The COUNCIL and the GENERAL BOARD beg leave to report to the University as follows:
1. In this Report the Council and the General Board, on the advice of the Board of Graduate Studies, propose the introduction of a part-time route, extending over two academical years, to the M.Phil. Degree. This is intended to complement the existing routes to that Degree (through one year of full-time study or through two years of full-time study including a period at another institution).
2. In 2002 the Joint Report of the Council and General Board on the introduction of a part-time route to certain research degrees and certificates (Reporter, 2001-02, p. 762) was approved by the University. That Report allowed for part-time routes to the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. degrees. In May of the same year, the General Board received the report of a Review Committee, chaired by the Mistress of Girton College, to review the University's provision for the M.Phil. Degree. Much progress has been made on the main recommendations of the report. However, among the matters still outstanding are those relating to part-time provision. The 'Strathern' Review Committee recommended that:
| (a) | The University must be prepared actively to address delivering M.Phil. programmes through means additional to the full-time residential route, including ... through part-time and other forms of study. |
| (b) | Programmes which have the same curriculum and means of assessment should lead to the same qualification, irrespective of residential requirements. |
| (c) | It should be open to those responsible for M.St. programmes to seek their redesignation as M.Phil. programmes. |
3. The Board of Graduate Studies have, prior to advising the central bodies, consulted the Degree Committees. There is support for the introduction of a part-time route to the M.Phil. Degree for the following reasons:
| (i) | Such provision would widen access to postgraduate study to those in employment, and other groups, for whom full-time study is difficult. The Board of Graduate Studies see such provision as one means of helping to maintain the number of UK postgraduates in the University, at a time when, for various reasons, the number able to pursue study on a full-time basis is less buoyant than it once was. Evidence across the HE sector suggests that demand for part-time masters level programmes, particularly in professional and vocational areas, is strong and likely to remain so. |
| (ii) | Institutions wishing to offer part-time masters courses have so far been obliged to offer them for a different qualification (i.e. the M.St. or the M.Ed. Degree), even where the curriculum, assessment, and learning outcomes have matched those of the full-time M.Phil. course in the institution concerned. This is an unsatisfactory situation, as the 'Strathern' Review Committee recognized. Provision of a part-time route to the M.Phil. would open the way to certain of these courses being reclassified as M.Phil. courses, subject to the appropriate Degree Committee, the Board of Graduate Studies, and the central bodies being satisfied that such reclassification was appropriate. |
| (iii) | Some existing courses which involve taught components are structured in such a way that they could relatively straightforwardly be available for part-time study without duplication of teaching and other resources. |
| (iv) | Certain of the Research Councils support part-time masters study either through awards to individuals or recognition of particular masters programmes: at present the University is not in a position to exploit these possibilities. |
| (v) | Some existing one-year M.Phil. courses are examined by thesis and oral examination only. In most respects, these courses and their examinations are structurally comparable to research degrees, scaled down for one year of full-time research. The introduction of a part-time route to these courses would therefore be a logical consequence of the introduction of a part-time route to the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees. |
4. As is the case with the part-time route to the Ph.D., M.Sc., or M.Litt. Degrees, no Degree Committee would be obliged to offer any existing or future M.Phil. course by the part-time route. A system of 'opting in' would operate - as it does for the part-time route to research degrees - by which the Board of Graduate Studies would consider each proposal on its merits and against standard criteria which would include the Board being satisfied that the institution concerned had suitable arrangements to enable part-time students to have sufficient access to teaching and other resources. Equivalent arrangements would apply to institutions and Degree Committees seeking to have courses currently leading to the M.St. or the M.Ed. Degree re-designated. The Board would expect to give close scrutiny to any proposal for a part-time course from an institution which did not offer a full-time version of the same course of study. Where a full-time course is in place, the Board would expect the part-time course to be comparable to the full-time version in content, intended learning outcomes, the teaching and other resources available, and forms of assessment. In any case where a part-time route to the M.Phil. was proposed, the Board would consult the appropriate Council of the School, to be assured that the proposal was consistent with the School's strategic plans, both in respect of the objectives of the institution concerned and in terms of any implications for student numbers. The Board would expect the Council of the School to give particular scrutiny to the financial viability of the proposal. The Councils of the Schools would be expected to indicate any aspirations for part-time postgraduate numbers in the plans they submit through the annual planning round.
