edinburgh uni phd thesis

• Schools & departments

Doctoral thesis submission

For postgraduate research students: what you need to know about submitting your thesis for assessment and information on submitting your final thesis to the Library.

Submitting your thesis for assessment

All PGR s are required to submit their thesis electronically both for assessment and for final submission of thesis. More College specific information is available through the links below.

Submission advice

Your College Office is the first point of contact for advice on submitting your thesis.

If your programme of studies is in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (CAHSS), use the College's thesis submission guide.

CAHSS Thesis Submission Guide

If your programme of studies is in the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine (CMVM), see the College wiki.

CMVM Postgraduate Research wiki

If your programme of studies is in the College of Science and Engineering (CSE), see the College SharePoint site.

CSE Academic Affairs Assessment

Assessment criteria

Grounds for the award of postgraduate research degrees are found in the Postgraduate Degree Regulations in the DRPS . Doctoral theses are assessed under the University's Postgraduate Assessment Regulations for Research Degrees.

Degree Regulations and Programmes of Study - DRPS

Postgraduate Assessment Regulations for Research Degrees

Additional guidance

University guidance on thesis format and binding and other information relevant to thesis submission.

Thesis submission forms

Prior to submission, you must inform your supervisor of your intention to submit your thesis for assessment.  The Notice of Intention to Submit form asks your supervisor to confirm that you have discussed your intention to submit with them .  College offices can advise on thesis submission procedures.

Notice of intention to submit

You are not required to submit a lay summary with your notice of intention to submit.

The thesis containing an abstract and lay summary must be submitted to your College Office. 

Final thesis submission

After you have successfully completed your examination, you must submit the final electronic copy of your thesis to your College Office and deposit a copy on PURE.  Your College Office will invite you to submit your final thesis and provide guidance on how to do this. More information can be found on College webpages, the University Library’s theses website,  or by contacting your College Office. 

Once you have submitted your thesis, the College will arrange for your award letter to be issued and for your thesis to be sent to the University Library.

More information on how to deposit the electronic copy of your PhD or MPhil thesis is available from the Library.

University Library's theses website

Contact for regulations advice

Advice on degree and assessment regulations is available from Academic Services.

Susan Hunter

Academic Policy Officer

Contact details

• Email: [email protected]

Related Links

Forms for students

This article was published on 2024-07-29

Edinburgh Research Archive

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• Schools & departments

Thesis submission for examination

How to submit your thesis to the College Postgraduate Research Student Office. The College Office now accepts electronic-only submission of theses for examination.

When do you need to submit your thesis?

You are expected to submit your thesis within the last two months of your maximum period. You must submit your thesis on or before your maximum end date.

If you wish to submit more than three months before your prescribed end date, you must confirm this with your supervisor, and have a Concession for your early submission approved by the College Exams Committee before submission. This will need strong support from your Supervisory team.

If you think you will need an extension to your maximum period of study, you will need to contact your supervisor to discuss arranging an Extension of Studies. Please submit a Concession for additional time to complete your studies as soon as possible, but at least 2 months before your max end date. If you submit a request later then you may not receive a decision before your original max end date.

If more than three months pass between submitting your Notice of Intention to Submit form (NITS) and your soft‐bound thesis, we may need to contact your examiners to confirm they are still available.

Is your maximum end date at the week-end or in a holiday?

If your maximum end date falls on a day when the College Postgraduate Research Student Office is closed, this is not a problem. You can submit your thesis on the first day that the office is open again and this will not be considered a late submission.

Please note that it is your responsibility to ensure that your thesis arrives at the College by your submission deadline.

PLEASE NOTE WE PERMIT A MAXIMUM DISCRETIONARY 7 DAY PERIOD ONLY FOR SUBMISSION WITHOUT PENALTY - ANY LONGER PERIOD REQUIRES A FORMAL CONCESSION

***FOR SUBMISSIONS DUE ON 31 DECEMBER 2024 WE WILL PERMIT SUBMISSION ON MONDAY, 6 JANUARY 2025, WITHOUT CONCESSION OR PENALTY*** 

Has your thesis title changed since you submitted your NITS?

The title on your NITS form must be your final thesis title.

If your title changes after you have submitted your NITS pack, you need to re‐submit these forms, ensuring they show the correct title.

Re-submit a Notice of Intention to Submit (NITS)

What do you need to submit your thesis?

