thesis university of manchester

Theses: Manchester Theses

• Manchester Theses
• Worldwide theses

Manchester Print Collection

You can find theses submitted by University of Manchester postgraduate research students from the late 19th Century to the present day using the Library Search. Or try the Advanced Search for more options (select 'Theses' from the drop-down list for ‘Material type’).

You can access further information here

Manchester electronic theses

Electronic copies of all Open Access Manchester Postgraduate Research theses (from 2010 onwards) are available free to view and download using Library Search . The Library Search record for the thesis you wish to view will take you to the University's Research Explorer,  where you will be able to view a PDF version of the thesis.

You can search for eTheses using the following instructions:

• Using the advanced search option in Library Search, enter your search terms;
• Choose ‘theses’ in the ‘material type’ drop-down box;
• Both print and electronic theses will be displayed; if you only want to view eTheses at this stage, you can refine your results by clicking on the show only ‘full text online’ option on the left hand side.

The University’s research outputs, including Open Access eTheses, are available via the institutional repository, Pure and can be accessed via the Research Explorer: https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/

To find out more about Pure, please visit the Pure support website:  https://www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/pure/

Older doctoral theses of The University of Manchester are made available electronically from the British Library's  Electronic Theses Online Service (EThOS) , many of which are also available online via Library Search .

EThOS charge a £60 fee to customers for digitising any theses that are not currently available on their database.

Submitting your theses

Postgraduate research students at Manchester are required to submit an electronic version of their examination and final corrected thesis. This applies to students studying towards the qualifications:

• Doctor of: Philosophy (PhD)
• Engineering (EngD)
• Enterprise (EntD)
• Business Administration (DBA)
• Medicine (MD)
• Master of: Philosophy (MPhil)
• Research (MRes, certain Schools only). 

Please see the Library’s eThesis Support pages for more information on the eThesis submission process.

Printing and binding your thesis

The Library no longer provides binding services. Binding services are provided by  Hollingworth & Moss Ltd , for whom we are agents.

The University of Manchester is an introduction agent for Hollingworth and Moss Ltd and has no authority or ability to negotiate or vary the services or terms of the services offered on this website or enter into any contract on behalf of Hollingworth and Moss Ltd. The University receives a commission for any purchases made from Hollingworth and Moss Ltd via this website.

General theses enquiries

Enquiries relating to the Library’s thesis collection should be sent via the Library’s General Enquiries page.

For enquiries relating to eThesis submission, please contact the eThesis Support Service:

eThesis Support Service

University of Manchester Library

Tel: +44 (0)161 275 8728 (internal: x58728)

Email: [email protected]

Web: https://www.manchester.ac.uk/eThesis

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• URL: https://subjects.library.manchester.ac.uk/theses

Department of Computer Science

• Faculty of Science and Engineering
• School of Engineering

Student theses

• 1 - 50 out of 492 results
• Title (ascending)

Search results

Zero-shot visual recognition via latent embedding learning.

Supervisor: Chen, K. (Supervisor) & Zeng, X. (Supervisor)

Student thesis : Phd

Zero-Shot Learning of Human-Object Interactions through Common-sense Knowledge

Supervisor: Brown, G. (Supervisor) & Mu, T. (Supervisor)

Write Errors in Exchange Coupled Bit Patterned Media

Supervisor: Miles, J. (Supervisor) & Hamilton, B. (Supervisor)

WORKLOAD-ADAPTATION IN MEMORY CONTROLLERS

Supervisor: Lujan Moreno, M. (Supervisor) & Garside, J. (Supervisor)

Why Are Pulsars Hard To Find?

Supervisor: Brooke, J. (Supervisor), Knowles, J. (Supervisor) & Stappers, B. (Supervisor)

Visual Speech Synthesis by Learning Joint Probabilistic Models of Audio and Video

Supervisor: Galata, A. (Supervisor)

Virtual Reality Therapy for Alcohol Relapse Prevention

Supervisor: Pettifer, S. (Supervisor), Jay, C. (Supervisor) & Gregg, L. (Supervisor)

Virtual Machine Consolidation in Cloud Data Centres using a Parameter-based Placement Strategy

Supervisor: Gurd, J. (Supervisor) & Sakellariou, R. (Supervisor)

VERSION ANALYSIS FOR FAULT DETECTION IN OWL ONTOLOGIES

Supervisor: Stevens, R. (Supervisor) & Parsia, B. (Supervisor)

Student thesis : Master of Philosophy

Verification of Liveness Properties on Hybrid Dynamical Systems

Supervisor: Navarro Lopez, E. (Supervisor)

USING USERS' TOUCH DYNAMICS BIOMETRICS TO ENHANCE AUTHENTICATION ON MOBILE DEVICES

Supervisor: Chen, K. (Supervisor) & Zhang, N. (Supervisor)

Using Semantic Frames for Measuring and Identifying Semantic Relationships in Software Descriptions

Supervisor: Zhao, L. (Supervisor) & Batista-Navarro, R. T. (Supervisor)

Using pathway networks to model context dependent cellular function

Supervisor: Nenadic, G. (Supervisor), Robertson, D. (Supervisor) & Schwartz, J. (Supervisor)

USING MACHINE LEARNING ALGORITHMS FOR CLASSIFYING NON-FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS - RESEARCH AND EVALUATION

Supervisor: Clinch, S. (Supervisor) & Zhao, L. (Supervisor)

Using Data to Understand How Audiences Engage with Interactive Media

Supervisor: Keane, J. (Supervisor) & Jay, C. (Supervisor)

USING DATA-DRIVEN RESOURCES FOR OPTIMISING RULE-BASED SYNTACTIC ANALYSIS FOR MODERN STANDARD ARABIC

Using computer-generated advice for manufacturing partner selection in industry 4.0.

