Thông tư 10/2009/TT-BGDDT

CIRCULAR

PROMULGATING THE REGULATION ON DOCTORAL TRAINING

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 178/2007/ND-CP dated December 03, 2007 defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of Ministries and ministerial agencies;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 32/2008/ND-CP dated March 19, 2008, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Education and Training;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 75/2006/ND-CP dated August 02, 2006, specifying and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Education;

At the request of the Director of the Department of Higher Education,

Article 1. Promulgating the Regulation on Doctoral training together with this Circular.  

Article 2. This Circular takes effect on June 22, 2009 and supersede the regulations on doctoral training and enrolment in the Decision No. 18/2000/QD-BGD&DT dated June 08, 2000 of the Minister of Education and Training promulgating the Regulation on Postgraduate Education, the Decision No. 02/2001/QD-BGD&DT dated January 29, 2011 of the Minister of Education and Training promulgating the Regulation on Postgraduate Enrolment, the Decision No. 19/2002/QD-BGD&DT dated April 09, 2002 of the Minister of Education and Training on the amendments to the Regulation on Postgraduate Enrolment, the Decision No. 16/2003/QD-BGD&DT dated April 09, 2003 of the Minister of Education and Training on the amendment to the Regulation on Postgraduate Enrolment, the Decision No. 11/2004/QD-BGD&DT dated April 21, 2003 of the Minister of Education and Training on the amendment to the Regulation on Postgraduate enrolment.

Article 3. The Chief of the office, the Director of the Department of Higher Education, Directors of relevant units affiliated to the Ministry of Education and Training, Directors and principals of universities and academies, Directors of Research Institute in charge of doctoral training are responsible for the implementation of this Circular.

REGULATION

ON DOCTORAL TRAINING
(promulgated together with the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Minister of Education and Training)

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation and subjects of application

1. This Regulation deals with the doctoral training, including training institutions, enrolment, programs, training organization, dissertation, dissertation defense, dissertation assessment, and award of doctorate degrees; complaints, accusations, inspections, and penalties.

2. This Regulation is applicable to universities, academies, and research institutes in charge of doctoral training (hereinafter referred to as training institutions)

Article 2. Training targets

Doctorate training is to train scientists accomplished in theories and practice, capable of independent study, creative, and able to discover and solve new issues important to science and technology, and guidance on scientific research.

Article 3. Training duration

1. The duration of doctoral training is 3 consecutive full-time years for master’s degrees holders, and 4 consecutive full-time years for bachelor’s degrees holders.

2. If postgraduate students that are not able to study full-time and the training institution approves, the total duration of the training program of such postgraduate students must be the same as the duration in Clause 1 of this Article, including at least 12 consecutive full-time months at the training institution to do the research project.

Chapter II

TRAINING INSTITUTIONS

Article 4. Conditions for opening new disciplines

1. The institutions that provide doctoral training may apply for opening a new discipline when the following conditions are satisfied:

a) The discipline is in the list of doctoral disciplines issued by the Ministry of Education and Training.

If the discipline is not in that list, the training institution shall present scientific foundation for this new discipline that is approved by the Science and Training Council of the training institution; the training practice and experience of other countries, together with the reference training programs of some foreign universities.

b) The full-time teaching staff and science staff satisfy training requirements, in particular:

- At least an associate professor and 4 doctors in the same field, including at least 3 persons in the same discipline;

- Within 3 years until the application for opening the new discipline is made, at least 3 research works of tenured lecturers and academic staff of the academic department or postgraduate training department (hereinafter referred to as academic departments) published in reputable academic journals subject to peer review in Vietnam or overseas;

- Able to develop new programs and organize the implementation of the training program, provide guidance for postgraduate students to do doctoral dissertation and hold dissertation assessment councils.

c) The facilities, equipment, library, and laboratory meet the training requirements; postgraduate students are provided with separate workplaces;

d) Experienced in scientific research; national, ministerial, provincial researches are completed; experienced in training researchers; regularly holding science conferences and conventions; regularly participate in international cooperation in scientific research and training;

dd) For training institutions being schools must have completed at least 02 courses of master’s training in the fields or disciplines suitable for the registered disciplines.

2. For special disciplines and special educational institutions, the Minister of Education and Training shall consider assigning doctoral training pursuant to this Regulation.

Article 5. Authority, documentation, and procedure for assigning doctoral training

1. The Minister of Education and Training (or the Director of Vietnam National University of Hanoi and Vietnam National University of Ho Chi Minh city, for affiliated units) shall assign doctoral training to the training institutions that satisfy the business in Clause 1 Article 4 of this Regulation.

2. The application for opening a new discipline includes:

a) A written request for opening a new discipline made by the training institution.

b) The plan for the opening of the new discipline, including: the introduction of the training institution and the reasons for opening the new discipline); the training targets, academic staff, equipment serving doctoral training, the establishment of the doctoral dissertation assessment council; the training program and training plan (Appendix 1, 01 plan for each discipline).

3. Procedure for assigning doctoral training

a) The training institution shall send 03 dossiers to competent authorities for considering and assessing the plan within 60 working days from the day on which the complete and valid dossier is received.

b) Within 15 working days from the end of the assessment, if the training institution satisfies the conditions in Clause 1 Article 4 of this Regulation, competent authorities shall issue a decision to assign the doctoral training to the training institution. If the training institution fails to satisfy all conditions, competent authorities shall send the assessment result to the training institution.

Article 6. Annulling the decision to assign doctoral training

1. The decision to assign doctoral training shall be annulled in one of the following cases:

a) The training institution fails to maintain the conditions in Clause 1 Article 4 of this Regulation;

b) The training institution fails to recruit for 3 consecutive years;

c) The training institution fails to meet the standards of the Ministry of Education and Training during quality assessment (assessment of the training institution or the training program).

2. The authorities competent to assign doctoral training are also competent to annul the decisions on assigning doctoral training.

Chapter III

ENROLMENT

Article 7. Method and time of enrolment

1. Enrolment time: every year, depending on the demand and enrolment target, the training institution shall hold one to two postgraduate student enrolments in February and August.

2. Enrolment method: profile assessment.

Article 8. Conditions for enrolling in doctoral training

Every candidate for doctoral training must:

1. Have a master’s degree (or a decent bachelor’s degree if the master’s degree is not obtained) suitable for the doctoral discipline enrolled in.

The Director of the training institution shall specify the conditions of qualifications, field of study, average marks at bachelor’s or master’s level for enrolling in doctoral training in the notice of enrolment.

2. Have an essay on the intended research, presenting the research topic or field of study, the reasons for choosing the field of study and targets, the reason for choosing this training institution; the plan for each stage of the training; the experience, knowledge, understanding, as well as the candidate’s preparation for their intended researches or fields of study; the plan for working after the graduation; suggestion for instructors (Part I Appendix II).

3. Have two letters of introductions from two scientists that hold academic ranks such as professors or associate professors in the same discipline, or a letter of introduction from a scientist that hold an academic rank or a doctorate degree in the same discipline, and a letter of introduction from the candidate’s employer. The introducers must have at least 06 months’ experience or have engaged in the same discipline with the candidate. The letter of introduction must assess the capability and qualities of the candidate, in particular:

a) The ethics, especially professional ethics

b) Professional proficiency;

c) Working method;

d) Research ability;

dd) Teamwork skills;

e) Strengths and weaknesses;

g) Potential for professional development;

h) Other assessments and recommendations.

4. Have skills in foreign languages to study documentation, participate in international activities serving scientific research, and do dissertations according to Article 9 of this Regulation.

5. For the disciplines that require working experience, the Director of the training institution shall specify the necessary working duration that a candidate needs before the enrolment in the notice of enrolment.

6. Be introduced by the personnel department (for employed candidates) or the school from which the candidate graduates. The unemployed candidates must be certified by their local governments that they have clean records and have not violated law.

7. Commit to fulfill financial obligations to the training as required by the training institution (tuition fee, refund to the sponsor if the doctoral dissertation is not completed).

Article 9. Requirements of foreign language skills of candidates

Directors of training institutions shall specify the necessary foreign languages and the necessary foreign language skills of candidates according to the requirements of the discipline and the training program, and the ability to meet the requirements of foreign language skills before the dissertation defense according to Article 22 of this Regulation.

