Changes to academic roles and responsibilities

The new Academic Director of the Doctoral College will provide direction and leadership for the Doctoral College. Professor Cathryn Mitchell will assume this role from 1st September 2017.

The role of the Associate Dean Research (ADR) is extended to encompass the Faculty / School leadership responsibilities for doctoral students supporting the integration of doctoral study with Research Strategy.

Faculty/School Directors of Doctoral Studies (F/SDDS) will support the Associate Dean Research in respect of the monitoring of student progress, will promote consistent approaches across departments, help with problem-solving and remediation and support departmental Directors of Doctoral Studies. Faculty/School Directors of Doctoral Studies for 2017/18 are:

The role of Associate Dean Graduate Studies (ADGS) is discontinued.

Changes to committee structures

The University Doctoral Studies Committee (UDSC) will provide strategic oversight of the University’s doctoral provision. UDSC will replace the University Research Students Committee (URSC). It will also take on some of the previous strategic functions of the Faculty/School Boards of Studies as they apply to doctoral study.

A single University Board of Studies (Doctoral) (BoSD) will assume the previous responsibilities of Faculty / School Boards of Studies for the organisation of academic matters for doctoral study, including all matters concerning the candidature, confirmation, progression and examination of doctoral students and for determining the award of doctoral degrees. Meetings will operate to a timetable determined to meet the requirements of research programmes.

Faculty/School Doctoral Studies Committees (F/SDSCs) will replace existing Faculty Research Students Committees (F/SRSCs) and Graduate School Committees. They will be responsible to UDSC for the quality and academic standards of doctoral provision within the Faculty / School and will liaise with Faculty / School Boards of studies on such matters and the strategic direction of doctoral study. They will also, in certain circumstances, provide specialist advice to the BoSD on the progression of individual students.

Committees will be serviced by the Doctoral College programmes team.

Triaging arrangements

Wherever practicable routine business will be managed outside of committee. The Doctoral College will provide professional administrative support and will triage casework requiring the exercise of academic judgement via Faculty/School Directors of Doctoral Studies, Associate Deans for Research and Faculty/School Doctoral Studies Committees as appropriate.

The Head of Doctoral Recruitment and Programmes will shortly be meeting with the Associate Deans for Research and Faculty/School Directors of Doctoral Studies to confirm the new arrangements for processing doctoral business. Further guidance will then be provided to Directors of Studies, Supervisors and Faculty/School administrators.