5. The Board of Graduate Studies have consulted those Colleges willing to accept part-time graduate students into membership about their capacity for absorbing part-time M.Phil. students. Arrangements for College membership, including the level of the College fee for which part-time M.Phil. students would be liable, would be expected to be analogous to those for students pursuing the part-time route to the Ph.D. Degree.
6. The part-time route to the M.Phil. Degree would be identical to full-time provision in terms of admissions standards and requirements, the standard required to be approved for the Degree, the arrangements for considering examination results, the requirement for candidates to be members of a College, and the privileges accorded to Graduate Students. The total University Composition Fee payable would be the same, whether the course was taken by full- or part-time study. If collected over the duration of the part-time route, fees would be payable at 50% of the full-time route per term or per year.
7. The duration of a part-time course would be six terms. Whilst there would be no formal residential requirement, candidates would be required to attend the University for formal instruction and other approved or prescribed academic activity as specified by the Degree Committee concerned and approved by the Board. The Board would expect the attendance requirement to be sufficient to ensure that students are suitably exposed in person to Cambridge's teaching and learning resources and to the benefits of College membership. The Board would expect to scrutinize carefully any element of a course to be delivered through electronic means.
8. In the event that the proposals in this Report are approved, there is a need to distinguish between the part-time route and the two-year, full-time, route to the M.Phil. Degree. A single set of revised general regulations for the M.Phil. Degree are attached as Annex I to this Report. Consequential amendments to the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student would also be necessary: these are attached as Annex II.
9. The Council and the General Board accordingly recommend:
I. That a scheme of part-time study leading to the degree of Master of Philosophy be introduced with effect from 1 October 2007.
II. That, subject to approval of Recommendation I, the general regulations for the degree of Master of Philosophy be amended as set out in Annex I to this Report.
III. That, subject to approval of Recommendation I, the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student be amended as set out in Annex II of this Report.
| 18 June 2007 | ALISON RICHARD, Vice-Chancellor | BOB DOWLING | DAVID SIMON |
| ROSS ANDERSON | M. FERGUSON | VERONICA SUTHERLAND | |
| Z. BARANSKI | M. K. B. KEMPLE | LIBA TAUB | |
| NIGEL BROWN | TIM LEWIS | JOAN M. WHITEHEAD | |
| WILLIAM BROWN | D. W. B. MACDONALD | RICHARD WILSON | |
| M. CLARK | G. A. REID | S. J. YOUNG | |
| S. J. COWLEY |
| 6 June 2007 | ALISON RICHARD, Vice-Chancellor | RICHARD FRIEND | MELVEENA MCKENDRICK |
| JOHN BELL | JACOB HEAD | KAMIAR MOHADDES | |
| TOM BLUNDELL | RICHARD HUNTER | PATRICK SISSONS | |
| WILLIAM BROWN | D. W. B. MACDONALD | I. H. WHITE | |
| PHILIP FORD |
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 458)
Regulations 1 and 2.
By replacing the regulations by one regulation so as to read:
Save as otherwise provided in the Statutes or Ordinances, no-one shall be admitted to the degree of Master of Philosophy having followed a full-time course of advanced study prescribed by Ordinance, unless he or she has kept three terms at least by residence.
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 458)
1. The M.Phil. Degree shall be awarded for advanced study. Candidature for the degree shall be through one of the following routes:
Route A - one year of full-time study;
Route B - two years of full-time study, including a prescribed period of study (of not more than three terms) outside Cambridge; and
Route C - two years of part-time study.
Each subject of study, through whichever route, together with the syllabus for the course, the special regulations for the examination, and any subsequent amendments thereof, shall be approved by the General Board on the recommendation of the Faculty Board or other body concerned, after consultation with the appropriate Degree Committee, and after submission to, and approval by, the Board of Graduate Studies.
