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What studies entail
A demanding programme
A major element in a doctoral programme consists of a student's own studies, research and the doctoral dissertation that corresponds to at least 120 higher education credits. Many programmes of research training include course work of varying duration, but never exceeding 120 higher education credits.
To earn a PhD a student must pass the courses that form part of the programme and write an acceptable doctoral dissertation that is defended successfully in public.
Major differences from first and second-cycle programmes
Anyone embarking on a third-cycle programme must be very aware that there is a vast difference between doctoral programmes and first and second-cycle studies. Almost half of the doctoral students surveyed in the A Mirror for Postgraduate Students say that their studies take more time than they expected. A doctoral student does of course have a supervisor for support, but they have virtually no teaching, lectures, seminars and there is little continual appraisal of their attainment in the form of tests and exams. Doctoral students have to make progress in their studies under their own steam. Much of the programme involves writing as part of the preparation for the dissertation.
Successful undergraduates cannot take it for granted that they will be just as successful as doctoral students. Their results are based on independence, self-discipline and a capacity for formulating and tackling original scientific and academic problems.
Support from research teams
Most doctoral students work in clinics and laboratories, however, and it is not uncommon for them to work in research teams, which provide plenty of support. Frequently their supervisor will lead the research project in question with the doctoral student working in the same lab and using the same apparatus. Continuous contact with the supervisor, and the research team's shared need to produce results also make it easier to work in a disciplined fashion.
Third-cycle programmes have undergone changes through the years. A brief history can be found under the heading Högskolesystemet under rubriken Förändringar i forskarutbildningen
Different areas of study—what do they have in common and where do they differ?
It is difficult to write in general terms about what it is like to take a PhD since there are such great differences between different postgraduate programmes. Working conditions and attitudes towards doctoral students also vary between different institutions of higher education and different faculties. The relations that develop between different individuals are crucial for determining the degree of creativity and stimulation provided by the working conditions at a department.
Labour market demand can also give certain doctoral students a stronger position. The following are a number of fairly characteristic features, however:
Similarities
- Research training for all doctoral students consists of course work, writing a dissertation and, crucially, collaboration with a supervisor.
- In addition, many programmes have various kinds of research seminars.
- Most doctoral students also have some kind of paid employment at their higher education institution, often including teaching in first and second-cycle courses and study programmes.
Differences
- There is a marked difference between laboratory and non-laboratory subjects, however. In non-laboratory subjects research is usually a lonely pursuit requiring independence and discipline. Doctoral students doing research in laboratory settings often belong to research teams, however, and a student's individual research assignment may well form part of a larger project, which means that the student receives ongoing support. It is usual for the project to be led by the supervisor, who as a result will in most cases be more accessible.
- In the humanities and the social sciences, there is often a greater capacity for admitting doctoral students both with respect to supervision and places available, but the lack of funding restricts enrolment. In more technical subjects it is easier to find funding for students, but instead a lack of supervisory capacity and/or applicants may hinder departments from increasing student number.
Far too often doctoral students say that their department did not give them a particularly positive reception when they began their studies. They were given no introduction to the department and received no comprehensive information about what it entails to study for a PhD, or what is expected of them as colleagues at a department.
The studies
General syllabus
Every subject offering postgraduate programmes must have a general syllabus describing their contents. This is determined by the faculty board and according to the Section 7 of Chapter 8 of the Higher Education Ordinance it must contain:
What the general syllabus has to include:
the principal contents of the programme and in relevant cases the compulsory reading for the subject;
- The overall structure of the programme.
- the previous knowledge and other conditions required in addition to the basic requirements for enrolment to third-cycle studies (specific entry requirements);
- the selection rules that apply for enrolment;
- Any tests involved in the programmes and where applicable, the possibility of completing a part of the programme with a Licentiate degree.
- If you are interested in third-cycle studies in a certain subject, you should contact the department offering the programme and ask for the general
Individual study plan
The contents of a third-cycle programme are different for each individual doctoral student - even when they are studying the same subject.
A compulsory requirement
Everyone admitted to a doctoral programme must draw up an individual study plan with his or her supervisor. This requirement has been in place since 1993, but for a long time it was not taken as seriously as it should have been. As of 1 April 1998, however, there are detailed regulations for these study plans. They give significant support in making it possible to complete a doctoral programme within four years of full-time study. You can find more details in the Section 8 of Chapter 8 of the Higher Education Ordinance.
Study plans have to be reviewed
The individual study plan will make clear the rights, duties and expectations that rest with the faculty, the supervisor and the doctoral student. If these are not specified it may become difficult for the student to determine what rights and obligations they have — especially in situations where the student and the faculty board fail to agree on how the programme should be organised. An individual study plan also provides a basis on which a faculty board can decide whether a student will continue to be entitled to supervision and other resources. This means that it is particularly important for the individual study plan to be reviewed continually to guarantee the student's legal rights. You can read more about this in the National Agency's report Fakultetsnämndernas tillsyn över utbildningen på forskarnivå ur rättssäkerhetsperspektiv, 2008:5 R The faculty boards' supervision of third cycle (doctoral) programmes from the perspective of legal rights, summary in English.
- a timetable for the programme of education;
- a description of the doctoral student's and the faculty board's respective obligations during the period of postgraduate training;
- other matters needed for an effective programme of study.
- The Swedish National Agency also recommends inclusion of the funding plan.
REMEMBER
The study plan is an important aid to help you maintain progress in your studies. It states clearly what rights, obligation and expectations rest with the faculty, the supervisor and the student.
The timetable
The timetable should show the courses the doctoral student is to take and preliminary dates for projected article manuscripts or dissertation chapters. For obvious reasons the timetable will be more detailed for the current and following years than for those that lie further ahead.
