The report is structured in six chapters:
1 Introduction and context (Annexes 1, 2 and 3)
2 Supporting diverse doctoral students and surveying the student experience
(Annex 4)
3 Standards, quality and review of doctoral programmes (Annex 5)
4 Developing and supporting critical mass and diversity (Annexes 6 and 7)
5 Supporting the development of doctoral skills and attributes (Annexes 8 and 9)
6 Conclusions and recommendations.
In each chapter, the IBWG has drawn widely on practice that can be seen to support
and enhance the research student experience, including frameworks for safeguarding
academic standards and the quality of programmes.
The report focuses on doctoral degrees, rather than research degrees as a whole.
However, some elements, especially the examples of practice, will be of general interest
to anyone contributing to research degrees.
Chapter 1 summarises the background to the report, the IBWG's rationale for
commissioning it and how evidence was gathered. Annexes 1 and 2 provide details of
the IBWG's membership and programme of work. This chapter also provides a broad
context for the project, including information about different forms of doctorate and
their characteristics (Annex 3), and about the growth in research students; both in
Scotland (Figure 1) and across countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD) (Figure 2). Finally, and importantly, this chapter emphasises
the way in which doctoral education can be broadened through internationalisation
and the many different ways in which an international perspective can be provided.
It includes details of international collaborations in which Scottish universities are
involved, together with international conferences, summer schools and details of how
Scottish institutions attract international visitors. There is an example of practice at the
University of Nottingham to illustrate practice elsewhere in the UK. Internationally, the
chapter draws on examples from the USA Council for Graduate Schools. With regard
to student mobility, there are case studies from Canada and non-UK Europe (cotutelle
programmes).