Article 10. Notice of enrolment

1. At least 03 months before every enrolment, the training institution must make and send the notice of enrolment to the Ministry of Education and Training.

2. The notice of enrolment shall be posted at the training institution, sent to relevant agencies, and posted on the websites of the training institution and the Ministry of Education and Training ([email protected]) and on other mass media, specifying:

a) The enrolment target of each discipline shall be decided by the Director of the training institution according to the target of the whole training institution and the professional capacity, research requirements, equipment, etc. of each discipline;

b) The enrolment plan;

c) The application and the intended time when dossiers are received;

d) The recruitment duration, date of result announcement, and the commencement date;

dd) The list of research orientations, fields of study or research projects enclosed with the list of scientists that may instruct postgraduate students; the number of postgraduate students that may be admitted according to each research orientation or field of study (Form 6 in Appendix I);

e) Other requirements and information necessary for candidates.

Article 11. Enrolment Council

1. The Director of the training institution shall issue the decision to establish the Enrolment Council

The composition of the Enrolment Council includes the President, the standing member, and members.

a) The President: the Director of the training institution or the Deputy Director delegated by the Director;

b) The standing member: the manager or deputy manager of the Postgraduate Training Department of the training institution;

c) Members: the deans or managers of faculties of the recruiting disciplines.

Relatives (spouses, children, brothers and sisters) of candidates must not join the Enrolment Council and the boards that assist the Enrolment Council.

2. Rights and obligations of the Enrolment Council: announce the enrolment; receive applications; assess profiles and certify admission; summarize the enrolment; decide the commendation and disciplinary actions; report the enrolment result to the Ministry of Education and Training.

3. Rights and obligations of the President of the Enrolment Council:

a) Provide guidance and organize the implementation of the regulations on enrolment in Chapter III of this Regulation;

b) Make decisions and take responsibility before the Director of the training institution for the issues relating to the enrolment according to Chapter III of this Regulation; ensure the openness and responsibility of the enrolment process, select motivated, proficient, and potential candidates capable of completing their research projects according to the training targets and research orientations of the training institution;

c) Decide the establishment of committees that assist the Enrolment Council, including the Secretariat and academic committees. Such committees are subject to the direction of the President of the Enrolment Council.

Article 12. The Secretariat of the Enrolment Council

1. The composition of the Secretariat of the Enrolment Council includes: the chief secretary is the standing member of the Enrolment Council, and the members.

2. Rights and obligations of the Secretariat of the Enrolment Council:

a) Receive, process the applications submitted by candidates and collect enrolment fees;

b) Make a list of eligible candidates and send it together with their profiles to the faculty;

c) Receive and summarized the profile assessment results from the academic committees and submit it to the Enrolment Council for consideration;

d) Send the notice of recruitment result to all candidates.

3. Responsibilities of the Chief Secretary:

Take responsibility before the President of the Enrolment Council for the tasks of the Secretariat.

Article 13. Academic committees

1. According to the applications, the disciplines and research orientations of candidates, the deans shall send the list of academic committees and their members to the President of the Enrolment Council for decision.

2. An academic committee has at least 5 holders of doctorate degrees or higher that are conversant with candidates’ intended researches and fields of study, and are members of academic departments, science workers or lecturers of the training institution or invited by the dean, and the intended instructors of admitted candidates. An academic committee includes the chief and the members

3. Academic committees shall assess applications, essays about intended researches, discuss about candidates’ intended researches, classify candidates as excellent, good, average, or failed, and send the result to the Secretariat. The Secretariat shall summarize and send a report to the Enrolment Council.

Article 14. The procedure for recruiting postgraduate students

1. Members of academic committees shall assess and classify candidates according to their applications and study results at bachelor’s level or master’s level; their skills in foreign languages, their research accomplishments; their professional experience; the quality of the essays on their intended researches; remarks and recommendations of the candidates in the introduction letters.

2. Candidates shall present their intended researches and research plans before the academic committees. The intended researches of candidates must be suitable for the fields of study and research orientations of the academic department, and instructed and competent persons. Members of academic committees shall ask questions to assess the personality, intelligence of candidates, the clarity of the ideas and the goals after completing the doctoral course, the feasibility of their plans, and the necessary attributes in a postgraduate student.  Academic committees shall issue written remarks and assessments (part II of Appendix II).

3. According to the assessment, academic committees shall build an assessment scale, summarize assessments given by members, make a list of candidates sorted by their marks in descending order, and send the results to the Secretariat of the Enrolment Council.

4. The Secretariat of the Enrolment Council shall check the applications again, and send the ranking result to the Enrolment Council. The Enrolment Council shall define the recruitment principles and make a list of admitted candidates according to the enrolment targets decided by the Director of the training institution and the ranking of candidates, then submit it to the Director of the training institution for approval.

Article 15. Summoning admitted candidates

1. Pursuant to the list of admitted candidates approved by the Director of the training institution, the training institution shall send admission letters to admitted candidates.

2. After a candidate officially applies for study, the Director of the training institution shall issue a decision on the admission of postgraduate student, research orientations or research projects (if defined), discipline, instructors, and training duration.

Chapter IV

TRAINING ORGANIZATION AND PROGRAMS

Article 16. Training program

1. The doctoral training program is to help postgraduate students complete and improve their basic knowledge, study deeply in professional knowledge, obtain a wide range of knowledge about relevant fields of study, assist postgraduate students in practicing their skills in studying, identifying and solving professional problem, and necessary practical skills. The program must assist postgraduate students in self-learning of fundamental knowledge about professional theories and arguments of the fields of study and the discipline, applied professional knowledge of the discipline; methodology, research method, method of writing academic articles and presenting research result before Vietnamese and international researchers.

2. Doctoral training is primarily self-learning and self-studying under the guidance of instructors and scientists; it values scientific research habit and creative thinking for discovering and solving professional problems.

3. The doctoral training program is composed of three parts:

a) Part 1: Supplementary modules;

b) Part 2: Doctoral modules, doctoral subjects, and the dissertation proposal;

c) Part 3: Scientific research and doctoral dissertation.

Doctoral training programs are formulated by training institutions based on the load of knowledge and the requirements in Article 17, 18, 19, and 20 of this Regulation.

Article 17. Supplementary modules

Supplementary modules are modules that help postgraduate students acquired sufficient knowledge and professional skills to perform their tasks.

1. For postgraduate students without master’s degrees, supplementary modules include master’s modules in the corresponding discipline in the first two years of the doctoral training, composed of 27 – 36 credits, not including philosophy and foreign languages.

2. For postgraduate students that already have master’s degrees in a similar discipline with the doctoral training program, or have master’s degrees in the same discipline but have graduated for many years, or have master’s degrees awarded by other training institutions, the training institution shall request the postgraduate students to do the necessary modules according to the discipline and field of study.

3. If the bachelor’s training program of a postgraduate student omits important subjects and modules important to the doctoral training, the Director of the training institution may request such postgraduate student to do some bachelor’s modules.

4. The Director of the training institution shall decide the supplementary modules and necessary number of credits in the cases in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 18: Doctoral modules, doctoral subjects, and the dissertation proposal

1. The doctoral modules help postgraduate students update new knowledge about their fields of study; improve the theoretical understanding, methodology, and ability to apply important research methods. Each module contains 2 – 3 credits. Each postgraduate student must complete 3 – 5 modules with 8 – 12 doctoral credits.

2. Doctoral modules include compulsory modules and optional modules. The compulsory modules are the basic part and relating to crucial knowledge at higher levels. The optional modules are intensive and suitable for the research projects, or help practice the methods of professional research and academic article writing.  

3. The doctoral subjects require postgraduate students to update new knowledge about their research, improve their scientific research capacity, and help postgraduate students solve some issues of the dissertation. Each postgraduate student shall complete 2 – 3 doctoral subjects with 4 – 6 credits.

4. The dissertation proposal on the research development and issues relating to the dissertation topic requires postgraduate students to demonstrate their skills in analyzing and assessing the finished researches in Vietnam and overseas that are closely relating to their dissertation topic, raise the unresolved issues that the dissertation must resolve.

5. Before the course, the Director of the training institution shall decide and announce the list, targets, requirements, and contents of doctoral modules and subjects of each discipline; the assessment method and minimum requirements for each module; the methods of reporting, assessing reports and dissertation proposals of postgraduate students.

