Problems with PhD

Ph.D. students have entered their research degrees in the hope that they will receive adequate supervision, access to all the materials required to complete the research, guidance on writing up and a fair and impartial viva voce examination once the thesis has been submitted. Sometimes, matters do not go quite according to plan. Some students find that they are having significant supervision issues. Their supervisors may not be responding or may be suggesting something outside the scope of the thesis. The supervisor may be on sabbatical or may not provide enough feedback to enable the student to continue with the research. There may have been a Review Panel meeting at which the supervisor did not adequately represent the student's research.

At times, access to materials can become a real issue. Students may be reliant on the university or the supervisor to obtain data from outside agencies, but this data never materialises. The viva voce examination can also prove to be the downfall of the Ph.D. with the examiners being critical of the research, methodology or conclusions of the thesis. In addition, examiners are sometimes not specialised in the field of research that is being examined.

Whatever issues may arise as part of your research degree, we are able to assist. A large proportion of our client base relates to Ph.D. students and the various issues that they come across during their time as students. We have successfully argued a return to the degree following termination, challenged inadequate supervision, had review panels remake their decision, asked the university to appoint supervisors and sometimes obtained compensation for the way in which the student may have been treated by the university.

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