Information for PhD candidates at LLE
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Being a PhD candidate at LLE - rights and obligation
An overview of duties and rights as a research fellow at the Faculty of Humanities (eg information about holidays, sick leave, leave) can be found in information leaflet from the faculty (in Norwegian). You can also read up on the rights and obligations of a PhD candidate here:
Regulations for the degree of Philosophia Doctor (PhD) at the University of Bergen
See also general information about being employed at UiB on UiB's Employee Pages.
Questions concerning the employment relationship as a research fellow (e.g. sick leave, leave, holidays, HSE, workplace arrangements and questions about travel expenses, and salaries) can be directed to administration consultant Jorunn Nedreberg.
Supervision
If you are enrolled in the PhD program at the Faculty of Humanities, work on the PhD thesis is to take place under individual supervision. The candidate shall as a rule have two supervisors and at least one supervisor must be appointed at the time of admission.
The main supervisor should normally be employed at the Faculty of Humanities.
Co-supervisor(s) can be appointed at a later stage. We recommend, however, not waiting too long to find a co-supervisor.
In some cases, it is meaningful to have more than two supervisors. However, even though it is possible, we usually do not recommend having more than three supervisors at once. Talk to the research coordinator or the PhD coordinator if you consider having more supervisors.
The division of labor (in %) between main and co-supervisor(s) needs to be agreed upon and recorded in writing either in Part B of the PhD agreement or in a separate contract.
Content, form, and frequency of supervision depend on many factors (e.g., the candidate’s needs), which will most likely vary in the course of the PhD trajectory. Good communication between candidate and supervisors is crucial to ensure good supervision.
Research coordinator Pär Sandin or PhD coordinator Angelina Penner Gjertsen are the right people if you want to raise issues concerning the collaboration with your supervisors, change of supervisors, involvement of a secondary supervisor and the like.
Read more about regulations for supervision here: https://lovdata.no/SFE/forskrift/2022-11-24-2593/§6
Operating funds (Driftsmidler)
Those who are employed as ph.d. candidates at LLE receive NOK 24,000 in operating funds for the first three years of the scholarship period (a total of NOK 72,000 for the entire scholarship period). The operating funds shall cover expenses for the work on the dissertation, and may e.g. useful to; professional travel, conference fee, purchase of books, purchase of additional IT equipment or software, course fees. Ordinary supplies, on the other hand, are made available by the department and shall not be charged to the candidate's operating funds (writing equipment, paper, binders, USB sticks, etc.).
The operating funds can also be used for language proof reading of the dissertation if the candidate so wishes, or for printing more dissertation copies than those covered by the department. The remaining funds can, however, not be used for a "doctoral dinner" or equivalent events after a public defense. The operating funds are transferred from year to year. When the scholarship period has expired, the doctoral student may use the remaining operating funds, if there is is an agreement on that with the department.If you have questions about the use of operating funds, you can contact financial consultant Liv Mørch.
IT equipment
Within a reasonable frame, the department covers the cost of purchasing a computer. Those who want computer equipment beyond that must expect to cover part of the cost with their own funds. The institute recommends that those who like a PC buy a portable computer plus a docking station. Thus, with the help of one machine (including docking station, extra keyboard and screen) the need for both a statnionart and portable computer is covered. Alternatively, you can choose either a stationary or a portable computer. There are no good solutions for docking laptops. Mac users should therefore choose either a stationary computer or laptop. Those who need both a portable and a stationary computer must cover part of the expenses from their own operating funds. The equipment that is purchased is UiB's property. This also applies when the equipment is financed by the research fellow's operating funds. Fellows who wish to take over IT equipment (portable computer, tablet, etc.) after the scholarship period is over, can contact Steinar Sælebakke at the department.If the department does not need the equipment, the research fellow can buy it. In that case, the prices are these:
- Equipment under 2 years is sold at fifty percent of the purchase price
- Equipment that is between 2 and 4 years old is sold at 30 percent of the purchase price
- Equipment older than 4 years can be purchased for free
The person who purchases the machine is responsible for this uninstalling and reinstalling when they exit the UiB system, otherwise the computers will work poorly.
Obligatory work (Pliktarbeid)
Internal routines at LLE are anchored in the faculty's routines for organizing the PhD candidates' work period (approved by the faculty board on 7 June 2011). The internal department routines are an elaboration of the routines at the faculty and must be seen in connection with these. The routines apply to candidates who have been employed for four years where one year (25% of contract time) constitutes an obligatory work period (in Norwegian: Pliktarbeid)
• The PhD coordinator ensures that the subject coordinator, candidate and supervisor have relevant information about rates and hours for obligatory work, when the PhD candidates begins their position.
