thesis and dissertation unisa

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Open Word go to  File  >  New , and then below the template images click  More on Office.com .

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Choose an  APA template  or  MLA template , or other  college-related template  and open it in Word for the web to make it yours.

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• Last Updated: Jun 6, 2023 11:54 AM
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Postgraduate studies

M&d research examination.

• Postgraduate Administration Department
• Masters and Doctoral applications and registrations
• Honours & Postgraduate Diplomas applications and registrations

When your master’s dissertation or doctoral thesis nears completion, the following must be borne in mind:

• Notice of intention must be submitted to  [email protected]  at least  two months  before actual submission for examination.    Download the prescribed form CGS20  for this purpose
• Prior to notifying the university of your intended submission you must consult with your supervisor to obtain permission for submission and to decide on the final correct wording, spelling and punctuation of the title.  Ensure that your dissertation/thesis was submitted online to Turnitin (for originality checking) and download the one page digital receipt (not the full report) to be included in your examination copy.  Should you have queries contact  [email protected]
• There is no closing date for submission but if submission takes place after 15 June, the successful student might only graduate in Autumn of the following year
• If submission takes place after 15 November, the successful student might only graduate in Spring of the following year
• If submission takes place after the end of February, the successful student will graduate in Spring.  I f the end of February deadline is not met, you will have to re-register and pay full tuition fees . Kindly note that submission at this point  without prior notification (2 months),  will be deemed to be late submission resulting in compulsory re-registration
• NB: due to the nature of research examination, no guarantees can be given even if the deadline is met.   Submission near to the closing dates will inevitably lead to delays in processing due to backlogs
• In order for your thesis to be distributed to the examiners you have to be a registered student
• The Policy and Procedures governing master’s and doctoral study in all its detail, should be consulted

The Master’s and Doctoral Research Examination Coordination Section will inform students of the process.  Students will be provided with a link and access for the uploading of the electronic .pdf copy of their dissertations/theses.  Students will no longer submit printed examination copies.

Results will only be released when all the formal approval processes have taken place. Please note that the examination process is a lengthy process and can take months before a student is informed of the outcome.

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Last modified: 2024/03/27

People's participation as a tool for enhanced rural development in Ghana

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• Theses and Dissertations (Development Studies) [246]
• Unisa ETD [12174] Electronic versions of theses and dissertations submitted to Unisa since 2003

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Library buildings are open for UniSA staff and students via UniSA ID swipe cards.   Please contact us on Ask the Library for any assistance. Find out about other changes to Library services .

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Submitting your thesis to the Research Outputs Repository

Research degree students must submit a final digital copy of their thesis to Student and Academic Services.

After the degree has been conferred, a copy of your thesis will be sent to the Library to be made available in the Research Outputs Repository .

An author consent form  (available from Thesis submission and examination page, below) will need to be completed where completing students are asked to give their consent to making their digital thesis openly available.

• Research Outputs Repository (ROR) Contains records of UniSA research outputs, including publications, creative works and Higher Degree Student PhD and Masters by Research theses
• UniSA Academic regulations for Higher Degrees by Research This page provides all the regulations students need to know regarding their research at UniSA.
• Research degrees More information for students who wish to apply for a research degree.
• Thesis submission and examination Provides detailed information regarding thesis submission and examination. Includes link to author consent form.

Benefits of sharing your thesis

Some of the benefits include:

• enhanced reputation of the author, and their unit / research centre
• enhanced research impact and dissemination
• increased research citation
• increased accessibility to research
• increased community engagement with research
• allows researchers to build on existing knowledge

The Research Outputs Repository is regularly harvested by the National Library of Australia's Trove service. The repository is also indexed by Google , OAIster and OpenDOAR .

Social media is also a good way to share your research. Find out more here:

• Social Media for Researchers Guide

What about other types of theses?

The Library will include other thesis types only if they are recommended by senior researchers and meet one of the following criteria: 

• An Academic requests that the work is held as an exemplar.
• The work relates to major research projects of the University.
• The work relates to the history or development of the University.
• The work relates to South Australia as part of the University's community mission.

In all instances the Library will only accept a  digital  copy of the work. 

These may include: 

• Honours and final year projects
• Coursework professional doctorates
• Masters by coursework

For further information contact Ask the Library .

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• URL: https://guides.library.unisa.edu.au/theses

• Research Degree Students
• Completing your program

Thesis submission and examination

Preparing your thesis for submission requires you to make sure you have met the requirements for presentation, and had your final draft edited. You are also required to include an iThenticate report in your online submission to ensure academic integrity.

