The Admission Process
a. Discipline-wise intake for PhD programme shall be held biannually by the University.
b. Candidates with a master's or equivalent degree in Sciences (MSc, MCA, MTech, MRes, MPhil), master's or equivalent degree in Social Sciences & Humanities (MA, MRes, MPhil,), or master's or equivalent degree in Commerce & Management (MCom, MBA, MRes, Charted Accountancy / Finance Accountancy, Company Secretary) as awarded by the respective statutory institutions of India are eligible to apply. In the case of candidates who have studied abroad, eligibility will be based on the degree being recognised as equivalent by the Association of Indian Universities (AIU).
c. Candidates who belong to General Merit Category should have a minimum of 55% or equivalent grade in the master's degree. Students who belong to SC / ST / OBC (Only Non-Creamy Layer) / Differently Abled categories should have a minimum of 50% or equivalent grade in the master's degree.
d. The PhD application form for the programme will be available at www.sju.edu.in. A duly signed copy of the filled-in application form, along with the specified mandatory documents, must be sent by e-mail to the University well before the deadline specified in the advertisement.
e. The University after thoroughly reviewing the application and the furnished documents would permit the candidate, if found fulfilling the required criteria, to download the E-Admit Card in order to appear for the admission process.
f. The admission process will consist of an entrance exam of two hours duration followed by a personal interview for shortlisted candidates. The entrance exam will cover master's level topics in the discipline of the candidate's choice. The candidate must score at least 50% in the entrance exam to be shortlisted for the interview.
g. Candidates who have passed NET (JRF / LS), GATE, & KSET (Karnataka) are exempted from the entrance exam.
h. For candidates appearing for the entrance exam, the merit list will be based on 70% weightage for the entrance exam score and 30% weightage for the interview score. For candidates exempted from the entrance exam, the interview scores alone would be counted for the merit list.
i. The Research Director (RD) will present to the PhD Monitoring Committee (PMC) the list of discipline-wise selected candidates, after duly considering the permissible intake. PMC would assign a supervisor for each candidate from the approved panel of supervisors through counselling. The PMC, in consultation with the supervisor, may also propose to assign a co-supervisor to a candidate whose research proposal is interdisciplinary in nature.
Research Disciplines
a. The University offers the PhD degree programme in the following disciplines:
Sciences: Biotechnology, Botany, Chemistry, Zoology, Environmental Science & Sustainability, Computer Science, Mathematics, Microbiology, Physics, Statistics, Data Analytics.
Social Sciences / Languages / Commerce / Management / Media Studies: Commerce & Management, Economics, English, Hindi, Kannada, Journalism & Mass Communication, Multi-Media & Animation, Political Science, Social Work, Visual Communication & Media Studies.
b. Other disciplines will be included in due course as and when the University decides to initiate doctoral programmes in them.
Duration of the Programme
a. Full-time scholars are expected to complete the programme in 3 years. A one-year extension may be allowed subject to the recommendation of the PMC.
b. Part-time scholars are expected to complete the programme in 4 years. A one-year extension may be allowed, subject to the recommendation of the PMC.
Payment of Fees
a. Fees are paid annually. Candidates admitted to the programme should pay the 1st Year fees within a week from the date of announcement of the admission list.
b. In the subsequent years the annual fee (in total) should be paid well before the deadline set by the University.
PhD Supervisor Allotment, Roles and Responsibilities
a. The candidate who is admitted to the PhD programme will be assigned a supervisor from a pre-approved panel of supervisors in each discipline by the PMC, subject to ratification of the same by the Research Director. The maximum number of PhD scholars registered under a supervisor at a given time is as follows:
However, in a single admission cycle, a supervisor would be allotted no more than two scholars.
b. The candidate will apprise the supervisor of the area and topic of doctoral research he/she wishes to pursue.
c. The responsibilities of the supervisor include:
- Regular discussion with the PhD scholars to assess the suitability of ideas / hypotheses for the chosen research area.
- Guiding the scholar on relevant courses and conferences related to the field.
- Advising the scholar about relevant national and international organizations in the area of research.
