How to get a PhD

For a person who plans to connect his professional life with science or work at a university, it is vital to continue his education even after receiving an institute diploma. An academic degree not only determines the status of an employee in a scientific institution, but also testifies to the recognition of his achievements in the professional environment. The initial step in the system of the Russian scientific hierarchy is the degree of candidate of sciences.

Instruction manual

one

In order to obtain a candidate’s degree, the applicant must prepare a qualifying scientific work in the chosen specialty (dissertation) and defend it in a special certification body - the Dissertation Council. Then, at the request of this council, a scientific degree is awarded by the Higher Attestation Commission (HAC). The whole procedure for preparing and defending a candidate dissertation is strictly formalized and must comply with a certain algorithm.

2

Before starting to write a dissertation research, the applicant must decide on the form of his activity. Currently, there are several ways to obtain a Ph.D. degree: postgraduate study (full-time and part-time), asylum and independent training.

3

Postgraduate study is a continuation of the educational process after receiving a university diploma. For admission to graduate school, both full-time and part-time, an applicant must submit an application to the university department of graduate school and pass the entrance exams for the chosen specialty, philosophy and a foreign language. Full-time postgraduate studies last 3 years, in correspondence 5 years. During this period, the graduate student attends classes in a foreign language and philosophy to prepare for passing the candidate exams, the so-called candidate minimum, and seminars in the main specialty.

4

At the same time, a young specialist should, under the guidance of a scientific adviser, select the topic of a dissertation research and begin work on it. The graduate student must submit the completed handwritten version of the dissertation to the department by the time graduation is completed. This form of training is most suitable for young university graduates who do not yet have serious professional experience and need guidance and assistance from senior colleagues.

5

Competition is a freer form of preparation for a degree. It does not imply a permanent presence at a university or educational institution. The applicant is attached to the relevant department in his specialty. The academic council of the university approves the selected topic of the dissertation and the supervisor. The applicant independently prepares for the passing of candidate exams and writes a dissertation. The applicant does not impose strict restrictions on the time of preparation - the timing of the exams and the dissertation research is chosen by the applicant.

6

Regardless of the chosen form of preparation (postgraduate study or competition), an applicant for a Ph.D. degree must publish a number of articles on the subject under study or one monograph in scientific publications before defending a dissertation. Moreover, only those articles that are published in the list of publications approved by the Higher Attestation Commission are taken into account. The list of scientific papers is attached to the set of documents necessary for the consideration of the dissertation by the Dissertation Council.

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