Mock-viva by an Internal Examiner

Before being sent to external examiners, the candidate’s this will first be assessed by an internal examiner. A meeting will be held to question the candidate about the readiness of his/her thesis. Amendments recommended in this meeting should be fulfilled by the candidate under the guidance of their supervisor(s).

External Examination

In the penultimate semester of the program, the candidate is required to notify the Higher Degrees Committee of their intention to submit the final thesis.

The supervisor(s) will nominate potential examiners to the Faculty Management Committee of IOU. The Faculty Management Committee will appoint two suitably-qualified external examiners (actively based at other universities) for each dissertation. The Faculty Management Committee will notify the Higher Degrees Committee of the appointed supervisors.

The external examiners will review the doctoral thesis independently. Each examiner will submit a report to the Higher Degrees Committee. The Higher Degrees Committee will consolidate the reports of the external examiners.

Should the candidate be asked to make amendments and/or re-submit the thesis; the supervisor(s) will provide required support and guidance to the candidate to complete it. 

Passing Grade

The candidate must obtain a minimum average of 80% (from the external examination) to obtain the doctorate.