This volume describes, compares and analyses the experience of ‘defending’ the doctoral dissertation in a final oral examination, in universities and traditions in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and beyond.
This volume describes, compares, and analyses the experience of ‘defending’ the doctoral dissertation in a final oral examination in universities and traditions in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and beyond.
Forming the basis for a comparative study of the different traditions, 11 case study chapters include analysis of the regulatory framework; semi-structured interviews with candidates, examiners, and supervisors; and ethnographic observations of the defence. Cases are drawn from universities in Bulgaria, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, the USA, and China. Further chapters analyse comparatively the findings in the case studies and explore crucial themes such as the nature and purpose of the defence, the composition of examining committees, the role of supervisors, and the idea of the defence as ritual and performance.
Providing unprecedented levels of detail into a process often perceived as hidden from academic debate, this book will enrich the experience of both new and existing candidates as well as examiners and supervisors, and will be of further interest to researchers, scholars, and postgraduate students working on the study of higher education, international and comparative education, and assessment in higher education.
1 - Introduction Part I: Thematic chapters 2 Purposes of the defence 3
Formats and scripts of the defence 4 - Relationships among participants in
the PhD defence: A question of familiarity 5 Supervisor roles, before
during and after the defence Part II: Case studies of universities 6 - A case
study of the PhD defence at the University of Augsburg, Germany. 7 - A case
study of the PhD defence at the University of Aveiro, Portugal. 8 - A case
study of the PhD defence at the Beijing Language and Culture University,
China. 9 - A case study of the PhD defence at the University of Connecticut,
USA. 10 - A case study of the PhD defence at the Durham University, UK. 11 -
A case study of the PhD defence at the University of Paris-Saclay -
Versailles, France. 12 - A case study of the PhD defence at the University of
Primorska, Slovenia 13 - A case study of the PhD defence at the Saarland
University, Germany. 14 - A case study of the PhD defence at the Sofia
University St Kliment Ohridski, Bulgaria. 15 - A case study of the PhD
defence at the University of Southern Denmark in Kolding, Denmark.16 - A case
study of the PhD defence at the University of Trieste, Italy. Afterword Index
Michael Byram is Professor Emeritus at Durham University (UK) and Guest Research Professor at Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski (Bulgaria).
Maria Stoicheva is Professor in European Studies and Jean Monnet Chair at Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, Bulgaria.
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