• The subject coordinator, supervisor and PhD candidate make a plan for the candidate's work period and fill in the relevant form. The PhD coordinator can convene this meeting, if necessary.
• Major changes during the period will take place in consultation between the candidate, supervisor and subject coordinator. The PhD coordinator and head of administration must be informed in good time.
PhD coursework (Opplæring)
An important part of the PhD program is the training part or coursework. Read more about it here
Mid-term evaluation (Midtveisevaluering)
All candidates must undergo a mid-term evaluation, roughly halfway through their contract time (usually 1,5 – 2 years after admission).
The main objective of the mid-term evaluation is to help the candidate to identify conditions that entail a risk of the project stopping or being delayed, as well as to provide input that can increase the quality of the work. The faculty, supervisors and candidate are obliged to actively follow up conditions that may entail a risk of delayed or incomplete completion of the PhD education, so that the education, as far as possible, can be completed within the standard time frame.
As a general rule, the mid-term evaluation must include professional input from researchers within the candidate's own field and adjacent fields. At LLE, we call them expert readers. The candidate’s supervisors cannot be their expert reader.
Preparation: Expert reader, progress report and presentation
The PhD coordinator or research coordinator informs the candidate and main supervisor about the upcoming mid-term evaluation.
The candidate and main supervisor inform the PhD coordinator who would be a fitting expert reader in good time before the mid-term evaluation.
The PhD coordinator will communicate time, date and other information to everyone involved.
The candidate sends their text to the reader and the PhD coordinator four weeks prior to the meeting. The amount of text will most likely vary between candidates, but we estimate 30 – 50 pages of text. This can be a draft of a chapter, an article, or other material, that represents the current state of the thesis.
Latest 5 days before the meeting, the candidate and the supervisors send in progress reports.
The progress report should address:
1. What has been done with regard to the original progress plan and how is the project development in light of this?
2. Is the project delayed? If so, emphasis should be placed on the reasons why a project has been delayed.
3. Possible production of articles, conference participation and the like (applicable only to the candidate)
4. How is the content and quality of supervision?
5. Overview of completed training part (applicable only to the candidate)
6. Updated progress plan with proposals for measures where the project is delayed.
The progress reports will be addressed in the mid-term evaluation meeting.
Finally, the candidate should prepare a short presentation (max. 10 min) about their project.
Structure
At LLE we practice the following structure at the mid-term evaluation:
1. The candidate gives a short introduction to their thesis (main objectives, methodology, theory, etc.). This presentation should not be longer than 10 minutes. Aids, like power point or handouts are welcome, but not necessary.
2. The expert reader discusses the text they got with the candidate. Supervisors should take notes on issues they want to further discuss with the candidate in the next supervision. The expert reader is asked to leave the meeting after the dialogue. We allocate roughly one hour for this part of the mid-term evaluation.
3. The research coordinator, candidate, supervisor(s) and PhD coordinator talk about the PhD trajectory so far and the candidate’s plan ahead. Progress, delays, participation in courses or conferences, and supervision will be some of the topics addressed in the meeting. This part, too, takes roughly one hour.
Both candidate and supervisors can ask for a conversation alone with the research coordinator and the PhD coordinator.
After the mid-term evaluation
The PhD coordinator writes a protocol during the meeting, which will be circulated and signed by all attendees. In the meeting, we discuss possible issues and solutions and allocate who is responsible to follow up.
The faculty, supervisors and candidate are obliged to actively follow up conditions that may entail a risk of delayed or incomplete completion of the PhD education, so that the education, as far as possible, can be completed within the standard time frame.
Read more about the midway evaluation here (in Norwegian only): https://www.uib.no/hf/48435/midtvegsevaluering-ved-hf#oppf-lging
Completion: Submission of dissertation, Trial lecture & Defense (Disputas)
Read more about completion on the Faculty of Humanities’ homepage: https://www.uib.no/en/hf/136427/content-and-structure-phd-programme#4-completion
LLE has developed a comprehensive brochure explaining the most important steps before and after a candidate submits their thesis. This brochure was developed primarily for PhD candidates at LLE and their supervisors. If you would like to receive a digital copy, write an email to Angelina Penner Gjertsen.
Printing of the dissertation - financial support from the department
The department pays for the printing of 20 copies of the dissertation in connection with the public defense (10 for the public defense, 6 for the national library, 3 for the univserity library and 1 for the department). The candidate will receive the 10 remaining copies. It is important to follow UiB's routine for printing a dissertation.