Please note the submission is electronic only - a soft-bound copy of your thesis is not required.

The thesis file must contain

• an abstract
• and a lay summary.

Lay Summary in Theses guidance (131.81KB, PDF)

There is no requirement to include a separate signed declaration of own work. Completion of the online thesis submission process covers this requirement.

Have Covid-19 circumstances adversely affected your research?

PhD and MPhil students can make the Board of Examiners aware of the impact the pandemic has had on their research when they submit their thesis. 

This statement should not be included within the thesis, but provided as a separate document of no more than a single page at the point of thesis submission, via the online submission system.

If you have already submitted your thesis but you are still to have your viva, this can also be sent directly to [email protected] .

This statement will be submitted to the Examiners following the receipt of the pre-viva Reports, but before the Viva.

Detailed guidance on how to format your thesis can be found in the:

Thesis Format Guidance

Watch your word count.

Please note you will be asked to confirm your final word count on submission.

You may need a concession.

If the word count is above that permitted for your programme, a Concession for this additional wordcount must be approved before submission - otherwise the thesis may not be recorded and may be returned.

Strong Supervisor support for the additional word count will be required with the Concession request.

If the request is approved, Examiners must be notified of the additional work required prior to their appointment, or before the thesis is sent for examination.

Referencing

Please consult your Graduate School for advice regarding referencing regulations and practices.

Have you submitted the thesis through Turnitin?

Please note your thesis must be submitted through Turnitin before submission and all similarity reports should be discussed with your Academic Supervisory Team BEFORE submission for examination.

Please consult your Graduate School for details to proceed with this requirement.

Please note it can occasionally take several hours (or even a few days) for the Similarity Reports to be produced therefore you must take this into account in the submission deadlines.

PLEASE ENSURE YOU THAT ALL PLAGIARISM CHECKS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED AND TURN IT IN SIMILARITY REPORTS ARE DISCUSSED WITH SUPERVISORS AS YOU WILL BE ASK TO COMPLETE A DECLARATION TO CONFIRM THIS HAS BEEN COMPLETED BY THE TIME OF SUBMISSION.

Turnitin guidance

Proofreading

You are welcome to use a proof‐reader for your thesis.

However, please be advised that proof‐readers should only comment on grammar, vocabulary, and clarity of written English; they should not advise on the subject matter of your thesis or your argumentation.

Find skills training and links to study skills resources with the University's Institute for Academic Development

As the author of your thesis, you hold copyright of all work submitted for assessment.

Prepare electronic files of your thesis.

Following this guidance will minimise any potential risk of having to re-do the process, and ensure your submission progresses smoothly.

Students should submit one Word version of the thesis and one PDF version

If required, the below listed common file formats are also permitted:

• Documents: MS Word (.docx) or Acrobat PDF (.pdf)
• Spreadsheets: MS Excel (.xlsx)
• Presentations: MS PowerPoint (.pptx)
• Images: .jpg or .tif
• Video: .mp4
• Audio: .wav or .mp3

You should avoid submitting files compressed in zip or other archive formats (such files are difficult to access on submission and single large files are more problematic to upload over slower, or inconsistent broadband connections).

Apply this file naming convention consistently.

When submitting more than one file, you should consider how you would wish the examiners to review the content.

In particular, you should give consideration to the file order which you expect examiners should read or review the content.

• Student number, for example, s1234567
• Order number, for example, 01, 02, 03 – 10, 11, 12
• Short descriptive name, for example, Abstract, Appendix 1

Full example filename: s1234567-01-Abstract.pdf

Prepare an index file with our template.

In addition to the naming convention above, you must upload an index file, based on the simple template below, setting out the file name and a brief description of the contents of the file.

Download our electronic file submission file index template.

Rename the index file in line with the guidance above. We suggest a format along the lines of: s1234567-00-Index.pdf

Populate the index document with details of all files you intend to submit electronically for the attention of your examiners.

Example content for the index document:

This file index document will be the first document you upload.

Upload electronic files of your thesis.

Do you use university systems with staff credentials, always submit your thesis file(s) using your student credentials ([email protected]).

If you use University systems with staff credentials, please click on the button below to open the link in an incognito or private browser window so that you may log in directly with your student credentials.

If you are denied access because you are logged in with staff credentials, log off and log back in with your student credentials.