A research student should expect the examination process to take between 2-3 months from the dispatch of thesis to examiners to Research Examinations receiving the examiner reports. The period under examination can be a particularly anxious time for students and we take care to manage the process as efficiently as possible to minimise long waiting periods. Research Examinations also has well-established procedures to deal with overdue examiner reports.  The thesis submission process is managed online via the Thesis Management tile in your Research Student Portal. When you submit your thesis for examination it must be approved by your Principal Supervisor and Dean of Research (or delegate) before the examination process may commence (nominated examiners also need to be approved). Following Dean of Research (or delegate) approval of your thesis submission for examination, your candidature consumption will be stopped and any active scholarships will be ended. For more information on consumption and fees please refer to Fees and Enrolment . To enquire about the examination process, please email: [email protected]  

Refer to the examination checklist

The examination checklist provides comprehensive details of the areas of responsibility and processes for preparing to submit. It should be read in conjunction with Procedure AB-58 P6 Research Degrees Thesis Preparation and Examination .

Examination checklist for supervisors and students (PDF 163kb)

Update Your Intended Submission Date

You will receive an email once you reach 75% of your candidature and are considered in the completing stage of your degree. When you are 1-3 months from lodging your thesis for examination you are expected to discuss your proposed submission date with your supervisory team.

You are then able to update your intent to submit page in your research student portal (this will be an approximate date allowing flexibility of about 2 weeks either side of the date that is indicated).

Your Principal Supervisor will be notified via email once you have provided an intended submission date.

Providing an intended submission date is not a mandatory requirement, however it is recommended as a reminder for you and your supervisors to begin discussion around the examination process and timelines.

Intent to Submit User Guide (PDF 696kb)

Theses containing published research

Ahead of submitting your thesis you need to discuss with your supervisors whether your thesis meets the requirements for a thesis containing published research, as per Section G in Guideline AB-58 AD7 Presentation of the Research Degree Thesis or Exegesis (consolidated) .

If your thesis meets the criteria for a thesis containing published research, you need to have a Statement of Authorship form for each paper. The form must be signed by each co-author so it's important to make sure you allow enough time to do this.

Completed forms must be inserted as an Appendix to your thesis.

Submit Your Thesis for Examination

• Refer to Procedure AB-58 P6 Research Degrees Thesis Preparation and Examination for information on the submission and examination of the thesis.
• Guideline AB-58 AD7: Presentation of the Research Degree Thesis, or Exegesis (Consolidated) provides information on how to present your work for examination. If your work includes published research, a statement of authorship will be required for each publication. 

If you are doing a Professional Doctorate by Research, refer also to the Guidelines for examiners of the professional doctorate by research (Word 48kb) - criteria and examination procedures.

To submit your thesis for examination you need to follow this process in conjunction with your Principal Supervisor.

Thesis Submission for Examination User Guide (PDF 862kb)

Before Submission - Student Responsibilities

• Update your intent to submit date via the Thesis Management tile in myResearch, accessed from your Student Portal. This date can be updated as necessary until the time you submit your thesis for examination.
• Discuss whether you will be undertaking a defence of your thesis (note PhD students commencing from 2016 are required to undertake an oral defence of the thesis as a part of their examination).
• All students, both domestic and international, in receipt of a Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship: Ensure that the appropriate acknowledgement is included in the thesis where Australian Government support has been provided. The acknowledgement must include the mention of your support through an "Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship". See Research Training Program for more details. If you are unsure whether you are in receipt of an RTP scholarship please refer to your student research portal or contact [email protected]

Thesis Submission

• Your thesis must be submitted digitally via the Thesis Management tile in myResearch, accessed from your Student Portal. Please ensure that you have discussed your thesis submission with your supervisor before commencing the online submission process.
• You are required to include an iThenticate report with your submission to ensure academic integrity. Information regarding academic integrity and the use of iThenticate can be found on the Academic Integrity page.
• Your supervisor will be notified once your thesis has been submitted online. This is an overnight process. Your supervisor will therefore be able to access your thesis the day after you submit it online.
• The thesis submission will need to be approved by your Principal Supervisor and Dean of Research (or delegate) before Research Examinations can commence the examination process. You may view the dates that your Supervisor and Dean of Research (or delegate) approve your thesis submission via the Thesis Tracking page in your Student Portal.
• Once your Dean of Research (or delegate) has approved your thesis submission for examination, your consumption will be stopped and any active scholarships will be ended. It is important to allow sufficient time for the approval process to occur and consumption to stop. You should allow 5 - 10 working days for this process. For more information on consumption and fees please refer to Fees and Enrolment .
• If your examiners have already agreed to examine the thesis (via your Supervisor's initial contact) and Research Examinations have received your approved nominated examiners, your digital thesis will be dispatched immediately, along with all required documentation. For additional information regarding the thesis submission timelines and responsibilities refer to the Examination Checklist (PDF 162kb).

After Submission

• If one or more of your examiners request a hard copy of your thesis you will be contacted by Research Examinations. 
• All hard copy theses need to be prepared in accordance with Guideline AB-58 AD7: Presentation of the Research Degree Thesis, or Exegesis (Consolidated) .
• Claim for thesis allowance (scholarship holders only) - a thesis allowance is payable to assist with costs associated with the presentation of a thesis.