Article 19. Scientific research

1. Scientific research is a typical and mandatory stage in when doing doctoral dissertation. Depending on the characteristics of the field of study (social science, natural science, technology), the training institution shall set down various requirements for the assessment of intelligence and technological solutions relating to the dissertation, the need for investigation and experiments to provide necessary information, the need for scientific reasoning or solution design and experiment necessary for postgraduate students to reach new knowledge of solutions.  These are the most important bases for postgraduate students to write their doctoral dissertations.

2. The contents and scale of the scientific research must be suitable for the targets of the doctoral dissertation. Depending on the characteristics of the research projects, the training institution and the instruction shall provide budget, equipment, and personnel for postgraduate students to complete their necessary researches. Postgraduate students shall ensure the truthfulness, accuracy, and novelty of their research result; comply with the Vietnam’s and international regulations on intellectual property.

3. Scientific research shall be conducted during the doctoral training. If the scientific researches cannot be done by the intended deadline for some subjective or objective reasons, postgraduate students may apply for the extension of the deadline to ensure the quality of their dissertation. The training cost of during the extension shall be incurred by postgraduate students, their employers, or the training institution if possible.

Article 20. Doctoral dissertation

A doctoral dissertation must be a unique and creative scientific research, provide new knowledge or solutions valuable to development and growth of professional knowledge, or creatively resolve the issues for a profession or the society.

A doctoral dissertation consists approximately 100 A4 pages, over 50% of which shall present the research result and ratiocination of the postgraduate student.

Article 21. Organizing teaching and assessment of doctoral subjects and modules

1. Depending on the competence of each postgraduate student, their qualifications, completed bachelor’s and master’s modules (if any), the instructors and the Science and Training Council of the faculty (or of the institution – if the training institution is a research institute) shall suggest additional bachelor’s or master’s modules the Director of the training institution; the doctoral modules and doctoral subjects must be practical and suitable for the training and the dissertation topic of the postgraduate student. The postgraduate student-training department of the training institution shall make a study plan according to the suggestions of the Science and Training Council and notify it to postgraduate students.

2. For supplementary bachelor’s and master’s modules, postgraduate students shall attend the corresponding classes of the doctoral training institution or other training institutions appointed by the doctoral training institution. Doctoral modules shall be provided by the doctoral training institution.

3. Within 24 months from the admission, the training institution shall enable postgraduate students to complete part 1 and part 2 of the doctoral training program.

4. The teaching and assessment of modules and dissertation proposals of postgraduate students meet the following requirements:

a) Encouraging and requiring postgraduate students to study actively;

b) The assessment of doctoral modules and doctoral subjects must be objective and constant throughout the training process. The Director of the training institution shall specify the assessment scale.

5. Postgraduate students of whom the doctoral modules, doctoral subjects or dissertation proposals fail to meet the requirements for postgraduate students may applies for some additional modules or research to obtain master’s degrees if they have not had any.

6. The Science and Training Council of the faculty or the institution shall formulate the training program, adjust the list and contents of modules and doctoral subjects every 2 years according to the requirements of the profession and the regulations of the training institution, and then submit them to the Director of the training institution.

7. The Director of the training institution shall specify the teaching and assessment of doctoral modules, doctoral subjects, and dissertation proposals of postgraduate students; the conditions for keeping studying after the end of modules and dissertation proposals; the conditions for awarding master’s degrees to the students that fail to follow the doctoral training and have not had master’s degrees.

Article 22. Requirements of skills in foreign languages before the dissertation defense

1. Before the dissertation defense, every postgraduate student must obtain one of the following qualifications:

a) A bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or doctorate degree in a country where English is used for training;

b) A bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or doctorate degree in Vietnam provided English is used for training without translation.

c) A bachelor’s degree in English language.

d) TOEFL iBT (61) or TOEFL ITP (500) or IELTS (5.0) or the equivalent. The skill in foreign language is equivalent to level B1 and B2 of Common European Framework - CEF (Appendix III).

2. The foreign language certificates of reputable Vietnamese foreign language testing centers that assess achievements of learners similarly to the assessment of the testing centers that issue the qualifications in Point d Clause 1 of this Article, which are assessed and recognized by the Ministry of Education and Training, may be used for postgraduate student training.

3. The foreign language testing centers or training centers may send applications for assessment and recognition to the Ministry of Education and Training if they consider themselves to satisfy the requirements in Clause 2 of this Article.

The assessment and certification of a foreign language certificate in postgraduate student training are carried out every 3 years.

Article 23. Changes in the training process

1. The dissertation topic may be changed within the first half of the training process.

2. The addition or replacement of instructors shall be done at least one year before the dissertation defense.

3. With rational explanation, a postgraduate student may transfer to another training institution provided the remaining training duration is at least one year, the current training institution and the new training institution accept and issue a decision to admit the transferred postgraduate student. The Director of the new training institution shall decide necessary additional doctoral modules or doctoral subjects (if any).

4. A training program is considered completed on schedule if the dissertation is approved by the Dissertation Assessment Council at the grassroots level (hereinafter referred to as Grassroots Assessment Council) if the institution.

If a postgraduate student fails to complete the training program on schedule, he or she shall apply for an extension at least 06 months before the deadline, enclosed with the opinions of his or her employer (if any). The extension is only given when satisfactory explanation is provided, and the postgraduate student’s study or research must be done by the end of the extension. Postgraduate student shall fulfill the financial obligations that arise during the extension at the request of the training institution. The extension must not exceed 24 months. Part-time postgraduate students must work full-time at the training institution during the extension to complete their dissertation by the end of the extension.

5. The postgraduate students that excellently complete the training program and research projects, according to the research findings published in reputable academic journals in Vietnam or overseas, may request for an early dissertation defense. The Director of the training institution shall decide the early dissertation defense according to the result of study and research of the postgraduate student, recommendations of the instructor and his or her employer, assessments and recommendations of the Science and Training Council of the faculty or the institution (hereinafter referred to as Science and Training Council).

6. After the end of the training (including any extension) or when the training program is completed (even the postgraduate student requests the early dissertation defense), the Director of the training institution shall send a written notification to the postgraduate student’s employer and assess the research result and the attitude of the postgraduate student during the training at the training institution.

7. If the dissertation is not completed by the end of the training period, the postgraduate student may keep doing the dissertation and return to the training institution to submit the dissertation provided such dissertation and the research findings are still topical and scientifically valuable, and accepted by the instructor and the Director of the training institution. The time limit for submitting a dissertation is 7 years (84 months) from the day on which the decision to admit the postgraduate student is made. After this deadline, postgraduate students may not do dissertation defenses and the study results of the doctoral training program shall not be retained.

8. The Director of the training institution shall specify the procedure and order for settling and deciding the changes during the training of postgraduate students.

Article 24. Lecturers of doctoral training program

Every lecturer of doctoral training program must:

1. Have good ethics and qualities.

2. Hold doctorate degree or a title of professor or associate professor in a discipline or field of study suitable for the modules they teach in the doctoral training program.

3. Have great proficiency and have been engaging in scientific research according to the articles and works published before and during the doctoral training program.

Article 25. Instructors of postgraduate students

1. Article 24. Instructors of postgraduate students must meet the standards in Article 24 of this Regulation and the following standards:

a) Hold a title of professor or associate professor or a doctorate degree. A lecturer that has a doctorate degree without an academic rank shall only give instruction after 3 years from the award of the doctorate degree;

b) Have articles and research works that are published within the last 5 years;

c) Have his or her name in the list of topics, research orientations and fields of study that need recruiting postgraduate students in the year;

d) Able to raise scientific issues and instruct postgraduate students to resolved such issues;

dd) Able to use English for professional research and international scientific exchange;

e) Highly responsible for instructing postgraduate students.

g) Not suspended from recruiting postgraduate students according to Article 5 of this Article.

2. Each postgraduate student shall be instructed by no more than two instructors. If a postgraduate student is instructed by two instructors, the training institution shall specify the roles and responsibilities of the primary and secondary instructor.

3. Processors, associate professors, and doctors of science that have done valuable researches and are experienced in instructing postgraduate students may instruct postgraduate students independently with the permission of the training institution.

4. A professor and or doctor of science may instruct no more than 5 postgraduate students at the same time, an associate professor or doctor may instruct no more than 3 postgraduate students at all training institutions that invite them, including postgraduate students instructed in cooperation and the postgraduate students allowed to defense their dissertations after the training period according to Clause 7 Article 23 of this Regulation. Each instructor shall instruct no more than two postgraduate students in the same course.

