Scientific degrees are awarded by specialised academic councils after a successful public defence of a dissertation. What is the procedure for awarding scientific degrees?
At the legislative level, Ukraine has established a clear procedure for awarding scientific degrees, as well as all the requirements that must be met to obtain them. The main rules are set out and regulated by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 44 and the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 1197. Today we will look at the scientific degrees available in Ukraine and the procedure for awarding them.
Scientific degrees in Ukraine
Doctor of Philosophy is the first scientific degree awarded to a person at the third level of higher education who has successfully defended a dissertation. The Doctor of Philosophy degree covers a wide range of fields of knowledge and research.
Doctor of Science is the highest scientific degree awarded to persons who have made a significant contribution to the development of a particular field of science through original research. To obtain this degree, you must have a doctorate in philosophy, conduct a thorough scientific research and successfully defend your doctoral dissertation.
The procedure for awarding the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
1. Acquisition of knowledge and skills. A candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy must acquire theoretical knowledge, skills, abilities and competencies required by the standard of higher education of the third educational and scientific level in the chosen speciality. It is necessary to conduct your own scientific research, which must be presented in the form of a dissertation, and publish its main scientific results.
2. Preparation of the dissertation. The dissertation must contain new scientifically based research results of the candidate that solve an important scientific problem in a particular field of knowledge. The dissertation can be written in the state language or in English. The requirements for the dissertation are determined by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. The volume of the main text, both minimum and maximum, is set by the educational and scientific programme of the institution depending on the specifics of the field of knowledge or speciality. The candidate submits the dissertation for defence in the form of a specially prepared manuscript that meets the established requirements.
3. Scientific publications. The scientific results of the dissertation must be presented in at least three scientific publications of the applicant.
Such publications include:
- Articles in scientific journals included in the list of scientific professional journals of Ukraine at the date of publication.
- Articles in periodicals indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection and/or Scopus databases. The exception is publications of the aggressor state.
- No more than one patent for an invention that has passed the qualification examination and is directly related to the scientific results of the dissertation, which can be counted as one scientific publication.
- Single monographs recommended for publication by the academic councils of the institutions and passed the peer review are counted, except for monographs published in a state recognised as an aggressor state. Single monographs also include single chapters in collective monographs under the same conditions.
4. Submission of an application to the academic council. If there is a positive conclusion about the scientific novelty, theoretical and practical significance of the results of the dissertation, the applicant must submit a written application to the Academic Council of the institution where he or she completed the educational and research programme to establish a one-time council no later than two weeks after receiving the said conclusion.
5. Formation of a one-time council. The Academic Council must establish a one-time council no later than two months from the date of receipt of the applicant's application. The council consists of five persons: the chairman of the one-time council, reviewers (reviewer) and official opponents, whose data are entered into the Unified State Electronic Database on Education. The decision of the academic council to establish a one-time council is put into effect by an order of the head of the institution within five working days.
6. Publication of information. Within five working days from the date of issuance of the order on the establishment of a one-time council, the institution publishes on its official website an electronic copy of the dissertation in PDF/A format, a conclusion on the scientific novelty, theoretical and practical significance of the dissertation results, as well as information on the composition of the one-time council and a link to the website for broadcasting the defence, taking into account the requirements of the legislation on state secrets and proprietary information. In addition, the institution enters information about the formation of the dissertation council into the information system, transfers a printed copy of the dissertation signed by the applicant to the library of the institution and submits an electronic copy of the dissertation to the state scientific institution ‘Ukrainian Institute of Scientific and Technical Expertise and Information’ and to the local repository of the institution.
7. Dissertation evaluation. Within 45 calendar days from the date of publication of information on the formation of a one-time council, each reviewer submits a review to the council, and each official opponent submits a review, basing his or her assessment on the results of studying the dissertation and the applicant's scientific publications related to the topic of the dissertation.
8. Date, time and place of the public defence of the thesis. Within three working days from the date of receipt of the last review (feedback) by the dissertation council, the dissertation council shall set the date, time and place of the public defence of the dissertation. The date of the defence must be no earlier than two weeks and no later than four weeks from the date of receipt of the last review (feedback). Information about the date, time and place of the public defence is published on the official website of the institution and entered into the information system. Electronic copies of the reviews (feedback) in PDF/A format with a text layer and the electronic signature of the reviewer (official opponent), certified by a qualified electronic signature certificate, are also published on the official website of the institution in accordance with the requirements of the law.
