University of Helsinki

PhD Thesis

• Doctoral dissertations
• Examination process for doctoral dissertations
• The pre-examination of a doctoral dissertation
• Permission to defend a dissertation at a public examination
• The printing and distribution of a dissertation
• The public examination of a dissertation
• The acceptance of a dissertation

Doctoral dissertations

To complete a Doctor of Philosophy degree, students must write a doctoral dissertation and defend it at a public examination, after which the Faculty formally decides whether to accept the dissertation.

Several scientific publications accompanied by a summarising report that focus on a single theme can also be accepted as a doctoral dissertation. The summarising report must be a well-balanced piece of writing, based both on the publications included in the dissertation and on literature in the field.

An article dissertation can include not only publications, but also manuscripts accepted for publication. An article dissertation can also include manuscripts submitted for publication if such manuscripts do not constitute a significant part of the dissertation. In their written statement, the pre-examiners must assess the significance of any such manuscripts and note any shortcomings in their content.

Publications included in a dissertation can also include co-authored publications if the author’s independent contribution in them can be verified. The doctoral candidate must report in the dissertation on his or her input into the publications and on whether any of the publications has been used in previously published dissertations. The Faculty recommends that this information be provided in the list of publications included in the dissertation.