Guidance on how examiners prepare for the oral exam, including the practical arrangements and the initial assessment of the dissertation.
Each PGR student is examined individually by an appointed examining panel. A typical panel will consist of one external examiner and one internal examiner, but other configurations are needed in some circumstances.
An independent chair is only appointed if there is no internal examiner, if any of the examiners is inexperienced, or if the Faculty PGR Director requires that a chair is appointed. The independent chair oversees the examination but is not an examiner.
Examiners and independent chairs receive a formal appointment letter before they can start the examination process.
The internal examiner (or the independent chair if there is no internal examiner) makes the practical arrangements for the oral exam. This includes:
The internal examiner (or independent chair) can discuss any reasonable adjustments or exceptional circumstances related to the oral exam with the student’s supervisors. Examiners must not discuss the examination with the supervisors beyond the practical arrangements.
Oral exams are normally held in person but can be held partly or fully online if needed. The student and the examiners must agree how the oral exam will be held. University of Bristol staff can find out more about video conferencing platforms in guidance from IT Services.
If the student is on sick leave or on short-term exceptional leave (eg they have an emergency domestic situation or an emergency caring responsibility) at the planned time, the oral exam must be postponed.
Examiners receive a link to an electronic copy of the dissertation when they are appointed. They can also request a printed copy.
Examiners conduct an initial assessment of the dissertation and complete individual Research degree examiners' preliminary report (Office document, 48kB) to record their views and to identify topics for discussion at the oral exam.
The examiner’s initial assessment be made in the context of the relevant award criteria for the degree.
If a Covid-19 statement is included in the dissertation, examiners must consider the statement as part of their initial assessment and at the oral exam.
Examiners exchange preliminary reports before they meet to plan for the oral exam. They must agree on an appropriate time to exchange their reports.
If there is an independent chair, the examiners also send the chair their preliminary reports they meet. The independent chair oversees the planning meeting.
If the examiners suspect that the dissertation contains academic misconduct, they must pause the examination and refer to the policy on academic misconduct for PGR examinations and awards. The dissertation will have passed a plagiarism review through Turnitin before it was circulated to examiners and so any concerns at this stage are likely to relate to non-textual elements, such as the falsification of data.