Supervisor: Mehandjiev, N. (Supervisor) & Sampaio, P. (Supervisor)

Use of Radical Features in Chinese Medical Text Mining

Supervisor: Ananiadou, S. (Supervisor) & Tsujii, J. (Supervisor)

UNSUPERVISED ENSEMBLE LEARNING AND ITS APPLICATION TO TEMPORAL DATA CLUSTERING

Supervisor: Chen, K. (Supervisor)

Unobtrusive and Personalised Monitoring of Parkinson's Disease Using Smartphones

Supervisor: Jay, C. (Supervisor), Harper, S. (Supervisor) & Vigo, M. (Supervisor)

Understanding the Performance of Managed Runtime Environments

Supervisor: Luján, M. (Supervisor) & Kotselidis, C. (Supervisor)

Understanding Neural Reuse: A Case Study on Improving Energy Efficiency of Convolutional Neural Networks

Supervisor: Furber, S. (Supervisor) & Luján, M. (Supervisor)

Understanding Blockchain Applications from Architectural and Business Process Perspectives

Supervisor: Zhao, L. (Supervisor) & Saeedi, K. (Supervisor)

Tuning Genetic Programming Performance via Bloating Control and a Dynamic Fitness Function Approach

Supervisor: Zeng, X. (Supervisor)

Tuning Evolutionary Search for Closed-Loop Optimization

Supervisor: Knowles, J. (Supervisor)

TRUST-AWARE INFORMATION RETRIEVAL IN PEER-TO-PEER ENVIRONMENTS

Supervisor: Sakellariou, R. (Supervisor)

Trustable Decision Support for Dynamic Applications

Supervisor: Keane, J. (Supervisor) & Paton, N. (Supervisor)

TRANSFORMING ONTOLOGIES IN THE WEB ONTOLOGY LANGUAGE (OWL) TO VOCABULARIES IN THE SIMPLE KNOWLEDGE ORGANIZATION SYSTEM (SKOS)

Supervisor: Stevens, R. (Supervisor) & Bechhofer, S. (Supervisor)

Transactional Data Structures

Supervisor: Kirkham, C. (Supervisor) & Watson, I. (Supervisor)

TRAM: Transforming Textual Requirements to Support the Earliest Stage of Model Driven Development

Supervisor: Zhao, L. (Supervisor)

TOWARDS SYSTEMATIC REQUIREMENTS REUSE

Towards process context driven and pmu updated preemptive scheduling for single-isa heterogeneous systems.

Supervisor: Luján, M. (Supervisor) & Goodacre, A. (Supervisor)

TOWARDS HARNESSING COMPUTATIONAL WORKFLOW PROVENANCE FOR EXPERIMENT REPORTING

Supervisor: Goble, C. (Supervisor) & Bechhofer, S. (Supervisor)

Towards a Virtual Domain based Authentication Solution for the MapReduce Application

Supervisor: Brooke, J. (Supervisor) & Zhang, N. (Supervisor)

Towards Automated Performance Analysis of Programs by Runtime Verification

Supervisor: Rydeheard, D. (Supervisor) & Reger, G. (Supervisor)

TOWARDS AN ADAPTIVE SOLUTION TO DATA PRIVACY PROTECTION IN HIERARCHICAL WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS

Supervisor: Zhang, N. (Supervisor) & Keane, J. (Supervisor)

TOWARDS A FRAMEWORK FOR VISUALISING THE SEMANTIC WEB

Supervisor: Goble, C. (Supervisor) & Pettifer, S. (Supervisor)

Towards Accountable Anonymity in Digital Rights Management

Supervisor: Zhang, N. (Supervisor)

Topological Spin Textures in Three Dimensions: Dynamics, Stability, and Emergent Electromagnetics

Supervisor: Pavlidis, V. (Supervisor) & Moutafis, C. (Supervisor)

TOPIC MODELLING FOR SUPPORTING SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS

Supervisor: Ananiadou, S. (Supervisor) & Kontonatsios, G. (Supervisor)

Topic-centric sentiment analysis of UK parliamentary debates

Supervisor: Nenadic, G. (Supervisor) & Batista-Navarro, R. T. (Supervisor)

Time Series Data Mining In Systems Biology

Supervisor: Pedrosa Mendes, P. (Supervisor)

The study of Bayesian reasoning through the use of interaction analysis methods.

Supervisor: Jay, C. (Supervisor) & Peek, N. (Supervisor)

The Role of Symmetry Features in Connectionist Pattern Recognition

Supervisor: Neville, R. (Supervisor)

The practices, costs and benefits of FAIR implementation in pharmaceutical Research and Development

Supervisor: Goble, C. (Supervisor) & Jay, C. (Supervisor)

The Modular Structure of an Ontology: Atomic Decomposition and its Applications

Supervisor: Sattler, U. (Supervisor) & Parsia, B. (Supervisor)

THE MANIPULATION OF SCHEMATIC CORRESPONDENCES WITH THE QUANTIFICATION OF UNCERTAINTY IN DATASPACES

Supervisor: Fernandes, A. (Supervisor) & Paton, N. (Supervisor)

The Justificatory Structure of OWL Ontologies

Supervisor: Parsia, B. (Supervisor) & Sattler, U. (Supervisor)

The Interplay Between Web Aesthetics and Accessibility

Supervisor: Harper, S. (Supervisor) & Jay, C. (Supervisor)

The Instantaneous Time Mirror for Electromagnetic Fields: A Simulation-Guided Study

Supervisor: Riley, G. (Supervisor) & Costen, F. (Supervisor)

PGR handbook - School of Environment, Education and Development

Thesis submission and examination

Submission pending.

If you cannot submit your thesis by the end of the standard period of the degree programme, you need to apply for a period of submission pending for the purpose of preparing the thesis for submission. A fee will be payable for any such submission pending registration that is granted by the University.

Thesis presentation

Your thesis should be presented in accordance with University of Manchester guidelines. The University has also prepared a statement on proofreading and some useful information about writing your thesis.