- Assisting the scholar with the incorporation of the knowledge dissemination element (publication of credible journal articles / book chapters / books).
- Regular review and feedback on the PhD project.
- Preparation of the final statement summarising the overall PhD program at the time of PhD thesis submission.
- Active participation in the assessment of the thesis and PhD defence.
- Suggest to the PMC the names of potential members of the Doctoral Committee (DC) and the panel of PhD thesis examiners.
d. The University shall have a provision for a stand-by supervisor, who would take over as the supervisor in case the originally assigned supervisor leaves the University or is unavailable due to any other eventuality.
e. A co-supervisor can be appointed if the project envisaged requires expertise from multiple disciplines. This can be done with permission from the research supervisor and the relevant PMCs.
f. Multi / Interdisciplinary Research: The University encourages multi/interdisciplinary research. The discipline in which the degree will be awarded and the PMC to which he/she would report would be the same as the discipline in which the scholar had obtained his/her master's, if more than 75% of the work carried out by the scholar falls within the scope of this discipline according to the PMC. In case the work cuts across two or more disciplines with no clear-cut majority discipline, the degree will be awarded under the respective faculty (Faculty of Sciences / Social Sciences / Arts & Humanities / Commerce & Management) without specifying the discipline. In case the work cuts across two or more Faculties, the degree will mention only the title of the doctoral thesis.
Details of the Coursework
a. The PhD programme shall consist of mandatory coursework, a pre-doctoral colloquium on the research proposal, and doctoral research in that order. The duration of the coursework shall be six months, which shall be part of the overall normal duration (three years) of the programme. The PhD coursework shall be of sixteen (16) credits.
b. The coursework shall consist of 5 papers - Research Methodology (4 Credits), Pedagogy: Teaching, Learning, and Evaluation (2 Credits), Discipline-specific paper (4 Credits), Project-specific paper (4 Credits), and Seminar (2 Credits).
c. The coursework will require mandatory attendance of 85% and the students will be evaluated through Continuous Internal Assessment (CIA) and an End of the Course Examination (ECE). The final result for the coursework will be on a weightage of 50% each for CIA and ECE with a minimum pass score of 50% each in CIA and ECE, and 55 % in aggregate.
d. The ECE and its evaluation will be conducted by the Research Centre in collaboration with the Controller of Examinations.
e. Upon the successful completion of the coursework with the required marks/grade, the candidate will be issued a marks card and a Coursework Completion Certificate (CCC).
f. Candidates who fail the coursework examination will be asked to reappear for examination after a period of 30 days or in exceptional circumstances will be asked to repeat the entire coursework.
g. In the event a candidate is unsuccessful in passing the coursework examinations even after the supplementary then he/she will be asked to discontinue the programme.
h. In cases where admission could not be finalised because of failure to meet coursework requirements, the candidates will forfeit the fees already paid.
PhD Fellowship/Scholarship
a. Full-time PhD scholars who possess NET-JRF qualification will receive the fellowship from UGC/CSIR.
b. A full-time PhD scholar who does not receive a fellowship under the NET-JRF will be eligible for a University fellowship of Rs.12,000- per month for a period of 2 ½ years (i.e., from the date of completion of coursework).
Approval of the Synopsis of the Proposed Research
After successful completion of the coursework the scholar chooses his/her research problem (topic) and compiles a synopsis that presents a brief introduction to the topic, extant knowledge in the field of enquiry, the scope for further exploration, working hypothesis and objectives, methodology to be followed and the timeline. This synopsis is presented before the DC, suggestions, if any, from the DC are incorporated and the revised version is submitted to the PMC for approval.
Half-Yearly Progress Reports
a. The scholar should present a progress report twice a year, in the last week of June and the first week of January.
b. The progress report should clearly state the progress made in terms of literature search / review, data collection, data analysis, publication, conference presentation, and any other relevant details in the six-month period under evaluation.
c. The progress should be presented to the DC and its advice and suggestions should be included in the report before submission.
d. PMC would go through the report and accept / reject based on the quantum of progress made by the scholar.
e. In case, the report is rejected by the PMC the scholar is expected to present the revised version of the same within a month.
f. Two successive rejections of the progress report will entail disqualification of the candidate.
