Your research degree

Your progress: Formal Progression Reviews

On this page you will find information about Formal Progression Reviews, the mechanism used to help you stay on track with your research.

What is a Formal Progression Review?

You are admitted to a research degree on the basis of an assessment of your potential at the admissions stage. Remaining on the level of study for which you were admitted is conditional on you making satisfactory progress with respect to your research project and the other elements of your research degree. The purpose of Formal Progression Reviews, therefore, is to: ensure that you are making satisfactory progress, to give you a clear sense of the progress you are making, and to provide reassurance and/or advice and support, depending on your progress.

When are Formal Progression Reviews?

If you are full-time PGR, you will have an annual Formal Progression Review between months 9-12 of each complete year of your registration. If you are part-time, your Formal Progression Review will take place between months 9-12 of the second year of each two year period. Some Schools may ask part-time PGRs to complete an Interim Progression Review in intermediate years, so ensure you stay on track. These are less formal and cannot lead to a decision about your continued registration as a PGR at Sussex. Please refer to your School's PGR handbook (or equivalent resource) for more specific information about the timings of reviews. 

Exceptionally, and where there are concerns about a PGR, it is possible to convene a Formal Progression Review outside the above stated timings. This may be at the request of the PGR, their supervisor(s) or the Director for PGRs. The timing of any subsequent reviews (where relevant) will resume as per the above schedule.

How do I prepare for my Formal Progression Review?

Your School will define the academic work that is required to be produced for your Formal Progression Review, and how it should be formatted. This will vary by discipline, and by the year in which you are studying. The work required may include draft thesis chapters, a literature review, an advanced plan of research, presentation of data and findings and/or a draft paper for publication. 

In addition to your academic work, two reports must be submitted: one by you and one by your main supervisor. Expand the sections below to view what these reports should cover:

Your report

In addition to submission of the academic work required by your School, you will be asked to complete a report outlining your progress. This report will be confidential, and for your Formal Progression Review Assessors, only. Your report should include:

  • the current stage of your research. Your report should refer to your research outline, explaining any changes and indicating the most recent developments. If you are on fieldwork, or have completed it in the past year, you should outline its successes and any issues that arose
  • any issues you are experiencing in your research which might need access to further specialised advice or resources
  • whether your work has been significantly impeded by any non-academic factors or if you expect it to be in the next few months
  • how many times you have been in contact with your supervisor/s and whether that has been satisfactory*
  • whether you feel that you have been receiving adequate and appropriate feedback and advice*
  • any courses or training you have undertaken in the past year and whether there are any further requirements that you feel you need
  • your funding arrangements
  • research objectives for the forthcoming year
  • when you realistically expect to submit your thesis
  • any other factors that you would like to draw to the attention of the Director for PGRs

*During the course of your meeting (see below) you will be given an opportunity to comment confidentially on your supervision.

Your main supervisor's report

Your main supervisor will also be asked to complete a report which details:

  • whether you are making satisfactory progress in accordance with the plans in your research outline
  • your relationship with your supervisor and whether you have kept in touch adequately
  • when your supervisor realistically expects your thesis to be submitted
  • whether, in your supervisor’s opinion, there is any risk that you will not submit by your deadline
  • whether any non-academic factors may have impeded your work sufficiently to make a case for intermission
  • whether your supervisor thinks that you need any specialist training, advice, or special resources
  • any problems identified and the possible solutions to rectify those problems.

Your supervisor’s report will not be made available to you, so that both your report and the supervisor’s report are entirely confidential to the progression review panel.

What happens during the Formal Progression Review meeting?

You will be required to attend a Formal Progression Review meeting. This meeting will be with at least one senior academic member of the same or a cognate department, who has experience of successful PGR supervision in the broad disciplinary area within which you are based (the ‘Assessor’). Your  Assessor(s) will be independent of your supervisory team.

The Assessor(s) primary role is to determine, on the basis of the evidence you've submitted and the report from your main supervisor, whether you have met the University criteria for progression relevant to your stage of registration(see below).

During your Review meeting, you will discuss your academic progress with your Assessor(s). Depending on the specific requirements of your School, you may be asked to give a presentation, or you may be asked to undertake a 'mini viva' (an academic defence of the subject matter of your thesis. For more information about what to expect during your Review meeting, refer to your School's PGR handbook (or equivalent resource).

How is my progress assessed?