5. When two postgraduate students of an instructor fail to complete their dissertation due to professional reasons, such instructor may not receive more postgraduate students.  When three postgraduate students of an instructor fail to complete their dissertation without satisfactory explanation, such instructor may not receive more postgraduate students for at least 2 years.

6. Training institutions are encouraged to invite Vietnamese scientists overseas or foreign scientists that meet the standards in Clause 1 of this Article to instruct postgraduate students.

Article 26. Duties of instructors

1. Approve the study and research plans of postgraduate students.

2. Suggest necessary modules in the doctoral training program including bachelor's modules, master’s modules, and doctoral modules, the doctoral subjects to Director of the training institution for decision.

3. Make weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual plans for working with postgraduate students. Supervise and instruct postgraduate students to study and doe their dissertation, attend science conventions, give assessment and help postgraduate students in having their research findings published.

4. Help postgraduate students prepare reports according to the schedule of the academic department; prepare lectures and teaching materials; instruct students to practice and do scientific research.

5. Make remarks on the study, research, and progress of postgraduate students in the periodic reports sent by postgraduate students.

6. Examine postgraduate students’ dissertation, certify the results and call for the dissertation defense if the dissertation meet the requirements.

7. Other duties defined by the Director of the training institution.

Article 27. Responsibilities of postgraduate students

1. During the training, postgraduate students are official of the academic department and responsible for reporting the study plan and the research outline to the academic department.

2. While studying and doing the dissertation, postgraduate students must regularly seek opinions and have discussions with their instructors according to plans and schedule; participate in science activities of the academic department and write reports; write at least two academic articles that are published on academic journals subject to peer review according to the list of journals made by the academic department; participate in the science activities relating to their research; periodically report their study result and research findings to the instructors and the academic department according to the schedule made by the academic department at least 4 times a year.

3. During the study, postgraduate students shall participate in professional activities, teaching, research, and instructing interns and students that do research at the training institution under the appointment of the academic department.

4. At the beginning of the school year, postgraduate students shall submit their study result and research progress to the academic department, including completed modules and credits; research findings, publication of research findings; detailed research outline, study and research plan in the new year.

5. Postgraduate student must not contact peer reviewers and members of the Institutional Assessment Council before the dissertation defense; must not participate in the organization of the dissertation defense such as sending dissertation documents to Council members; must not take remarks on the dissertation from Council members, scientists, and scientific organizations.

Article 28. Responsibilities of the academic department

1. Enable academic committees to recruit postgraduate students, assess applications and candidates’ capability and attributes. Make and send a record on the assessment and ranking of candidates to the Director of the training institution for decision.

2. Consider and seek opinions from the Science and Training Council before requesting the Director of the training institution to decide necessary modules in the doctoral training program, including bachelor’s modules, master’s modules, and doctoral modules; doctoral subjects; training plan for each postgraduate student; the supervision and inspection of the implementation of the training program and plan for such postgraduate student.

3. Organize academic curricular activities for lecturers and postgraduate students at least once per month for postgraduate students to report their research findings; assign postgraduate students to teach and instruct students to do scientific research and to practice.

4. Specify the working schedule of postgraduate students and instructors; and the schedules for reporting study result at least 4 times per year.  Assess the study and research result, attitude, capability and potential of postgraduate students; request the Director of the training institution to decide the sustention of the study of each postgraduate student.

5. Suggest the list of academic journals subject to peer review to the Director of the training institution in which postgraduate students have their research findings published according to Clause 7 Article 30 of this Regulation; instruct and assist postgraduate students in having their research findings published in Vietnam and overseas.

6. Request the Director of the training institution to change the dissertation names, add or replace instructors, contract or extend the training duration, or change the training institution of the postgraduate student.

7. Strictly supervise postgraduate students throughout their study. Send reports on the study and research of postgraduate student to the Director of the training institution every 6 months and request the Director of the training institution to send such reports to the postgraduate students’ employers.

8. Assess postgraduate students’ dissertation at the grassroots level, approve or delay the dissertation defense before the Institutional Assessment Council.

Article 29. Responsibilities of the training institution

1. Formulate and issue the charter of the training institution on enrolment, training organization and management, postgraduate student management, dissertations, dissertation defenses, doctorate degree award, and activities relating to the doctoral training based on this Regulation.

2. Formulate plans and annual enrolment targets of the training institution for each discipline and report them to the Ministry of Education and Training.

3. Formulate training programs, textbooks, and teaching plans for the permitted disciplines; make and send applications to provide doctoral training to the Ministry of Education and Training; approve the list of reputable academic journals subject to peer review in which postgraduate students have their research findings published; instruct postgraduate students to follow the procedure for sending their articles to such Vietnamese and foreign journals.

4. Organize annual enrolment according to the set targets and Chapter III of this Regulation.

5. Issue decisions to admit postgraduate students, research projects, discipline, instructors, and training durations; deal with the changes during the training such as the change of topics, instructors, training method, or training institution.

6. Provide training in accordance with the approved training programs. Facilitate the internship and participation in international science conventions overseas.

7. Provide equipment, supplies, materials, and other conditions necessary for the study of postgraduate student and for academic staff of the training institution.

8. Organize dissertation defenses in accordance with this Regulation and the charter of the training institution. Appoint competent and experienced personnel to serve the dissertation defenses of postgraduate students.

9. Supervise the study and research process of postgraduate students; organize the examinations and issuance of certificates of modules and transcripts, issue certificates to the postgraduate students that have completed the training program and defended their dissertations; award doctorate degrees and organize the award of doctorate degrees according to current regulations.

10. Hold annual science conventions and international science conferences. Periodically publish academic journals subject to peer review of the training institution.

11. Develop websites and update all dissertations, their abstracts, and their novelties (in Vietnamese and English) from their preparation; the list of postgraduate students every year; the research projects in progress; and the list of postgraduate students awarded doctorate degrees.

12. Comply with the reporting regime:

a) Send reports to the Ministry of Education and Training on the enrolment result and the decisions to admit postgraduate students (Appendix IV) after the enrolment;

b) In every November: send reports to the Ministry of Education and Training on the doctoral training of the institution and the changes in postgraduate students in the year, determine the targets and plans for recruiting postgraduate students in the next year (Appendix V);

c) On the last day of even months: send the Ministry of Education and Training the list of postgraduate students that do dissertation defenses over the last 2 months (Appendix VI).

d) Before the 30^th of June and 31^st of December every year: send the Ministry of Education and Training reports on the award of doctorate degrees. A report includes:

- The overall report on the award of doctorate degrees from the previous report.

- The list of postgraduate students awarded doctorate degrees (Appendix VII).

- Copies of the decisions to award doctorate degrees to the postgraduate students that have completed the training program and successfully defended their dissertations.

- Copies of decisions to admit the postgraduate students in the awarding list.

dd) The documents and profiles of all postgraduate students relating to the recruitment, training, graduation, and award of degrees must be preserved and stored at the training institution according to current regulations on storage;

13. Inspect the conformity with the Regulation on doctoral training of the Ministry of Education and Training and the charter of the training institution; take responsibility for the training provided by the training institution.

14. Apply for training quality assessment.

Chapter V

DISSERTATION AND DISSERTATION DEFENSE

Article 30. Requirements for a doctoral dissertation

1. The doctoral dissertation must be done by the postgraduate student and meet the targets and requirements in Article 20 of this Regulation. The dissertation must make new academic contributions, presented in academic languages, make use of basic arguments of the discipline to analyze and comment on the arguments and the results of previous researches relating to the dissertation, and on that basis raise new issues, hypotheses or new solutions to resolve the issues of the dissertation, and prove them by new materials.  The dissertation writer shall make a commitment on his or her scientific work.

Postgraduate students are recommended to write and defend their dissertations in English.

2. The doctoral dissertation includes: The introduction, the overview of the research, the targets and research tasks; the reasoning basis and scientific hypotheses; research methods, research findings; conclusion and suggested researches; the list of published works of the author relating to the dissertation; the reference list and appendixes (where necessary).

3. The doctoral dissertation must comply with the regulations on intellectual property right protection in the Law on Intellectual property.

