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Teaching
During their PhD, students are based in a research group, supported by their primary supervisor and the Postgraduate Education Committee and Postgraduate Student Committee. There is no taught or examined course work, but students are encouraged to participate in the wide variety of lectures and training courses available to them across the University. This includes the University Core Skills Training Programme, which includes sessions on Time Management, Presentation and Performance and Scientific Writing.
All students studying in the Department will be required to undertake some essential training when they first start. This includes various safety inductions and facility introductory courses on Imaging and Bioinformatics, as well as centrally run statistics courses.
| One to one supervision | Students are supervised on a day-to-day basis by their Principal Supervisor plus often a senior postdoc within the group. Discussions are held on a daily basis at the bench and weekly during lab meetings. On average, the supervisor will meet with the students every two weeks to discuss progress. All postgraduate students are also expected to have a Postgraduate Advisor in place. The University of Cambridge publishes an annual Code of Practice which sets out the University’s expectations regarding supervision. The supervisor will provide written feedback to the student each term with progress reports submitted online. The feedback will relate to the progress the student has made and include a specific comment on their research project. This will be discussed with the student in advance of the submission of the report to the University. |
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| Seminars & classes | All students are encouraged to attend the various research seminars, talks and workshops held across the Biomedical Research Campus and elsewhere in the University. All Postgraduate students within the Department will be members of the University's Postgraduate School of Life Sciences (PSLS) who offer a wide variety of core skills and professional development training. Visit the Researcher Development page on the PSLS website for more information. |
| Small group teaching | Weekly lab meetings within the research group. |
| Journal clubs | This varies according to the research group that the student has chosen. |
| Posters and Presentations | Throughout their PhD, students will give research talks and poster presentations within the department and the buildings in which the group sits. |
Feedback
Students receive formal feedback regarding their progress in the form of online termly reports (Postgraduate Feedback and Reporting System (PFRS)) from their supervisor.
Additional verbal feedback will be provided frequently by the project supervisor as part of the day-to-day supervision and in regular lab meetings.
Assessment
Thesis / Dissertation
The PhD in Haematology is assessed via submission of a PhD thesis and a subsequent viva. The thesis is not to exceed 60,000 words (80,000 by special permission) excluding figures, photographs, tables, appendices, and bibliography.
Other
All PhD students are required to undergo formal assessment (by written report and viva) at the end of their first year (the "First Year Assessment"), which they must pass. If successful, the student moves from being 'probationary' to being registered for the PhD and can proceed with their thesis project.
Throughout their PhD, students will give research talks at departmental events. In addition, they can take part in events and competitions organised within the Postgraduate School of Life Sciences and by the University.