Timing of transfer to DPhil status

All research students are admitted to the status of Probationer Research Student (PRS) in the first instance. At an appropriate time before the end of the 4th term from admission, as advised by your supervisors, it will be necessary to apply for transfer to either MSc by Research status or to DPhil status. It is possible to transfer to MSc by Research status initially and thereafter to DPhil status, if appropriate.

Your status with the University will lapse if you fail to transfer before the end of your 4th term. Exceptions to the 4 term limit can be found in the below table.

Programme	Maximum time to transfer
All DPhil programmes other than the below	4 terms
All MSc by Research programmes	4 terms
DPhil Cardiovascular Science	6 terms
DPhil Cellular Structural Biology	6 terms
DPhil Chemistry in Cells	6 terms
DPhil Chromosome and Developmental Biology	6 terms
DPhil Genomic Medicine & Statistics	6 terms
DPhil Infection, Immunology & Translational Medicine	6 terms
DPhil Ion Channels and Membrane Transport in Health and Disease (OXION)	6 terms
5 Year DPhil Biochemistry (Skaggs-Oxford programme)	6 terms
DPhil Health Data Science (programme administered through Computer Science Department)	6 terms

Deferral of transfer of status

In exceptional circumstances, students with a maximum of four terms to transfer can apply for an extension of one or two terms to their Probationer Research Student status via a Deferral of Transfer of Status request (this form is filled in via the My Student Record section of Student Self-Service), while students with a maximum of six terms to transfer can apply for an extension of one term to their Probationer Research Student status.

The transfer report

When you decide to attempt transfer to DPhil status, you will be required to apply to the Medical Sciences Divisional Board providing the following information:

A completed Transfer of Status form
Upload a report on progress to date on the research work and future plans. The word limit for the transfer report is 5,000 words*. This includes an abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, any appendices, and future plans including a proposed timetable for completion, but excludes tables, figure legends and references.

Candidates will not be penalised for submitting reports of shorter length, so long as they include sufficient material to merit admission.

The assessors will need to see the following points addressed in your transfer report, within the word limit:

That there is a clear and defined project
That an investigative strategy has been devised
That some initial progress has been made in terms of method development and acquisition of results.
That there is a clear and timetabled path towards completion of the project.

*Students on the DPhil in Experimental Psychology have a word limit of 7,000 words, which should include an abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, any appendices, and future plans including a proposed timetable for completion. This reflects the longer thesis length for this course.

These are strict limits set by the Divisional Graduate School Committee and must be adhered to. Assessors must not under any circumstances request that a student write more than this. If a student exceeds these limits, the assessors may return the report and appendices to the student and ask that they amend them to within the word limits. Once the report/appendices have been amended and resubmitted, the assessors may proceed with arranging the transfer viva.

Procedure for transfer to DPhil status

Fill in the online GSO form: Transfer of Status form
Assessor selection. Your supervisor is expected to nominate two assessors and to ensure that they are willing to act. Note that neither your supervisors nor college advisor are permitted to be an assessor.
Approvals: The form needs to be completed and signed by all parties to include yourself, your supervisor, your college and your department's Director of Graduate Studies. An assessors’ report form and a copy of the Guidelines for Transfer of Status Assessors in the Medical Sciences will be sent to both assessors.
Transfer report submission. No less than two weeks before the date of the oral assessment, upload a copy of your report on My Student Record section of Student Self-Service.
Oral assessment. It is recommended that your oral assessment by your two assessors takes place no later than mid-December if your transfer is due by the end of Michaelmas Term. Your supervisors must not be present at the oral assessment. 'Supervisors' in this context means anyone in the supervisory team. The assessors will complete a report on the oral assessment.
Approval by the Medical Sciences Board. The completed report indicating the assessors' recommendation will be uploaded by one of the assessors and this will be reviewed by the Medical Sciences Board. The transfer procedure is not complete until this approval has been gained; you will be notified directly in writing once the procedure is complete.
In the event that a second attempt is required. A student whose first application for transfer to DPhil status is not approved shall be permitted to make one further application, following the procedures laid down above, and shall be granted an extension of time for one term if this is necessary for the purposes of making the second application.

Resources

Assessors' report form for transfer to DPhil status (1st attempt)

Assessors' report form for transfer to DPhil status (2nd attempt)

Guidelines for transfer of status assessors in the Medical Sciences