4. If the dissertation is a scientific work or part of a scientific work of a collective, the main part of which is done by the author, it is required to submit the written permissions of the collective members for the postgraduate student to use this work to do the dissertation defense.

5. The authors or co-authors of the research findings that are used must be clearly cited. If the authors and sources of documents (tables, formulas, diagrams, and other materials) are not cited, the dissertation shall not be approved and defended.

6. The list of published works of the author that relate to the dissertation and the reference list shall be enumerated in alphabetical order of the authors’ names in conformity with international practice. The reference list shall enumerate the documents quoted, used, and mentioned in the dissertation.

7. The primary contents and research findings of the dissertation must be reported at annual national science conferences and and announced in at least two articles on academic journals subject to peer review. The Vietnamese academic journals are in the list of academic journals that are rated 1, and concurrently enumerated in the list of academic journals defined by the training institution.

Postgraduate students are encouraged to have their articles published on reputable international academic journals and the journals enumerated by International Science Institute (ISI) at http://scientific.thomson.com/isi/ or memoranda of International Science Conferences published by reputable international publishers.

8. The training institution shall specify the way of presenting dissertations of each discipline, ensuring that dissertations are scientifically, clearly, and coherently presented.

Article 31. Assessing and defending dissertations

1. A doctoral dissertation shall be assessed by:

a) The Grassroots Assessment Council (the academic department)

b) The Institutional Assessment Council.

2. Conditions for doing a dissertation defense:

a) The dissertation and the study program are completed according to Article 17, 18, 19, 20 of this Regulation by the deadline;

b) The dissertation meets the requirements in Article 20 and Article 30 of this Regulation and the regulations of the training institution;

c) The collective or instructors shall write assessment of the dissertation quality, the attitude and result of the postgraduate student, and request the dissertation defense;

d) The postgraduate student does not receive any warning nor carry a heavier penalty

3. The Director of the training institution shall decide the specific conditions and requirements for dissertations of each discipline when they are defended before the Institutional Assessment Council.

Article 32. Assessment of dissertation at the grassroots level (by the academic department)

1. After the postgraduate student satisfies the conditions in Clause 2 Article 31 of this Regulation, the chief of the academic department shall request the Director of the training institution to issue a decision to establish a Grassroots Assessment Council.

2. The Grassroots Assessment Council consists of 7 members holding academic ranks and doctorate degrees, proficient in the field of study and the research project, 5 members are academic staff of the academic department; and 2 external scientists or experts. The council includes a President, secretary, two reviewers and the Council members. Each Council member shall undertake a task of the Council. Excellent foreign scientists or Vietnamese scientists overseas are encouraged to act as reviewers in the Council.

3. The dissertation shall be sent to Council members before the Council meeting at least 15 working days. The Council members shall read the dissertation and write the review before attending the Dissertation Assessment Council.

4. The Council shall not hold the assessment meeting if:

a) The Council President is not present;

B The secretary of the Council is not present;

c) The reviewers that disapprove the dissertation are not present;

d) Two Council members or more are not present;

dd) The postgraduate student receives a warning or carries a heavier penalty.

5. The grassroots assessment meeting is an academic activity of the academic department that is attended by members of the academic department and people concerned. Before the dissertation is defended before the Institutional Assessment Council, the Grassroots Assessment Council shall hold one or some meetings if the dissertation needs amending or supplementing. Members of the Grassroots Assessment Council must indicate the new results of the dissertations, the limitations and defects of the dissertation, and request the postgraduate student to make amendments.

The dissertation shall be defended before the Institutional Assessment Council after it is completed according to the opinions provided in the previous meetings of the Council, and approved by at least ¾ of the members of the Grassroots Assessment Council that are present at the last meeting.

6. The Grassroots Assessment Council shall confirm the list of units and individuals that receive the dissertation summary and request the Director of the training institution to decide, ensuring the dissertation is sent to all organizations, units, and individuals that hold at least doctorate degrees in the same field of study or discipline that have been doing research or might apply the solutions in the dissertation. The number of the staff of the training institution must not exceed one fourth of total number of individuals that receive the dissertation summary.

7. The dissertation assessment shall focus on the research, contents and quality of the dissertation; ensure the accuracy, objectivity, scientific, and seek opinions from scientists when assessing the dissertation. The Director of the training institution shall specify the organization and operation of the Grassroots Assessment Council.

Article 33. Application for dissertation defense before the Institutional Assessment Council

1. Based on the conclusion of the Grassroots Assessment Council, the chief of the academic department shall send the Director of the training institution an application for the dissertation defense before the Institutional Assessment Council.

2. The application for a dissertation defense includes:

a) The detailed minutes of the meetings of the Grassroots Assessment Council that are signed by the President and Secretary of the Council;

b) An explanation for the amendments to the dissertation after each meeting that is signed and approved by the President of the Council, two reviewers, the members that request such amendments, and the chief of the academic department;

c) Two reviews of two reviewers;

d) The list of units and individuals that receive the dissertation summary;

dd) A copy of the bachelor’s degree or master’s degree (if any);

e) Valid copies of transcripts of the master’s modules and supplementary modules (if any), doctoral modules, doctoral subjects, dissertation proposals, and foreign language qualifications of the postgraduate student.

g) The copy of the decision to admit postgraduate student and decisions on the changes during the training process (if any);

h) The list and photocopies of published articles and works relating to the dissertation;

l) The written assents of co-authors (if any);

k) The dissertation and dissertation summary;

l) The information about new academic contributions of the dissertation (in both Vietnamese and English). The contents: name of the dissertation, name and code of the discipline; name of the postgraduate student and the course; academic rank, degree, and name of the instructor; name of the training institution, summary of the new academic contributions, new arguments from the research findings and survey result of the dissertation, signature and full name of the postgraduate student.

m) Other documents required by the Director of the training institution.

Article 34. Peer reviewers

1. Before the Institutional Assessment Council is established, the Director of the training institution shall seek opinions from the two peer reviewers. Peer reviewers are Vietnamese or foreign scientists that are accomplished in the field into which the postgraduate student is researching, have good qualities and ethics, are reputable, and independent, and experienced.

Opinions of peer reviewers are advice for the Director of the training institution to assess the quality of the doctoral dissertation and decide to allow the postgraduate student to do dissertation defense. It is encouraged to seek opinions from peer reviewers overseas, especially the dissertations on fundamental science and technology.

2. The list of peer reviewer is a classified document of the training institution. The academic department and the instructors must not get to know peer reviewers.  Peer reviewers are responsible for secure their tasks, even after the completion of the dissertation review of when they attend the Institutional Assessment Council.

3. When both peer reviewers approve the dissertation, the Director of the training institution shall issue a decision to establish the Institutional Assessment Council. When one peer reviewer disapproves the dissertation, the Director of the training institution shall seek opinions from a third peer reviewer. If the third peer reviewer approves the dissertation, the dissertation shall be defended before the Institutional Assessment Council.

4. The dissertation shall be rejected and reassessed by the Grassroots Assessment Council if it is disapproved by the both initial reviewers or the first and the third reviewer. In this case, the dissertation must be revised and defended before the Grassroots Assessment Council. The postgraduate student may only reapply for dissertation defense after at least 06 months and no later than 02 years from the day on which the dissertation is rejected. The edited dissertation must be reviewed by the initial peer reviewers.

5. The Director of the training institution shall specify the requirements for peer reviewers: the order, selection procedure, seeking and processing opinions from peer reviewers; requirements of the relevant individuals for the confidentiality and independence of the peer reviewers.

Article 35. Assessing and defending dissertations before the Institutional Assessment Council

1. The Institutional Assessment Council consists of 7 members, including scientists that hold academic ranks and doctorate degrees, have positive moral virtues; are reputable and accomplished in the dissertations, have works relating to the fields of study of postgraduate students that are published over the last three years before being invited to the Council. At least 4 members are professors or associate professors; the members being doctors must have held their degrees for at least 3 years. No more than 3 members are personnel of the training institution.

2. The Council includes a President, a Secretary, three reviewers and members. Each Council member shall undertake one task of the Council. The President of the Council must be a competent and reputable person, hold a title of professor or associate professor in the same discipline with that of the dissertation. Reviewers must be accomplished in the dissertation and highly reputable in that field of study. Reviewers must be highly responsible for the assessment of the scientific quality of the dissertation. Reviewers are people from various units who are not direct subordinates of the postgraduate student, nor collaborators of the postgraduate student in the published works that are relating to the dissertation; nor working in the same academic department with the postgraduate student.

