Policy on Modules for Research Students

UCC Policy on Modules for Research Students

Version number: 1.0

Review Date: 07 December 2022

Policy Owner: Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee

Approval Body: Academic Board

Next Review: 2027

Purpose
Definitions
Scope
Policy Statement
Contact for Further Information

Purpose

Purpose of the Policy UCC is committed to developing talented graduates in support of existing and emerging industries that are equipped with a balanced set of specific, generic and transferable skills, underpinned by the National Framework for Doctoral Education. The Irish Universities Association (IUA) Doctoral Graduate Skills Statement outlines the desired learning outcomes and skills that doctoral students will have acquired during their doctoral education and training.

Scope

Scope of the Policy This policy applies to full-time and part-time students registered on a postgraduate research programme in UCC (the “Student”).

Policy Statement

Introduction

This policy applies to full-time and part-time students registered on a postgraduate research programme in UCC (the “Student”).

Irish higher education institutions (HEI’s) have the crucial task of developing talented graduates in support of existing and emerging industries that are equipped with a balanced set of specific, generic and transferable skills, underpinned by the National Framework for Doctoral Education. The Irish Universities Association (IUA) Doctoral Graduate Skills Statement outlines the desired learning outcomes and skills that doctoral students will have acquired during their doctoral education and training.

Policy Criteria

Students must agree module choices where applicable with their Supervisory Team. PhD students are required to take a minimum of 15 credits of coursework and training, by registering for modules aligned with IUA Doctoral Skills Statement.

The maximum amount of coursework and training that can be taken is as follows:

3-year PhD: Students can take up to a total of 45 credits of coursework over the duration of a 3-year full-time programme.

4-year PhD: Students can take up to a total of 60 credits of coursework over the duration of the 4-year full-time programme.

MD Students: Although MD students are not required to take any coursework or training, they can choose to take up to a maximum of 15 credits over the course of their MD programme, if they and their Supervisory Team agree that it is appropriate.

Research Masters Students: Although Masters by Research students are not required to take any coursework or training, they can choose to take up to a maximum of 15 credits over the course of their Masters by Research programme, if they and their Supervisory Team agree that it is appropriate.

Note: Students registered on Thematic or Practitioner Doctorates or MRes programmes must follow their particular programme calendar entries, which have specific module requirements.

Module Types

The module types that the Student can take are:

Postgraduate Training Modules: these are generic and transferable skills modules and are designed to train doctoral candidates with the expected generic and transferable skills necessary for a knowledge-based society aligned with the IUA Doctoral Skills Statement (2021).
UCC Taught Modules: where the student is advised by their Supervisory Team to take modules from the UCC Book of Modules which have relevance for their personal learning plan and research.
Module(s) taught externally to UCC: these are modules that are undertaken at another institution during the period of registration in UCC. In this instance the student can apply for recognition of these modules for credits.

Process for Module Registration

Students should consult with their Lead Supervisor[1] about which modules are required or advised for their programme of study. This should form part of the Student’s Research Learning Plan, as per UCC’s Policy on the Supervision of Research Students.
Students must register for all modules via the research student portal. Requests for registration will be sent to Module Coordinators for approval, unless approval is not required for a particular module. The Module Coordinator may liaise directly with the student regarding pre/co-requisites, or module class capacity, as needed. Once approval is granted by the Module Coordinator, the student is notified, and their record is updated. The student will then be provided with access to Canvas for the module.
In accordance with Concurrent Registration Policy | University College Cork (ucc.ie), a Student who wishes to use credits, within their maximum credit allowance, to register for an additional programme,g. a 30-credit Postgraduate Certificate, must have approval to do so by their Lead Supervisor. The Lead Supervisor must confirm this approval to the Graduate Studies Office before the student submits an application through UCC Apply for the additional programme.