2. The scheme of examination for the M.Phil. Degree, including provision for an oral examination, shall be as prescribed in the appropriate special regulations for the subject as appended to these regulations. Any such prescribed scheme may require candidates also to submit a piece or pieces of written work in accordance with arrangements made by the Board of Graduate Studies on the recommendation of the appropriate Degree Committee. The examination shall be held before the end of the course, except as provided under Regulation 7, and at such time or times as may be determined by the Board of Graduate Studies on a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, subject in the case of written papers to the approval of the Board of Examinations. Each written paper shall be of three hours' duration, unless prescribed otherwise in the regulations that apply to the examination concerned.
3. No student shall be a candidate for the M.Phil. Degree and for another University examination in the same term. No student shall be a candidate for the degree on more than one occasion.
4. A candidate for the M.Phil. Degree shall be a registered Graduate Student who, subject to the provisions of Regulation 5, shall pursue in the University or similar institution approved by the Degree Committee concerned and by the Board of Graduate Studies, the specified course under the direction of a Supervisor appointed by the Degree Committee concerned, and shall comply with any special conditions that the Degree Committee or the Board may lay down in a particular case. The course under Route A shall extend over one academical year; candidates under this Route are required to reside in Cambridge for all three terms of the year, beginning from the date announced by the Degree Committee for the start of lectures, classes, or other formal instruction.1 The courses under Routes B and C shall extend over two academical years. Students under Route B shall spend a minimum of three terms in residence in Cambridge. Students under Route C are required to attend classes or other formal instruction during the six terms of the course, beginning from the date announced by the Degree Committee.
5. The Board of Graduate Studies, after considering a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, may allow a candidate for the M.Phil. Degree, on account of illness or other sufficient cause, to intermit his or her course of study for one or more terms, which terms shall not count for any purpose of these regulations except as provided in Regulation 7 of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student.
6. Details of each candidate's examination entry and subsequent corrections thereof shall be submitted by the candidate to the Secretary of the Degree Committee concerned, and by the latter to the Secretary of the Board of Graduate Studies, who shall transmit them to the Registrary, in accordance with the timetables set out in the Schedule appended to the regulations.
7. Each candidate who is required to submit a thesis under the special regulations for the subject concerned shall submit two copies of the thesis in accordance with detailed arrangements approved by the Board, so as to arrive by a date which shall be determined by the Board, on the recommendation of the Degree Committee, and which shall, for Route A, be not later than the last day of August in the academical year of the course and, for Routes B and C, the last day of August in the second academical year of the course, provided that the Board may, on the recommendation of the Degree Committee concerned, allow a candidate to submit his or her thesis at such later date as may be determined by the Board.
8. In submitting a thesis a candidate shall state, generally in a preface and specifically in notes or in a bibliography, the sources from which information has been derived, the extent to which use has been made of the work of others, and the portions of the thesis which are claimed as original. A thesis shall not be accepted if it is substantially the same as one that the candidate has submitted, or is concurrently submitting, for any other degree, diploma, or similar qualification at any university or similar institution, but a thesis which the candidate has submitted or is concurrently submitting for some other purpose may be accepted. In submitting a thesis the candidate shall declare for what purpose, if any, other than for the M.Phil. Degree, the whole or part of it has already been or is concurrently being submitted. The thesis, apart from quotations, shall be written in English. In special circumstances the Board, after consultation with the Degree Committee concerned, may allow a candidate to submit only one copy of the thesis. The Examiners and the Degree Committee may take into consideration any memoir or work published by the candidate which is submitted with the thesis.
9. Every Supervisor shall send to the Secretary of the Board of Graduate Studies reports on the work of each candidate under his or her charge, in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 8 of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student.
10. The Degree Committee concerned shall appoint such number of Examiners and Assessors as they shall deem sufficient to conduct the examination for the M.Phil. and to report on the performance of a candidate to the Degree Committee. The Assessors shall undertake such duties as the Degree Committee may decide.
