Thesis Examiner Criteria

Availability
  • Examiners are given six weeks from the date of receipt of thesis to assess it and return their reports.
  • Graduate research co-ordinator must invite the preferred examiners and obtain their acceptances before lodging their names with the board for final appointment.
  • Examiners need to agree that they are in a position to examine the thesis within the six-week time-frame.
  • Examiners need to know the estimated time of submission. It is important not to underestimate or overestimate an expected submission date as examiners often organise their schedules in anticipation of receiving a thesis at a particular time.
Expertise
  • Examiners must hold an equivalent degree to the degree they are examining.
  • They must be able to testify that the thesis before them is:
    • for the PhD, a substantial and original contribution to knowledge in its given field
    • for the master's, a substantial work generally based on independent research.
  • Supervisors must list examiners' qualifications and indicate whether they are still active in their given field by providing either a brief curriculum vitae or a list of key and/or recent publications.
Independence
  • Steps must be taken to ensure that examiners are free from bias.
  • The graduate research co-ordinator must provide a statement which confirms that there is no conflict of interest between examiners and the student or supervisors.
Eligibility
  • For PhDs not requiring a viva voce: 4 examiners (3 preferred and 1 reserve) must be nominated, none can be current employees of The University of Western Australia; 2 must be external to the state of Western Australia.
  • For PhDs requiring a viva voce: 3 examiners (2 preferred and 1 reserve) must be nominated; at least 1 must be external to the state of Western Australia. The Chair of the examination panel must be a senior member of academic staff of UWA, appointed by the Dean of the Graduate Research School.
  • For master's: 3 examiners (2 preferred and 1 reserve) must be nominated; at least 1 must be external to the state of Western Australia.

Nomination of international examiners is not mandatory but it is desirable.

A complete street address for each examiner is required to ensure the thesis arrives at its destination safely. Couriers do not deliver to PO Box numbers.

Relevance
  • The list of examiners must be accompanied by a statement (at least a paragraph) which outlines the relevance of each nominee to the particular field.
  • It is usual to recommend two examiners who have expertise specific to the area and one more general examiner who may be able to provide an overview.
  • The reserve examiner's name must also be submitted along with details of his or her relevance.
Confidentiality
  • Examiners need an indication whether the thesis will contain confidential information.
  • If the thesis does contain confidential information, the graduate research co-ordinator should secure an undertaking from examiners that they will keep the contents of the thesis confidential, and advise the Graduate Research School accordingly.