Supervising, examining and evaluating doctoral theses

Dissertations are examined in two stages: the first stage is the preliminary examination and the public examination is the second. Matters pertaining to the examination of doctoral dissertations are decided by the faculty council of the doctoral candidate’s home faculty.

The doctoral dissertation supervisor is responsible for supporting the doctoral researcher in carrying out the dissertation research and planning the studies included in the degree. From these instructions you will find information on e.g. the rights and responsibilities of each party.

A functional supervision relationship is essential for the completion of a dissertation.

The supervision plan (often also called supervision agreement) helps the supervisors and the doctoral researcher to agree on the principles and practices of supervision so that each party is aware of their duties. The supervision plan is drawn up in the Thessa planning tool for doctoral studies.

In addition to the actual dissertation supervisor, a coordinating academic (sometimes also called responsible person / responsible professor) is appointed for all doctoral researchers.

The thesis committee (follow-up group) assigned for all doctoral researchers is responsible for monitoring the progress of the doctoral dissertation work as well as the quality of the degree and supervision. The thesis committee comprises of at least two experts with sufficient expertise to assess the progress of dissertation work.

The University has given up the formal study progress monitoring process of doctoral researchers (jatko-opintojen rekisteriseuranta).

In many ways, the supervisor is the most important support person for a doctoral researcher. The supervisor supervises the dissertation research and acts as a mentor for the doctoral researcher.

Planning to organise a doctoral level course? Please follow these five easy steps to successfully managing a doctoral training course. 

Planning on a course for the doctoral programmes in health sciences? Start by reading this step-by-step guide for course organizers!

This page contains general instructions for evaluation and grading in different systems, links to detailed technical instructions, and information on guidelines related to evaluation and grading.

On this page are compiled tips for supervising teachers related to students’ most common questions and needs in guidance situations. Here you can also find to which services you can direct students in different situations, if necessary.