In coming to a recommendation, your Assessor(s) will refer to both your written submission and your performance during your the Formal Progression Review meeting, and consider these against the relevant institutional progression criteria:

Progression into Year 2 (or part-time equivalent)

For progression into year 2 of a full-time research degree (or equivalent stage for a part-time PGR), you must demonstrate that you:

  • can articulate the direction their research is taking and the research questions it addresses;
  • have planned in a realistic fashion the second year (or part-time equivalent) of their research, indicating any risks and how these will be mitigated;
  • have sufficient acquaintance with the relevant field of knowledge to place their research into context;
  • have sufficient proficiency in the relevant research methods, techniques and theoretical approaches to move their research to the next stage;
  • have undertaken all training required to date;
  • have considered ethical issues (including data management and authorship) where applicable and have in place an appropriate data management plan.
Progression into Year 3 (or part-time equivalent)

For progression into year 3 of a full-time research degree (or equivalent stage for a part-time PGR), you must demonstrate that you:

  • can articulate the direction their research is taking and the research questions it addresses and how this will lead to a substantial original contribution to knowledge or understanding;
  • have planned in a realistic fashion the third year (or part-time equivalent) of their research, based on the expectation that the project will be completed and the thesis within the maximum period of registration, indicating any risks and how these will be mitigated;
  • have the ability to write up their research in an appropriate academic format for it to be critically assessed by peer reviewers and examiners;
  • have begun to acquire the wider background knowledge of their research field required for the degree of PhD;
  • can apply the relevant research methods, techniques and theoretical approaches required to make an original contribution to knowledge;
  • have undertaken all training required to date;
  • have considered ethical issues (including data management and authorship) where applicable and have in place an appropriate data management plan.
Progression into Year 3 (or part-time equivalent) - PhDs, only

For progression into year 4 of a full-time research degree (or equivalent stage for a part-time PGR), you must demonstrate that you:

  • have planned in a realistic fashion the final year (or equivalent) of their research, based on the expectation that the project will be completed and the thesis submitted on time, indicating any risks and how these will be mitigated;
  • have started to write up their research (or able to demonstrate that they have started to plan to write up their research) in an appropriate academic format for it to be critically assessed by peer reviewers and examiners;
  • have acquired much of the wider background knowledge of their research field required for the degree of PhD;
  • can apply the relevant research methods, techniques and theoretical approaches required to make an original contribution to knowledge or understanding;
  • have undertaken all required training to date;
  • have considered ethical issues (including data management and authorship) where applicable and have in place an appropriate data management plan.

What are the possible outcomes from a Formal Progression Review?

Following a first attempt at a Formal Progression Review, one of the following recommendations will be made to the Director for PGRs:

  • that you have satisfied the criteria for the relevant stage of registration and you may progress on to the next stage*;
  • that you have not yet satisfied the criteria for the relevant stage of registration and that you should be given a second opportunity to meet the criteria within three months of the date of the formal notification of the outcome.

*If you are registered on an MPhil and are making satisfactor progress, it may be recommended that you progress on to the next stage at the PhD level (‘upgraded’).

Unsatisfactory progress

If after your first attempt you are given a second attempt to meet the critiera, you will be provided with appropriate written feedback in order to address the elements of your progress considered unsatisfactory. You will be asked to attend a second Formal Progression Review meeting within three months of receiving the formal notification of the outcome of your first attempt from Student Data and Records. 

Following a second attempt at a Formal Progression Review, one of the following recommendations will be made to the Director for PGRs:

  • that you have satisfied the criteria for the relevant stage of registration and you may progress on to the next stage*;
  • that you have not satisfied the criteria for the relevant stage of registration and that you should either be:
    • Transferred to an MPhil (applied only to those registered on a PhD); or
    • That you be withdrawn from your research degree.

*If you are registered on an MPhil and are making satisfactor progress, it may be recommended that you progress on to the next stage at the PhD level (‘upgraded’).

In all cases, you will receive formal notification of the outcome of your Review from Student Data and Records.

Can I appeal the outcome of my Formal Progression Review?

If you are transferred to an MPhil or withdrawn from your research degree, or your request to be transferred from MPhil to PhD is refused, and you consider that the decision was based on inadequate evidence or taken in an improper manner, you have the right to appeal against that decision. Your right to appeal, and the timeframe for doing so, will be set out in the letter formally notifying you of the outcome of your Review. You can also refer to the Appeals process on the Student Hub pages.