9. Dissertation defence. The public defence of a dissertation takes place at a meeting of a one-time council, which is considered valid only if all its members are present. Both the members of the council and the applicant may participate in the meeting of the one-time council by means of video communication in real time. The institution provides the possibility of using video communication, in particular for persons with disabilities.
10. Evaluation of the thesis during the defence. The meeting of the one-time council for the public defence of the dissertation is held according to the procedure of the institution. The members of the council assess the scientific level of the dissertation and publications, compliance with academic integrity, as well as the theoretical knowledge and competencies of the applicant. The defence takes the form of an open scientific discussion with the participation of the applicant, the chairman and all members of the council. In the event of appeals with assessments of the dissertation, they are announced during the defence, and the decision is made taking into account these appeals if they are received no later than three working days before the defence. The members of the council vote openly for the award or refusal to award the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, and the decision is drawn up in accordance with the form approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, with the signature of the chairman of the one-time council and the seal of the institution. The dissenting opinion of a member of the council on the dissertation is attached to the decision, along with a video of the defence, which is affixed with the electronic seal of the institution.
11. Decision of a one-time council to award a degree. After the decision of the one-time council to confer or refuse to confer the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, the institution publishes this decision and the video of the defence on its official website or on another website by link, if it is not possible on the official website, within three working days. Within five working days, the results of the defence are also published in the information system.
Procedure for awarding the degree of Doctor of Sciences
1. Qualification requirements. A candidate for the degree of Doctor of Sciences must have a degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Candidate of Sciences). He or she must present scientific achievements, summarising independently conducted original research that solves an important theoretical or applied problem of national or global significance. In addition, the candidate must have published works on the topic of the doctoral dissertation in professional domestic and international peer-reviewed journals, except for publications of the state recognised by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine as an aggressor state.
2. Preparation of the dissertation. The dissertation research must be a qualifying scientific work performed by the applicant independently. The doctoral dissertation must include new scientific results and provisions that the applicant has personally obtained and that have significant practical and theoretical value, confirmed by relevant documents. It must correspond to the speciality and the passport of the scientific speciality approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. The dissertation must contain reasonable conclusions based on reliable results, be consistent in content, reflect a personal contribution to solving important theoretical or practical problems, and comply with the principles of academic integrity.
3. Scientific publications. The main scientific results of the doctoral dissertation must be presented in scientific publications, which include:
- articles in scientific journals included in the list of professional publications of Ukraine in the relevant field of science;
- articles in scientific journals of international publications that cover the area of dissertation research;
- monographs, including chapters in collective monographs.
Publications in journals indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection and/or Scopus databases are required, unless the dissertation contains information related to state secrets. It is also mandatory to test the materials of the doctoral dissertation at scientific conferences, congresses, symposia and other scientific events.
4. Conclusion of the scientific adviser. Upon completion of the preparation of a doctoral dissertation by an applicant who has completed doctoral studies at a higher education institution (research institution), the scientific adviser must prepare a conclusion within a month. This conclusion evaluates the novelty and completeness of the conclusions and recommendations of the dissertation, the analysis of scientific publications on the topic of the dissertation, and also checks compliance with academic integrity and the implementation of the individual research plan.
5. Examination and submission of the application. A preliminary examination of a doctoral dissertation is carried out at the higher education institution or research institution where the applicant was trained, subject to a positive opinion of the scientific adviser. To do this, the applicant submits a written application to the chairman of the academic council with a request to conduct an examination of the dissertation and provide an opinion on its scientific novelty, theoretical and practical significance of the results.
6. Conducting the examination. The preliminary examination of a doctoral dissertation is conducted within three months from the date of receipt of the applicant's written application addressed to the chairman of the academic council of the higher education institution or research institution. If the higher education institution or research institution refuses to conduct the examination and prepare a conclusion, the applicant has the right to apply to the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine to determine the further procedure for the examination of the dissertation.
7. Positive conclusion and formation of the doctoral council. If the conclusions of the scientific advisor and/or the conclusion on the scientific novelty, theoretical and practical significance of the results of the dissertation are positive, the applicant submits an application to the chairman of the doctoral council to organise the dissertation defence and confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences together with documents that meet the requirements of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. The Doctoral Council is formed by the Ministry of Education and Science in a scientific speciality (up to three) within the field of science for which the doctoral programme is open at the higher education institution (research institution) and consists of 11-19 members.
