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Faculty of Dentistry

Academic Matters

  1. Academic Matters for both MSc and PhD Programmes
  2. Additional Studies Matters for Doctoral Programme Only

 

ACADEMIC MATTERS FOR BOTH MSC AND PHD PROGRAMMES

Curricular Requirement
(wef AY 2022/23)

Those deemed weak in English by Faculty would have to sit for the Diagnostic English Test and take additional English Language courses administered by the Centre for English Language (CELC).

The Graduate Seminar module (code: DY5190) is designed to promote a strong research culture among the research students and to improve their communication skills through presentations and conference attendance. It is a compulsory module for graduation. The grading is “Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory” on the basis of student’s participation and presentation at conferences/seminars and workshops

Guidelines on the no. of Session

Proposed Arrangement

MSc Sessions

PhD Sessions

 

Yr 1

Yr 2

Yr 1

Yr 2

Yr 3

Yr4

Presentation to Faculty

1

1

1

1

1

1

Conference presentation (local/overseas)

-

1

2

Attendance at Seminars/Conferences

3

4

3

2

2

2

Total

10

15

 

Candidature

Candidature Periods

Type of Programme

Minimum
Candidature

Maximum Candidature

Master’s degree by research

12 months

36 months

Ph.D. degree

24 months

60 months

Graduate
Continuation

To continue in a Master’s programme, a student may not have:

  • CAP below 3.0 (but ≥ 2.5) for three consecutive semesters; or
  • CAP below 2.5 for two consecutive semesters.

For any semester in which the student’s CAP falls below 3.0 (but ≥ 2.5), that student will be issued an academic warning.  If, in the following semester, the student’s CAP again falls below 3.0, s/he will be placed on probation.  If the student’s CAP remains below 3.0 for the third consecutive semester, the student will be issued a letter of dismissal by the Registrar and denied re-admission.

 

To continue in a Ph.D. programme, a student may not have:

  • CAP below 3.5 (but ≥ 3.0) for three consecutive semesters; or
  • CAP below 3.0 for two consecutive semesters.

For any semester in which the student’s CAP falls below 3.0 (but ≥ 2.5), that student will be issued an academic warning.  If, in the following semester, the student’s CAP again falls below 3.0, s/he will be placed on probation.  If the student’s CAP remains below 3.0 for the third consecutive semester, the student will be issued a letter of dismissal by the Registrar and denied re-admission.

Please refer to Registrar’s Office website for more details.

Transfer of Credits/ Exemption

There is no limit to transfer of credit for modules that have not been used towards another degree at NUS or elsewhere.

Credit transfer up to 50% of the modular credits required in the coursework to be completed for modules that have been credited towards another degree at NUS or elsewhere.

Modules recognized for credit transfer should be at level 5000 or above and must have substantially the same learning objectives, content, and level of sophistication as the corresponding NUS modules.

Only modules taken less than 5 years before admission will be recognized for credit transfer/exemption.

Candidate who upgrades from MSc to PhD are exempted from taking the compulsory modules they have taken as a MSc student.

Candidate who proceeds to PhD after obtaining MSc degree is exempted from compulsory modules they have taken as a MSc student but have to take two elective modules.

Thesis Submission Procedures

Candidate has to log in to myEduRec (navigate to Academics > Graduate Research > Submit Thesis) once the thesis is ready for submission.

  • Complete the online Thesis Submission Form
  • Upload a softcopy (pdf format) of the thesis
  • No hard copies are required to be printed.

General Guidelines on Format of Thesis

Candidates are required to refer to the General Guidelines and Instructions on Format of Research Thesis and Electronic Submission

Graduation Requirements
Masters:

    1. Minimum CAP of 3.0 for all required modules

    2. Pass in Master’s Thesis

    3. Satisfactory grade in English course (intermediate level), where applicable

PhD:

    1. Minimum CAP of 3.5 for all required modules

    2. Pass in Qualifying Examination

    3. Pass in PhD Thesis and Oral Examinations

    4. Satisfactory grade in English course (advanced level), where applicable

Other Matters

Academic Qualification of Supervisors

Academic Qualification of Faculty of Dentistry staff supervision of Masters/PhD theses

SUPERVISOR

CO-SUPERVISOR

MSc

PhD

MSc

PhD

Professor

All

Only if staff has PhD

All

May supervise provided staff without PhD is comfortable

Associate
Professor

All

Only if staff has PhD

All

May supervise provided staff without PhD is comfortable

Assistant
Professor

All

Only if staff has PhD

All

All May supervise provided staff without PhD is comfortable

Adjunct Staff
(assuming staff
has a Masters)

All

Only if staff has PhD

All

May supervise provided staff without PhD is comfortable

Research Staff
(assuming staff
has a Masters)

All

Only if staff has PhD

All

May supervise provided staff without PhD is comfortable


Application for Change of Thesis Advisor(s)
Approval by thesis advisor (current & new), Vice-Dean. If change of thesis advisor(s) involves change of department, need to get approval from both DDs. Form can be downloaded from Registrar’s Office website.