Thesis submission

It is expected that you will complete your PhD within the standard length of the programme. However, the University recognises that there may, on occasion be justifiable reasons for early or indeed late submission. You can also ask for permission to submit your thesis in the non-traditional format (eg three papers tied together).

Thesis submission and open access

Thesis examination.

You can expect your viva examination to take place around six to eight weeks after submission. To find useful information about your viva, tips on how to prepare and examination policies, please visit:

Results and award

The Doctoral Programmes Office will write to you with the outcome of your viva examination, along with the required next steps.

Thesis extensions

Please visit the 'Policies and guidance' section for more information about extending the 'Prescribed Period of Programme':

• Extension to thesis deadline

Registration on Submission Pending Period

You are expected to complete all research degree work, including the writing up of the thesis, within the standard period of the degree programme.

If you cannot submit your thesis by the end of the standard period of the degree programme, you need to apply to register for a period of submission pending for the purpose of preparing the thesis for submission.

To check eligibility and apply for the registration, please refer to the Faculty Guiding Principles and for the Submission Pending Period and the University Submission Pending Procedure for PGR Students and submit the application to the School PGR Office.

• Faculty of Humanities Guiding Principles for the Submission Pending Period
• Submission Pending Procedure for PGR Students

You are required to submit the thesis no later than the end of Submission Pending Period, providing six weeks notice is given and should follow the usual thesis submission procedures.

Progress will be monitored via eProg during the Submission Pending period. Students and supervisors should meet prior to the Submission Pending year to formalise the timetable for thesis writing and to agree on a schedule for supervision during this period. Students who have not submitted their thesis by the end of the Submission Pending period will have their automatic right to submit withdrawn.

To apply for registration to the Submission Pending period, please complete the Submission Pending Application form  in liaison with your supervisory team and send it to [email protected] . 

A £225 fee will be payable for the submission pending period registration. 

The thesis must be presented according to the University’s ‘Presentation of Theses Policy’. The document can be found here: 

• Presentation of Theses Policy

Theses that do not adhere to the University’s ‘Presentation of Theses Policy’ may not be accepted for examination. You must submit an electronic version of your thesis through the My Manchester portal .  We recommend using Firefox or Chrome for submissions. Please also ensure that your ‘pop up blocker’ is turned off.

Standard of written English and proofreading information

Theses must achieve a universally acceptable standard of writing. Prior to submitting your thesis, you are advised to have it professionally proofread and corrected. You can find more information about this in the following document:

• Guidance on Proofreading Your Thesis .

The final draft of the thesis should be submitted to your supervisor(s) before forwarding to the proof-reader.

University statement on proofreading

If a student chooses to approach another person to proofread their written work or seeks to use the services of a proofreading service or agency, they must take account of the following principles:

• It is the responsibility of students to ensure that all work submitted is their own, and that it represents their own abilities and understanding. Any proofreading of work that is undertaken by a third party must not compromise the student’s own authorship of the work
• Proofreading undertaken by a third party must not take the form of editing of text, such as the adding or rewriting of phrases or passages within a piece of student’s work
• Proofreading undertaken by a third party must not change the content or meaning of the work in any way.

No allowance will be made for English not being the first language in the examining of the thesis.

Notice of submission

To prepare your thesis submission, you must give at least six weeks’ notice through eProg. A ‘Notice of Submission Form’ must be completed six weeks prior to your intended submission; this is the first stage in the examination process. Please log in to eProg to give notice of submission.

Please read the University policies related to the thesis examination carefully before submitting your thesis.

• Examination of Doctoral Degrees Policy
• eProg Student Guide

Also, we recommend that you prepare for your eThesis submission in advance by:

• Familiarising yourself with the University's  Presentation of Theses policy
• Considering any third-party claims on the Intellectual Property (IP) and  copyright  of your thesis
• Considering and discussing with your supervisor the appropriate access level for your final thesis

Submitting a journal format thesis 

There is no requirement to request permission to submit in journal format. However, it is important that you discuss the relative merits of this format with your supervisory team, and ensure that you pick the right format for you and your project. Further guidance is available in  Journal Format Theses - Guiding Principles for Students and Staff .

Early submission or deadline extension

If there are mitigating circumstances that prevent you from submitting the thesis by the deadline, you must apply for permission to extend the deadline. Please contact your School PGR office for advice.

If you intend to submit your thesis early (three months before your programme end date for a full-time student or six months for part-time students), please contact your School PGR office to apply for special permission to submit early.

All applications for early or late submission need to be formally considered by your school office.

• Change of Circumstance Application Form

You should seek the advice of the Doctoral Academy when the thesis is nearing a standard suitable for submission and when to give notice of submission in eProg. You should also seek your supervisor’s opinion on your proposed submission date, though please note that whilst this is advised, you may decide when to submit and if to follow the advice of your supervisor(s). Equally, the agreement of the supervisor(s) to the submission of a thesis does not guarantee the award of the degree.

Submission  

The University of Manchester requires the mandatory submission of electronic theses for all PhD, Professional Doctorate and MPhil degrees through the University eThesis system. The Doctoral Academy has responsibility for the handling and processing of PhD theses. For further information on how to submit your thesis electronically please visit: 

You will need to upload to eThesis – Go to ' My Manchester ' and log in using your usual University username and password. We recommend using Firefox or Chrome for submissions. Please also ensure that you ‘pop up block’ is turned off.

Thesis binding

Bound copies of the thesis are not required. However, if you require your own copy, binding services include:

• U-Print.com
• MuPrint.com
• The Document Centre

Guidance for resubmission 

Resubmission procedures are identical to those for first submission except that you must pay a fee, when you submit your Notice of Resubmission form. You must submit a Notice of Resubmission form in eProg at least six weeks before you wish to resubmit. 

It is important that candidates who are required to resubmit their theses will be made aware of any points which the examiners require to be covered in the resubmission. Candidates are expected to liaise with the supervisor(s) regarding the nature of the revisions required. Should any of the points raised by your examiners be unclear you may ask for clarification from your internal examiner. When conducting the examination for a resubmitted thesis, examiners will pay particular attention to the manner in which the candidate has revised the thesis in response to their original report

Open access

What is open access.