It is also a good idea to stipulate that the doctoral student and the supervisor will meet regularly, for instance every other week, to discuss progress and also to define the extent of the supervision and the allocation of responsibilities between different supervisors. Naturally, the timetable will be more detailed for the next year or so that for later years.
Substantial deviation from the timetable may result in withdrawal of the higher education institution's resources.
The individual study plans play an important role as doctoral students funded by grants must, if they so request, be offered employment on a doctoral studentship by the time only 2 years of their programme remains to be completed — which is decided by the individual study plan.
Studying effectively
Other matters needed for effective studies might concern a workspace, computer facilities, access to a telephone and e-mail, ensuring that the doctoral student is able to attend seminars or conferences which are relevant to the subject, or finding ways for the student to take part in a relevant research project.
- The specific aims, both short-term and long-term, of the third-cycle studies
- a detailed description of the research assignment;
- a preliminary title for the dissertation;
- courses and reading for the programme;
- the future plans of the supervisor in so far as they might affect the doctoral student's studies.
The study plan has to be approved and monitored
The person who takes on this responsibility examines the individual
study plan and then approves it. This step is very important! It is not enough for a doctoral student and a supervisor to sign a study plan, but the official responsible for third-cycle studies must also sign it, otherwise it will be difficult for the student to argue later that the department has failed to meet its obligations in relation to supervision and other resources.
Monitoring at least once each year
The faculty board is also responsible for making sure that the syllabus is followed up at least once a year. The doctoral student and the supervisor must then give an account of the progress being made in the programme of study. The faculty board (or its delegate) may then amend the syllabus. The period of study may only be extended if there are special reasons for doing so, such as illness, parental leave, national service or as an elected representative of a trade union or student organization. (You can read more about these rights under the heading Possibilities of extending your period of study).
The doctoral dissertation
A doctoral dissertation presents the results of research and at the same time provides evidence of a doctoral student's ability to formulate and solve disciplinary or academic problems, to be an independent researcher. A doctoral dissertation must provide new knowledge and in this way take research forward.
Your supervisor's qualifications are important
A supervisor should have both a comprehensive fund of knowledge and long experience of research training, and for this reason it is crucial to select a field of research in which the department in question has adequate supervisory capacity. If this capacity is not present, the student should consider choosing a more appropriate department.
Experimental and clinical disciplines
In experimental and clinical subjects, the individual doctoral student's own opportunities for choosing a subject are rather limited. Admission to a third-cycle programme in these faculties often entails being offered the chance of becoming the member of a research project that is already in progress, and being given an appropriately dimensioned research assignment. In these cases the student must be prepared to adapt the subject of the dissertation to the projects being carried out at the department.
An individual thesis
Doctoral students usually work on an individual thesis, which is the case four times out of five.
Two kinds of thesis
There are two different kinds of theses: monographs and compilations.
Monographs
A monograph is written as a unified and coherent work. These are most common in non-experimental subjects. Theses are almost exclusively monographs in the humanities, theology and law.
Choose your subject carefully
It is important for students writing a monograph to choose their subject with care. Discuss the matter with the supervisor and other researchers at the department. The supervisor has a good deal of responsibility for narrowing down the choice of subject and making sure that it is realistic and achievable. It is easy to be seized by the desire to answer too many questions at once, but then there is a great risk that the dissertation will not be ready within the prescribed period, (see also Supervision and support).
Compilations
Compilation comprise a number of papers written during the period of doctoral study and a summary of the articles. Approximately two-thirds of all theses take this form. In experimental and clinical subjects, theses are almost exclusively compilations. Some of the articles in the thesis may have been written by several individuals, but the doctoral student must normally be the principal author of most of it. In most cases the summary is written independently and should be written to be accessible to more than a restricted audience of those specializing in the field.
Three to six papers
In the medical and scientific faculties, published articles are often referred to as papers. Before it is submitted, a compilation thesis normally contains 3-6 such papers. (Six is, however, an extraordinary amount. What's more, it is considered a better qualification to submit a dissertation containing four papers and then have two papers published elsewhere.) Critics of this system consider that more emphasis should be placed on the content of what is published than on the number of papers.
Peer-review
The papers are published in journals reviewed by referees *and are thus subject to peer review **. This continuous quality assessment makes the public defence of the dissertation less crucial than in the case of a monograph.* Referees—experts reviewing a text** Peer review—one or more researchers in the field reviewing the work of another researcher
A
thesis
is not meant to be a lifetime achievement
Public debate about the scope of theses has a long history and has been full of vicissitudes. Should it represent a lifetime achievement or be part of a programme of training and a first relatively comprehensive research assignment?
The latter view has come to dominate the discussion and the recent reform of doctoral programmes emphasizes that what is involved is a programme of education that should be completed within a relatively limited period of time. A PhD is a kind of journeyman's certificate, evidence that the doctoral student has the capacity to conduct research.
Language
The doctoral student and the supervisor should devote a lot of effort to the production and presentation of the texts. Using inaccessible language limits readership and this means that research results do not become known or used. A popularising summary of the dissertation may be one way of reaching a wider audience with your research.
English most frequent
English is the language that predominates in theses, 78 per cent of doctoral students write in English, 17 per cent in Swedish and 4 per cent in both languages. More details can be found in Doktorandspegeln [A Mirror for Postgraduate Students], 2003:28, summary in English, page 15.
Theses in the fields of engineering, science and medicine are practically always written in English. In the humanities and the social sciences they are mostly written in Swedish.
Writer's cramp
At some time or other during the writing of a thesis most doctoral students begin to despair. The material feels overwhelming, time is running away and the student starts to panic. A really bad attack may lead to temporary paralysis and writer's cramp.