8. Appointment of the commission and preliminary analysis of the dissertation. The academic secretary accepts the application and doctoral dissertation from the applicant and checks the compliance of the documents with the established list. The chairman of the council puts the relevant resolution on the application, indicates the date of receipt of the documents and signs it. The Doctoral Council forms a commission for preliminary examination of the dissertation, which checks the availability of publications of scientific results, their completeness and relevance to the topic of the dissertation. The commission also conducts a preliminary analysis of the dissertation in accordance with the regulations of the council, recommends it for defence and submits proposals for candidates for opponents no later than three months after the date of receipt of the documents.
9. Decision to accept the thesis for defence. The opponent, having studied the doctoral dissertation and scientific publications related to the topic of the dissertation, submits a review to the doctoral council. The Doctoral Council notifies the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine of the acceptance of the thesis for defence and the appointment of opponents. This notification, together with other notifications submitted in the same month, is posted on the official website of the Ministry of Education and Science on the third working day of the following month.
10. Defence of a doctoral dissertation. The doctoral dissertation defence is held no earlier than one month after the publication of the relevant notice on the official website of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Within three working days after the date of the defence is set, the scientific community is informed of this date through the website of the higher education institution or research institution. The academic secretary posts an electronic version of the dissertation, abstract, conclusion on scientific novelty, feedback from opponents and a record card on the institution's website no later than ten working days before the defence. The public defence takes place at a meeting of the Doctoral Council in the form of an open scientific discussion, to which all competent scientists and those wishing to attend are invited. If necessary, the meeting of the Doctoral Council may be held via video link in real time.
11. Discussion and voting by the Doctoral Council. After the public discussion at the defence of the doctoral dissertation, a secret ballot is held to confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences. If the meeting of the Doctoral Council is held via video link, the secret ballot is conducted using software that guarantees anonymity and verification of votes. The use of such software is determined by the decision of the Doctoral Council.
12. Decision of the Doctoral Council to confer the degree. The decision to confer a degree is considered adopted if it is supported by at least three quarters of the members of the Doctoral Council who were present at the meeting. The Doctoral Council must issue the decision to confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences within 15 working days in two copies. If the doctoral council decides to refuse to confer the degree, the decision shall specify all the deficiencies, violations and comments identified during the examination of the dissertation and its defence that served as grounds for refusal.
13. Consideration of the dissertation by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. The Ministry of Education and Science monitors compliance with the requirements of regulatory legal acts on the certification of scientific personnel by both the doctoral council and the applicant. To do this, the Ministry of Education and Science reviews the documents of the applicant's attestation file, checking compliance with the procedure for reviewing a doctoral dissertation, and also examines the dissertation for the relevance of the topic, validity of scientific statements and conclusions, their novelty, completeness of presentation in scientific publications, as well as the presence of academic plagiarism, fabrication or falsification.
14. Terms of review and conclusion of the Ministry of Education and Science. The Ministry of Education and Science prepares a generalised conclusion, which is submitted to the MES Attestation Board. The Attestation Board considers this conclusion and approves the decision of the Doctoral Council to confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences. Proposals and applications from individuals or legal entities for additional evaluation of the doctoral dissertation and the applicant's attestation file are considered before a decision is made to approve the decision of the Doctoral Council and to confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences. The total period of consideration of the dissertation and certification file in the Ministry of Education and Science does not exceed four months. The decision of the Doctoral Council to confer the degree of Doctor of Sciences becomes effective from the moment the order of the Ministry of Education and Science comes into force, which approves this decision and the issuance of a Doctor of Sciences degree based on the results of the examination board's consideration.
Preparing a dissertation and defending a research project for a doctoral degree is a complex and lengthy process, so it is important to start preparing in advance. It is recommended that you prepare and publish your research results in advance in professional journals of Ukraine and international databases such as Web of Science and Scopus. This will allow you to complete the preparation of your dissertation in a timely manner, in accordance with all the requirements, avoid delays in the publication of scientific articles and prepare for a public defence before the commission.
If you need help in preparing your dissertation, contact the "Scientific Papers". Our qualified specialists offer high-quality services. Fill out the form below, and our manager will contact you during the working day, answer your questions and provide advice.