| (a) | There shall be at least one External Examiner appointed for each examination. Except in the cases of examinations which consist solely of the examination of a thesis, at least one External Examiner shall be appointed as a Moderating External Examiner, who shall have responsibilities extending across a significant part of the examination in question. |
| (b) | Where the scheme of examination includes written papers, the Degree Committee shall appoint a Senior Examiner; not later than the end of the Michaelmas Term the Secretary of the Degree Committee shall communicate to the Registrary the name of the Senior Examiner and the names of the Examiners and Assessors for those papers. |
| (c) | Where the scheme of examination includes or comprises of a thesis, each candidate's thesis shall be referred to two Examiners each of whom shall make an independent report thereon. The special regulations for the examination may provide for an oral examination on the thesis and, if so specified, on the other parts of the examination. When the oral examination relates to the thesis both Examiners of the thesis shall be among the Examiners present at the oral examination. The Board of Graduate Studies in exceptional circumstances may permit the Examiners to conduct the oral examination by video-conference or other remote means. The Examiners participating in the oral examination shall sign a joint certificate of the result, including any marks assigned thereto, of that examination. If the Examiners do not agree in their recommendation, or if for any other reason the Degree Committee or the Board need a further opinion or opinions on the merit of the work submitted, the Degree Committee may appoint additional Examiners, provided that not more than one additional Examiner may be appointed without the leave of the Board. Each additional Examiner so appointed shall make an independent report to the Degree Committee. |
11. If the Degree Committee, on the reports of the Examiners, approve the candidate's performance as of the requisite standard for the M.Phil. Degree, their recommendation to that effect, with the names of those present and voting, together with the reports of the Examiners and details of the marks obtained by the candidate in an examination wholly or partly by written papers, shall be communicated to the Board. If the Board, after receiving such communication, at a meeting at which not less than three members are present, are of the opinion that the degree should be conferred, the Secretary of the Board shall publish a notice of the candidate's approval for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy, specifying the subject of the examination and the Route of candidature.
12. The Board shall be the deciding authority on all recommendations communicated to them by Degree Committees that a candidate be approved for the M.Phil. Degree. The Board shall not approve a candidate for the award of the degree under these regulations unless the Degree Committee have recommended such an award, and before refusing an award so recommended they shall give a representative appointed by the Degree Committee an opportunity of explaining the committee's reasons for their recommendation.
13. If the Degree Committee, after consideration of a candidate's marks and the reports of the Examiners in the prescribed examination, are of the opinion that the candidate's work is not of the requisite standard for the degree, their resolution to that effect with the numbers of those present and of those voting, together with the reports of the Examiners and details of the marks obtained by the candidate in the prescribed examination, shall be communicated to the Board. The Secretary of the Board shall communicate this decision to the candidate.
14. After such a resolution has been made the student concerned shall not be eligible to take the examination for the degree again.
15. Payment of travelling expenses and a subsistence allowance may be claimed by Examiners in accordance with Regulation 11 of the regulations for the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees.
16. A Graduate Student whose course of study for the M.Phil. Degree has included any term needed for the B.A. Degree and who elects to proceed to the B.A. Degree shall not be entitled to proceed to the M.Phil. Degree.
In accordance with Regulation 6, details of each candidate's examinations entry shall be as set out in the following timetable:
| Entries to be submitted | Details of written papers etc. | Corrections | Title of thesis etc. |
| By candidates to Secretaries of Degree Committees | By end of Full Michaelmas Term | By division of Lent Term | |
| By Secretaries of Degree Committees to Board of Graduate Studies | By end of Michaelmas Term | By end of third week of Full Lent Term | By end of Lent Term |
| By Board of Graduate Studies to Registrary | By end of first week of Full Lent Term | By division of Lent Term |
Lists of candidates for each examination shall be circulated by the Registrary to Colleges as follows:
List of entries: By the end of the second week of Full Lent Term.
Final list of entries: Not less than four weeks before the beginning of the examination concerned.
The following timetable refers to the second year of each student's candidature:
| Entries to be submitted | Details of written papers etc. | Last date for corrections |
| By candidates to Secretaries of Degree Committees | By end of Full Michaelmas Term | By end of second week of Full Lent Term |
| By Secretaries of Degree Committees to Board of Graduate Studies | By end of Michaelmas Term | By end of third week of Full Lent Term |
| By Board of Graduate Studies to Registrary | By end of first week of Full Lent Term | By division of Lent Term |
Lists of candidates for each examination shall be circulated by the Registrary to Colleges as follows:
List of entries: By the end of the second week of Full Lent Term.
