DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY, MASTER OF SCIENCE, AND MASTER OF LETTERS23

Amended by Notice (Reporter, 2007–08, p. 857)

1. Subject to clauses (a)–(e) below, a Graduate Student shall pursue in the University, or such other place as the Board and the Degree Committee concerned shall determine, under supervision a course of research

1. (i)if the student seeks the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree by full-time study, for not less than six terms;
2. (ii)if the student seeks the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree by part-time study, for not less than ten terms;
3. (iii)if the student seeks the Ph.D. Degree by full-time study, for not less than nine terms;
4. (iv)if the student seeks the Ph.D. Degree by part-time study, for not less than fifteen terms.

The number of terms referred to shall begin with the term from which the student is registered for a course of research as a candidate for the particular degree and shall be consecutive except in so far as the student may have been allowed to intermit his or her course under clause (c) below, or except in so far as the Board may have determined that he or she shall not be allowed to count any particular term towards the requirements for a degree.

1. (a)The Board, after considering a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, may exempt from up to three terms of his or her full-time course or from up to five terms of his or her part-time course a Graduate Student who is registered as a candidate for the Ph.D., M.Sc., or M.Litt. Degree, provided that before admission as a Graduate Student he or she had been engaged
2.  either(i)in full-time or part-time research
3.  or(ii)in other work done after graduation deemed by the Degree Committee and the Board to have provided satisfactory training for the course of research in question.
4. (b)The Board, after considering a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, may allow a Graduate Student to spend all but three terms of his or her full-time course of research or five terms of a part-time course of research as a candidate for a degree, or any lesser number of terms, working under supervision outside the University under conditions approved by the Degree Committee and the Board.
5. (c)On account of illness or other sufficient cause, the Board, after considering a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, may allow a Graduate Student to intermit his or her course of research for one or more terms. Such 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. (d)If the Council have granted a student registered for a full-time course an allowance of terms of residence under Regulation 2 in respect of work done by the student in the University before matriculation, the Board, after considering a recommendation by the Degree Committee concerned, may grant the student an allowance in respect of such work towards the period during which he or she is required to pursue a course of research in the University under this regulation, provided that the number of terms so allowed shall not exceed the number of terms allowed by the Council in respect of such work. For every term so allowed the student shall pay the appropriate fee as prescribed in Regulation 11 of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student.
7. (e)On the recommendation of the Degree Committee concerned, the Board may allow a Graduate Student to count towards his or her course of research as a candidate for a degree a period during which he or she was a candidate for another qualification as set out in Regulation 5(c), 5(e), or 5(f) of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Students or for the following Diplomas or Certificates:
8.  (i)a student who is qualified to receive, or who has received, the Diploma in Economics, in International Law, or in Legal Studies, as the case may be, may be allowed to count not more than three terms of the period during which he or she was a candidate for the Diploma concerned towards a full-time course or not more than five terms towards a part-time course;
9.  (ii)a student who is qualified to receive, but who has not received, a Certificate of Postgraduate Study may be allowed to count not more than three terms of the period during which he or she was a candidate for the Certificate concerned towards a full-time course or not more than five terms towards a part-time course.

Every application for dispensation under clauses (a)–(e) shall be made in writing to the Secretary of the Board, and shall be accompanied by a written opinion from the applicant's Supervisor.

2. On the recommendation of the Board, the Council may grant to a Graduate Student in respect of work done in the University before matriculation, if the student's matriculation was delayed for sufficient cause, an allowance of terms, not exceeding three in number, towards the minimum of three terms required to be kept under Statute B, III, 5(a) for full-time study leading to the M.Sc., M.Litt., or Ph.D. Degree.

3. The Board may grant to a Graduate Student, after considering an application supported by the student's Tutor, the following allowance of terms of research towards satisfying the requirements of Regulation 1, on account of illness or other grave cause:

1. (a)one or two terms of research to a candidate for the Ph.D. Degree who would otherwise be required to complete nine terms of research;
2. (b)up to three terms of research to a candidate for the Ph.D. Degree who would otherwise be required to complete fifteen terms of research;
3. (c)one term of research to a candidate for a degree who would otherwise be required to complete five terms of research;
4. (d)one or two terms of research to a candidate for a degree who would otherwise be required to complete ten terms of research.