Find someone to talk to
If this happens it is important to get support and find someone to talk to. The best solution is for the supervisor to take on this role. It may help to intensify supervision for a while, to meet more frequently or to systematically work through things to discover what the block might be. It could also be a good idea for the supervisor and the doctoral student to jointly set interim targets for the work. What precisely will the student be working on in the coming week? Taking one clearly delimited problem at a time and checking off the results at frequent intervals can be a useful way of breaking a log jam and overcoming the doubts and diffidence that are preventing progress.
Who should make contact?
It is also important that there is reciprocity between the supervisor and the doctoral student when it comes to making the first move. Sometimes time is wasted unnecessarily when both the supervisor and the student find themselves waiting for the other to get in touch. Matters of this kind should be discussed during the preparation of the individual curriculum.
Courses and reading lists
Research training contains courses with reading lists. The scope of these courses varies from subject to subject, but usually comprises 60 to 90 higher education credits and in any case not more than 120 higher education credits. (1.5 credit is the equivalent of one week's full-time study.)
To provide general expertise in the subject
The purpose of these courses is partly to provide the doctoral student with broad general expertise in the subject and partly to impart sufficient specialized knowledge to enable them to complete their theses. Some courses and reading lists are compulsory for all third-cycle students in a subject, while others are individual and tailored to fit the research assignment in question. Courses and their reading lists that are compulsory for the subject must be specified in the general study plan. Individual courses are chosen by the doctoral student in consultation with the supervisor, and are listed in the individual study plan.
Pooled courses are more common
In recent years, regularly held faculty-wide research training courses have been developed. These often include courses in scientific theory, methodology, ethics and statistics. It is becoming increasingly common for more institutions of higher education to organize joint courses in certain subjects. It is also possible to attend courses being given by other departments or institutions, but the supervisor should always be consulted to check that the course will be approved as part of the student's programme of training.
All these courses end with some form of examination with a grade of pass or fail.
Research seminars
Research seminars constitute an important factor of continuous support for many doctoral students. Doctoral students, teaching staff and other researchers at a department or in a research group meet regularly for seminars chaired by a senior colleague to discuss new methods and findings, new literature in the field and the various problems that doctoral students may run up against. The frequency of seminars varies—some departments have seminars every week while others are held at fortnightly or even longer intervals. The seminars are often chaired by a professor, but other researchers with doctorates may be given the assignment, too.
Guest lectures
Sometimes guest lecturers are invited from other institutions of higher education in Sweden or abroad. During foreign visits, the discussions may be held in English or some other language.
Thesis review
Research seminars also make it possible for doctoral students to present chapters of their work, sections of their theses or papers for review and discussion. This provides an opportunity for discussing a student's thesis work - sometimes it can be difficult to judge the progress of your own work.
Disciplinary discussions
For subjects in which it can be difficult to get a reaction to thesis work these seminars have a very important function. Theses in the humanities and social sciences are often written in the form of monographs, which makes the academic discussions conducted at seminars even more crucial. This is where you can be confident that you will get an assessment of your own work in relation to other research both nationally and internationally. Another doctoral student is often given the assignment of reviewing a contribution, which also means that the seminars provide training in preparation for the public defence of a thesis.
In the natural sciences, engineering and medicine it is more common to work in groups or research teams, which offers better opportunities for continuous quality assessments of a student's work, for instance through the challenge of writing a paper for an international journal reviewed by expert researchers before publication.
When seminars fail to work
Interview with Professor Britta Lundgren, Umeå University
'A seminar should be somewhere you can present your ideas and know you will be treated with respect - even if your ideas are subjected to criticism. Unfortunately it sometimes happens that seminars are ruined by a destructive atmosphere', says Britta Lundgren, Professor of Ethnology at Umeå University.
There are many unpleasant stories about dysfunctional seminars where doctoral students presenting their material have been so harshly criticized that they have found it hard to recover afterwards.
'The person chairing a seminar can prevent this happening by being aware of the group dynamics affecting this kind of meeting. It is also important to vary the form of seminars as much as possible. It's possible to rotate the job of chair or to introduce review groups in which doctoral students are given different roles: some checking facts and formal presentation, some with a supportive function, others again reviewing the general logic of the contribution, etc.
'It is important that a seminar is constructive and supportive. If opposition is too compact and the attitude is too negative, then openness and creativity are suffocated. But it can of course be just as catastrophic if everyone just heaps praise on a contribution and no one dares to voice any criticism at all. The critical process is made less dramatic if roles are rotated and everyone gets a turn at both giving and taking criticism.
'Giving seminar participants different roles also helps everyone to be active and prevents a few individuals from dominating seminars.
'Female doctoral students are particularly affected by a harsh atmosphere, since university structures are not yet characterized by gender equality.'
What can be done if the chair is the cause of the problem?
'The chair of a seminar is a very important person who affects the atmosphere to a great degree. If it proves difficult to cooperate with the chair, the student needs to contact the head of the department. Sometimes of course this can be a problem, because at times the head of the department chairs the seminars. But every department should create various kinds of 'safety valves', which make it possible to discuss problems arising in third-cycle programmes in different forums.
'There is a tradition of the principal representative of the subject leading research seminars. I myself advocate regularly changing the chair of research seminars - rotation is necessary to allow new ideas to emerge. It's good for everyone if various qualified researchers at a department or faculty take turns in chairing the seminars.
'Many departments have created supervisor groups which constantly work to improve the standard of supervision provided. I think these groups should also tackle the issue of seminars.'
