PROCEDURE FOR SUBMISSION OF A TAUGHT MASTERS DISSERTATION:
VALIDATED INSTITUTIONS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WALES
Dear Candidate,
1)
Please find attached the following documentation:
o
a copy of the ‘Notes of Guidance’ (purple forms) that will assist you when
completing the form necessary to support the submission of your Dissertation for
examination by the University of Wales. A checklist is included to help you to
ensure that all the necessary steps have been taken prior to submission of your
work.
o
a loose ‘Summary Sheet’ (white form) which you must complete and submit to
your Head of Department/School.
o
an ‘Application for Matriculation as a Postgraduate Student Form’ which, if
you haven’t already matriculated, you will need to complete and submit to your
Head of Department/School.
2) Please read the ‘Notes of Guidance’ carefully, separate them from the other forms and
retain them for future reference.
It will help your Institution to expedite the examination of your thesis if you follow the
provided guidance fully. Thank you in advance for your co-operation.
Yours Sincerely

Huw Flynn Hughes
Director of the Validation Unit
CANDIDATE’S CHECKLIST
Items that must be completed prior to submission of a Taught Masters
Dissertation
The following should be completed prior to submission:
(i)
(Tick
Box)
Two duplicate copies of dissertation- typed and bound.
(See Appendix 1)
(ii)
A fully signed copy of the required ‘Declaration & Statements Page’, to be
bound into each copy of the thesis.
(See Appendix 3)
(iii)
A typed summary.
(See Section 2.2)
(iv)
You should have successfully matriculated and received confirmation from
your institution.
(See Section 2.3 and ‘Application for Matriculation as a Postgraduate Student
Form’)
(v)
You should have discharged all of your financial obligations.
All of the items detailed above, should be submitted to Head of your Department/School. You
may wish to note that, once you have submitted all of the required documents, a member of
staff in your Department/School of study will send one typed and bound copy of the dissertation
to the external examiner, together with the relevant Regulations and associated procedural
guidance.
PLEASE NOTE THAT IF ANY OF THE ABOVE ARE OMITTED
THERE WILL BE A DELAY IN THE EXAMINATION
OF YOUR DISSERTATION
NOTES OF GUIDANCE
SECTION 1
1.1
Supplementary Information
Matriculation
Students who are not already graduates of the University of Wales are required to
‘matriculate’ (be accepted) into the University at the commencement of their
postgraduate scheme of study. You should have completed and submitted an ‘Application
for Matriculation as a Postgraduate Student Form’ (Please see Section 2.3 and Appendix 4)
along with any necessary supporting documentation, i.e. proof of existing qualifications.
If you have been successfully matriculated you should have received confirmation from
your Institution, in the form of a headed letter from the University of Wales to this
effect. If you have not matriculated, or are uncertain of the situation, you are advised to
seek advice from you Institution Registry as a matter of urgency.
Failure to matriculate is the most common cause of delays in the examination of theses.
No result can be processed and no award issued for a candidate who has not completed
the matriculation process.
1.2
Time Limits
The following are the standard time limit dates under the University’s Regulations; you
may however be required to submit your dissertation by an earlier date as decided by
your Institution.
Scheme of Study
Submission Deadline1
Traditional (including
MMus)
1 Year Full-time
2 Years
2 Year
Full-time
3 Years
Part-time
4 Years
1 Year
Full-time
2 Years
2 Year
Full-time
3 Years
Part-time
5 Years
Modular
Please note, however, that certain institutions have chosen to require candidates to
submit by an earlier deadline. If you are in any doubt concerning policy of the institution
at which you are registered, you should contact the Institution Registry for advice.
1.3
Length of Dissertation
The text of the dissertation should not normally exceed 20,000 words; this excludes
appendices, genuine footnotes, referencing and the bibliography.
1
The submission deadline runs from the official commencement of scheme of study.