For every term so allowed the student shall pay the appropriate fee as prescribed in Regulation 11 of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of Regulation 1 of these regulations and Regulation 4 of the general regulations for admission as a Graduate Student, the Board shall have power, on the recommendation of the Degree Committee concerned, to permit a Graduate Student to pursue a course of research, as a candidate for the Ph.D., M.Sc., or M.Litt. Degree, in a particular institution outside the University, under such conditions as may be prescribed by the Degree Committee and the Board. Applications under this regulation shall be made in writing to the Secretary of the Board, and shall be accompanied by a written opinion from the applicant's Supervisor.

5. A Graduate Student who, having pursued a course of research registered as a candidate for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree, has been approved for the award of one of those degrees, may be registered as a candidate for the Ph.D. Degree. The Board shall determine the conditions of candidature for a student so registered, after considering recommendations by the Degree Committee, provided that:

1. (a)a student shall not submit a dissertation in candidature for the Ph.D. Degree until he or she has completed at least five terms of full-time research or nine terms of part-time research under supervision subsequent to the term or vacation in which he or she submitted a dissertation for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree;
2. (b)a student shall spend at least three of the five terms pursuing full-time research or five of the nine terms pursuing part-time research in the University, or at a particular institution as provided under Regulation 4; and
3. (c)if a student has proceeded to the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree, the Examiners conducting the examination for the Ph.D. Degree shall not take account of any work that was included in the dissertation submitted by the student in candidature for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree.

A student who has been approved for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree under Regulation 14 shall not be registered as a candidate for the Ph.D. Degree.

6. The examination for the degrees of Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. shall consist of

1. (a)the submission of a dissertation embodying the results of the candidate's approved course of research, which shall be submitted in accordance with the provisions of Regulations 7–9;
2. (b)an examination, conducted orally or in writing, on the subject of the dissertation and on the general field of knowledge within which it falls, provided that in exceptional circumstances, and on the recommendation of the Degree Committee concerned, the Board may dispense with such an examination.

By special permission of the Degree Committee, a candidate may submit with the dissertation published work which is not connected with the subject of the dissertation or related to it; such work may be considered by the Examiners at their discretion.

7. A candidate may submit her or his dissertation not earlier than the first day of the term during which he or she expects to complete the requirements of Regulation 1 and not later than the last day of the fourth year after the student was registered as a full-time candidate for the degree or the last day of the seventh year after the student was registered as a part-time candidate for the degree, provided that, with the permission of the Board, a dissertation may be submitted later than that day. An allowance of terms made by the Council under Regulation 2 and by the Board under Regulation 1(d) shall count in calculating the standing of a student for the purpose of this regulation as shall an exemption under Regulation 1(a).

8. In submitting their dissertations, candidates shall state, generally in a preface and specifically in notes or in a bibliography, the sources from which their information is derived, the extent to which they have availed themselves of the work of others, and the portions of the dissertation which are claimed as original. They shall also be required to declare that the dissertation submitted is not substantially the same as any that they may have submitted for a degree or diploma or similar qualification; save that the Board shall have power to allow a candidate to submit a dissertation that he or she has already submitted for a qualification other than a degree or diploma or similar qualification at any university or similar institution. A dissertation, apart from quotations, shall be written in English. Each Degree Committee shall have power to specify a maximum length for dissertations submitted by students working under its supervision.

9. Two copies of each candidate's dissertation, accompanied by three copies of a summary of about 300 words in length, shall be sent to the Secretary of the Board, who shall forward the two copies of the dissertation and two copies of the summary to the Secretary of the Degree Committee concerned. In special circumstances the Board, after consulting the Degree Committee, may allow a candidate to submit one copy only of the dissertation. The dissertation shall be referred to two Examiners, appointed by the Degree Committee. Each Examiner shall make an independent report to the Degree Committee on the dissertation. The two Examiners shall jointly conduct the oral or written examination specified in Regulation 6(b), and shall sign a joint certificate of the result; if the examination is conducted orally, both Examiners shall be present, provided that the Board of Graduate Studies in exceptional circumstances may permit the Examiners to conduct the oral examination by video-conference or other remote means. If the Examiners do not agree in their recommendations 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 an additional Examiner or additional Examiners, provided that not more than one additional Examiner shall be appointed without leave of the Board. Each additional Examiner so appointed shall make an independent report on the dissertation to the Degree Committee.