Training in educational theory
It is common for a doctoral student's departmental duties to include teaching at undergraduate level. From 1 July 2003, doctoral students teaching in undergraduate programmes will be required to have completed introductory training in teaching in higher education or have acquired equivalent knowledge in some other way.
No central regulations
There are no central regulations on the duration of courses leading to this educational qualification. Each institution of higher education is permitted to determine this itself. It is also up to each institution of higher education to assess what "equivalent knowledge" entails.
Must not prolong the period of study
It is, however, important that obtaining these educational qualifications does not lengthen a doctoral student's period of study. For this reason, such a course should earn higher education credits or be included in a doctoral student's departmental duties.
Teaching
In the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education's survey
Doktorandspegeln, 2008:23 R, (Survey of doctoral studies, summary in English), three respondents out of five report that they teach. Just under half of those who teach state that they have undergone some form of training in teaching and learning for third-cycle students or teaching staff, which is a rise compared to the corresponding survey made in 2003.
In Doktorandspegeln three respondents out of five report that they teach. Just under half of them have been given training in teaching and learning methods.
The supervisor is very important
In connection with their admission into the postgraduate programme, all doctoral students are assigned one or more supervisors who will give help and support during their studies. After July 1st, 2007 at least two supervisors have to be nominated for postgraduate students enrolled after July 1st, 2007, of whom at least one must have received training in supervision or be considered to have corresponding qualifications.
The faculty boards, which have the overall responsibility for third-cycle programmes are able to delegate many questions to other bodies in a higher education institution — but not decisions on entitlement to supervision.
Poor supervision can prolong periods of study
In its report En genomlysning av svensk forskarutbildning, januari 1999, only in Swedish [A survey of doctoral programmes in Sweden, January 1999] The Swedish Association of University Teachers (SULF) repored that the proportion of students who stated that poor supervision had prolonged their period of study was the alarmingly high figure of 37 per cent.
Doktorandspegeln
In the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education's study Doktorandspegeln, 2008:23 R, (Survey of doctoral studies, summary in English), the majority of doctoral students report that their supervision functions satisfactorily, while at the same time a large proportion claim that their supervisors display little interest in their studies and that they devote too little time to constructive criticism or the discussion of methodological issues and theory. 40 per cent say that they have not been provided with as much supervision as they would have liked and more than one in four have felt that deficiencies in their supervision have hindered their research activities. The impression that many doctoral students do not have an effective dialogue with their supervisors was given by the 2003 survey and in its follow-up in 2008.
Women taking postgraduate programmes feel that they are in a more vulnerable situation than male students do. The dialogue with their supervisors does not work as well and they feel that they are less accepted by the research collective.'
Active researchers
Professors and senior lecturers eligible for professorships undertake research supervision as one of their duties. As supervisors, it is their duty to guide their doctoral students through the entire programme, from their initial selection of courses, through the great array of literature, through projects, experiments or field studies, to the final public defence. It is important that the supervisor is an active researcher, so that the doctoral student can gain insight into new developments in research. Supervisors should also teach their students about the ethical norms of research and good research methods.
Important to structure supervision
Supervision and the way that supervisors are chosen can differ considerably by discipline and faculty. Sometimes the choice is made because there is only one person in the department who is qualified in the subject. In faculties with laboratory-based studies, it is customary for doctoral students to be invited to be members in a research project that is already under way, where the researcher leading the project becomes the student's supervisor. In these cases, supervision is often concrete and hands-on, whereas supervision in the humanities and social sciences to a greater extent entails having the supervisor as a partner in discussions, someone who can discuss ideas, texts, problems and limitations. However, it is not equally important for everyone to structure supervision, with regular, scheduled meetings.
Most supervisors are men
In 2003 four out of every five supervisors were men. In the Doktorandspegeln survey from that year 90 per cent of the male doctoral students and 72 per cent of the women say that they have a male supervisor.
Contact the department even before you are admitted
Doctoral students end up working with their supervisors for long periods, often intensively and under great pressure. Therefore it is a good idea to get in touch with the department at which you want to study before you are admitted. Find out as much as possible about it, contact the professor and the other researchers. Try to meet the person who is likely to be your supervisor and find out what he or she expects of a doctoral student. Ask about their plans for the future — are they making plans that could mean your collaboration would have to come to an end?
Assistant supervisors
Alongside the main supervisors, one or more assistant supervisors can be appointed. If there is no expert in the dissertation topic in the department, assistant supervisors can be selected from another department or another institution in Sweden or abroad - or students might consider applying directly to an institution of higher education with the appropriate expertise.
A supportive network
The position of assistant supervisor is not always formally defined; instead doctoral students may in principle turn to as many as they desire. Doctoral students who surround themselves with a network of support people are less vulnerable than students who only have a main supervisor. The support and the feeling of fellowship with other doctoral students and other employees in the department/ section are also of great importance in third-cycle studies. The network of social contacts is an extremely important means of support, and also reduces the risk that any individual doctoral student will be neglected.
The role of the supervisor
All higher education institutions that offer third-cycle courses and study programmes also have to arrange training for supervisors. This provision was included in the Higher Education Ordinance in 2001.
The primary duty of the supervisor is to help doctoral students develop into independent researchers with a scientific approach
Contact are most intensive at the beginning and end of the programme
The contact between the doctoral student and supervisor changes depending on where the student is in the programme. Often contacts are most intensive at the beginning, when the thesis topic is to be chosen, the study programme is to be structured and the student is to begin the research, and at the end of the study period, when the thesis is to be completed.
Guidance and encouragement
The role of the supervisor differs depending on the topic and on the needs of the individual student. But every doctoral student needs someone to inspire enthusiasm and help create a good environment for work and research. Supervisors should share their knowledge and experience and in this way help and support their students. They should give guidance and a great deal of encouragement, and ensure there is open communication.
