In the first phase, the primary purpose of the project description is to give the admission- and employment committee a good basis for assessing the applicants' competence and the feasibility of the project.
Next, after admission and employment, the project description and progress plan should be further developed into good working documents for the candidate and supervisor throughout the PhD- periode.
Project description in an application for a research fellow position at the Faculty of Educational Sciences
The prooject description must account for:
- the academic topic
- academic problem (justified in relevant theory and literature)
- choice of method and how the problem is intended to be answered
In the assessment of the project description, emphasis is placed on:
- the candidate's ability to formulate a problem that is relevant and academically grounded
- the candidate's ability to write academically
- the potential for the project to provide new and original knowledge to the field
- that the description explains how the candidate will answer the problem, and shows insight into relevant research methods
- the candidate's familiarity with the problem area and knowledge of central research in the field
If the PhD project is part of a larger research project, the project description must highlight the applicant's contribution to this.
Layout
The length of the project description should be 5-7 pages including reference list. The font size should be 12 and the line spacing single.
Project description in applications for admission to the PhD program with external funding.
For applicants who are employed by an external employer, and only apply for admission to the PhD program at the faculty, the project will already have been assessed and the selection made. The faculty will still assess whether the project fits into an academic environment here.
After admission and employment, applies to all PhD candidates
- The project description must be further developed and a final plan for the PhD work must be drawn up in consultation with the supervisor(s). The plan must be approved within 3 monthhs after starting. This work is part of the allocated supervision time. It is the department where the candidate is affiliated that is responsible for assessing and approving the plan.
- The candidate presents and receives feedback on the revised project description preferably in the research seminar UV9040, but this duty can be delegated to the research group to which the candidate belongs, if the research seminar does not have capacity.