10. If a candidate fails to satisfy the Examiners in the oral or other examination specified in Regulation 6(b), the Degree Committee may permit the candidate to be re-examined by the same Examiners. Permission so given shall be communicated to the Secretary of the Board and shall not be given on more than one occasion. Each Examiner who takes part in an examination under this regulation shall be paid a fee of £42 in addition to any fees to which he or she may be entitled under Regulation 11, and may also claim travelling expenses in accordance with the provisions of that regulation.

11. Each Examiner shall receive a fee from the Chest. Such a fee shall be £135 if the Examiner takes part in the oral or other examination specified in Regulation 6(b), or £100 if the Examiner does not so take part, either because the Board, on the recommendation of the Degree Committee, have dispensed with the oral or other examination or for any other reason. Examiners may claim travelling expenses, on terms and conditions specified by the Board of Graduate Studies, if their place of residence is more than ten miles from Great St Mary's Church or if an oral examination or a consultation between the Examiners is for good reason held outside Cambridge. The Board may also approve payment of other reasonable expenses incurred by an Examiner in connection with the execution of his or her duties. A subsistence allowance may be claimed by Examiners at rates determined from time to time by the Finance Committee of the Council, provided that payment may be made only in respect of a day or a night on which the Examiner's absence from his or her normal place of residence in connection with the execution of his or her duties is necessary. The travelling expenses of a candidate who is required to travel to an oral or other examination outside Cambridge may be paid in whole or in part, at rates determined by the Board of Graduate Studies; such a candidate may also claim a subsistence allowance at rates determined from time to time by the Finance Committee, under the same conditions as apply to the Examiners.

12. If, after considering the reports of the Examiners on a student's dissertation and on his or her performance in the oral or other examination, the Degree Committee are satisfied that the student's work is of the requisite standard for the degree for which he or she is a candidate, a resolution of the Committee to that effect, with the names of those present and voting on either side, shall be communicated to the Board, together with the reports of the Examiners. If the Board, after receiving such communication, at a meeting at which not less than five members of the Board are present, resolve that the candidate be approved for the degree sought, the Secretary of the Board shall publish a notice of the candidate's approval for the award of the Ph.D., M.Sc., or M.Litt. Degree, as the case may be.

13. If, after considering the reports of the Examiners, the Degree Committee consider that a student's dissertation is not of the requisite standard for the degree for which he or she is a candidate, the Board may permit the student to submit a revised dissertation, but they shall not do so unless the Degree Committee have expressly recommended that such permission be given. The communication conveying such a recommendation by a Degree Committee shall contain the names of those present and voting on either side, and shall be accompanied by the reports of the Examiners. A student shall not be allowed to submit a revised dissertation on more than one occasion.

14. If, after considering the reports of the Examiners, the Degree Committee consider that a student's work is not of the standard requisite for the Ph.D. Degree, but that it is of the standard requisite for the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree, as the case may be, their resolution to that effect, with the names of those present and voting on either side, shall be communicated to the Board, together with the reports of the Examiners. If after receiving such communication the Board decide, at a meeting at which not less than five members of the Board are present, that the candidate could properly be approved for the award of a lower degree, the Secretary of the Board shall ask the candidate whether he or she is willing to be approved for the award of the M.Sc. or M.Litt. Degree, as appropriate. Subject to the candidate's agreement being received by the Secretary not later than the last day of the term following the term or vacation in which the decision on his or her candidature was made, the Board shall approve the candidate for the award of that degree and the Secretary shall publish a notice of such approval. The Board may, in exceptional circumstances, which they shall themselves determine, accept a candidate's agreement at a later date.

15. The Board shall be the deciding authority on all recommendations communicated to them by Degree Committees that candidates be approved for the award of degrees or that they be allowed to submit revised dissertations. The Board shall not approve a candidate for the award of a degree unless the Degree Committee have recommended the award of that degree; 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.