Open Access (OA) means that items of scholarly work are made available online, in a digital format, at no charge to the reader and with limited restrictions on re-use.  The University Publications Policy which applies to all research staff and students sets out to ensure that output arising from publically funded research is widely disseminated and made freely accessible. The Policy is based on the Open Access requirements of various research funders:  the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the UK Research Councils (UKRI) and the Wellcome Trust. 

• The University of Manchester Publications Policy

For you, making your research Open Access can support the development of a researcher profile by increasing visibility of your research and allows you to gain experience of OA without compromising future publication strategies (many publishers do not consider a thesis to be a prior publication).

Postgraduate research thesis

The University's Presentation of Theses policy requires that all final postgraduate research theses are made Open Access within 12 months of submission unless an exception to the policy is required. You will select your preferred access level for your final eThesis submission. This is subject to approval by your supervisor. Most students will be able to comply with the policy by selecting either immediate Open Access or Open Access with a 12-month embargo. It may not be possible for some students to comply with the policy, in which case an exception to the policy can be requested. More information on access requirements for your final postgraduate research thesis can be found via the eThesis Support Service webpages:

• eThesis Support Service

Final eThesis submissions are available via the institutional repository, Pure , and discoverable via the University’s Research Explorer and Library Search .

For students funded by UK research councils, their PhD theses must also be made open access through the University’s repository (eThesis). Please see more information in the UKRI Terms and Conditions of Research Council Training Grants.

• UKRI Terms and Conditions of Research Council Training Grants

As a PGR student, what output do I make open access?

If you are publishing research outputs during your time at Manchester, you need to make them Open Access. There are two ways of doing this and the best option for you will depend on your funding situation and output type.

You may wish to publish your work Gold OA, where it’s immediately available on publication via the publisher’s website and with limited restrictions on reuse. This method is required by certain funders. Some publishers levy an Article Processing Charge (APC) for Gold OA, so it is worth investigating your funding options.

Alternatively, most authors will be able to make their work Open Access via a repository, a method known as Green Open Access. The Library can advise you on depositing the appropriate version of your work, and setting any embargo required by the publisher. There is no additional cost associated with Green Open Access.

Further information regarding different types of Open Access, institutional and funder requirements, how to deposit your publication and funding for APCs can be found here:

• Open Access

Appointment of examiners

Examiners are appointed by the candidate’s School and approved by the Chair of the School PGR Committee. Two examiners (normally one internal and one external) will be appointed, their function being to make a recommendation to the Committee about the award of a research degree. Your supervisor(s) must not serve as the internal examiner.

Consultation in the appointment of nominated examiners

You should be consulted when deciding upon appropriate examiners. Although you do not necessarily have the right to veto any particular nomination, you can appeal against an examiner nomination. If you are unhappy with the choice of examiners you should put your objections in writing to the Doctoral Academy .

Substantial grounds for objecting to a particular examiner might be:

• That the candidate has had too close a connection with either examiner, on either a personal or professional basis.
• That there is felt to be too close a relationship between the examiners themselves (e.g. they are partners/relatives or they are directors of the same company).
• That there is evidence of dispute between an examiner and the candidate.

Oral examination

All candidates for the degree of PhD and MPhil will be required to attend an oral examination. (There are circumstances, however, where the internal and external examiners may agree to dispense with the oral examination for an MPhil thesis.) The oral must take place without undue delay, normally within 12 weeks. The external examiner should liaise with the internal examiner on the timing of the examination of the thesis. The internal examiner may also consult the candidate’s supervisor(s) and the candidate about the oral examination arrangements.

Through the oral, the examiners satisfy themselves that the thesis is the candidate’s own work, and clarify any ambiguities in the thesis. It also allows the candidate to relate the thesis to a broader field of study, and to demonstrate a knowledge and appreciation of adjoining fields which is up to the standard expected for the award of the degree.

Oral examinations must be held on University premises and will be attended by all the examiners. It is the internal examiner’s responsibility to book a room and to notify the PGR Office in eProg, at least ten days in advance, of the date, time and room for the oral. Oral exams are automatically open to University staff, PGR students and the supervisors, but the candidate has the right to exclude any individual.

Useful links in preparation for your viva

• Postgraduate Online Research Training - Preparing for your viva video
• Good Viva video
• Viva Survivor video
• Vitae - Your viva

Submission and confidentiality of examination reports

Examiners are asked to ensure that there is no unnecessary delay between the examination of a thesis and their submission of a report. Completed examiners' reports (pre-oral and joint Examiners Report Form) must be submitted to eProg within five working days of the oral examination and will be made available to you via eProg once the recommendation has been ratified.

Examination policies

• Examination of Doctoral Degrees Policy  - full details of the regulations for examination of a PhD thesis
• Examination of MPhil Degrees Policy  - full details of the regulations for examination of an MPhil thesis
• Resubmission and Re-examination of Postgraduate Research Degrees Policy  - full details of the regulations for the examination of a resubmitted PhD or MPhil thesis
• Nomination of Examiners and Independent Chairs for PGR Degree Examinations Policy  - the regulations governing the nomination of examiners for thesis.

Criteria for the award of the degree 

A successful PhD thesis must show evidence of originality and independent critical judgment and constitute an addition to knowledge (such as can reasonably be achieved within the period of registration). Original research is not a basic requirement for the degree of MPhil in the way that it is for the PhD, although naturally it is not ruled out, but the candidate must demonstrate full knowledge of existing scholarship in the field specified by the thesis title, show competence in the relevant methods of research, and present material with clarity and evidence of independent judgment. 

Details of the possible outcomes of your viva examination can be found in relevant Examination Policies .

The Doctoral Academy will write to you with the outcome of your viva examination, along with the required next steps.