Reminder: This page is aimed at students for a postgraduate research degree in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

If you are a student in the College of Science and Engineering, refer to their Intranet.

If you are a student in the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, refer to their wiki.

READY FOR SUBMISSION 

Submit your thesis file(s) to the College Postgraduate Research Student Office (student login required)

What happens next?

Once we have received your thesis and your examiners have been nominated, the College Postgraduate Research Student Office will send your thesis out to your examiners for the first stage of the examination process.

Examination and viva

• Schools & departments

Useful resources for accessing Theses.

China Doctoral and Masters Dissertations Full-text Database (Simplified Chinese Version )

China Doctoral and Masters Dissertations Full-text Database (Traditional Chinese Version)

China Doctoral and Masters Dissertations Full-text Database (English version)

DART Europe E-Theses

Edinburgh Research Archive (ERA)

EThOS - Electronic Theses Online Service

History Theses 1901-2014: Historical research for higher degrees in the universities of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland

Available via British History Online in two parts: 

https://eux.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/no-series/theses-1901-70

https://eux.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/no-series/theses-1970-2014

Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations

Open Access Theses and Dissertations

ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global is a key resource

ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global

Proquest dissertations & theses global via web of science.

UK Research Councils

Related Links

More information about theses

This article was published on 2024-08-21

• Schools & departments

Writing up your PhD and Preparing for the Viva

Writing up and submitting your thesis on time should be your priority in your final year, but you should also make time to prepare for your next steps.

Typical milestones

These are the sorts of actions you will need to consider taking during the end phase of your PhD.

Completing your research :

• draw up a plan to cut writing up into manageable pieces
• chapter by chapter; complete a first draft
• submit thesis and practice for the viva
• viva, corrections and graduation....celebrate!

Communicate your findings :

• present research findings at conferences / seminars.

Plan your career :

• Visit the careers service and work on updating your CV.
• Apply for jobs or funding, or think about entrepreneurial activities, like starting your own business or ‘spinning out’ your research.

Remember to add your own additional actions that relate to your own personal circumstances and project.

Support from your supervisor and School

As you near completion, you will be the expert in your field, your relationship with your supervisor has probably changed dramatically since day one. Now your meetings should focus on critically discussing your work. Let them advise you on the process of submission and learn from their experience.

It is vital at this stage that you revisit the PhD regulations, particularly those on submitting your thesis. Remember that the guidance may have been updated since you first started your PhD.

Codes and regulations for research students

Writing up qualitative research

This independent self study pack is aimed at Postgraduate Researchers working on a qualitative thesis who have completed their data collection and analysis and are at the stage of writing up.

Note: this self-study pack was written in 2013 so is not an expecially up-to-date resource, but it may still contain helpful general information.

The units available for download are:

Writing up: course introduction (PDF - 3 pages)

Unit 1: structure and introduction (PDF - 13 pages)

Unit 2: literature review (PDF - 15 pages)

Unit 3: methodology (PDF - 9 pages)

Unit 4: data chapters (PDF - 17 pages)

Unit 5: the final chapter (PDF - 19 pages)

Unit 6: the first few pages (PDF - 9 pages)

Independent study notes (PDF - 11 pages)

Preparing for the Viva

A Guide for Viva Preparation (PDF)

Preparing for an Online Viva (PDF)

It may be particularly important now that you get advice and support on your next career steps. Read out career management section for some timely advice, and an overview of support you can access from the University’s careers service.

Career management advice for PhD students

Training courses

To help you in the final stages of your research programme, we recommend attending some of the following  IAD  courses:

• 7 Reasons you'll Pass your Viva
• Thesis Workshops - School Specific
• Viva Survivor

Doing a skills audit to help plan your development

Revisit your skills audit and update it, you will have learnt a lot in during your PhD, and the chances are your development needs have now changed. Your focus for future development should now be on the skills you need to move forward into your career. Think about these carefully and if you want to, seek advice from the Careers Service.

Get help from the University Careers Service

If you haven’t done a skills audit before, doing an audit (i.e. an assessment) of your skills is useful; if you can identify what skills are important to your research success, and whether you are strong or weak in these areas. You can then focus your precious time on developing the areas that will help you most.

Other sources of support

Vitae: The Vitae resources on writing up, submitting and defending your thesis are particularly helpful at this stage.

Vitae guidance on completing your doctorate

This article was published on 2024-02-26