Abstract
The confirmation of candidature is a significant milestone in Higher Degree by Research programmes. As research administrators, and as doctoral candidates ourselves, we have observed and experienced many different approaches to the confirmation of candidature process. In this chapter, we describe the confirmation of candidature process at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ), Australia, with a brief comparison with other institutions’ processes. We use an autoethnographic approach to discuss the positive aspects of the confirmation of candidature process for research candidates, with the aim of providing a rationale for the process and to answer the “Why do I have to do this?” question that we are often asked in our research administrator roles. The chapter includes a set of useful and practical strategies that will assist research students to complete the confirmation of candidature milestone successfully. It is hoped that this information will be useful to research students, supervisors of research students, and the academic and administrative staff members who are involved in the confirmation of candidature process.
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Bartlett, C.L., Eacersall, D.C. (2019). Confirmation of Candidature: An Autoethnographic Reflection from the Dual Identities of Student and Research Administrator. In: Machin, T.M., Clarà, M., Danaher, P.A. (eds) Traversing the Doctorate. Palgrave Studies in Education Research Methods. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23731-8_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23731-8_3
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