When you have been recommended for award of the degree, you will be asked to submit a final version of your thesis through electronic theses submission. 

When you have submitted your final thesis into the eThesis window and it has been checked against the Presentation of Theses Policy, your student record will be completed and marked for graduation.

Appeals procedure

In accordance with the University’s Regulations XIX governing academic appeals, if you believe your case has not been dealt with properly or that the outcome is unreasonable, you may appeal against this decision by writing to the University Student Appeals and Complaints Coordinator .   

Examiners will be made aware, that, under the University’s Regulations Governing Academic Appeals at Postgraduate Research Level, in the event of an appeal, and notwithstanding their confidential nature, the examiners’ reports would be made available later to the Graduate Appeals Committee. 

Before initiating an appeal, you are strongly advised to discuss the matter with your supervisor(s), or the School PGR Director or any other appropriate person in the School. If the matter remains unresolved, you may invoke the formal appeal procedure. 

• A basic guide to academic appeals

Important note: access to your IT account following degree completion

You have access to IT facilities including email, eProg and personal storage space during the prescribed period of your programme, the submission pending period and the time leading up to and including your thesis examination. Access to these facilities is terminated on the date of graduation. We, therefore, advise you to ensure all data and files you wish to retain beyond the date of your graduation are safely transferred ahead of that date to prevent loss of work.

Science and Engineering Doctoral Academy

Submitting your thesis

Submission and examination of your thesis is the result of years of hard work. The process of submitting your thesis is coordinated by the Doctoral Academy Exams team.

It is important that you ensure that you plan for your thesis submission and that you understand the deadlines, requirements for presentation and key stages of the process.

The following information and documents offer a step-by-step guide to the thesis submission process.

• Completion of the student Notice of Submission Form within eProg – My eProg > My Examination Summary
• Completion of supervisor Notice of Submission Form by the main supervisor within eProg – My eProg > My Examination Tasks Note: Supervisor completion of the notice form opens the electronic submission window in eThesis
• Completion of the Nomination of Examiners Form by the main supervisor within eProg – My eProg > My Examination Tasks
• Approval of examiners by the PGR Tutor/Supervisor or Director within eProg
• Submission of a PDF document to Manchester eThesis
• Thesis examination by examiners
• Examiner recommendations
• Ratification of result by the PGR Degrees Panel
• Minor corrections or resubmission (this will begin the process again with a Notice of Resubmission appearing in eProg)
• Corrections approved by internal examiner and confirmed in eProg (minor corrections only)
• Electronic submission window opened by the Doctoral Academy Exams Team following confirmation of corrections
• Submission of a final PDF document to Manchester eThesis
• Published award (Please note: University policy dictates that the degree award date is the date on which the result was ratified as a pass by the Faculty Postgraduate Research Degree Panel/Chair (step 9). However, the confirmation of award letter cannot be sent until after the final thesis has been submitted and acknowledged)
• Registration for graduation

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• The University of Manchester Library

eThesis submission: Journal format theses

A Journal format thesis allows you to incorporate sections that are in a format suitable for submission for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. If you wish to submit your thesis in journal format, you should discuss this with your supervisor, and declare your intention when you complete the Notice of Submission form. See also the University's Presentation of Theses policy for more information:

• Presentation of Theses Policy: http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=7420

If you are submitting a Journal format eThesis, you should select this format in step 2 of 5 of the eThesis submission form.

• Screenshots of the eThesis submission system: http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=32873

Preparing and submitting your journal format thesis

‘Self-archiving’ is where a researcher makes a piece of scholarly work available via a repository. The University’s Presentation of Theses policy requires that final Doctoral theses are ‘self-archived’ and made Open Access via the University’s systems within 12 months of submission, unless an exception to this policy is required.

The structure of a journal format thesis – being comprised of a number of research papers submitted to or published in academic journals – means that you as the author need to take extra care when preparing your thesis for submission, and selecting your preferred access level for your final thesis. For each publisher you’re working with, or plan to work with, you will need to establish what each allows and requires in terms of self-archiving of work, i.e.:

• If my publisher allows me to share my work via a repository, what version of my work can I share?
• When can I share my work via a repository?
• When will my papers be published?

This information will allow you to determine:

• The version of each paper to include in your eThesis file
• The access level option to select for your final thesis

Selecting an access level for your final thesis which reflects the strictest self-archiving policy of the publishers you’re working with will ensure that you’re not infringing any of your publishers’ self-archiving policies or breaking your copyright agreements.

Decision tree: Can I share my Journal format thesis Open Access? 

This interactive guide, accessed via Typeform , aims to help you understand the checks you need to make regarding the self-archiving policies of the publishers you’re working with, and to use this information to inform:

• The version of each article you include in your eThesis file
• The access level you select for your final eThesis

We recommend that you identify the strictest publisher policy that you need to deal with, and use this policy when completing this decision tree.

• Typeform - eThesis submission: journal format theses https://scholarlycomms1.typeform.com/to/bZAErZ

Journal format theses: downloadable guide

If you’d like more detailed information on considerations related to submission of your Journal format thesis, you can also download the eThesis submission: journal format thesis guide . This includes information on publisher self-archiving policies, and how these will inform the versions of papers you include in your thesis submission, and the access level you select for your final thesis.

• eThesis submission: journal format thesis guide 

You can also contact the eThesis Support Service  for more information and support.

• Library services
• Researcher services
• Prepare your eThesis
• Access to your final thesis
• Journal format theses
• Submitting your eThesis
• Sharing your thesis research data

• MyManchester
• Faculty StaffNet

• PGR handbook - Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health

Writing up and submitting your research

You can find up-to-date guidance on submitting your thesis on the Doctoral Academy website:

• Thesis submission

The guidance includes information on:

• plagiarism and referencing
• how to format and present your thesis
• using a journal format for your thesis
• electronic submission
• submission deadlines, including submission pending
• thesis binding
• the viva/oral exam
• getting your result.

