Multi-part thesis submissions Multi-part thesis guidance: PGRs not taking practice-led research degrees
Criteria for a multi-part thesis outside of practice-led research
There must be a clear academic rationale for submission of a multi-part thesis. The need for the examiners to be able to assess the core criteria (originality, criticality, publishability) must be balanced against supporting the opportunity to submit in a non-conventional format. Applications will be on a case-by-case basis and must consider the following:
Academic support for choice of format
Details of how this choice of format benefits from being in a multi-part thesis format rather than the conventional single PDF submission. The School must be satisfied that the format is adding value, is essential for communicating the contribution to knowledge, and does not detract from evidencing the criteria for award.
Length and equivalence
consideration to the length of the proposed submission and that this allows for the necessary academic depth and rigour – equivalent to a conventional thesis format - whilst also ensuring that the volume/quantity of material submitted remains appropriate, and within the normal expectations for a thesis in the discipline.
Navigation
Whereas examiners can easily move between different sections of a traditional written submission, careful consideration must be given as to how the examiners will navigate and examine a multi-part thesis, and how they may need to – for example, reference which parts need reworking in the event of corrections.
Accessibility
Material must be well designed, created and accessible. Information on the format and content of the files will be required, including any additional software required to open the files. Accessibility and preservation should be considered when choosing file formats.
Confidentiality and sensitivity of materials
The School must assess whether any of the additional files include sensitive or highly confidential data or materials. If so, the School must provide confirmation that the University guidelines for the handling and storage of data have been followed and sharing of this content with the examiners (and longer-term as part of the thesis in WREO) is consistent with the approach outlined in ethics review and any contractual agreements.
Long-term preservation
The University will require a permanent record of the complete thesis on which any award is made, and all content/files will need to be deposited to WREO. Consideration should also be given to the accessibility of the thesis to a wider audience. Please see further advice later in this document. Depending on the nature and format of the intended submission, advice may need to be sought from the Library to support the eventual archive of the final thesis (after examination).
If you feel it might be necessary to redact part of a multi-part thesis before deposit to WREO please email the Library at lib-etheses@leeds.ac.uk and email the Doctoral College Operations at rp_examinations@adm.leeds.ac.uk as early as possible in advance of making your submission.
Examination
Confirmation that the examiners are aware of the non-conventional format for submission and are happy to examine in this format will be required. It would be open to the examiners to require that the thesis be re-worked into a conventional thesis format as part of any corrections to the thesis, and which may be within the scope of what examiners could require under a referral recommendation. The examiners will be asked to provide an assurance in their final report that they were able to reach an evidence-based conclusion given the unconventional format for submission.
Application process
If you want to submit a multi-format thesis, you must gain approval of both the School and the Graduate Board’s Progression and Examinations Group, via the following process.
Stage 1: preliminary discussion
Academic support from the Supervisory team and Director of Postgraduate Research Studies is required for a multi-part thesis submission. You should first discuss this with your Supervisors well before the planned date for thesis submission. It is recognised that a multi-part doctoral thesis may not appropriate in all disciplines and that, in some subject areas, the traditional, single PDF thesis will remain the recommended and expected format for the thesis. Supervisors will be best placed to advise their PGRs on such matters, considering both the expectations in the discipline and the application criteria.
Stage 2: application
If the Supervisors and Director of PGR Studies support your proposal to submit a multi-part thesis, you will need to apply.
Form needed: Application for a multi part thesis (non-practice led) (Word, 31.39KB)
You must email the completed form to Doctoral College Operations at least 6 months before the intended submission date of the thesis. Earlier applications are strongly encouraged to ensure that there is sufficient time before the intended submission date to consider and resolve issues, and if necessary, revert to a traditional thesis submission. In-principle applications at earlier points in the candidature can also be considered.
If you are interested in a multi-part thesis but your submission deadline is more than six months away, or after the close of the pilot, please get in touch as your application can be considered in principle.
Consultation with the White Rose Etheses Online (WREO) team will also be undertaken so that, if approved, advice on long-term preservation and archiving of any material can be provided.
Stage 3: submission for examination (GRAD)
If your multi-part thesis is approved, you should submit the thesis to GRAD for examination.
A Multi-part thesis index file must be submitted alongside the thesis files. This index file will be shared with the examiners alongside the thesis and associated files to assist them with navigation of materials.
Form needed: Multi-part thesis index file (Word, 32.21KB)
If any of your additional files (outside the PDF written thesis) are very large, please consider hosting it elsewhere and providing a link to the file to Doctoral College Operations using OneDrive or SharePoint.
Do not use Google Docs, Dropbox and other file sharing platforms, as we have no agreement with them to handle University data. The link will be shared with your examiners.
Stage 4: final eThesis submission (WREO)
You must upload a complete, final, corrected thesis to White Rose Etheses Online (WREO).
You must submit a Multi-part thesis index file to WREO alongside the eThesis. This index file will help other researchers understand the thesis structure. PGRs will be placed on the pass list only once it has been confirmed that suitable files for have been successfully deposited to WREO.
Form needed: Multi-part thesis index file (Word, 32.21KB)
The University will require a permanent record of the complete ‘thesis’ on which the award will be made; this means that in addition to the written PDF, all examined content and files will also need to be deposited to WREO in an appropriate format (e.g. pdf, jpeg, mp3, etc.).
It will not be possible at this stage to deposit (or embed within your thesis) links/URLs that lead to such material, as content hosted externally (e.g. via YouTube, Vimeo, websites, etc.) cannot be relied upon for long-term preservation.
Exceptionally, links to University-managed systems which use permanent identifiers will be considered. The proposal should be included in the pilot application and requires agreement from the Doctoral College and Library.
You will have the option of setting an embargo for each individual uploaded file, if necessary and supported by your supervisor. Consideration should also be given to the accessibility of the thesis to a wider audience. Open formats should be used where possible.
If files require proprietary software, an additional open format version should be supplied where feasible e.g. .xlsx could also be .csv. Files in a non-proprietary format increase chances of long-term access and preservation.
The Library team will be happy to provide advice and support to help you in your planning. Please contact the Library at lib-etheses@leeds.ac.uk as early as possible in advance of making your submission.