The thesis will be presented and defended orally during a public defence. Your thesis is the written examination that should show that the doctoral student (= you) can present your work in a scientific way and that the qualitative degree targets have been achieved.
The defence is an open seminar in which an appointed expert from the faculty, an external reviewer ("opponent"), discusses and questions the content of the thesis. The aim is for the author of the thesis – the soon-to-be doctor – to discuss and address these questions with help from their scientific knowledge. An examining committee ("betygsnämnd") will observe and participate in the discussion. It is the committee that then determines if the doctoral student's thesis and public defence have shown that they have achieved the programme objectives.
It might feel like you have a long way to go before your thesis is finished and ready to defend – but remember: time flies! Your principal supervisor will determine if you have met your qualitative targets and that your thesis meets the required standards. During the public defence, it is the task of the external reviewer to provide the examining committee with the best conditions to be able to assess if you have attained the qualitative targets. Hence, the examining committee will conduct the final assessment of your thesis and oral defence and determine whether your public defence has been approved – not the external reviewer.
Make sure you and your supervisors start planning for the thesis and defense or licentiate seminar in good time. There are many steps that need to be taken, and it may take longer than you think to get everything in place. If you follow the link below with rules and procedures, there is also a checklist that you can use as support.
On the SLU Staff website, you will find all the information needed to plan the thesis and licentiate seminar or defense. Here you will also find a checklist that can help you prepare for the end of your education.
The higher education Ordinance specifies degree outcomes for a doctoral degree and degree outcomes for a licentiate degree, that need to be fulfilled for a degree to be issued. The degree outcomes describes the knowledge and skills that the doctoral student shall have obtained when finishing the degree.
Here you can find information on how to apply for a degree, and which type of degree you can apply for.
Chapter 1 - In the beginning of doctoral education
Chapter 2 - Being a doctoral student in Sweden - and at SLU
Chapter 3 - Prerequisites of the doctoral education
Chapter 4 - Supervision and supervision policy
Chapter 5 -The doctoral student's rights and obligations
Chapter 6 - If the education is unsatisfactory?
General information about doctoral education: Lotta Jäderlund and Eva Stening.