Presentation of thesis

The University has a specific format required for PGR theses. You will find this detailed in the Presentation of Theses Policy .

If you have queries about presentation, you can ask staff in the Doctoral Academy , or ask them to have a look at a draft document.

Traditional and journal thesis formats

You may hear your supervisors or other PGRS talk about the different types of thesis format that are accepted for examination at Manchester.

These are currently defined as 'standard' and 'journal' format, although you shouldn't get too concerned about the terminology used. One format is not inherently better or more widely regarded than the other.

The standard thesis will have an introduction, literature review, materials and methods, results and discussion and conclusion, references and appendices.

The journal format thesis comprises chapters that have been written in the form of journal papers.

These may be papers that have been submitted to a journal, already accepted and published or chapters that are written as journal papers but are not yet or even are not intended to be submitted.

The advantage of this format is that it gives you the experience of writing in journal paper format. This format is increasingly popular in some disciplines, and yet may not be appropriate for all projects. Your supervisory team is the best place to start discussing your thoughts on this.

There is no requirement to request permission to submit in journal format. However, it is important that you discuss the relative merits of this format with your supervisory team, and ensure that you pick the right format for you and your project. Further guidance is available in Journal Format Theses - Guiding Principles for Students and Staff (PDF).

Submission pending

• Three-year PhD, MD and part-time - 12 months
• MPhil and 3.5-year PhD - 6 months

If you are a PGR on one of the programmes above and you do not submit by the end of programme, you may be able to register for the submission pending period.

You will need to have completed all your research (such as data collection and experiments) and should have a draft of the thesis completed (usually 80% of chapters in a reasonable draft form).

Your Student Support Administrator will provide details on registering for submission pending and paying the fee (£225 in the 2023/24 academic year).

You should be aware that during this writing up period, you are not considered to be a full-time PGR at the University.

You will still have access to facilities and your supervisory team will continue to support you towards submission of the thesis and preparation for the oral examination (as appropriate).

Once you enter submission pending, you may be returning to full-time work or be involved in a number of external activities that will reduce the amount of time that you have to spend on writing your thesis.

Please note that due to HMRC requirements, the University cannot make stipend payments to a PGR during the submission pending period.

Submission deadlines

It is important for your career development that you submit your thesis within the period of your programme as set out in your initial offer letter.

If you are eligible to use the submission pending period, remember that it will be increasingly difficult to find time to dedicate to completing your thesis once you are in full-time work.

Your final submission deadline will be stated on your original offer letter. If you are granted any periods of interruption or an extension to your programme, you will be notified of any change in your final submission deadline in the letter confirming this change to programme.

You will also see your submissions deadline displayed in eProg ('Thesis Submission Deadline' on the 'My Profile' page).

Extensions to final submission deadlines

Extensions to your final submission deadline will only be considered in exceptional circumstances and where permission is sought at least two months prior to the final submission deadline. Visit the Forms page on the Doctoral Academy website for the relevant forms to complete.

You will need to provide clear, documented evidence as to how your mitigating circumstances have impacted your ability to meet the deadline. Examples of appropriate exceptional circumstances can be found within the policy on circumstances leading to changes to postgraduate research study .

It is expected that your mitigating circumstances will have occurred within the submission pending period, or the last 12 months of a four-year programme.

Should your request for an extension to the final submission deadline be rejected, you will have the right of appeal.

Please note that even if you submit an appeal, you should still submit your thesis for examination by the final submission deadline.

Oral examination/viva

An integral part of the PhD/MD process is the oral examination (viva). This will take place at Manchester with your internal and external examiner.

The Academic and Researcher Development Team provide courses on preparing for this examination, and you will also receive guidance from your supervisory team on what to expect.

MPhil PGRs may have to undertake an oral examination, and this will be determined by the examiners following initial review of the thesis.

You may find it useful to refer to the full University policies on PGR examination .

Examiner recommendations

• A (i) no corrections
• A (ii) subject to minor corrections (four weeks to complete, exceptionally up to 12 weeks can be granted for completion of minor corrections)
• B (i) permitting submission of a revised thesis without further research and without further oral examination (six months to complete)
• B (ii) permitting submission of a revised thesis without further research but with a further oral examination (six months to complete, exceptionally up to 12 months)
• B (iii) permitting submission of a revised thesis with further research and with a further oral examination (12 months to complete)
• C (i) but award the degree of MPhil
• C (ii) award the degree of MPhil subject to minor corrections (four weeks to complete, exceptionally up to 12 weeks)
• C (iii) advising that the thesis be submitted, after revision, for examination for the degree of Master (six months to complete)
• C (iv) not permitting resubmission
• Your programme

University Centre for Academic English

Writing dissertations

The purpose of the activities in this section is to enable you to produce an effective dissertation, in accordance with the academic writing conventions followed at British universities.

You will learn about the different parts of a dissertation and how they relate to each other. You will also have the opportunity to consider different writing styles and choose the most appropriate for your subject area. Finally, you will consider the importance of developing your own study skills and explore some useful dissertation writing tips and techniques.

What is a dissertation?

In this subsection, you will examine the overall structure of a dissertation and the common information elements found in each part. You will also reflect upon a number of important factors that need to be considered when selecting a topic for your dissertation.

Defining a dissertation and its structure

In this activity you will consider the difference between a thesis and a dissertation. You will also identify different types of research and consider how the type of research affects the overall organisational pattern of the dissertation.

• View defining a dissertation and its structure activity

The elements of a dissertation

You will identify the information elements that the different chapters of a dissertation are likely to include. The numbering system that is typically employed for different sections of a dissertation is introduced.

• View the elements of a dissertation activity

Selecting a topic for your dissertation

Here you will explore the factors which will help you select a topic for your dissertation.

• View selecting a topic for your dissertation activity

Focusing on a topic

Here you will learn about techniques that can help you focus on a topic for your dissertation: creating mindmaps, formulating and refining research questions, and developing strategies for reading efficiently.