3. The postgraduate student’s instructors, parents, spouse, children, brothers and sisters may not participate in the Institutional Assessment Council.

4. The Director of the training institution shall specify the conditions and requirements for each position in the Institutional Assessment Council.

Article 36. Requirements and conditions for holding institutional dissertation assessment and defense

1. The Director of the training institution shall appoint sufficient personnel to serve the dissertation defense.

2. The Director of the training institution shall specify the conditions for holding the dissertation defense, ensuring that:

a) The time and location of the dissertation defense, and the name of the dissertation are publicly posted on the websites of the training institution and the Ministry of Education and Training, on the bulleting of the training institution and the academic department, on local or central newspapers before the defense at least 10 days for people concerned to study the dissertation and participate in the dissertation defense (except for classified dissertations)

b) The copies of the dissertation and dissertation summary are sent to the Council members, scientists, and science organizations according to the list decided by the Director of the training institution and displayed at the library of the training institution at least 30 days before the defense. The whole dissertation, its summary (in Vietnamese and English) and information about new academic contributions, scientific and practical arguments of the dissertations (in Vietnamese and English) must be publicly posted on the websites of the training institution and the Ministry of Education and Training (to the email [email protected]) 30 days before the defense, except for dissertations relating to National defense and security and classified dissertations;

c) Council members shall send written remarks about the dissertation to the training institution 15 days before the defense.

d) Those remarks must particularly assess the disposition of the dissertation, the contents, method, result, meaning, and reliability of results, and indicate the new arguments of the dissertation. The Director of the training institution shall specify the requirements for remarks about the dissertation made by reviewers and Council members.

3. The Council shall not hold the assessment meeting if:

a) The Council President is not present;

b) The secretary of the Council is not present;

c) The reviewers that disapprove the dissertation are not present;

d) Two Council members or more are not present;

dd) The postgraduate student receives a warning or carries a heavier penalty;

e) One of the conditions in Article 2 of this Article is not satisfied.

4. The Director of the training institution shall decide the replacement of Council members where necessary and in inevitable cases (such as Council members are going on a long-term business trip abroad, or terribly ill, or not satisfying the conditions).  The time limits relating to the activities of the Council members and the dissertation defense starts from the day on which the last decision on the replacement or addition of members of the Institutional Assessment Council is signed.

5. Within three months from the day on which the Decision on Establishment is made, the Council shall hold the dissertation assessment conference. When this deadline expires, the Council shall dismiss. After this deadline, the postgraduate student is entitled to request for the dissertation defense if the conditions in Clause 7 Article 23 and Clause 2 Article 31 of this Regulation are satisfied. The Director of the training institution shall decide to hold the dissertation defense. The procedure for dissertation defense is similar to that for the first dissertation defense.

Article 37. Organizing the dissertation defense

1. The dissertation must be defended publicly. The dissertations relating to national secrets shall be defended in accordance with Article 39 of this Regulation. The dissertation defense must be academic, ensuring the scientific ethics and principles, by which the author presents his or her competence and deep knowledge about their field of study before the Council members and the people concerned. All Council members shall carefully study the dissertation before the assessment.

The developments of the dissertation assessment meeting must be recorded in writing, especially the questions and answers of the postgraduate student to such questions. The minutes of meeting must be ratified by the whole Council and signed by the President and Secretary of the Council.

2. The dissertation shall be assessed by ballot. Council members shall only vote for or against the dissertation.  Abstentions are considered votes against the dissertation. A dissertation is accepted when it is voted for by 6/7 or 5/6 of the Council members that are present.

The Circular of the training institution shall specify the procedure and requirements for the meetings of the Council and the dissertation assessment; the assessment method; the assessment of the progress in comparison with the requirements, the research findings and dissertation presentation according to the regulations of the training institution.

3. The Council shall make a Resolution on the dissertation, specifying:

a) The voting result;

b) The fundamental scientific conclusions, new points, and new contributions of the dissertation;

c) The scientific basis, reliability of the arguments and conclusions in the dissertation;

d) The theoretical and practical meaning, recommendations for the application of the research findings of the dissertation;

dd) The defects in the contents and disposition of the dissertation;

e) The fulfillment of requirements for the dissertation;

g) Necessary revisions (if any) before the dissertation is submitted to the National Library of Vietnam;

h) Recommendations of the Council for the award of the doctorate degree.

4. The Resolution of the Council must be ratified by the Council members by public voting.

5. After the dissertation is amended according to the Resolution of the Council (if any) and the report on the amendments, the President of the Council shall check the dissertation, sign the report made by the postgraduate student, and send the dissertation to the National Library of Vietnam. The report shall be kept at the training institution.

Article 38. Redefending dissertations

1. If the dissertation is not approved by the Institutional Assessment Council, the postgraduate student may revise it and request the second dissertation defense within 24 months from the first dissertation defense.

2. The composition of the second Dissertation Assessment Council is similar to the first one. Absent members shall be replaced with other people appointed by the Director of the training institution.

3. No third dissertation defense shall be held.

4. The dissertation shall not be defended after 24 months from the first dissertation defense.

5. The Director of the training institution shall specify the procedure for second dissertation defense.

Article 39. Defending classified dissertations

1. If the research project is relating national secrets or in the list of national secrets of Ministries and state agencies, the head of such Ministries and agencies shall request the Director of the training institution to determine the confidentiality of the dissertation from the beginning as the basis for holding a classified dissertation defense, managing the documents and materials relating to the research doing the dissertation confidentially throughout the training. The decision to hold a classified dissertation defense must be made before the dissertation assessment by the Grassroots Assessment Council. The training institution shall send a report to the Ministry of Education and Training and obtain a written approval before holding a classified dissertation defense.

2. The list of the Grassroots Assessment Council and Institutional Assessment Council, the list of external personnel, the list of units and individuals that receive the dissertation and dissertation summary must be suggested by the Ministry or agency in charge of that major to the Director of the training institution.

3. When holding a classified dissertation defense, the training institution is not required to announce it in the media. The time and location of the dissertation defense is only known by the persons in charge and the authorized participants. The order of a classified dissertation defense is similar to that of open dissertation defenses.

4. The number of dissertation drafts, summaries, and the original copies must be defined and bear the “classified” seal. The documentation of the classified dissertation defense must be strictly managed according to the regulations of the State.

5. Apart from the regulations in Clause 2, 3, and 4 of this Article, the postgraduate student that defenses the classified dissertation must comply with the general regulations on postgraduate students.

Chapter VI

DISSERTATION INSPECTION AND DOCTORATE DEGREE AWARDING

Article 40. Dissertation inspection

1. At the end of even months in the year, the Director of the training institution shall send reports to the Ministry of Education and Training on dissertation defenses at the training institution. A report includes:

a) An dispatch of the training institution enclosed with the list of postgraduate students that do dissertation defenses over the last two months (the form in Appendix VI);

b) Copies of the decisions to establish Assessment Councils made by the Director of the training institution;

c) Copies of the minutes of meeting and Resolutions of each Assessment Council;

d) A report on new academic contributions and arguments of the dissertations

2. The Ministry of Education and Training shall inspect dissertations randomly or when they complaints or accusations are made, or suspicion is raised during the training or the operation of the Dissertation Assessment Council.

At least 30% of the dissertations defended in the year shall be inspected. Within 10 days from the day on which the report from the training institution is received, the Ministry of Education and Training shall issue a written notification of the dissertations that need inspection and necessary documentation.

3. At least 3 months after the defense, if the postgraduate student does not face any accusation or complaint, and is not in the inspection list of the Ministry of Education and Training, the Director of the training institution shall consider awarding the doctorate degree to the postgraduate student in accordance with the procedure in Article 43 and Article 44 of this Regulation. in the cases where inspection is necessary, the doctorate degree shall be awarded after the Director of the training institution gives a conclusion according to the opinions of the Dissertation Inspection Council in Articles 1, 2, and 3 Article 42 of this Regulation.

4. Within 60 working days from the day on which the complete documentation is received, the Ministry of Education and Training shall inspect the dossier, the training process, defense procedure, and establish a Dissertation Inspection Council if necessary.

