Your major review
Major Review assessment for MPhil, PhD and MD Postgraduate Research Students
The purpose of the Major Review is to confirm your capability to satisfactorily complete a PhD or MD thesis. If you are an MPhil student you may submit for Major Review if you wish to apply to upgrade to a PhD programme.
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You and your First Supervisor will be sent a reminder approximately three months before the deadline date for submission of the Major Review documentation from the Research Degrees team.
Deadline for Submission of the Major Review Documentation
If you are a full-time student you need to submit the required documentation within 12 months of study. If you are a part-time student you will need to submit within 24 months.
- Students registered in October must submit documentation by 30 September
- Students registered in February must submit documentation by 31 January
- Students registered in April must submit documentation by 31 March
- Students registered in June must submit documentation by 31 May
If you've had an approved period of interruption, an alternative deadline for submission of the Major Review may be applicable. This date will be confirmed by the Research Degrees team.
You and your supervisors are advised to read the relevant research regulations for the research programme as these will provide information about the structure and content of the review.
The review panel consists of one assessor nominated by the First Supervisor, one assessor nominated by the Faculty Research Degrees Committee and also the First Supervisor.
You will need to submit the Major Review documents by email to majorreview@port.ac.uk and will receive confirmation by email to acknowledge receipt.
Your First Supervisor will complete a Major Review First Supervisor’s Statement Form (UPR10) and email it to majorreview@port.ac.uk. Submission of your document and the UPR10 will be sent by email to the approved assessors.
Your First Supervisor will arrange your Major Review meeting, which will only take place once the necessary documentation has been sent to the review panel by the Research Degrees team.
Outcomes of the Major Review
The outcome of the Major Review will be one of the following:
- the student has the capability to complete satisfactorily a PhD (or MD) thesis (including upgrade from MPhil to PhD);
- the application is insufficient to determine this capability.
You will be notified of the outcome of the Major Review at the end of the meeting and this will be formally confirmed in writing by the Research Degrees team.
If the panel makes the decision that the application is insufficient, you will be informed of the further work you will need to submit before the final review meeting. You will have two months to complete any further work, and once this has been submitted by email to majorreview@port.ac.uk a Final Review Meeting will be arranged by your First Supervisor. Full details of the Final Review Meeting can be found in the Research Degrees Operational Handbook.
Suggested Structure of the Major Review Document
For full details of how to structure your Major Review Document, please refer to the Research Degrees Operational Handbook.
Major Review Guidance for Compilation Style Thesis
If it has been agreed with your supervisory team that you will aim to produce a Compilation Style Thesis, please ensure you also refer to the Compilation Style Thesis Guidance (PhD), and complete the Compilation Style Thesis on-demand training (requires Moodle login), or attend the Doctoral College's Compilation Style Thesis workshop (available to supervisors and students).