Thesis resubmission for re-examination
Information on what steps to take if your thesis requires resubmission for examination.
PhD and MPhil resubmission for re-examination
Following the oral examination, examiners may decide that your thesis requires substantial revision and therefore recommend resubmission of a thesis - Reg 23e for PhD or Reg 24e for MPhil. The examiners' recommendation will be sent to the College Office on the Part II (oral examination) examination report form. The examination paperwork will be sent to the next Board of Examiners meeting for approval. You will then receive an official letter from the College Office notifying you of the recommendation to resubmit your thesis for re-examination and your new thesis submission deadline. You will also be sent copies of the report and examiner notes detailing what revisions are required. The examiners will specify a further period of study under supervision usually not exceeding 12 months (maximum 24 months). You will be required to pay Continuation Fees for the additional study period and a Resubmission Fee to resubmit your thesis; the Resubmission Fee is currently £690 for session 2018-19.
Your new Resubmission deadline which will appear in your MyEd Portal. This deadline is as strict as your initial submission deadline; late submissions will not be examined. In very exceptional occasions it may be possible to request an extension to your Resubmission deadline.
2 months before resubmission
You must notify the Informatics Graduate School and the College Office at least 2 months before you intend to resubmit your thesis. Please read the '2 Months Before Submission' page for information on the Intention to Submit forms you are required to submit. This will trigger the Nomination of Examiners process again.
The examiners generally remain the same as for the initial examination. It is the responsibility of your supervisor to ensure the College Office has current mailing addresses for your examiners.
Thesis binding
You are required to submit at least 2 soft-bound copies of your thesis to the College Office. If you have been or are currently a member of staff at the University you may be required to submit 3 soft-bound copies for examination; you should discuss this with your Supervisor.
Each copy of your thesis must contain the following:
- Signed declaration page
- Abstract of Thesis
- Electronic copy of Thesis (including Abstract and thesis) - please ensure the electronic copies are suitably attached to each Thesis.
The University has printing and binding services on the King's Buildings Campus (James Clerk Maxwell Building) and in the Central area (Infirmary Street). For further information on locations to have your thesis bound please visit at the Thesis Binding Information link below. Please note, it is recommended that you print your thesis single-sided at this stage so that examiners have space to make comments on the thesis. Your thesis must conform to the College of Science and Engineering Thesis Format and Binding Guidelines (link below). The 'Temporary Binding' paragraph in the document relates to the requirements for a soft-bound thesis.
Thesis format and binding guidelines
Re-submitting your thesis for re-examination
You are required to resubmit on or before your thesis resubmission deadline (also known as the Maximum End Date of your programme). Your deadline date can be found on your MyEd Portal.
You must submit two soft-bound copies of your thesis (as described above) (three copies if a second external examiner has been appointed) to the College Office (Murchison House, King's Buildings):
If the addresses of your examiners have been confirmed by your supervisor to the College Office, the College Office will be able to send your thesis to your examiners within 5 working days. If the examiners details have not been confirmed yet, there may be some delay in sending your thesis to the examiners. If a viva is recommended by the examiners, it is strongly advised that your viva is not organised until your examiners have officially received a copy of your thesis and the re-examination paperwork from the College Office. This benefits you as it gives the examiners suitable time to read and preliminarily re-examine your thesis before the viva; examiners must complete a report form before your viva. Examiners will normally be expected to read the thesis within three months of receiving it; but candidates should allow for examiners' other commitments. If, because of visa restrictions, overseas candidates must return home promptly at the end of their period in Edinburgh, they and their supervisors must ensure that an allowance is made for this time when re-submitting the thesis.
Plagiarism
The University takes plagiarism very seriously and is committed to ensuring that so far as possible it is detected and dealt with appropriately.
Plagiarism is the act of including in one’s work the work of another person without providing adequate acknowledgement of having done so, either deliberately or unintentionally. At whatever stage of a student’s course, whether discovered before or after graduation, plagiarism will be investigated and dealt with.
We strongly recommend you read the following Guidance document:
Re-examination procedure and Board of Examiners - first time for resubmission
Students are only permitted one opportunity to resubmit their thesis. Following re-examination, you may, at most, be asked to make minor corrections. It is important, therefore, to make sure you consult with your supervisor to make clear what is required to meet the requirements of your examiners.
The examination process for a resubmitted thesis remains similar to the initial examination. The internal and external examiner are each required to submit a preliminary (Part I) report. A second oral examination may not be required if the examiners felt the initial oral examination was considered to be satisfactory. However, a second oral examination must be held if the examiners recommend one.
When the reports have been received by the College Office, they will be sent to the Board of Examiners for approval. A few days after the meeting you will be sent an official letter from the College Office confirming the outcome of the re-examination. The following recommendations are possible after a thesis resubmission:
Postgraduate Research Assessment Regulations
When you have completed the required corrections to your thesis, you must send a copy (either electronic or paper - depending on the preference of your examiner(s)) of your corrected thesis to your internal examiner for approval. Your external examiner may also wish to see the corrected thesis. They will then read your thesis again and, if they are satisfied that you have completed the corrections, complete the Certification of Corrections form. The form will have been sent to your examiners with the other examination paperwork. The Certification of Corrections form should be returned to the College Office as soon as possible so that your examination paperwork can be sent to the Board of Examiners for final approval.
Once the examiners have told you the corrections have been to their satisfaction, you can prepare the Final Submission Documentation. This can then be submitted to the College Office. The sooner you submit this documentation, the quicker you will receive your award letter after approval at the Board of Examiners meeting. Please do not prepare this paperwork until your corrections have been approved by your examiners, they may ask you to make further corrections.
Board of Examiners - second time for resubmission
When the College Office receives the Certification of Corrections form from your examiner(s) they will send all of your examination paperwork to the next Board of Examiners meeting for approval. If and when the Board approve the paperwork, you will be allowed to be awarded - providing you have submitted your Final Submission Documentation.
Final submission documentation
Award
Once the College Office has received all the necessary examination paperwork from your examiners and it has been approved by the Board, and you have submitted your Final Submission Documentation you will be sent your award letter. Again, please ensure the College Office have the correct mailing address for you. The College Office is only allowed to give you one letter, if you require copies of your award letter it is your responsibility to photocopy the letter. Please also read: Final Submission and Graduation.
Change of address
The College Office will use the mailing address that is listed on your EUCLID record listed as 'contact/ term-time address'. If this address is not correct then it is your responsibility to update this information. You can do so via the Student Personal Details channel on MyEd. Please see the following link for instructions on how to do this:
Useful links
Postgraduate Assessment Regulations for Research Degrees
Code of Practice for Supervisors and Research Students
Plagiarism prevention and detection - Information Services