1.4
Plagiarism
You must take particular care not to commit the offence of plagiarism (the presentation
for examination of the work of others as if it were your own). Acknowledgement of other
sources must be made by the use of footnotes giving explicit references. A full
bibliography must be appended to the work. Plagiarism is classed as unfair practice
(effectively, cheating) and candidates found to have committed this offence are dealt with
severely. If you are in doubt, you should consult your project supervisor prior to
submission.
1.5
National Library of Wales
A dissertation is submitted to the National Library of Wales if the dissertation is deemed
by the examiners to be of Distinction standard (irrespective of whether or not the
candidate is awarded an overall distinction), or if the dissertation is in the fields of Celtic
Studies, Welsh or Welsh History or if the dissertation does not meet either of these
criteria, but is considered by the examiners to be of particular relevance to Wales.
The University of Wales' Regulations require only those dissertations that are to be
deposited in the National or in the Institution’s library to be permanently bound. An
institution may opt to retain other dissertations. In such cases, the final method of
binding is at the Department's discretion, although they will still require the correction of
minor or typographical errors. Dissertations which are to be lodged neither in a library
nor retained in a departmental collection, should be returned to the candidate with any
examiners' comments erased.
1.6
Re-submission
In the case of candidates re-submitting a previously failed dissertation, the dissertation
must be submitted to the Institution with the re-submission fee. Candidates who have
failed and are re-submitting a dissertation have 1 year from the date of the result letter to
re-submit a dissertation.
Resubmission of a Taught Masters incurs a fee of £113; all resubmission fees are payable
to the University of Wales, either directly by the candidate or by care of the candidate’s
institution and should be submitted with the revised dissertation.
1.7
Admittance to Degree
Should you qualify for your degree by satisfying the examiners, you must be admitted to
it formally before you can receive a degree certificate or use the appropriate letters after
your name. Students attending Validated Institutions will be admitted in absentia by
decree of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wales. This is an administrative
procedure at which you will not be present. Certificates are issued as soon as possible
after the Vice-Chancellor has ratified candidates’ results.
NOTES OF GUIDANCE
SECTION
2
2.1
Completion of Supporting Documentation
Declaration & Statements
The following declaration and statements should be incorporated on a single page, as
illustrated by the ‘Specimen Layout for Declarations/Statements page to be included
Taught Masters Dissertations’ included in Appendix 3, at the beginning of the
Dissertation.
o
A statement, signed by the candidate, showing to what extent the work submitted
is the result of the candidate's own investigations. Acknowledgement of other
sources (such as correction services or text editors other than spelling/grammar
checkers) must be made by the use of footnotes giving explicit references. A full
bibliography must be appended to the work.
o
A declaration, signed by the candidate, to certify that the work has not already
been accepted in substance for any degree, and is not being concurrently
submitted in candidature for any degree.
o
A signed statement that you give consent (a) for your dissertation, if accepted for
a taught masters degree, to be made available for photocopying and for interlibrary loan (subject to the law of copyright) and (b) for the title and summary to
be made available to outside organisations.
You must take particular care not to commit the offence of plagiarism- the presentation for
examination of the work of others as if it were your own. Plagiarism is classed as unfair
practice and candidates found to have committed this offence are dealt with severely.
2.2
Summary
The dissertation must contain a summary of the work and should not exceed three
hundred words in length.
2.3
Matriculation Application
If you have not successfully matriculated into your postgraduate scheme of study, you
are required to submit a completed ‘Application for Matriculation as a Postgraduate
Student Form’. If you are matriculating on the basis of your academic qualification, you
will need to submit a copy of your initial degree certificate. Please read the instructions
given on the application form carefully, as failure to matriculate is the biggest cause of
delays in the issue of certificates.
NOTES OF GUIDANCE
APPENDIX
1
1.1
1.2
Presentation & Binding
Candidates submitting higher degree theses and dissertations for examination shall
submit the required number of copies either in a condition suitable for eventual
deposit and use in libraries (see below) or - in the case of research degree candidates,
where the policy of the institution concerned either requires or permits - in temporary
binding. Candidates choosing to submit their work for examination in temporary
binding are advised:
o
to consult their department at an early stage to determine whether such a
submission is in accordance with the institution's policy on the submission of
research theses;
o
to ensure that temporary binding - if used - is nonetheless sufficiently secure to
withstand transit to and from the examiners;
o
that any thesis/dissertation submitted for examination in temporary binding must
bear on the spine, in a form which cannot easily be erased or detached, the
candidate’s name, institution attended and the degree for which he/she is a
candidate.