Article 41. Dissertation Inspection Council

1. The Minister of Education and Training shall decide the establishment of the Dissertation Inspection Council. The Dissertation Inspection Council consists of 7 Vietnamese or foreign scientists that hold academic ranks and doctorate degrees, have published works relating to the dissertation over the last 3 years, are accomplished in the field of study of the postgraduate student, independent, experienced, objective and honest. The Dissertation Inspection Council includes a President, a Secretary, and members. Members of the Dissertation Inspection Council are the persons that have not participated in the Grassroots Assessment Council and the Institutional Assessment Council.

2. Before the meeting, members of the Dissertation Inspection Council shall read and make remarks about the dissertation, the success and failure of the dissertation, and conclude whether the dissertation meet the requirements of a doctoral dissertation. The meeting shall be held when at least 5 members of the Council, including the President and the Secretary, are present. The Council shall make a detailed record on the opinions, discussions, and conclusion about the dissertation. A dissertation is accepted when it is approved by three fourth of the Council members that are present.

3. Within 10 working days from the day on which the Dissertation Inspection Council gives the conclusion, the Ministry of Education and Training shall notify the inspection result to the training institution in writing. Within 02 months from the day on which the inspection result is given, the training institution shall send a written report to the Ministry of Education and Training on the decision of the Director of the training institution according to Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 Article 42 of this Regulation, together with the report of the new inspection (if any).

Article 42. Inspection result

1. For the dissertations that are accepted without requests for revisions by the Dissertation Inspection Council, the Director of the training institution shall award doctorate degrees to postgraduate students according to Article 43 and Article 44 of this Regulation.

2. For the accepted dissertations that are required to be revised by the Dissertation Inspection Council, the Institutional Assessment Council and the instructor shall consider and decide the revisions. After the postgraduate student finishes revising, the President of the Institutional Assessment Council shall check and inspect the revisions, and request the Director of the training institution to award the doctorate degree to the postgraduate student in accordance with Article 43 and Article 44 of this Regulation.

3. For the unsatisfactory dissertations, the Ministry of Education and Training shall request the Director of the training institution in writing to hold the Dissertation Assessment Council to reconsider. Depending on the assessment of the Council, the Director of the training institution shall request the postgraduate student to make revisions without doing another defense, or to revise and do another defense, or to do more research, make revisions, and do another defense.

4. A dissertation must be revised and completed within 12 months from the day on which the Institutional Assessment Council holds the meeting and makes the decision. The redefense shall be held in accordance with Article 38 of this Regulation. After the postgraduate student fulfills the requirements, the Director of the training institution shall report the results to the Ministry of Education and Training. The procedure for redefense is similar to the first defense.

5. If 30% of the dissertations of a training institution or more are not satisfactory in a year, the training institution shall be suspended from enrolment for at least one year; if 30% of the dissertations of a training institution or more are not satisfactory in two consecutive year, the training institution shall be suspended from establishing the Dissertation Assessment Council and awarding doctorate degrees for at least one year Such suspension shall be announced on the websites of the training institution and the Ministry of Education and Training. During the suspension, the training institution shall take remedial measures and report the result to the Ministry of Education and Training in order to resume the enrolment, dissertation assessment, and award of doctorate degrees.

Article 43. Completing the application for the doctorate degree

1. By the deadline for considering awarding doctorate degrees, the eligible postgraduate students according to Clause 3 Article 40 of this Regulation, shall send their dissertations and dissertations summaries (printed or digital copies) to the library of the training institution and the National Library of Vietnam, including classified dissertations and dissertations relating to National defense and security.

2. A dissertation sent to the libraries consists of two parts:

a) The dissertation in full, revised at the request of the Institutional Assessment Council (if any);

b) Documents in the institutional dissertation defense and assessment, bound with the dissertation, including:

- The Decision to establish the Institutional Assessment Council and the list of its members.

- The remarks of all Council members.

- The meeting minutes and the Resolution of the Institutional Assessment Council;

- A detailed report on the revisions of the dissertation (if any) according to the Resolution of the Institutional Assessment Council, certified by the President of the Institutional Assessment Council.

3. An application for the doctorate degree includes:

a) The minutes of the dissertation defense, questions raised by members of the Dissertation Assessment Council and participants, and answers of the postgraduate student to each of them;

b) The Resolution of the Council;

c) The remarks of all Council members, agencies, and scientists that are sent to the Council;

d) The vote counting record and assessment sheets;

dd) The remarks of the instructors;

e) The list of Council members signed by participants;

g) The note of receipt of the dissertation and dissertation summary of the National Library;

h) The journal or the photocopy of the journal that announces the date of dissertation defense (except for classified dissertation defense);

i) The print of the article about new academic contributions of the dissertation on the website of the Ministry of Education and Training;

k) Other documents required by the Director of the training institution. These documents must be kept at the training institution.

Article 44. Awarding doctorate degrees

1. The dissertations that are not subject to inspection and the dissertations that pass the inspection according to Clauses 1, 2, and 3 Article 42 of this Regulation shall be considered for the award of doctorate degrees.

2. The Director of the training institution shall inspect the training process, dissertation quality, the organization and operation of the Dissertation Assessment Council before the periodic meeting of the Science and Training Council of the training institution to approve the list of postgraduate students awarded doctorate degrees and decide to award doctorate degrees to postgraduate students.

Chapter VII

COMPLAINTS, ACCUSATIONS, INSPECTION, AND PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS

Article 45. Complaints and accusations

Organizations, individuals, and dissertation defenders may make complaints and accusations against the violations during the enrolment, training, preparation of the dissertation, dissertation defense, and dissertation assessment within 02 months from the defense.

The making and settlement of complaints and accusations shall comply with the Law on Complaints and Denunciations.

Article 46. Inspection

The Ministry of Education and Training shall inspect the doctoral training of training institutions annual according to current regulations.

The inspection shall cover the enrolment, the training management, the training program, the procedure for assessing dissertations, the award of doctorate degrees, and the settlement of complaints and accusations. The Ministry of Education and Training shall notify the inspection conclusion and suggestions to the training institution in writing.

Article 47. Penalties for violations

1. If a postgraduate student is discovered committing violations or fraud when making the application or during the enrolment, examination, study assessment, or dissertation defense, he or she shall receive a reprimand, warning, or be suspended from study, or have his or her qualification revoked, or face a criminal prosecution, depending on the seriousness of the violations.

2. The postgraduate students that violate Clause 5 Article 27 of this Regulation shall receive reprimands, warnings, or have their academic record annulled, or have the right to do dissertation defenses annulled. If the information about peer reviewers is revealed, the persons involved in the process in which the dissertation is sent to peer reviewers shall receive reprimands, warnings, or be dismissed.

3. When violations or errors are discovered during the enrolment, training, dissertation assessment, and award of doctorate degrees, the Ministry of Education and Training shall handle the case itself or request the training institution in writing to handle the case.

Chapter VIII

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 48. Organizing the implementation

1. By December 31, 2009, the Director of the training institution shall finish making and issuing the documents in Clause 1 Article 29 of this Regulation from the enrolment in February 2010, and send them to the Ministry of Education and Training. The enrolment shall not take place if the documents in Clause 1 Article 29 are not issued by the training institution.

2. By August 30 2010, all training institutions shall finish formulating their training programs and commence the postgraduate student training in accordance with the programs that are formulated according to Article 18 of this Regulation.

3. The training institutions that pass the assessment of doctoral training institutions in 2009 by the Ministry of Education and Training shall be assigned the tasks in Articles 34, 35, 36, and 43 of this Regulation after the Ministry of Education and Training certifies in writing their eligibility for each discipline.

The ineligible training institutions shall contact the eligible institutions to fulfill the obligations in Articles 34, 35, and 36 of this Regulation to their postgraduate students, and send reports to the Ministry of Education and Training.

The Ministry of Education and Training shall announce the list of eligible and ineligible training institutions in the assessment 2009.

4. The postgraduate students that defend their dissertations before the Grassroots Assessment Council before December 31, 2011 shall comply with the training program in Article 14 of the Regulation on postgraduate training promulgated together with the Decision No. 18/2000/QD-BGD&DT dated June 08, 2000 of the Minister of Education and Training. From January 2012, before defending the dissertations before the Grassroots Assessment Council, postgraduate students must meet the requirements for foreign language skills and training programs according to Article 16, 17, 18, and 22 of this Regulation.