Trust is important
It is critical that the doctoral student and supervisor have considerable trust in one another. Clearly, their relationship is first and foremost a professional one, but the personal aspect will be critical because they will be working together for several years. The supervisor will also be one of the few people who have an essential understanding of what the student is working with.
Regular contacts
The student, however, cannot expect the supervisor to help out at any time and without notice. On the other hand, the student should, for instance, be able to expect that regular meetings take place with his or her supervisor, that the supervisor will provide comments on the material within a reasonable period of time and that the supervisor will give ample notice if he or she will be away for a longer period of time.
Requirements and expectations
Doctoral students and supervisors should make it clear at an early stage what requirements and expectations they have of one another. Guidelines for co-operation and the commitments on both sides should be included in the individual study plan. If one side does not meet its commitments, it can be taken up in the annual review of the individual study plan and any problems can be discussed, for instance, with the departmental chair. (Ideally the study plan will be reviewed more often).
A critical approach
Supervisors should make sure that doctoral students start their studies as soon as possible. It is also the responsibility of the supervisor to make sure that the thesis topic is realistic and that the research project can be carried out. The supervisor must ensure that the student sticks to the topic and is not tempted into pursuing interesting tangents and becomes sidetracked. It is important that supervisors are open and positive to the proposals put forward by their student; it is frustrating when a supervisor is not open to new ideas. But a supervisor who is open to new angles without reservations can cause even greater damage. Supervisors must thus both support and encourage their student while at the same time assuming a critical attitude.
- Help in the choice of a thesis topic and make sure it is realistic and can be carried out.
- Examine the manuscript and other material.
- Recommend courses and interesting and relevant literature
- Help in establishing contacts with other departments in Sweden and abroad
- Help the student so that he or she can attend and participate in international conferences and meetings
- Recommend sources of funding to which the student can apply
Preparations for the public defence
Towards the end of the work on the thesis, the supervisor must set aside a great deal of time for reading and critical scrutiny of the manuscript. The supervisor has considerable responsibility for the final form of the thesis and for making sure that the student does not end up publicly defending one that is not acceptable. The supervisor must also prepare the student for the actual public defence.
The amount of supervision
All doctoral students are entitled to supervision that is given regularly and continuously throughout the entire period of studies. However, there are no rules that stipulate exactly how much time students are entitled to. According to Section 31 of Chapter 6 of the Higher Education Ordinance, all doctoral student are entitled to supervision during their studies. Some departments have set up their own guidelines for the number of supervisory hours that students are entitled to. If this number is stated in the individual study plan, it can then be referred to if the help agreed is not forthcoming.
40 per cent of the doctoral students state they did not receive as much supervision as they desired.
What should a student do if problems arise?
Many doctoral students have problems related to supervision. If there is a conflict of some type between the student and his or her supervisor, the student should request a meeting with the supervisor. If the problem is acute, it is important to act as quickly as possible so that the student's studies do not suffer. If the conversation does not result in anything constructive, the student should meet with the departmental head or someone else in charge of third-cycle studies. The student union, older doctoral students or the trade union can also provide support. One possible solution may be to appoint an assistant supervisor.
If supervision is not working out:
- Speak with the supervisor
- Try to find an assistant supervisor
- Contact the head of department
- Contact the faculty dean
- Speak with the student union and/or trade union
- The student health services can provide support
- Doctoral students are entitled to appeal to their faculty board. Students can themselves initiate this kind of process to ensure that an objective review is made by the faculty board.
The right to change supervisors
According to the Higher Education Ordinance, doctoral students are entitled to change supervisors if they request it. Usually this entails many practical problems — for the doctoral student as well. It may be the case that there is no suitable supervisor in the field or that the student's studies have progressed so far that it can be difficult for a new person to become involved in the work. For people participating in a project that is led by the supervisor, it is of course particularly difficult. In the worst case, the student may be forced to change dissertation topic, but even that may be worth the trouble!
Contact your faculty board
It is important to know that the department or university is obliged to help. Organisations representing doctoral students have pointed out that the greatest problems arise when students in externally funded projects want to change supervisors. But doctoral students have a greater chance of getting help if they go straight to their faculty boards. The 2008
Romantic involvement and sexual harassment
There are instances of a doctoral student and a supervisor becoming romantically involved. Then it is important that the supervisor resigns immediately and ensures that a replacement is appointed. (Students can also take the initiative to change supervisors - but the supervisor bears a greater responsibility.) Even if the romantic involvement is reciprocal, this is not the case with the roles of student and supervisor. It is almost always the student who suffers if the relationship comes to an end.
In a survey conducted by SULF, Lilla Sulf nr. 9 om handledning (only in Swedish), one of those interviewed said this:
'It hurts to see my sister fall into the trap of a sexual relationship with their supervisors. Here we need more information and we need to demand more of supervisors. The relationship between a doctoral student and a supervisor is complicated right from the beginning. Power is asymmetric and this imposes obligations. You are totally vulnerable as a doctoral student. At my department some of these relationships have turned sour and it is always the student who has to leave or at least change supervisor. We need to make greater demands of the administrators when it comes to their knowledge and awareness of power relationships.
Talk to your gender equality officer
There are also instances of sexual harassment - and in this situation the student is very much at the mercy of the supervisor. Anyone experiencing sexual harassment should contact the nearest superior or the university official in charge of gender equality issues. The student health services, the student union or the trade union can also give support and advice. (You can read more in the section headed Discrimination and harassment ).
Once again, it is important that doctoral students build up a network and have assistant supervisors and other people reviewing their work to avoid being completely at the mercy of a single person.