Irrespective of the type of binding used for examination purposes:
o
Taught Master’s degree dissertations which are to be deposited in the National
Library or in the library of the institution concerned shall, prior to the release of
successful candidates’ results by Convenors of Examining Boards, be bound
permanently, either as in (a) immediately above, or in paperback binding with
plastic overlay. Successful taught Master’s degree dissertations which are not to be
deposited in the National Library or in the library of the institution concerned need
not be bound permanently either before, or after, the release of results.
1.3
In the case of all works which are to be deposited in libraries, the permanently bound
volumes shall bear on the spine the surname and initials of the candidate, the full or
abbreviated title of the work, the name of the degree for which it was submitted and
the date of submission. This information shall be printed along the spine in such a
way as to be readable when the volume is lying flat with the front cover uppermost. If
the work consists of more than one volume the spine shall also bear the number of
each volume.
1.4
All copies of theses/dissertations, whether for the purpose of examination or for
deposit in libraries, shall be presented in permanent and legible form in typescript or
print and the characters employed in the main text (but not necessarily in illustrations,
maps etc) shall be not less than 12pt; characters employed in all other texts, notes,
footnotes, etc., shall be not less than 10pt. Typing shall be of even quality with clear
black characters, and capable of photographic reproduction. Double or one-and-a-half
spacing shall be used in the main text, but single spacing shall be used in the summary
and in any indented quotations and footnotes. Drawings and sketches shall be in black
ink; unnecessary detail should be omitted and the scale should be such that the
minimum space between lines is not less than 1mm. Colour graphics for charts,
diagrams etc and colour photographs may be used, but candidates must in all cases
ensure that material is capable of being photocopied and microfilmed.
Copies
produced by xerographic or comparable permanent processes are acceptable. A4 paper
shall be used and should be of good quality and sufficient opacity for normal reading.
1.5
Diagrams, maps and similar documents shall be submitted in a portfolio of reasonable
size and shall bear the particulars stated to be necessary for the volume.
1.6
Candidates may submit non-book material such as audio or video tapes with their
thesis/dissertation, if such material forms a useful addition to, or explanation of, work
contained in the written submission and if such material constitutes the most
appropriate method of presenting the information concerned. Any material of this type
shall be enclosed in a container which is suitable for storage on a library shelf and
which bears the same information as that required on the spine of the
thesis/dissertation, so placed as to be readily legible when the container is in its
stored position. Candidates considering the submission of audio or video tapes as
adjuncts to their thesis/dissertation should consult their supervisor and the Librarian
of the institution for advice at an early stage of their project
Guidelines for candidates wishing to Submit a Dissertation in a Temporary Binding
1.7
In accordance with regulations stipulated by the Regulations and Special Cases
Committee of the Academic Board, arrangements for submission of a thesis in a
temporary binding will depend upon the policy of the Institution concerned. A student
cannot insist upon submitting in temporary binding against the wishes of the
Institution concerned.
Types of Temporary Binding
1.8
Temporary binding is still subject to regulations and should not be confused with ‘any’
binding; loose sheets placed in a wallet file are not acceptable.
o
o
The following types of temporary binding are recommended:
o
perfect binding (as used in this document)
o
spring-back binding (provided that the binders are not over-filled)
o
slide-in plastic binders (of the type used to hang posters on walls)
The following types of temporary binding are not suitable, since the conversion to
permanent binding would be much more time-consuming (and therefore expensive)
and either the holes in the pages will be visible in the permanent version or the pages
will be considerably less than full A4 width:
o
spiral binding
o
ring-folder or lever-arch folder
If you are still unsure, after reading these guidelines, as to the suitability of your chosen
binding, you are advised to contact the Academic Registry of your institution for advice.