APPENDIX I

THE PLAN FOR OPENING A DOCTORAL DISCIPLINE
(to Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

The plan for opening a doctoral discipline includes:

I. INTRODUCTION:

1) Introduction of the training institution: the establishment date; the development; achievements in training and scientific research; the decision to provide master’s training and doctoral training in the assigned disciplines. The faculty or academic department in charge of the doctoral training in this discipline.

2) The reason for opening the doctoral discipline (demand of the major, the region, the postgraduate personnel of the institution and the major, etc.)

II. TRAINING TARGETS:

1) The professional knowledge and skills provided for learners; the capacity for scientific research after the training, and the position of the learner after graduation.

2) Subjects of enrolment (positions, jobs, qualifications, fields of study, work experience, etc.)

3) Conditions for application and admission.

4) Conditions for graduation.

III. TRAINING CAPACITY AND ESTABLISHMENT OF DISSERTATION ASSESSMENT COUNCIL:

1) The tenured personnel of the faculty or the academic department of the training institution and the collaborators (form 1) enclosed with their academic profiles (form 2) and copies of their highest qualifications.

2) Equipment serving the training: laboratories, equipment (form 3), library (names of books and journals, quantity, publishers, date of publishing) (form 4), reading rooms, classrooms, academic rooms, and working rooms for postgraduate students, etc.

3) The scientific research projects relating to the discipline registered by the training institution (national, ministerial, etc.) Specific scientific research projects, date of conduction, date of assessment, and assessment records (form 5).

4) The research orientations, the research projects in progress, the capacity for admitting postgraduate students, and the number of postgraduate students could be admitted annually; full names of instructors of every research projects (form 6).

5) The summaries of published works of the academic personnel of the faculty or the academic department over the last 5 years (form 7).

6) The reports on the science conferences and conventions that have been held since doctoral training was first provided (form 8).

III. TRAINING PROGRAMS AND PLANS

1) The training institution shall make a list of the doctoral modules that are suitable for the research projects according to Articles 16, 17, and 18 of this Regulation.

2) When the postgraduate student that has not have a master’s degree is admitted by a research institute, such institute shall make a plan for sending such postgraduate student to a university that provides doctoral training in the corresponding discipline for the him or her to do master’s modules.

3) The training plan.

IV. ESTIMATE OF THE TRAINING COST (specify the proportion funded by the State budget and other sources such as scientific research, projects, etc.)

Form 1: Personnel of the training institution (tenured personnel and collaborators of the training institution shall be listed in separate tables)

Form 2:

ACADEMIC PROFILE

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

Full name:                                                         Gender:

Date of birth:                                                    Birthplace:

Hometown:                                                       Ethnic group:

Highest degree: Year of degree awarding: Academic rank (professor, associate professor, etc.)   Year of recognition or designation: Position (current or before retirement):

Employer (current or before retirement):                  Home address:

Phone number:  Workplace:                               Home:

Fax:                              Cell phone:

E-mail:

II. TRAINING PROCESS

1. University:

Major:                                                               Training form:

Training place:                                                   Year of graduation:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Second bachelor’s degree:                                  Major:

Training place:                                                   Year of graduation:

2. Postgraduate education:

- Master’s degree in:                            Awarding year:                        Training place:

- Doctorate degree in:

Training place:                                                   Awarding year:

- Name of the highest dissertation:

3. Foreign language:

1. Level:

2. Level:

III. WORK EXPERIENCE

IV. Research findings

1. Participated scientific research projects:

2. Published scientific works (scientific articles, science conventions reports, monographs, etc):                              (name, year of publishing, publishing media, etc.)

Form 3: Equipment for doctoral training

Form 4: Library

Form 5: Scientific research projects (relating to the registered discipline) done by the training institution (enclosed with a list and copies of decisions and finalization records)

Form 6: Research orientations, fields of study or research topics that need recruiting postgraduate students in … [school year] and the number of admitted postgraduate students

Form 7: Published works of academic personnel of the faculty or academic department over the last 5 years

Form 8: Academic conferences and conventions that have been held since doctoral training was first provided

APPENDIX II

REQUIREMENT FOR THE ESSAY ON THE RESEARCH INTENTION OF THE CANDIDATE AND THE CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING CANDIDATES
(to Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

I. REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ESSAY ON THE RESEARCH INTENTION OF THE CANDIDATE:

The essay on the intended research must reflect the intelligence, the strength and positive qualities of the writer, expressed in a plain and clear writing style, and provide an evident image of the candidate with new information (do not repeat the information found in the profile such as study records, etc.) The essay consists of 3 – 4 pages, including:

1. The reasons for choosing the topic or the field of study.

2. The intended target when applying for postgraduate student training.

3. The reason for choosing the training institution (where the candidate applies)

4. The intentions and plans for achieving targets.

5. Experience (of research, practice, other social and extracurricular activities); knowledge, understanding, and preparation of the candidate for the intended research, which reflect the difference of the candidate in the previous study and the gained experience.  The explanation for weaknesses (if any) in the profile such as unimpressive bachelor’s or master’s result, etc.

6. Intended jobs and future researches after graduation.

7. Suggested instructors (if any).

II. CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING CANDIDATES

Members of academic committee shall use interview questions to assess the personality, intelligence, the clarity of ideas of candidates as well as their goals after the doctoral training program is completed, the feasibility of their plans for achieving such goals, and necessary attributes of a postgraduate student, such as:

1. The seriousness of the purposes (following doctoral training programs).

2. Intelligence (for following doctoral training program).

3. Aspiration for knowledge (about the field of study into which the candidate wishes to research).

4. Creativity (expressing the way of thinking of the candidate when solving problems in his or her field of study).

5. Adaptability (ability to adopt new ideas, adapt to new people, and new conditions).

6. Maturity (showing that the candidate is responsible and reliable).

7. Sociability (to participate in activities).

8. Confidence (in resolving difficulties and challenges)

9. Work management (ability to do multiple works simultaneously).

10. Persistence (ability to pursue a work until it finishes; this is especially important for the programs that require doctoral dissertations).

11. Leadership (ability to inspire other people to work together and achieve common targets).

12. Teamwork skills.

13. Risk acceptability (ability to deal with risky situations to reach targets).

14. Optimism (ability to find positive aspects of seemingly negative situations).

15. Negotiation skills (ability to moderate opposite ideas or to debate with other people or with himself or herself).

16. Fortitude (ability to face and overcome serious problem in life)./.

APPENDIX III

 COMMON EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK OF REFERENCE FOR LANGUAGES – CEF
(enclosed with the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

This Common European Framework is the basis for elaborating programs, providing guidance, giving tests, compiling textbooks, etc. across Europe.

Source: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Council of Europe - Strasbourg, 2001.

APPENDIX IV

REPORT ON ENROLMENT RESULT
(To the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

To: The Ministry of Education and Training

POSTGRADUATE STUDENT ENROLMENT REPORT IN …

Report contents:

- Information about applications (quantity, disciplines, jobs, application quality, etc.)

- The organization of recruitment (the establishment of academic committees, their activities, their quality and efficiency during the recruitment, etc.)

- Overall assessment of the postgraduate student enrolment in the year (target achievement, quality of admitted postgraduate students, etc), suggestions and recommendations (if any). Attachments:

- Decisions to admit postgraduate students.

- The report on postgraduate student recruitment according to the table below:

SUMMARY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDENT SELECTION IN …

APPENDIX V

REPORT ON ANNUAL POSTGRADUATE STUDENT TRAINING
(to the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

To: The Ministry of Education and Training

REPORT ON POSTGRADUATE STUDENT TRAINING IN …

I. Number of current postgraduate students:

II. New enrolment plan in 20… :

(The report and table are made in accordance with current regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training on setting enrolment targets)

III. Report on new research orientations and instructors serving the new enrolment plan:

APPENDIX VI

LIST OF POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS THAT DO DISSERTATION DEFENSE IN TWO MONTHS
(to the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

LIST OF POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS THAT DO DISSERTATION DEFENSE IN TWO MONTHS

From … to …

APPENDIX VII

LIST OF AWARDED POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS

(after the Director of the training institution makes decisions to award doctorate degrees)

(to the Circular No. 10/2009/TT-BGDDT dated May 07, 2009 of the Ministry of Education and Training)

To: The Ministry of Education and Training

LIST OF AWARDED POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS

Date: