Changes to PhD Statute
Explore the key differences between the 2016 PhD Statute and the new PhD Statute which came into effect in October 2020.
The new PhD statute and Wahapū have together been designed to streamline candidature management and examination processes, making them more transparent and faster than before. Under the new statute more local decision making is enabled, and more structure has been placed around supervision. Key changes are listed below.
For detailed information about the new Statute, please visit PhD Statute.
| 2016 PhD Statute | New PhD Statute |
|---|---|
| No access to Wahapū. |
Provides access to Wahapū, the digital system for managing doctoral candidature. |
| Approvals to candidature changes required to be manually signed off by multiple parties in faculties/LSRIs and SGS (completed via paper based forms). | Increased faculty-based decision making around candidature changes, with more visibility, fewer sign-offs and faster approvals. |
| No fixed supervision models. | Fixed supervision models. |
| Nine confirmation milestones. | Ten confirmation milestones (sign-off by confirmation review panel added as a milestone). |
| Provisional Year Review (PYR) and Annual Review completed via paper-based forms and signed off by multiple parties. | Provisional Year Review and Annual Review renamed as “Confirmation Review” and “Continuation Review”. Reviews may have fewer signoffs depending on recommendation. |
| All examination reports reviewed by Faculty Exam Committee. | Faculty Exam Committee review not always required, depending on recommendation, speeding up examinations processes. |
| Candidate may invite only one supervisor to attend oral exam. | Candidate may invite up to two supervisors to attend oral exam and in certain cases invite support people. |
Candidates are encouraged to read the new PhD Statute and sign up to benefit from the advantages of Wahapū.