Process for Examination of Postgraduate Training Modules

Module Coordinators for Postgraduate Training Modules must input module results via the DMIS Mark Return system. Postgraduate Training modules will only record a pass/fail judgement on the student transcript.
At the end of each semester, the Graduate Studies Office will convene an Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee Examinations Board to recommend the approval of Postgraduate Training Module results. The Graduate Studies Office will send confirmed results to the Student Records and Examinations Office after the Examination Board.
The Student Records and Examinations Office will release the result on the student portal and notify the student.
The Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee will report to Academic Board on numbers of students completing and passing/failing Postgraduate Training Modules, for information.
In the case of a fail judgement being recommended for a student, any repeat assessment may be carried out as detailed in the UCC Book of Modules.

External Modules

For recognition of external modules, students must complete the relevant webform in the research student portal, to submit to the relevant College for approval. Submissions will be automatically sent to the relevant College Graduate School.
Once approval is granted, the College Graduate School will notify the Graduate Studies Office, who will update the student record with the external module information.
If approval is not granted for the external module, the College Graduate School will notify the student directly.

Annual Maintenance of Postgraduate Training Modules and Changes to Postgraduate Training Modules

The Office of the Dean of Doctoral Studies is responsible for the annual maintenance of Postgraduate Training Modules, and for ensuring that approved Academic Programme Catalogue entries are forwarded to the Office of Academic Programmes and Regulations (APAR) for implementation on the Academic Programme Catalogue.
Each year, the Office of the Dean of Doctoral Studies will contact Postgraduate Training Module Coordinators to advise on the APAR timeline for submitting changes to module information. This timeline for changes typically occurs between January and March, in line with the University Schedule Governing Curriculum Approval.
Postgraduate Training Module Coordinators are required to consult with the Dean of Doctoral Studies about changes to modules in the first instance. Module Coordinators should then submit a change for approval via the curriculum management system (CIM Modules).
The Office of the Dean of Doctoral Studies is responsible for ensuring that any approved changes to Postgraduate Training Modules are accurately reflected on the Academic Programme Catalogue as detailed at 1. above.
For all other modules (non-Postgraduate Training Modules), it is the responsibility of the Schools/Departments and Module Coordinators to maintain the accurate module data and approve any changes.

Process for Approval of New Postgraduate Training Modules

The Dean of Doctoral Studies must be consulted in the first instance about all proposals for new Postgraduate Training Modules by the prospective Module Coordinator. The Dean will then consult with the Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee to check if the proposed module is in alignment with the IUA Doctoral Skills Statement and UCC Strategy on Doctoral Education.
Once agreed in principle by the Dean of Doctoral Studies, the module must be proposed by the Module Coordinator, using the curriculum management system (CIM Modules), for approval by the relevant College.
Other units (that are not in a College) may also propose new Postgraduate Training Modules if there are existing curriculum approval routes already established within that unit. In this case the Dean of Doctoral Studies will provide the academic sponsorship and oversight in relation to the module content and examination. The Dean will also act as the Module Coordinator for these modules.
Postgraduate Training Modules are recognised as modules for which resources via the University RAM should be allocated.
College-approved Postgraduate Training Modules must be submitted to the Dean of Doctoral Studies for final approval by the Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee.
The Office of the Dean of Doctoral Studies is responsible for ensuring that approved new Postgraduate Training Modules are updated on the Academic Programme Catalogue and also ensures that the modules are added to the student record system by the Offices of Academic Services.

[1] As detailed in the UCC Policy on the Supervision of Research Students, the term Lead Supervisor is used for purely administrative purposes; it is used to identify clearly which member of the supervisory team will ensure that all the administrative tasks are fulfilled. The term is not intended to create a hierarchy of supervisors.

Approved by Academic Board 07 December 2022 on the recommendation of Academic Council Graduate Studies Committee.

Contact for Further Information

Dean of Doctoral Studies dds@ucc.ie

Academic Affairs and Governance Gnothaí Acadúla agus Rialú