Department of Management

(Updated August 2008)

Presentation Guidelines:
PhD Introductions, Prospectus and Thesis Proposals


These guidelines address the following PhD events during the PhD DOME programme:
(i) PhD Introduction; (ii) PhD Prospectus and (iii) Thesis Proposal. They
are to be seen as (hopefully) informative and helpful guidelines rather than being
canonized rules. They apply to all PhD students at the Department of Management
(MAN) regardless of sponsorships.

The order and choice of headings may well vary from PhD student to PhD student
as may indeed the length of what is expected to be produced (the documents).

However, the key point is that these guidelines and procedures are to be perceived
as means to ensure the best possible conditions for progression in the doctoral
work as well as creating interfaculty interests into the PhD projects.


PhD Introduction (PI)

This event is intended to be the first informal presentation of the new PhD project
to the MAN faculty. It will normally take place within the first 2-4 weeks after the
enrolment at DOME.

At this point in time, the PhD student is expected to introduce the subject area
and the overall research questions chosen for the doctoral thesis along with some

preliminary reflections regarding methodology.
No additional papers except for the project description from the PhD application
are to be produced for this event. This description should be available about two
weeks before the introduction will take place so that colleagues may have a
chance to be well-prepared. It will be posted on MAN-Inline. The site requires a
username and a password.

The PI will be announced on the web at MAN News and can be downloaded from
MAN-Inline. A PI is likely to last between 15-20 minutes (give and take 5 minutes) plus
10-15 minutes Qs and As. Slides will be posted on MAN-Inline after the presentation.


PhD Prospectus (PP)

This event is intended as a preliminary and not fully elaborated version of what is
later expected to turn into a fully-fledged Thesis Proposal (TP).

The PP will normally take place 6-8 months after the enrolment at DOME. It
is highly recommended that the PhD student aims at having reached a structure
that can be used for completing the Thesis Proposal 4-5 months later (se below).

During the PP, the PhD student is expected to address the theoretical dimension
of the doctoral work. At this point in time, it would also be natural to address the
relationship between the research topic(s), the research question(s) and the research
problem(s) involved in the thesis.

The PhD student is expected to produce a further elaborated project description
(emergent TP). This description should be available about two weeks before the
introduction, so colleagues may have a chance to be well-prepared. The PP will be
announced at MAN News and will be posted on MAN-Inline.

The presentation is expected to last for about 30 minutes (give and take 5 minutes)
plus 15-20 minutes Qs and As. Slides will be posted on MAN-Inline after the presentation.


Thesis Proposal (TP)

This is the first formal and public exercise that the PhD student will experience
at ASB during his or her PhD programme. This introduces some additional features:
(i) a TP committee with external representatives and (ii) an integrated and
more elaborated account for the thesis, the course programme and the stay at an
external university and (iii) an approval/disapproval of the TP. Regarding the latter,
this decision resides exclusively in the hands of the committee. There have
been occasions from time to time where the student has been required to revise
and/or to elaborate further before the TP could be approved.

These guidelines only address the scientific account for the thesis (excluding the
course work and the exchange of environment).

A well-prepared TP will in many respects resemble a kind of metastructure that
can be found in many scientific applications for funding. As such, you will most
likely recognize several elements from the work on your Masters thesis.

Briefly outlined, key components will be: (i) introduction (setting the scene); (ii)
literature review (existing knowledge in the field); (iii) identification of the hypotheses,
propositions or research questions (depending on the nature of the research);
(iv) methodology; (v) timetable (milestones and deliveries); (vi) expected
outcome(s) (implications). Some of those might in some cases be split
into sub-categories.

Re (i)
This should address what the subject is all about. Why is this important (framing
it in a wider socio-economic, political and/or cultural context)? To which part
of our field does the PhD project relate in general and how; and also, how does it
relate to our local research strategy in particular?

Re (ii)
Literature reviews serve several purposes: to prevent the student from reinventing
the wheel; ensuring that the student is well aware what is agreed upon
and what is for debate; spotting gaps and/or inconsistencies, etc. This is the
part which is expected to legitimize the choice of research questions.

Re (iii)
This may well be integrated into (ii) for example in the case of a traditional hypothesis
testing design. In the case of a more explorative design, a special section
may often be required to outline why and how the preliminary open-ended
questions are to be designed.

Re (iv)
Again depending on the overall choice of research design, this may for example in
the case of a more explorative design be fully integrated into the former section.
This is a very important issue which will often have the committee's full attention.
In consequence it better be well thought through and well elaborated and explicated.

Re (v)
This is where the student is expected to demonstrate that s/he has prepared a
manageable project. It is often the case that the student has promised too much.
Attention should be directed to the fact that this projection should cover the remaining
two years. It should allow the reader to assess the realism of the remaining
plan for the thesis, i.e. to assess whether or not it holds water.

Re (vii)
Issues to be considered here include: what is to be expected in terms of contributions?
Scientifically (theoretically, methodologically and/or empirically), and for
other stakeholders (managers, policymakers and other relevant decision makers)?

Part (ii) (v) will often be the part of the TP which should be given the most attention
and the student should expect that this is where the most critique is likely
to be directed.

A well-prepared TP is expected to be handed in before the end of the 11th month
(at the latest) so that the defence can be completed before the end of the first
year. The TP is expected to be produced and made available to all colleagues. The
TP should be posted on MAN-Inline no later than the public ASB announcement
of the TP seminar.

Apart from the general ASB announcement, the TP be announced at MAN News and
can be downloaded from MAN-Inline. The TP defence is expected to last between 30-45
minutes plus about 60 minutes for Qs and As (primarily from the committee). Slides will be
posted on MAN-Inline.


Final PhD Seminar (FPS)

This is intended to be an early premire for the future defence of the thesis. At
this stage the empirical part of the doctoral work cannot really be changed (it has
most likely already been done and the data are being analyzed). Differently put,
this seminar should focus on the overall picture and the preliminary results. This
will normally take place within 24-28 months after the enrolment at DOME.

No unpublished chapters from the thesis are expected to be made available, however
what has been published should be made available.

The FPS will be announced at MAN News and can be found at MAN-Inline. A draft for the
thesis structure is expected to be produced at this point in time. The presentation is
expected to last for about 30 minutes (give and take 5 minutes) plus 15-20 minutes Qs and
As. Slides will be posted on MAN-Inline after the presentation.