Ethics
Ethical review
From 1 January 2004 legislation (SFS 2003:460 ) stipulates that all research involving the use of sensitive personal data (as laid down in the Swedish Personal Data Act) to which individuals have not been able to give their consent as well as research that may have physical or psychological impact must be reviewed by an ethics committee.
Six regional ethical review boards
The organisation comprises six regional ethical review boards.
The regional boards have their offices at:
- University of Gothenburg
- Linköping University
- Lund University
- Karolinska Institute
- Umeå University
- Uppsala University
- A chairperson who either is or has been a judge.
- Ten members with scholarly qualifications.
- Five representing the public interest.
- The Central Ethical Review Board, which deals with appeals against decisions and decides on issues referred by the regional review board on which they cannot agree. The Central Ethical Review Board is also responsible for supervision of the regional boards.
The premises for these ethical reviews have largely been taken from the Council of Europe's Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine.
This law applies of course to undergraduate and postgraduate students as well.
The responsibilities of supervisors
Applications for ethical review are to be submitted by the institution responsible for the research, i.e. the higher education institution or company concerned. This responsibility may, however, be delegated by vice-chancellors to the heads of departments, for instance. The main responsibility for ensuring ethical review of the research undertaken by third-cycle students lies with their supervisors.
Ethical review must have been completed and approval granted before research may begin.
The costs of ethical review are defrayed by fees. Both the legislation on ethical review and how this is organised is presented on the web-site Vetting the ethics of research involving humans.
There is long-standing legislation that requires ethical review boards that appraise research involving animals.
It is important for all researchers to know when permits are required or when projects must be submitted for review to an ethics committee, an ethics committee on animal research, the Data Inspection Board or the Medical Products Agency.
Records and archives
Knowledge is also required of the rules that apply to the records that must be maintained and how they must be stored. This is important to enable verification of results and that there has been no misconduct and also so that other researchers may use the material for their own research.
Misconduct
A doctoral student who discovers misconduct, such as fraud, should first contact her or his head of department or some faculty official, who is then obliged to raise the question with the vice-chancellor. The faculty then determines, with the assistance of the vice-chancellor, whether the issue should be investigated. Misconduct is investigated and punished by the higher education institutions.
The Swedish Research Council has an ethics committee that deals with overall ethical issues. Its job is to produce guidelines and regulations for good research practice.
Inadequate knowledge
In the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education's survey Doktorandspegeln, 2008:23 R, (Survey of doctoral studies, summary in English), more than half of the doctoral students state that their postgraduate studies have not enabled the acquisition of deeper insight into research ethics to any major extent. This is the same result as for the previous survey in 2003. The comments of those responsible for the survey then were:
'Failure to impart and implement ethical standards completely could eventually lead to a decline in confidence in research by fellow-researchers, the general public and industry. That as many as half of the postgraduate students do not feel that they have gained greater insight into research ethics is disturbing.'
Another grave shortcoming is that many doctoral students say that they have not acquired sufficient knowledge of research methodology and theories — in other words the very core of research.
Interview with Gisela Dahlquist
Professor of Paediatric Medicine at Umeå University, appointed by the government to direct the work of establishing the new organisation for ethical review
Gisela Dahlquist previously chaired the Research Council's working party on research ethics in the discipline of medicine.
What are research ethics?
'The ethics that apply to research and researchers are of course no different from those that apply everywhere else. But because researchers regularly face certain types of ethical and moral problems, which others may perhaps not face, special ethical guidelines have been developed for research.'
Gisela Dahlquist divides up the professional ethics of researchers into two dimensions:
- Research ethics concerns problems and issues related to how people conduct research. For instance, how far can people go in risking the integrity and safety of other people to gain the knowledge that is being sought?
- The second aspect, the researcher's ethics, concerns the honour, honesty and transparency of the researcher, how people conduct themselves to achieve results, in their work together with colleagues, with the business community and with other institutions and people.
Are questions about ethics important when students are at the postgraduate level?
'It's obvious that all researchers, even if they're still pursuing their studies, must be aware that their research runs the risk of damaging other important values in their quest for knowledge.'
'If people aren't aware of the conflict that can arise between knowledge and the integrity of people, the general public's faith in research will gradually be damaged. The public contributes to research but also consumes it - if that faith disappears, their support disappears' warns Gisela Dahlquist.
What is the responsibility of the supervisor in postgraduate studies for training in ethical issues?
'Supervisors have an incredibly important role, as a role model and as a provider of knowledge. Unfortunately, there are far too many supervisors who have not completed training in ethical issues themselves, and they are thus not used to working from this perspective. It's the responsibility of the faculty to see that supervisors have the training that's required.
'Another important ethical aspect is how doctoral students themselves are treated. There are research groups that recruit doctoral students for their projects and then simply use them as labour and forget that students are first and foremost employed to complete their studies and not to carry out the work for a research group.
Can sharing the honour of research results also be an ethical issue?
'Absolutely, this is a good example of an ethical problem in research. Quarrels in a research team about who should be the first author listed are quite common - it's certainly the most common reason for why researchers quarrel with one another. One recommendation is that a contract should always be written up from the beginning about who does what and who will be the first author listed for what parts.'
'It's important that research groups assign the work ahead of time because it's almost impossible for an external examiner to determine afterwards who did what. It's one person's word against another's.'
But the major ethical issues involve the researcher's relation to society, Gisela Dahlquist argues: 'What's important from the view of society is that researchers are always honest with their results - that they never cheat by distorting results or by falsifying, overemphasising their importance or giving misleading interpretations of their research results.'