16. If after considering the reports of the Examiners the Degree Committee resolve that a candidate's work is not of the requisite standard for any degree, and if they do not recommend that the candidate be allowed to submit a revised dissertation, their resolution to that effect, with the names of those present and voting on either side, shall be communicated to the Board, together with the reports of the Examiners. The Secretary of the Board shall communicate this decision to the candidate.

17. Before being admitted to a degree, a student shall deposit with the Secretary of the Board one copy of his or her dissertation and two copies of the summary, both the dissertation and the summary being in a form approved by the Board. The Secretary shall deposit the copy of the dissertation together with one copy of the summary in the University Library, where they shall be available for consultation and for the making of copies for inter-library loan purposes, unless the Board determine that they shall, for a period specified by the Board, be available only to the author or to those who have the author's written permission to consult the dissertation and the summary. The summary of the dissertation shall be available for copying and publication at the discretion of the Board.

Doctor of Philosophy:24 Special Regulations

1. A candidate wishing to proceed to the Ph.D. Degree under these regulations shall be required to give proof of a significant contribution to scholarship.

2. Except as provided in Regulations 3 and 4 below any person may be a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy who is a graduate of the University and who

1. either(a)is of not less than six years’ standing from admission to his or her first degree of the University,
2. or(b)is of not less than six years’ standing from admission to his or her first degree of some other university and has been admitted (i) to some office in the University or to a Headship or a Fellowship of a College, and (ii) to the degree of Master of Arts under Statute B, III, 6 or to a degree of the University by incorporation.

3. A person shall not be eligible to proceed to the Ph.D. Degree under these regulations if he or she has been approved for the Ph.D. Degree under the regulations for Research Students,25 or under the regulations for the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees.

4. A graduate of the University who has been examined for the Ph.D. Degree under the regulations for Research Students,25 or under the regulations for the Ph.D., M.Sc., and M.Litt. Degrees, but has not been approved for the Ph.D. Degree, may become a candidate under these regulations after a period of not less than five years from the date of submitting a dissertation or a revised dissertation, as the case may be, for the Ph.D. Degree, provided that he or she is of standing in accordance with Regulation 2 above.

5. A candidate for the Ph.D. Degree under these regulations shall apply in writing to the Secretary of the Board of Graduate Studies, specifying the published work or works on which his or her claim to the degree is based, and naming the Faculty or other approved institution within whose scope these works fall. A candidate shall send with the application a fee of £462 for the Chest, and two copies of each of the works specified; a candidate shall also submit an introductory summary in the form of a statement of between 1,000 and 5,000 words summarizing the rationale behind the works submitted, the extent to which the works represent a consistent body of research, and the original contribution to knowledge they make. All the works submitted, apart from quotations, shall be written in English, unless in a particular case the Degree Committee have allowed a candidate to submit material in some other language.

6. A candidate, in submitting an application, shall be required (a) to declare that the submission as a whole is not substantially the same as any that he or she has previously made or is currently making, whether in published or in unpublished form, for a degree, diploma, or similar qualification at any university or similar institution, (b) to state what parts if any of the work or works now submitted have previously been submitted for any such qualification, and (c) to declare that, until the outcome of the current application to this University is known, the work or works submitted will not be submitted for any such qualification at another university or similar institution; save that the Board shall have power to allow a candidate to submit certain works that he or she may have already submitted unsuccessfully for any such qualification, or that he or she may have already submitted or is concurrently submitting for some other purpose at any university or similar institution. A candidate who submits work published jointly with others shall submit such evidence as to the extent of his or her own contribution to that work as the Board may require.

7. The Secretary of the Board shall forward to the Secretary of the relevant Degree Committee two copies of the published work or works submitted by the candidate, together with copies of the following: the candidate's application, the candidate's introductory summary, and any evidence submitted by the candidate concerning the extent of his or her contribution to work published jointly with others. If the Degree Committee concerned are of the opinion that the published work or works submitted constitute prima facie a qualification for the degree, they shall appoint not less than two Examiners and shall refer the application to them. If Examiners are not appointed, £396 out of the fee of £462 paid by the applicant under Regulation 5 shall be returned.