1.9
Candidates (and those advising them) are asked to bear in mind that temporarily-bound
dissertation must be able to withstand handling, transit to and from examiners and the
examining process itself. Care must be taken to ensure that any form of temporary
binding used is sufficiently secure not to degrade, i.e. burst or fall apart.
1.10
Whatever the form of acceptable temporary binding that is chosen, it is absolutely
essential that the spine bears the information required by University Regulation.
Dissertations cannot be processed efficiently if this information is not given clearly on
the spine, in a form which cannot easily be erased or detached. Space may be saved by
using shortened versions of Institution names such as the following examples:
Full Name
Shortened Version
Oxford Centre for Mission Studies
OCMS
Spurgeon’s College, London
Spurgeon’s
Wessex Institute of Technology
WIT
International Baptist Seminary, Prague
IBTS
School of Psychotherapy and Counselling, Regent’s College,
London
The Prince’s School of Traditional Arts
SPREG
PW-VITA
1.11
Other requirements regarding the submission of theses for examination remain
unaltered. Whether permanently or temporarily bound, submission deadlines must be
met and the theses themselves must conform to the requirements of the regulations
regarding size of characters, size of paper, space between lines etc. All pages should be
appropriately numbered. In short, the facility - with the department's approval - to
submit a dissertation for examination in temporary binding is not an invitation to
candidates to submit work in draft form for examination.
1.12
Submission in temporary binding has no effect on the regulations which state that except in order that minor/typographical errors in a successful dissertation may be
carried out prior to its deposit in the libraries - a candidate may not amend, add to or
delete from the dissertation after it has been submitted for examination. Submitted
dissertations may not, therefore, be returned to candidates for improvement prior to
the completion of the Examining Board’s deliberations and formal recommendation. A
work which cannot be passed as submitted will be failed and subsequently resubmitted formally in modified form for re-examination.
NOTES OF GUIDANCE
APPENDIX
2
Provisions for Bars on Access to Higher Degree Dissertations
University regulations lay down that research work accepted for a higher degree shall be
openly available, and subject to no security classification or restriction of access. Please note,
however, that the University requires the reader of a dissertation to sign a declaration that in
any statement or written work being prepared on the subject (or cognate subject) of the
dissertation, due acknowledgement to the author will be made for any helpful information
obtained from the dissertation.
In cases where there is an overriding need for a restriction of copying or access (for example
where sponsored research has resulted in a dissertation which contains commerciallysensitive information) the University may, on the special recommendation of an Institution,
place a bar on photocopying of and/or access to a dissertation for a specified period, normally
three years in the first instance. It is the responsibility of the candidate's supervisor to make
an application to the Institution as soon as is reasonably practicable. The Institution will
normally forward a recommendation to the University.
In the event that a bar on photocopying and/or access has been granted by the University, the
signed statement to be included with each copy of the dissertation submitted should indicate
that the dissertation may be made openly available after the expiry of the bar on access.
Normally, the title and summary of the dissertation will be freely available
NOTES OF GUIDANCE
APPENDIX
3
Layout for Declaration/Statements page to be included in Higher
Degree Dissertation
DECLARATION
This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being
concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree.
Signed
(Candidate)
Date
STATEMENT 1
This thesis is the result of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. Where
correction services have been used, the extent and nature of the correction is clearly marked
in a footnote(s).
Other sources are acknowledged by footnotes giving explicit references.
appended.
Signed
A bibliography is
(Candidate)
Date
STATEMENT 2
I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for interlibrary loan, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organisations.
Signed
(Candidate)
Date
Candidates on whose behalf a bar on access has been approved by the University, should use the
following version of Statement 2:
I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for interlibrary loans after expiry of a bar on access approved by the University of Wales on the
special recommendation of the Member Institution concerned.
Signed
Date
(Candidate)
SUMMARY OF DISSERTATION
APPENDIX
4
Title
Surname
Forename(s)
Institution
Degree Sought
Title of
Dissertation
Summary:
Summary of Dissertation