  1. Application for Change of Title of Thesis/Dissertation or Change of Research Topic

  2. Change in thesis title - Approval by thesis advisor only.

  3. Change in thesis topic - Approval by thesis advisor & DD.

  4. Conversion to Part time Student

Approval for conversion is normally not allowed for students unless student has submitted a satisfactory draft of the complete thesis to thesis advisor(s) and thesis advisor(s) in his/her best judgment feels that the student is able to submit the bound copy of the thesis for examination within three months.

For students who are or have been on Research Scholarship, under no circumstances should they start work before they obtain approval from the University. Otherwise, they are liable to the penalty of having to repay the university the scholarship and having their candidature terminated immediately

Applications for conversion of student’s status are to be submitted at least 2 weeks prior to date of conversion.

More information can be found here

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Additional Academic Matters For Doctoral Programme Only

Formation of PhD Thesis Committee

A Thesis Committee is to be formed within 6 months of enrolment. The supervisor is to submit the application form for Formation of PhD Thesis Committee (TC) via DD to Vice Dean Research Office.

The committee comprises thesis advisor and 2 other members. At most, one co-thesis advisor can be a member of the TC. The other must not be involved with supervision of student. Thesis Committee Members need not be restricted only to staff members of the Faculty of Dentistry. Staff members and investigators from national Research Institutes/Centers and other faculties within NUS may be included.

This committee is responsible for monitoring student's progress and responsible for completing the bi-annual progress report that is submitted to the Registrar's Office.
Ph.D. Qualifying Examination

It is applicable to :

    1. PhD Candidates

    2. Master candidates upgrading to PhD

The Qualifying Exam is to be taken 12 to 18 months from start of candidature.

A candidate must complete all 4 compulsory modules before taking the exam. The same goes for those upgrading to PhD.

Format of Qualifying Examination

The exam comprises a 30-minute oral presentation amd a discussion between examiners and candidate for 30-45 minutes. The examiners will then decide whether candidate has sufficient background knowledge to pursue the PhD research project

Procedure :

Eligibility to take PQE

  1. Attend DY5190 Graduate Seminar Module

  2. Complete other 3 modules with minimum CAP 3.5 

  3. The same applies for those upgrading to PhD.

 

Application to take PQE
Candidates must register at least 2 month before the date of PQE.

  • The recommendation to take PQE is from the PhD Research Thesis Committee through VDR Office
  • The candidate must submit an abstract of more than 250 words with the application form.

Thesis advisor completes two forms (i) Registration for PhD Qualifying Examination and (ii) Nomination of Examiners for PhD Qualifying Examination.

 

Approval of Application
The Vice Dean (Research) will decide application based on completion of coursework requirements and time from start of PhD candidature.

 

Conveyance of Approval
Dean’s Office will convey result applicant within 1 week of VDR’s decision with cc to DD and main thesis advisor.

 

Submission of Protocol
Candidate to submit protocol (maximum of four A4 pages) Adobe PDF format one month before PQE to Dean’s Office.

The research protocol should give an indication the nature of research, and what candidate have done, found out and intend to do for the remaining time of his/her PhD. The general format are :

    1. Title

    2. Concise review of literature (= 3 A4 pages, single spaced, size 12 font or smaller)

    3. Gap in knowledge

    4. Proposed materials and method

    5. Initial findings

    6. Initial conclusions

Protocol must receive approval from all PhD RTC members before submission to Dean’s Office.

Dean’s Office to send protocol to examiners.

 

Others
The oral presentation may be given as a power point presentation.

Candidate will be informed of the decision of examining panel within two weeks of the exam.

A second attempt, if any, must be completed within 6 months after the first attempt. Failure at both attempts may mean that the student be downgraded to MSc.

PhD Oral Examination

 Timing of Oral Examination

The oral examination will only be convened if candidate passes the thesis examination.  It will be scheduled within 6 weeks when the thesis result is known.

Information for PhD Candidate

    1. Oral Presentation

      PhD candidate to give an Oral Presentation for 30 - 45 minutes with visual aids (such as transparencies, power-point etc).

      The presentation should highlight the objectives & scope of research project, methodology, conclusions and original contributions to the research area.

      A maximum of 15 minutes is given to general audience (comprising academic staff, graduate and undergraduate students) for posing questions to candidate

    2. Discussion with Oral Defence Panel will last for at least 45 minutes

    3. Conveyance of Result

      Chair of panel to communicate result to PhD candidate immediate after the exam. A consolidated report consisting of pre-oral report and the recommendations from oral panel will be sent to candidate.

      The candidate may be asked to come back for another oral examination if he/she performs unsatisfactory during the oral defence.

Upgrading to Ph.D.

Generally students may apply for upgrading from MSc to Phd, however the faculty will consider only when there is substantial justification and funds available

    1. Students may apply for upgrading after completing at least 1 year of study.

    2. The requirements for upgrading to PhD is the same as those applying directly for PhD Qualifying Examination.

    3. Students can apply for upgrading subject to fulfillment of the following requirements :

      1. completion of mandatory courseworks except for DY 5190 Graduate Seminar Module with minimum 3.5 CAP

      2. passed the PhD Qualifying Examination


Commencement dates of candidature & scholarship for such upgrading cases remain the same though the duration would be changed accordingly

Please click here for more information.

PhD Top Up

Candidates who passed the QE will be awarded a monthly top-up of $500 for a max of 24 months but not more than 48 months of their candidature.

Note: Students can make up the sessions due to medical or other valid reasons.

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