Loughborough Doctoral College

8. Staff submission by publications

Code of Practice banner - Staff submission by publication

Guidance for candidates writing a thesis based on their publications.

(See Reg XXVI Paragraph 7.)

This is a route designed for those who already have a body of published work before they register for the degree.

8.1 For candidates registering for a PhD by Publication from 1 October 2016

The following guidelines have been approved for the submission of a thesis by publications.

The regulations for Higher Degrees by Research permit members of staff of the University of five years standing and graduates of the University to submit published work, or other academic output, for a higher degree of the University. Senate has approved the following guidelines for such submissions:

  1. The general principles for any submission for a higher degree should apply: namely that the work should represent an original contribution to knowledge, should provide evidence of training in and the application of research methods appropriate to the field of study and should not have been presented for a higher award at another institution. In addition, the candidate should be able to demonstrate that he/she is well acquainted with the general field of knowledge to which the subject relates.
  2. The published work or other academic output, must form a coherent whole and relate to a common theme. It should be comparable in substance and size to a submission by research thesis.
  3. A submission may take one of the following forms:
    1. A collection of research articles from refereed journals, or other equivalent academic output, would normally be expected for a PhD submission. An introductory chapter should accompany the articles.
      • The overall length of the submission should be comparable to a standard 80,000-word (or its equivalent in terms of tables or numerical output) thesis.
      • The introductory chapter should be up to 6000 words in length and should, where not apparent from the articles themselves, explain the common theme of the papers or output, linking them into a coherent whole; explain the methodology; place the articles in a theoretical context provided by the wider literature; suggest what further work needs to be done and indicate the author's contribution to co-authored publications or output. Other research output such as computer software or patents may also be presented provided that the material is publicly available.
    2. A single research monograph may be presented for a PhD submission. This method of submission (by publications or other academic output) would not normally be appropriate for the award of the degree of MPhil.

8.2 For Candidates registered for a PhD by Publication prior to 01 October 2016

The following guidelines have been approved for the submission of a thesis by publications.

The regulations for Higher Degrees by Research permit members of staff of the University of five years standing and graduates of the University to submit published work, or other academic output, for a higher degree of the University. Senate has approved the following guidelines for such submissions:

  1. The general principles for any submission for a higher degree should apply: namely that the work should represent an original contribution to knowledge, should provide evidence of training in and the application of research methods appropriate to the field of study and should not have been presented for a higher award at another institution. In addition, the candidate should be able to demonstrate that he/she is well acquainted with the general field of knowledge to which the subject relates.
  2. The published work or other academic output, must form a coherent whole and relate to a common theme. It should be comparable in substance and size to a submission by research thesis.
  3. A submission may take one of the following forms:
    1. A minimum of eight research articles from refereed journals, or other equivalent academic output, would normally be expected for a PhD submission. An introductory chapter should accompany the articles. This chapter should be up to 6000 words in length and should, where not apparent from the articles themselves, explain the common theme of the papers or output, linking them into a coherent whole; explain the methodology; place the articles in a theoretical context provided by the wider literature; suggest what further work needs to be done and indicate the author's contribution to co-authored publications or output. Other research output such as computer software or patents may also be presented provided that the material is publicly available.
    2. A single research monograph may be presented for a PhD submission. This method of submission (by publications or other academic output) would not normally be appropriate for the award of the degree of MPhil.

8.3 In addition to the thesis the following must be submitted:

  • a signed certificate stating that neither the thesis nor the original work contained therein has been submitted to this or any other institution for a degree;
  • three additional copies of the abstract, not bound into the thesis, of about 300 words and not longer than can be accommodated on one side of a sheet of A4 paper, which are required for library abstracting purposes.
  • a list of 6 to 10 'Key words' in order to assist the University Library to catalogue the thesis.

8.4 Submitting published work

Where a submission of published work is being made under paragraph 6 or 7 of the Regulations, paper, journal articles and other unbound items should be bound in soft covers for submission. It is preferable that such articles etc. are photocopies on A4 paper so that the submission is of uniform consistency. Books and monographs may be submitted separately from the bound collection of articles. The bound collection should contain:

  • a sheet giving the candidate's name, a title descriptive of the collection of documents and the degree for which it has been submitted; and
  • a list of items included in the submission.
  • a statement specifying the current location of copyright in each case.