Requirements before submitting the PhD Thesis Synopsis
a. Work of two and a half years from the date of passing the PhD coursework for full-time scholars and three and a half years from the date of passing the PhD coursework for part-time scholars should be put in before submission of thesis synopsis.
b. The following must be fulfilled before the submission of PhD thesis synopsis:
- All fee dues should have been cleared by the scholar.
- All the previous half yearly reports of the scholar should have been approved by the PMC.
- The scholar should have published TWO research articles in SCI/SSCI/SCOPUS indexed journals or the SJU-approved UGC CARE list journals.
- The scholar should have presented TWO papers in recognised International / National Conferences. In lieu of this, the scholar may produce an additional SCI / SSCI / SCOPUS journal publication.
Thesis synopsis and colloquium
a. Once the candidate / scholar fulfils the requirements for submitting the thesis, he / she compiles a synopsis which describes the content of the thesis briefly.
b. The synopsis is presented to the DC, and after its approval, presented to the academic community of the University through a colloquium. The critical comments and suggestions from the audience should be addressed by the scholar and the modified synopsis submitted to the PMC for approval.
Preparation of the PhD thesis
a. Once the PMC approves the thesis synopsis, the scholar is given six months to prepare his / her thesis and submit it to SJRI. Under extraordinary circumstances the scholar may take an additional THREE months subject to approval by the Research Director. A fee shall be charged for the extension of the date for thesis submission.
b. The format of the thesis and the relevant certification pages that should be included in the thesis are displayed on the SJU webpage.
c. TWO hardbound copies of the thesis along with a soft copy (.pdf) of the same should be submitted to SJRI.
Evaluation of the Thesis
a. The PhD thesis submitted by a research scholar shall be evaluated by his/her research supervisor and at least two external examiners, who are experts in the field and not in employment of the University. Examiners should be academics with a good record of scholarly publications in the field. The two external examiners, may be from India, at least one of whom must be from a State / UT outside Karnataka. Where required, a distinguished academician, not below the rank of professor or equivalent, from outside India may be chosen as one of the external examiners. The viva-voce examination based primarily on the critiques given in the evaluation report shall be conducted by the research supervisor and at least one of the two external examiners. It shall be open to the members of the Research Advisory Committee (RAC), all faculty of the University, research scholars and other interested students.
b. The viva-voce of the research scholar to defend the thesis shall be conducted only if the evaluation reports of the examiners on the thesis recommend acceptance. If one of the evaluation reports recommends rejection, the University shall send the thesis to an alternate examiner (from the approved panel of examiners) and the viva-voce examination shall be held only if the report of the alternate examiner recommends acceptance. If the report of the alternate examiner also recommends rejection, the thesis shall be rejected, and the research scholar shall be declared ineligible for the award of the degree.
c. The University shall develop appropriate methods so as to complete the entire process of evaluation of PhD thesis within a period of three months from the date of submission of the thesis.
Change of Supervisor
a. A scholar may ask for a change of the supervisor during the course of the programme if:
- The supervisor is not available to the scholar.
- There is irreparable personal animosity between the scholar and supervisor.
- The expertise of the supervisor is unsuitable for the problem chosen by the scholar.
b. In any such circumstance, the scholar shall apply to the PMC for a change of supervisor, citing reasons.
c. The PMC, in consultation with the supervisor, may allot a new supervisor if it finds the claims of the scholar to be true. There will be a fee charged for change of supervisor.
Change of Thesis Title
a. A scholar will be allowed to change the title of his/her thesis mid-course if recommended by the DC and approved by the PMC.
b. A fee shall be charged for the change of title.
Change of Objectives
a. A scholar will be allowed to change the set of objectives mid-course if recommended by the DC and approved by the PMC and ratified by the RD.
b. A fee shall be charged for the change of objectives.
Research Advisory Council
a. The Research Advisory Council (RAC) is headed by the Vice-Chancellor. In his absence, his nominee would serve as the chair.
b. The Research Director (RD) will oversee the functioning of the council.
c. Apart from the above individuals, the council consists of a team of research scientists, four professors (based on API) on rotation basis, and external experts.