Final list of entries: Not less than four weeks before the beginning of the written examination.
| Entries to be submitted | Details of written papers etc. | Corrections | Title of thesis etc. |
| By candidates to Secretaries of Degree Committees | By end of Full Michaelmas Term in first year of study | By division of Easter Term of first year of study | |
| By Secretaries of Degree Committees to Board of Graduate Studies | By end of Michaelmas Term in first year of study | By end of third week of Full Lent Term in first year of study | By end of Easter Term in first year of study |
| By Board of Graduate Studies to Registrary | By end of first week of Lent Term in first year of study | By division of Lent Term in first year of study |
Lists of candidates for each examination shall be circulated by the Registrary to Colleges as follows:
List of entries: By the end of the second week of Full Lent Term in the first year of study.
Final list of entries: Not less than four weeks before the beginning of the examination concerned.
(Statutes and Ordinances, p. 401)
Regulation 5.
By deleting sub-paragraph (c); by deleting in lines 1 and 4 of sub-paragraph (d) the words '(two-year course)'; and by amending sub-paragraph (e) so as to read:
| (e) | to register as a candidate for a Ph.D. Degree, or the M.Sc. or the M.Litt. Degree, a Graduate Student who has been approved for the M.Phil. Degree and to allow such a student to count towards his or her course of research as a candidate for the Ph.D. Degree, or for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree, such terms as the Board may determine in accordance with the regulations for the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees; |
by deleting in sub-paragraph (h) the words '(two-year course), or M.Phil. Degree (one-year course)' and by lettering sub-paragraphs (d)-(h) as (c)-(g) and amending cross-references accordingly.
Regulation 6.
By deleting in lines 3 and 4 the words 'and Regulations 3(c) and 4 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year course)'.
Regulation 7.
By deleting in line 7 the words 'or under Regulation 4 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year) course';
and by replacing in the final sentence the words 'or Regulation 3(b) of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year course), or Regulation 5 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (one-year course)' by the words 'or Regulation 5 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree'.
Regulation 8.
By replacing in lines 1-3 of sub-paragraph (c) the words 'or a course of further study and training in research, as prescribed in the appropriate special regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year course) and the M.Phil. Degree (one-year course)' by the words 'proscribed in the appropriate special regulations for the M.Phil. Degree';
and by deleting in line 2 of sub-paragraph (ii) the words '(two-year or one-year course)'.
Regulation 9.
By replacing in the last line of the first paragraph the words 'Regulation 3 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year course)' by the words 'Regulation 4 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree'.
Regulation 10(e)(iii).
By deleting in line 2 the words '(two-year course), or M.Phil. Degree (one-year course)'.
Regulation 11.
By amending sub-paragraph (a) so as to read:
11. (a) A Graduate Student who is resident not more than ten miles from the University Church, or who, not being so resident, is working in the University, or working under conditions prescribed under either Regulations 4 and 5 of the regulations for the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees, or Regulation 2(a) of the regulations for the Eng.D. Degree, or Regulation 4 of the regulations for the M.Phil. Degree, shall pay the University Composition Fee as determined by Regulation 11 of the regulations for University Composition Fees for each term up to and including the term in which he or she submits a dissertation or a revised dissertation for the Ph.D., or M.Litt., or M.Sc. Degree, or completes the requirements for the M.Phil. Degree, or such other qualification for which he or she may be registered as a candidate.
By inserting at the end of the footnote attached to sub-paragraph (b) the words:
For a Graduate Student who completes the course leading to the M.Phil. Degree through Route C, the fee will be 50% of the full-time fee each term.
and by deleting the words in sub-paragraph (c), relettered (d) by Grace 1 of 10 January 2007, '(two-year course), or completes the requirements for the M.Phil. Degree (one-year course)'.
Regulation 12.
By deleting in lines 1 and 2 the words '(one-year course), for the M.Phil. Degree (two-year course)'.
Regulation 14(b)(ii).
By replacing in line 4 the words 'or Regulation 3(a)' by the words 'or Regulation 4' and by deleting in lines 4 and 5 the words '(two-year course)'.
1 Exceptionally, and subject to the special permission of the Board of Graduate Studies, a candidate under Route A may be admitted from the beginning of either the Lent Term or the Easter Term if the Board are satisfied that the approved course of study for the subject concerned can be provided from that date.