Study plan

The first part of the State Doctoral Examination consists of a discussion on the propositions of the dissertation thesis, which should fulfil the following requirements: The propositions are perceived as a summary of important parts of the particular dissertation thesis. They are included in the structure of the dissertation project, i.e. they usually contain the following parts: definition of the main issues and basic concepts; a summary of the state of knowledge or results in the area; description of research methodology; introduction of selected / preliminary results; formulation of the conclusions including the perspective of finalization of the dissertation. Propositions of the dissertation thesis are written in Czech, Slovak, or English language. The length of the thesis ranges between 20 to 40 standard pages, i.e. 36,000–72,000 characters including spaces. It follows the requirements of the citation standard (e.g. APA). Ten copies of the thesis must be submitted before applying for the State Doctoral Examination. The second part of the State Doctoral Examination consists of a discussion which examines the knowledge and skills of students focusing on the following topics: (a) educational research methodology, (b) general pedagogical issues regarding philosophy of education, modern theory of education, education and pedagogical psychology, (c) specialized questions from specific courses focused of the dissertation thesis. The dissertation thesis defence follows the State Doctoral Examination at the end of the doctoral study programme. It is guided by Masaryk University Study and Examination Regulations.

During the standard period of study, it is required (and supervised through the MU Information System – by means of passing the subjects Professional Activity in the field 1–8 and Work on the Doctoral Thesis 1–8) that students should undertake the following activities aimed at developing their academic skills:
1. Active participation in doctoral seminars and lectures related to the subjects of the study program and passing exams and credit tests.
2. Preparation and realization of dissertation research and continuous work on the dissertation thesis (including defence of the doctoral dissertation thesis).
3. Publishing activities (4 academic texts – e.g. journals, book chapters, proceedings, of which at least 2 texts are required to be included in the WoS or SCOPUS databases).
4. Active participation in conferences in the Czech Republic (2x) and abroad (2x).
5. Internship at a foreign research (eventually educational or development) institution lasting at least one month (preferably 3 months or longer).
6. Educational activity (participation in teaching), ranging from 2–4 hours per week for 4–8 semesters (= 96 to 192 hours of direct teaching activities during the total study period).

Doctoral dissertations follow research specialisation of Masaryk University Faculty of Education.
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