Checklist for PhD candidates: final steps of the PhD process at SHE

The impact paragraph is a reflection of 500 to 2000 words, in layman’s terms (for a wide target group), on the scientific impact of the results of the research described in the thesis, as well as, if applicable, the social impact anticipated or already achieved. If the impact of the results of the research is also discussed elsewhere in the thesis, the candidate can come back to it in the impact paragraph. The paragraph must be written in the same language as the thesis. 

Scientific impact is the short- and long-term contribution of the results of scientific research, to a shift in understanding and to advance science, method, theory and application within and across disciplines. Scientific impact has a wide variety of manifestations: from conferences for a scientific audience to contributions to publications, (open) data, infrastructure or education. 

Impact on society is the short- and long-term contribution of the results of scientific research to changes in, or development of societal sectors and to societal challenges. Examples of societal sectors include the economy, culture, public sector and healthcare. Impact on society has a wide variety of manifestations: from communicating science to the wider public to contributions to government policy, patient care or innovation in the industry or business sectors.

Four questions are provided that can serve as a guideline for drafting the impact paragraph: 

• (Research) What is the main objective of the research described in the thesis and what are the most important results and conclusions?
• (Relevance) What is the (potential) contribution of the results from this research to science, and, if applicable, to social sectors and social challenges?
• (Target group) To whom are the research results interesting and/or relevant? And why?
• (Activity) In what way can these target groups be involved in and informed about the research results, so that the knowledge gained can be used in the future?

Requirements:

• The committee consists of 4-5 members representing different scientific views
• The chair is a UM full professor with ius promovendi
• At least two members are full professors or emeritus professors who have the ius promovendi. An international professor should demonstrably be a full professor!
• At most two members are experts without the ius promovendi. They should have a PhD degree
• Two members are not attached to the UM. A person with some sort of UM relation will be regarded as an internal (UM) member
• Ideally the committee includes at least 1 female and 1 male member
• A member cannot be a (co)supervisor, co-author, or partner/family member of the candidate up to the 2nd degree

At Maastricht University PhD candidates are required to submit a set of propositions (in Dutch: stellingen) alongside their dissertation. These are short, well-reasoned statements that reflect the candidate’s ability to think critically, argue concisely, and connect their research to broader scientific or societal contexts. They are intended to stimulate discussion, show that the candidate can engage thoughtfully with topics beyond the focus of the research, and can formulate defendable positions and back them up with clear reasoning.

A minimum of 8 and a maximum of 11 propositions or statements should be added to the PhD thesis (only required for the final dissertation, not for the assessment committee version). Four propositions must be related to the subject of the dissertation. Three propositions must be related to the candidate’s discipline, with the exception of the subject of the thesis. One proposition must be related to the impact of the results of the research for science and/or society. Any other propositions do not have to be related to the subject or the discipline. Find examples (attached to SHE dissertations) here.

The team of supervisors must approve the final list of propositions. It is advisable that candidates start in time with thinking about the propositions; preferably they collect them during the course of the project. During the PhD defense, questions can be asked about the propositions. Candidates should be able to defend them.

A good proposition is:

• Concise: Usually 1–2 sentences, no long explanations.
  • Debatable: Avoid facts everyone agrees on; instead, make a claim that requires reasoning.
  • Grounded: Supported by evidence, logic, or expert consensus (even if not everyone agrees).
  • Relevant: Linked to the dissertation, the field, or a broader societal theme.
  • Memorable: Phrased clearly and, if possible, elegantly.

Types of propositions include research-focused, methodological, theoretical, policy-oriented, ethical, educational, societal, or light and personal (but defendable). Contact the SHE PhD coordinator if you require a step-by-step writing guide.

The assessment committee will assess the quality of the thesis and will decide whether the thesis is of sufficient quality to be defended at Maastricht University. The assessment committee has the possibility to approve the thesis or to ask for minor revisions, which will be executed under supervision of the supervisor (i.e. the thesis will not be resubmitted to the committee). In very exceptional cases, the committee may reject a thesis, after which the candidate can resubmit a new version within six months.

In order to promote the School of Health Professions Education (SHE) dissertations, PhD candidates within SHE are requested to use the following structure for first and last pages of their thesis. 

Page 1: Title thesis 

Page 2: The research reported here was carried out at Maastricht University / MUMC+ (use logo), in the School of Health Professions Education (use SHE logo), and, if applicable, in the context of ICO (use ICO logo), and if applicable, supported by funder (use funder logo) (download example here)

ISBN, DOI, copyright and credits to cover design, layout and printing can be mentioned on this page.