'An issue that is becoming more and more important is for researchers to show transparency in their work, by publishing their results, or by making them generally available in some other way. The current importance of this issue is due to the growing commercialization of certain research findings. In certain case results which are not good for the company do not get published, such as various side-effects or findings which fail to support the working hypothesis. It happens that companies require researchers cooperating with them to sign a written agreement giving the company the right to veto publication far beyond the time that might be necessary (and of course legitimate) for such things as a patent application. Such agreements are not in accord with good research practice, and may clearly be negative for doctoral students. This type of selective reporting will distort knowledge and may injure patients in the long term.
Of course, distorted reporting may occur for other reasons, for instance if journals or researchers do not wish to publish 'negative results'.'
What happens if a
doctoral
student is caught cheating, or if a
doctoral
student finds out that someone else is?
'Cheating is always unacceptable and must be reported. The most complicated situation is obviously the case where a doctoral student discovers that the professor or someone else is cheating. doctoral students are in a position of dependence and naturally run the risk of being dismissed and then manoeuvred out of the group.'
'Universities must ensure that there is protection available for anyone who reports cheating. There is a clear risk that senior colleagues gain more of a hearing, and institutions must therefore make sure that everyone is treated well and also that younger people should dare to report it if they discover something improper.'
Doctoral students should always first talk with their department head or someone in the faculty leadership if they suspect there is cheating.
Of course even today you can immediately deal with such matters externally - but it's always the vice-chancellor who decides whether the investigation will be conducted and by whom.
Is it stressful? Are you worried that you won´t be done in the time allotted?
“Sometimes, but I´m trying not to get too worked up about it and instead push that feeling of uncertainty aside. It's mainly up to me whether I finish in time - and to some extent on my luck with the equipment. There´s nothing to be gained by worrying."
Ernesto Fumero has a degree in physics from Cuba. He fled the country in 1994, and when he had learned a little Swedish he contacted the Physics Department. A research group there had the opportunity to hire him for six months, and after that he was admitted as a PhD student. In the beginning he was financed through the research group, then a scholarship, and after that he received a study grant and finally a postgraduate appointment.
“There is 20 per cent teaching included in my appointment. I started teaching undergraduate courses that were related to my research as soon as I was admitted. At first, I taught together with another PhD student, which meant that it wasn´t so awful. We also got a lot of support from the teachers."
“I´m glad I get to teach; I find that I have knowledge that I wasn´t aware I had and at the same time I also learn something new in every course, even if I´ve taught it before."
“It´s also good to be able to extend my time as a PhD student by 20 per cent. I´m an experimentalist and it´s often the case that things get all messed up or a piece of equipment breaks down, and then you have to wait a couple of weeks for spare parts. Then you can fill your time with teaching."
“I also find that undergraduate students think it´s interesting to meet PhD students. I often get asked about what it´s like to study for a doctorate, what life as a PhD student is like."
How much teaching corresponds to 20 per cent of working hours?
“The department uses a standard for how many hours each course is expected to involve. But it doesn´t take into account whether it´s the first time you´re teaching the course. - Then there´s a lot of extra time involved in preparing - or how many students are in the course - the more there are, the more work it entails."
“But if you think that teaching takes up too much of your time, you can talk to the person in charge of assigning courses. There´s usually never a problem making changes."
This term, 10 per cent of Ernesto´s time is given over to departmental work as deputy chairman of the PhD student council.
Ernesto Fumero thinks that his postgraduate studies are sometimes a bit divided up:
“I hate doing two, three things at the same time—but for some periods I have my own research, a few courses to take and one or two courses that I teach. Every time I get interrupted in my own research, it takes a certain amount of time to get back into what I was actually doing—it means the work goes more slowly."
What happens if you´re not ready in time?
“If just a little bit is missing, the research group may be able to finance it— especially if you´re about to produce some important results. Otherwise, I suppose I´ll have to find a job and finish the work on my dissertation on the side."
Karin Broberg, former “shadow PhD student "
Today, Karin Broberg is a PhD student in the Section for Clinical Genetics at Lund University. The road there has been marked by waiting, scholarships and a large degree of uncertainty. For a year she was a “shadow PhD student," which meant she worked in Clinical Genetics while she waited to be admitted for postgraduate studies - but without a guarantee that she would really be a PhD student.
“I got a Master´s in biology and included in it was a degree project for 20 credits. After I finished my project in Clinical Genetics, I knew I wanted to get a PhD. I was asked to stay and was given a scholarship to finance my studies", Karin recalls.
The period during which she had a scholarship was extended to ten months as she waited to be admitted into the postgraduate programme. When she was finally admitted, she had to continue another year on a scholarship before she got financing via a study grant.
“There are advantages to having scholarships, like you have a chance to get to know the department and the supervisors and see what it´s like to do research."
But in no way do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, Karin points out:
“You have no insurance coverage, you can´t qualify for unemployment benefits, sick benefits or a parental allowance, and if you´re in an accident at the department, you´re not even covered by insurance for personal injuries at work."
“The time spent at the department is not an asset if you don´t publish anything and it´s difficult to assert yourself if a problem arises. You don´t get information because you´re not registered, you can´t go to postgraduate courses, and you´re not even included in the e-mail system."
“After a while I started to think about whether my situation was acceptable. What would happen if I had an accident? If I suffered permanent injuries? How would I manage without a parental allowance if I had a child?"
It is Karin´s impression that the system of “shadow PhD students" is quite extensive.
“In the medical faculty, this type of financing is more the rule than the exception when you start your postgraduate studies."
Why did you go along with not getting an appointment?
“After many years of student loans, I was grateful to have an income. At first, it felt like it was a very good solution; I didn´t see all the disadvantages. I also took it for granted that I would be admitted as a PhD student."
“I also think it´s difficult to speak up when your supervisor says ‘we´ll wait a bit before we formally admit you."
