Take your time answering the questions. 
• Ask for clarification if you don't understand anything. 
• Admit if you don't know the answer to a question. 
• Be willing to expand on your arguments and defend particular lines of enquiry or interpretations. 
• A viva can be a rigorous, thought-provoking and challenging experience - it is an examination like any other and you must prepare. There are few formal rules governing how a viva works, so it can feel unpredictable and your examiners will expect you to 'think on your feet'. 
• Some examiners will be reassuring and interrogative, while others may be more confrontational. 
• It is wise to prepare carefully beforehand and think about your findings and arguments, the sources or data you have used, the structure of your thesis, and your research methodologies. It is useful to practice answering questions, from the generic to the specific. 
• Your principal supervisor can advise you on how to fully prepare. 
• Some generic questions might include: 
• Explain your thesis in one sentence. 
• Summarise your key findings. 
• What have you done to merit a PhD? 
• What is original about your research? 
• How does your thesis contribute to knowledge? 
• What are the strongest and/or weakest parts of your thesis? 
• What might you have done differently? 
• What were your research methodologies? 
• What aspect of your thesis are you most proud of? 

Viva voce results  

• There are several possible outcomes to the viva: 
• fail 
• pass, but an MPhil, rather than a PhD, is awarded 
• pass with minor corrections that are due within three months - this is the most frequent outcome 
• resubmit with major corrections that are due within eighteen months 
• pass without corrections.  
• If minor corrections are required, the examiners will review your corrected thesis before making a final decision. 
• If major corrections are required, the examiners have the option of conducting a second viva.