Brainstorming and mindmaps

You will practise using the techniques of brainstorming and creating mind maps to explore the possible areas you wish to cover in your dissertation.

• View brainstorming and mindmaps activity

Research questions and hypotheses

Here you will find out how to formulate and refine research questions. The meaning of the term hypothesis is also discussed.

• View research questions and hypotheses activity

Accessing and organising the literature for the dissertation 

You will explore effective ways to search for information and read efficiently. You will also find out how to manage, organise and record the literature that you access.

• View accessing and organising the literature for the dissertation activity

Research proposals, dissertation titles and personal journals

In this subsection you will identify the important elements in a research proposal, practise ways of writing an effective dissertation title, and explore the benefits of keeping a personal journal as part of the research process.

Writing a research proposal for a dissertation

Here you will examine the important information elements that should be included in a research proposal.

• View the writing a research proposal for a dissertation activity

Writing an effective title for your dissertation

You will find out how to write an effective title for your dissertation and how to present your title page.

• View writing an effective title for your dissertation activity

Keeping a research journal or diary

You will explore the value of keeping a research journal whilst conducting your research.

• View keeping a research journal or diary activity

The literature review

Different aspects of a dissertation literature review are explored. You will investigate the multiple purposes for which sources are cited in a literature review, explore different techniques for integrating sources into your text, consider the meaning of criticality in a literature review, and learn about strategies for giving your own voice prominence in your writing.

The multiple purposes of a literature review

This looks at how a literature review can be structured. It also considers the variety of purposes for which the related literature is used in a dissertation.

• View the multiple purposes of a literature review activity

Integrating sources

Different citation practices are introduced and the variety of ways in which the literature can be integrated into a text are considered.

• View integrating sources activity

Establishing your own position

You will learn about the organisational and linguistic techniques you can use to establish your own position in relation to the literature you are citing.

• View establishing your own position activity

How to be critical in a literature review

Here, the meaning of 'being critical' in a literature review is explored.

• View how to be critical in a literature review activity

Making linguistic choices

You will examine some of the linguistic strategies you can use to show your strength of commitment to the work you are citing.

• View making linguistic choices activity

Here, the different purposes of dissertation abstracts are considered. You will identify the common information elements in abstracts and the tense and voice changes that often occur in the text.

The purposes of a dissertation abstract

The various purposes of abstracts are explored. You will also analyse two abstracts to identify the different information elements which can be included.

• View the purposes of a dissertation abstract activity

Choices of verb tense and voice in different parts of an abstract

You will look at the changes in verb tense and voice that are likely to occur in an abstract and consider the reasons for these choices.

• View choices of verb tense and voice in different parts of an abstract activity

Writing and revising a draft abstract

Here you will have the opportunity to write a draft for your own dissertation abstract while considering the common information elements, as well as tense and voice choices.

• View writing and revising a draft abstract activity

Introductions

This subsection explores different aspects of a dissertation introduction. It focuses on its various functions, the common information elements it contains and its organisational structure. The differences between the dissertation introduction, abstract and literature review are also examined.

The purpose of an introduction and different information elements

You will focus on the purposes of dissertation introductions, their common information elements and their organisational structure.

• View the purpose of an introduction and different information elements activity

Abstracts and introductions

The differences between a dissertation abstract and introduction are examined.

• View the abstracts and introductions activity

The relationship between the introduction and the literature review

Here the difference between an introduction and a literature review is discussed. You will also look at examples of how the initial chapters of a dissertation can be organised.

• View the relationship between the introduction and the literature review activity

Research methodology

Here you will be introduced to the methodology section of a dissertation. The typical information elements and possible organisational structures will be presented. You will also focus on using appropriate verb tense and voice when describing your methodology.

Typical information elements when describing your methodology

You will be introduced to the methodology section of a dissertation and consider what information elements are typically included. You will then read four extracts and be given practice in identifying different elements. You will consider the different ways that methodology sections can be organised.

• View the typical information elements when describing your methodology activity

Common tense choice and voice choices

You will be given practice in choosing appropriate verb forms to complete short extracts which describe the methodology.

• View common tense choice and voice choices activity

Presenting and discussing findings

In this subsection, you are introduced to the various ways in which findings can be presented in dissertations. In particular, this section will cover the difference between the presentation of findings in a dissertation based on empirical research and in a library-based dissertation. You will also examine techniques for integrating tables and figures into a text.

Presenting findings from empirical research studies

You will explore the various ways in which research findings can be presented in a dissertation.

• View presenting findings from empirical research studies activity

Including tables and figures in your dissertation

Here important techniques for integrating figures and tables into a text are presented.

• View including tables and figures in your dissertation activity

Presenting findings in library-based dissertations

You will look at examples from library-based dissertations which illustrate the way findings are integrated into these types of text.

• View presenting findings in library-based dissertations activity

Interpretation and discussion

This subsection examines approaches to the discussion and interpretation of findings. The session includes an overview of the common information elements in the Discussion chapter of a dissertation, an analysis of the different meanings of interpretation, and practice in techniques for expressing different degrees of certainty in your writing.

Common elements in discussion chapters

You will consider the different ways in which you can organise the final chapters of your dissertation. The common information elements of the Discussion chapter of a dissertation are presented and explored.

• View common elements in discussion chapters activity

Different ways of interpreting findings

You will explore the various meanings of interpretation and analyse examples in texts.

• View different ways of interpreting findings activity

Expressing degrees of certainty 

You will practise the various language techniques available for expressing different degrees of certainty about your findings and interpretations.

• View expressing degrees of certainty activity

Conclusions and dissertation writing techniques

In this final subsection, you will examine the role of the conclusion in a dissertation and its links to other sections. Typical information elements will be presented. You will also focus on the need for cross referencing within a dissertation. You will consider a number of general techniques which will help you throughout your dissertation.

Conclusions

You will consider the role of a conclusion in a dissertation and how it is linked to other sections. You will also look at the different information elements often found in a conclusion.