Johan Modée, postgraduate student representative at Lund University
His task as ombudsman is to give advice and support and to speak on behalf of doctoral students with problems. Every year he deals with 120-150 more or less serious cases that affect the 3,000 or so postgraduate students at the university.
"I think problems are inevitable. Postgraduate study demands a high level of performance and has its own inherent stress factors. On the one hand you are supposed to impress established researchers and at the same time you are competing with them."
In other words it is not unusual for postgraduate students to end up clashing with their supervisors or their departmental superiors. The personal chemistry may not work or a supervisor may feel able to treat postgraduate students with no consideration at all. There is nothing to guarantee that a good researcher will make a good supervisor," Johan Modée points out. For many years the Postgraduate Student Union at Lund has been demanding the introduction of obligatory training for supervisors.
"A brief course was finally launched in 2004 - despite some opposition from the faculties. Lund University has been very dilatory about training supervisors, which has been going on at Umeå University, for example, for many years." (You can read more about this in the chapter on PhD studies).
Most of the research that takes place in Sweden is undertaken by postgraduate students and often a great deal is expected of them. Johan Modée considers that there is still a romantic belief that research is a vocation that demands sacrifice and he meets many PhD students who feel that they are subject to a great deal of pressure during their studies.
"In the natural sciences and technology many supervisors give priority to their own projects and forget that their PhD students are in fact being trained. Many expect top performance from the very beginning. In the humanities and social sciences many still hang on to the old idea that a thesis should be the product of lifetime's study, even though postgraduate students only have four years in which to write it."
Women students are more likely than men to contact their student representative. Although 40 per cent of the postgraduate students at Lund are women, they comprise 70 per cent of those who contact Johan Modée.
"I don't know what this is due to. Someone told me that women find it easier than men to talk about problems," comments Johan Modée, who has the impression that men and women encounter the same problems in their postgraduate programmes. There is only one difference: sexual harassment is experienced almost only be women.
"There are not that many cases per year, but I'm sure that a lot is not reported. This is such a sensitive issue that postgraduate students are rarely able to take it up with their departmental administrators. My advice is to switch supervisor straight away if a relationship develops, even if it is just a chance event. It can lead to major problems later."
"It is important for everyone to know that they are entitled to switch supervisor and that they do not even have to give any reason for wanting to do so. The departmental administrators have to comply with the regulations and arrange a new supervisor without asking questions."
Most of the problems related to supervision can be solved, in Johan Modée's opinion, but funding problems can be trickier.
"With external funding or what is called "other forms of finance", there is sometimes too little money from the beginning. Faculties are required to assess whether there is sufficient funding when they enrol students, but a lot can happen during the course of a programme. The university is not obliged to augment funding if students run out of money or if industrial students lose their jobs."
Another problem may arise when the money is linked to supervisors with projects of their own. A postgraduate student who wants to switch supervisor in these circumstances may not be able to retain funding but has to find some new source of finance.
"The funding for postgraduate studies is not as robust as it should be. Many students are so eager to be admitted to PhD programmes that they readily accept dreadful conditions," Johan Modée observes.
This is what gives rise to another extensive and concealed problem; shadow PhD students, i.e. students who are allowed to begin their postgraduate studies even though they have not been formally enrolled.
Is there any way of preventing all the problems?
"I don't think that postgraduate study is regulated and organised as well as it should be. Admittedly there are lots of regulations, but far too often the departments turn a blind eye to them. Some problems are structural, like the lack of total funding for the programmes and supervisors with inadequate training. Perhaps the regulations should require two supervisors for every PhD student."
"For a long time the postgraduate student union at Lund has been asking for at least one induction day for PhD students, so that during their studies they will learn about research ethics and about their obligations and rights.
How can the university's governance accept all these problems relating to postgraduate students?
"It is not unusual for management to be vague and weak. Departmental administrators often quite simply want to have a good working atmosphere - and in the coffee room - so they do not interfere with the way supervision is dealt with in individual cases, especially when powerful professors are involved."
"The administrators are also often vague in their information to postgraduate students about their rights. They may feel that they are more likely to cause problems if they start by telling postgraduate students about their rights, like the right to switch supervisor for instance.
Would you advise a postgraduate student not to make a fuss and protest?
"No, of course you can fight for your rights. But unfortunately it is often late in the day when postgraduate students come to me with their problems. Some can wait for several years. In some cases the students are worried that their situation will become worse if they fight for their rights. They are afraid of ruining their career prospects, afraid that their professor will get in touch with other professors to brand them as troublemakers. In some cases, unfortunately, these are justifiable fears."
Can the problems be solved?
"In my experience, solutions can usually be found. As a rule administrators at faculty and university level listen to the student representatives and ombudsmen. But as far as possible I try to avoid taking on the university - constructive solutions based on consensus are what give the best results.
Page upIf supervision is not working out:
- Speak with the supervisor
- Try to find an assistant supervisor
- Contact the head of department
- Contact the faculty dean
- Speak with the student union and/or trade union
- The student health services can provide support
- Doctoral students are entitled to appeal to their faculty board. Students can themselves initiate this kind of process to ensure that an objective review is made by the faculty board.
If supervision is not working out:
- Speak with the supervisor
- Try to find an assistant supervisor
- Contact the head of department
- Contact the faculty dean
- Speak with the student union and/or trade union
- The student health services can provide support
- Doctoral students are entitled to appeal to their faculty board. Students can themselves initiate this kind of process to ensure that an objective review is made by the faculty board.
Contact person: Torkel Holmström, e-mail: forename.surname@hsv.se
Phone: +46 8 563 085 00, Fax: +46 8 563 085 50, Mail: doktorand@hsv.se