8. The examination for the Ph.D. Degree under these regulations shall consist of the submission of published work, and of an oral examination on the work submitted and on the general field of knowledge within which it falls. The oral examination shall be held in the United Kingdom with both Examiners present unless permission to hold it elsewhere or, in exceptional circumstances, by video-conference or other remote means has been granted by the Board of Graduate Studies.

9. Each Examiner shall make an independent report on the published work or works before the oral examination and shall sign a joint certificate of the result of the oral examination.

10. If the Examiners are not satisfied with the candidate's performance in the oral examination, the Degree Committee may allow the candidate to be examined orally on one more occasion at a time to be appointed by the Examiners. Permission so given shall be communicated to the Secretary of the Board. Each Examiner who takes part in an examination under this regulation shall be paid a fee of £42 in addition to any fees to which he or she may be entitled in respect of the examination of the candidate, and may also claim travelling expenses in accordance with Regulation 12.

11. If the Examiners do not agree in their recommendations 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 an additional Examiner or additional Examiners, provided that not more than one additional Examiner shall be appointed without the leave of the Board. Any additional Examiner or Examiners thus appointed shall make an independent report on the work submitted by the candidate, and may, at the discretion of such Examiner or Examiners, conduct an oral examination on that work and on the general field of knowledge within which it falls.

12. Each Examiner shall receive a fee of £135 from the Chest. A fee of £42 shall be paid to any person appointed by the Degree Committee to establish whether an application under Regulation 5 constitutes prima facie a qualification for the degree. If such a person is subsequently appointed an Examiner the fee of £42 shall form part of the fee of £135 due to him or her as an Examiner. When external Examiners are employed, or when an oral examination or consultation between the Examiners is held away from Cambridge, an Examiner may claim travelling expenses not exceeding the return railway-fare in the United Kingdom between the Examiner's place of residence or other place approved by the Board of Graduate Studies and the place of the oral examination or consultation. For the purpose of this regulation return railway-fare shall be taken to include boat-fare between any two ports of the United Kingdom. The Board may also (a) approve payment of travelling expenses not exceeding return rail- and boat-fare between the Examiner's place of residence and the place of examination or consultation, when one or both of those places is outside the United Kingdom, (b) approve payment of travelling expenses incurred by Examiners in travelling by air, (c) approve payment, at rates prescribed from time to time by the Finance Committee of the Council, of travelling expenses other than those provided for in (a) and (b) above, and (d) approve payment of reasonable expenses incurred by Examiners in connection with the execution of their duties.

Subsistence allowance may be claimed by Examiners, at rates to be determined from time to time by the Finance Committee, provided that payment may be made only in respect of a day or a night on which the Examiner's absence from his or her normal place of residence in connection with the execution of his or her duties is necessary.

13. If the Degree Committee, on the reports of the Examiners, approve the work submitted by a candidate and his or her performance in the oral examination as of the requisite standard for the degree, their recommendation to that effect, with the names of those present and of those voting on either side, together with the reports of the Examiners, shall be communicated to the Board.

If the Board, after receiving such a communication, at a meeting at which not less than five members of the Board 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 Ph.D. Degree.

14. If the Degree Committee, either without obtaining a report or after receiving the reports of the Examiners, are of the opinion that the work submitted by the candidate is not of the requisite standard for the degree, a resolution to that effect shall be passed, and a copy of the resolution with the numbers of those present and voting on either side, together with the reports of the Examiners, if these have been obtained, shall be communicated to the Board. The Secretary of the Board shall communicate this decision to the candidate.

15. The Board shall be the deciding authority on all recommendations communicated to them by Degree Committees that candidates be approved for the award of the degree. The Board shall not approve a candidate for the award of the degree unless the Degree Committee have recommended that it be awarded, 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.

16. If a candidate's application for the degree fails, he or she may reapply on one occasion only, after a period of not less than five years from the date of the original application.

17. A candidate whose application for the Ph.D. Degree is not approved shall not be eligible to be approved for the M.Sc. Degree or M.Litt. Degree.

18. No candidate for the degree shall be present at the deliberations either of the Degree Committee or of the Board of Graduate Studies in respect of his or her own candidature.

19. No fee shall be payable on admission to the degree.