Defence of the Thesis

PhD students commencing from 1 January 2016 will be required to undertake a defence of the thesis as part of their thesis examination. Research degree students who commenced prior to 1 January 2016 can elect to defend their thesis as part of the examination process. If you are considering this option you should discuss this with your supervisor in the first instance.

If you have elected to defend your thesis, you are also required to provide at least three months notice prior to submitting your thesis by contacting [email protected].

The defence of the thesis, also known as a viva, provides research degree students with an opportunity to discuss their research directly with international experts and to establish stronger ties and networks across their field of study.

The UniSA defence of the thesis has been modelled on structures that operate at universities in England and New Zealand. It will deliver a single thesis examination result following external examination of the written thesis and a defence of the thesis by the research student.

The key steps involved in the thesis defence are:

• Following receipt of the written thesis, the examiners prepare preliminary examiner reports
• The research student defends their thesis via video conference with the examination panel, facilitated by an independent Chair
• On conclusion of the defence, the examination panel agrees a final thesis examination result and finalises their examiner reports.

For further details on the defence of the thesis process visit this page  (you must be logged into LearnOnline) or contact [email protected]

Examination Process

Research Examinations will advise you and your supervisors once your thesis has been dispatched to both examiners and will also provide an expected date for the receipt of your examiner reports. Please note that this is an approximate date and may change, dependent upon your examiners' workloads and other extenuating circumstances.

Research Examinations monitors the examination timelines. If the report has not been received by the anticipated due date, the examiner will be contacted with an overdue reminder. Research Examinations will maintain contact with examiners until their report has been submitted. You and your supervisor(s) will remain informed of the examination process and will be advised of any expected delays.

Revised and Final Thesis Submission

After your oral defence, or where there is no oral defence once both examiner reports have been received, Research Examinations will send you your results via email to your student email account. This will include the examiner reports and the processes and timelines relevant to your examination results.

Your final submission, and revised thesis submission if required, will be completed via the student research portal following the same processes as the thesis submission for examination.

The post examination checklist provides comprehensive details of the areas of responsibility and processes for preparing to submit your final thesis for the conferral of your degree, or your revised thesis for re-examination.

Post Examination Checklist for Students and Supervisors (PDF 44kb)

You are entitled to appeal your results through the Research Degree Examinations and Quality Panel (Panel) to have your thesis re-examined once only, provided that the required evidence is submitted to the satisfaction of the Panel. Refer to section D of Procedure AB-58 P6 Research Degrees Thesis Preparation and Examination for the grounds for appeal and to familiarise yourself with the processes. The meeting schedule and information to assist in the preparation of an appeal can be found here .

Before Revised Thesis Submission - Student Responsibilities

• Discuss your examiner reports with your Supervisors
• Make the required changes to your thesis, addressing examiners' comments as necessary. You should upload a ‘clean’ version of your thesis which will be sent to the examiner(s). You should also upload a version with tracked changes/highlighting in addition to the clean version. This version will be used by your internal reviewers. Ensure each document is clearly labelled to identify the difference between the clean version and the version with tracked changes/highlighting.
• Document the changes made in a Summary of Amendments using the template provided to you. Attach this document with your revised thesis submission.

Before Final Thesis Submission - Student Responsibilities

• Make the required changes to your thesis, addressing the examiners' comments as necessary. You should upload a ‘clean’ version of your thesis which will be published by the Library. You should also upload a version with tracked changes/highlighting in addition to the clean version for publication. This version will be used by your internal reviewers. Ensure each document is clearly labelled to identify the difference between the clean version and the version with tracked changes/highlighting.
• Document the changes made in a Summary of Amendments using the template provided to you. Attach this document this with your final thesis submission.
• You should check your citation meets the character length requirement in your Portal by clicking on the hyperlink on the Submission of Final Thesis page, under declaration point #2. Copy and paste your citation from Word into the text box provided and click 'Done'. You will receive a message to advise if your citation meets the requirements or is too long and requires editing.
• Discuss the confidentiality of your thesis and prepare an Author's Consent form (PDF 214kb) with your Principal Supervisor. Attach this document with your final thesis submission.

Deadlines for Final Thesis Submissions for Conferral

Refer to the completion due dates for Research Degrees Committee  to determine the closing dates for each conferral round. These are firm deadlines so careful attention should be paid to ensure all requirements are met for inclusion in a round.

Your thesis must be submitted online and approved by your Principal Supervisor, Independent Reviewer (if applicable), RDC (if applicable) and Dean of Research (or delegate) prior to the closing date. Ensure you allow sufficient time for the approval process to be completed (7 - 10 working days should be allowed).

All other documentation, including a fully completed and signed Author Consent Form and Citation of no more than 900 characters (with spaces), must also be provided by the closing date.

Please take note of the deadline for all outstanding conditions to be met. This includes checking Parchment details and clearing Bad Financial Standing (BFS), which must be satisfied prior to this date in order to be approved for conferral.