PhD Monitoring Committee Roles and Responsibilities
a. The PhD Monitoring Committee (PMC) shall be constituted for each discipline.
b. The senior most professor in the discipline is the Chair. In case there is no professor available in the discipline, a professor from a related discipline would act as the Chair. All eligible guides in the discipline are members. If the total number of members is less than five, external experts would be made members so as to bring the total number of members to five.
c. The committee shall meet once in six months.
d. The committee shall assess the progress report of the PhD scholars and declare their acceptance / rejection / revision.
e. In addition, the PMC will also have the following responsibilities:
- Designing the discipline-wise coursework paper and approving supervisor / project-specific course-work papers.
- Allotment of supervisor/co-supervisor to each selected scholar.
- Review and approval of the Progress Reports of the scholars recommended by the DC.
- Approval of examiners for discipline-wise coursework paper and supervisor / project-specific coursework papers.
- Approval of examiners for the thesis evaluation and viva-voce examination.
- Recommendation (to the RD) regarding continuation of supervision by retiring / discontinuing faculty and / or change of supervisor under exceptional circumstances.
Doctoral Committee Roles and Responsibilities
a. The Doctoral Committee (DC) will be constituted by the Supervisor. The main task of the committee is to mentor the scholar, ensuring quality of the project.
b. The DC is constituted for each candidate pursuing doctoral studies. The DC is headed by the supervisor and comprises one or two external experts. The DC would convene once every six months and assess the candidate's progress based on his/her detailed presentation.
c. The responsibilities of the DC include monitoring the progress of the scholar, advising course corrections / necessary training and approving all documents prior to their submission to PMC.
Discipline-Wise Board of Studies
a. The Discipline-Wise Board of Studies (DW-BoS) would comprise five of the eligible supervisors in the discipline, based on seniority (API-based). The senior most Professor/Associate Professor among them would be the Chair.
b. DW-BoS would prepare the required number of sets of question papers for the PhD programme entrance exam and depute two of its members to be on the interview board for the selection of PhD scholars.
c. DW-BoS would design and approve the syllabus for the discipline-specific paper of the PhD coursework. It would also approve research area-specific or supervisor-specific papers syllabi, designed by the different supervisors in the discipline.
d. DW-B0S would approve the panel of examiners for the PhD coursework.
e. DW-BoS would recommend to the PMC the panel of examiners for thesis evaluation for all the scholars in the discipline.
General Board of Studies
a. The General Board of Studies (G-BoS) is headed by the Research Director.
b. The Chairpersons of all the DW-BoS would be members of the board.
c. The Research Director may co-opt one or more additional professors into this board.
d. The G-BoS would design and approve the coursework curriculum and the syllabi for the common papers - Research Methodology, Pedagogy: Teaching, Learning and Evaluation, and Seminar.
Committee for Ethical Practices in Research
a. This committee is headed by the Research Director.
b. All the Chairpersons of the discipline-wise PMCs would be members.
c. The committee will ensure that ethical practices in research are maintained.
d. The committee will handle all complaints related to unethical practices based on the following suggested document:
https://graduateschool.nd.edu/assets/21765/guidelinesresearchethicsinthesocialscienceslawhumanities.pdf
Committee for Ethics in Research involving Human Participants (non-medical)
a. This committee is headed by the Research Director.
b. Three senior professors (or associate professors, if there are no professors) from Humanities & Social Sciences / Commerce & Management / Social Work would be members.
c. One external member, a professor who is well-versed in ethical practices in research involving human participants, will also be co-opted into the committee.
d. Approval from this committee should be obtained prior to the commencement of any research involving human participants (non-medical).
Ethics Committee for Biological and Medical Research
a. This committee is headed by the Research Director.
b. Three senior professors / associate professors from the School of Life Sciences and one external member, who is a professor well-versed in ethical practices in biological and medical research, will be part of the committee.
c. Approval from this committee should be obtained prior to the commencement of any biological / medical research involving animals and / or humans.