• View conclusions activity

Cross referencing between dissertation chapters 

You will look at how authors refer back to previously given information within a dissertation and consider why it is necessary to cross reference in longer texts.

• View cross referencing between dissertation chapters activity

Time management, dealing with writer's block and revision strategies

Here you will focus on the importance of planning your time carefully during your dissertation. You will then be introduced to a number of strategies to help you keep writing. Finally, you will think about the importance of proof reading your work and making revisions.

• View time management, dealing with writer's block and revision strategies activity

The University of Manchester on Overleaf

Quick start.

The University of Manchester is providing Overleaf Professional features for all faculty, staff and post-graduate researchers who would like to use a collaborative, online LaTeX editor for their projects. Overleaf Professional features include real-time track changes, unlimited collaborators, and full document history.

Overleaf is designed to make the process of writing, editing and producing your research papers and project reports much quicker for both you and your collaborators. Overleaf can also be linked to other services to best fit into your workflow.

Please Note, Overleaf should not be used for the sharing or storing of highly restricted data and should only contain information which is suitable for the public domain. If you are unsure, or require guidance, the University policies for Data Classification is available here: Information security classification, ownership and secure information handling

Claim your Overleaf Professional upgrade by signing up (or signing in) below. You’ll need to credential through The University of Manchester. For those not as yet eligible for the Professional upgrade, i.e. undergraduates, taught students & ex-staff, you can still access the free version and the many benefits that it offers, such as access to templates, and the ability to collaborate on paper writing.

Join a community of over 8398 authors at The University of Manchester

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Welcome to the quick start guide to Overleaf. We've put together some useful resources and links in the sections below, and if you have any questions about how to get started please let us know and we'll be happy to help!

For Researchers

Find a journal template.

Through our partnerships within the publishing community, we provide a selection of academic journal templates for articles and papers. These templates automatically format your manuscripts in the style required for submission to that journal.

Edit in Rich Text mode or directly in LaTeX

Overleaf provides an intuitive and easy-to-use manuscript editor (our rich text mode), which is especially useful if you or your co-authors aren't familiar with writing in LaTeX.

If you prefer to edit directly in LaTeX, you can! Overleaf provides a full collaborative online LaTeX editor you can switch to at any time.

Submitting your articles to journals, repositories and more

You can also submit your paper directly to a number of journals and other editorial and review services via the publish menu in the editor. Simply open the publish menu from any document and follow the appropriate 'Submit to ...' link.

For Teachers

Introducing students to latex.

Overleaf has several on-demand webinars available that address a variety of beginner, intermediate, and advanced topics.

Help students understand LaTeX errors

Addressing errors as they happen helps ensure that your LaTeX project continues to compile and look the way it should.

Show your class how to turn on track changes for review

Overleaf offers an impressive collection of collaboration features, and your institutional subscription provides all users with access to the powerful track changes feature.

Featured LaTeX Templates

FAQ & Help

Who should i contact if i have questions about overleaf or the university of manchester license.

Please use our contact form and we'll make sure your question gets to the right person in our team.

For any questions related to Library Research Services at The University of Manchester please contact [email protected] .

If you are a current member of Staff, an active member of the Research community and, or a Post Graduate Researcher and you believe you should have access to the full licence, i.e. an error has been made, then please register your query by raising a ticket via the UoM IT Support Portal .

I'm new to Overleaf, how should I get started?

We've put together a short How do I use Overleaf help page to give you pointers on exactly that :)

How do I upload an existing LaTeX project into Overleaf?

Here's an FAQ on how to import existing LaTeX documents into Overleaf .

What packages does Overleaf support?

Overleaf supports the packages listed here .

More resources from The University of Manchester Library

Please visit the Library Researcher Services website for more information on disseminating research, managing data, and identifying impact.

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Academic Phrasebank

• GENERAL LANGUAGE FUNCTIONS
• Being cautious
• Being critical
• Classifying and listing
• Compare and contrast
• Defining terms
• Describing trends
• Describing quantities
• Explaining causality
• Giving examples
• Signalling transition
• Writing about the past

The Academic Phrasebank is a general resource for academic writers. It aims to provide you with examples of some of the phraseological ‘nuts and bolts’ of writing organised according to the main sections of a research paper or dissertation (see the top menu ). Other phrases are listed under the more general communicative functions of academic writing (see the menu on the left). The resource should be particularly useful for writers who need to report their research work. The phrases, and the headings under which they are listed, can be used simply to assist you in thinking about the content and organisation of your own writing, or the phrases can be incorporated into your writing where this is appropriate. In most cases, a certain amount of creativity and adaptation will be necessary when a phrase is used. The items in the Academic Phrasebank are mostly content neutral and generic in nature; in using them, therefore, you are not stealing other people’s ideas and this does not constitute plagiarism. For some of the entries, specific content words have been included for illustrative purposes, and these should be substituted when the phrases are used. The resource was designed primarily for academic and scientific writers who are non-native speakers of English. However, native speaker writers may still find much of the material helpful. In fact, recent data suggest that the majority of users are native speakers of English. More about  Academic Phrasebank .

This site was created by  John Morley .  

Academic Phrasebank is the Intellectual Property of the University of Manchester.

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Thesis binding

COVID-19 Update: Please note submission of paper thesis copies is currently suspended. All PGRs are required to submit their thesis electronically but the University does not require hard bound submissions at present.

You can arrange for your thesis to be bound at any binders, but the binding of your thesis and lettering on the spine must correspond with the University regulations. Binding services include:

Please note that you must bind the cover sheet generated following your electronic submission to eThesis as the first page of your thesis. You should check with the binding service how long the binding process will take. Please remember that at busy submission periods (August to September) the binding service will have a very heavy load and you should ensure that you have left sufficient time for binding your thesis.

Delays at the binders will not be accepted as a mitigating circumstance for late submission.

• Essential information
• Thesis submission