The Maastricht University logo and the SHE logo can be found in the 'SHE Group' in UMployee.

Page 3: Formal approved title page: Information about the public defense ceremony, see example thesis (this can be in Dutch or English) 

Page 4: 
Name(s) and affiliations of the promotor(s) 
Name(s) and affiliations of the co-promotor(s) 
Names and affiliations of the assessment committee members, starting with the chair and then in alphabetical order. For internal supervisors and members “Maastricht University” is mentioned as affiliation. For external supervisors and members the institution and country are mentioned.  

Second-to-last page: SHE dissertation series, check the most recent version with the SHE PhD office

Last page (only for ICO PhD candidates): ICO dissertation series (available from ICO)

Make a list of people you want to send the thesis to so you know how many theses you want to have printed. Reserve 20 copies for SHE (this includes 6 for UM PhD office, 3 for supervisory team, 5-7 for assessment committee, 4-5 for SHE). It is up to you to order any amount of theses to be printed on top of these 20. Typically, your collaborators, close colleagues and family receive a copy. Alternatively, you can send a digital version. 

Some options for printing your thesis: Ipskamp Printing, Gildeprint or Proefschriftmaken.nl. However, don’t print yet before you receive approval from the assessment committee, and before your title page and defense date have been formally approved, see section Printing & distributing the thesis. 

The costs for layout and printing the PhD thesis are to be advanced by the PhD candidate. However, these costs (up to EUR 2000 including the reception costs) can be claimed to Maastricht University. A claim form can be submitted, this will be shared with you by the UM PhD office closer to the PhD defense date.

Requirements:

• The Defense Committee consists in principle of the supervisors, and all members of the Assessment Committee, and possibly one or more professors and persons with a doctorate. Persons without a doctorate with recognised expertise in the field of the thesis subject can, with the consent of the Board of Deans, be appointed as a member. 

• The Defense Committee, apart from the supervisors, must consist preferably of 5-7 members, but of at least 4 members.

   

• If applicable, the experts invited for Cum Laude assessment of the thesis must be invited to sit on the Defense Committee.
• The first supervisor ensures that in principle at least half of the members of the Defense Committee are attached to the University and that in principle at least half of the members of the Defense Committee are professors or emeritus professors.
• The partner and family members up to the second degree of the doctoral candidate cannot be members of the Defense Committee.
• The defense committee members will not be paid any fees or travel costs to participate in the PhD ceremony by SHE. If travel of an external member needs to be covered, the PhD candidate must find financial resources themselves.

The thesis will be publicly defended in a one-hour session in which members of the assessment committee and possibly additional examiners question the candidate on various aspects of the research. The defense is an open ceremony and may be attended by relatives, friends and colleagues of the candidate. The PhD degree from Maastricht University is awarded after the ceremony. The defense will take place at Minderbroedersberg 4-6, Maastricht (in the city centre). A hybrid form, where some of the members of the assessment committee join online, is possible as well.

The one-hour session starts with a 15-minute presentation by PhD candidate (this time limit is strict!), followed by 45 minutes of discussion with the opponents. The presentation should summarize the thesis and is meant to inform the (lay) audience. During the discussion with the opponents, full professors should be addressed as “highly esteemed opponent”, and assistant and associate professors as “esteemed opponent”.

The PhD candidate is required to organize a (small) reception after the PhD defense ceremony to celebrate the achievement, and to enable the committee members to congratulate the candidate. You can choose to organize this onsite at Minderbroedersberg or at another location.  The UM PhD office will provide information about this. There is a possibility to claim the costs of the reception to Maastricht University, using the PhD ceremony allowance. The form will be sent to you by the UM PhD office.

During the defense two people will support the candidate. They are called “paranymphs”. They will sit next to the PhD candidate during the defense and have no further role. They could be asked to read aloud one of the propositions during the defense. The PhD candidate can choose these individuals; it could be relatives, friends or colleagues. In online defense ceremonies there are no paranymphs.

Sometimes paranymphs help to plan the reception/party after the defense, and/or organize a joint gift or keepsake for the candidate. You can also ask them to help you with organizing your mock defense.

A possible approach to the mock defense:

You could schedule a 90-minute session with your supervisors, peer PhD candidates, and/or colleagues to do a mock PhD defense. Ideally (most of) the attendants are aware of the expectations for PhD defenses at Maastricht University. In the first hour of the session, you could present your 15-minute presentation, and practice the 45 minutes of discussion with opponents. For this purpose, you could ask 4-6 session attendants to prepare a question about one of the chapters from your thesis. The last half hour of the session could be used to discuss their feedback on your presentation and their tips & tricks for answering questions.