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Postgraduate Researchers: Submitting your Thesis

Finding information
Submitting your Thesis
Copyright and your thesis
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Guidance and Support

1. Preparing your thesis for deposit in the library

After passing your viva, you will receive a 'next steps' email from the Doctoral College. This will include the Deposit of and Access to a Thesis form .

Your Faculty Library Team will be in touch to ask for a copy of the form and your thesis. They will discuss any issues with third party copyright with you.

If you are submitting an integrated thesis check our additional guidance .

2. Depositing your thesis

You will need to send your thesis to the faculty library team via butransfer . You will also need to send a signed Word version of your Deposit of and Access to a Thesis Form to your Faculty Library Team .

If your thesis is going to be restricted as it contains sensitive or confidential information, your Deposit of and Access to a Thesis Form will need to have been signed by the Dean of your faculty. If you wish to take this step you should first discuss with your supervisor.

If you are submitting an integrated thesis check our additional guidance .

This example of a completed Deposit of and Access to a Thesis form will help you with your form, especially if you are submitting an integrated thesis.

3. After depositing your thesis

Your thesis will be added to BURO , BU’s research repository, and will be accessible via EThOS (the British Library’s e-thesis online service). As well as your thesis, you are encouraged to deposit each of your research outputs into BURO as it is a publisher friendly repository, and compliant with copyright legislation and licence agreements.

You research data is made avaialable on BORDaR, and you should deposit your data from your research at the same time as your thesis.

Theses are made available Open Access. Having your research outputs in an Open Access repository enhances your profile as an early career researcher and helps maximise the impact of your work.

Depositing your integrated thesis

1. Preparing your integrated thesis for deposit in the library

If you are submitting an integrated thesis you should arrange to see a member of your library team as soon as you have completed your viva, if you have not already done so. You should follow the process outlined above, with the additional steps:

In preparing your integrated thesis for deposit you need to fill out section B of the Deposit of and Access to a Thesis Form with all the details requested for any publication style material which is being included in your thesis.

It is important that you indicate any works which have not yet been accepted for publication,

We need to have full citations for any published works including any other authors who have collaborated with you.

2. Depositing your integrated thesis

Your thesis will be checked for use of third party copyright.

Your references may be formatted in a variety of styles according to the publication guidelines of the individual works included in your thesis. You do not need to repeat references at the end of your thesis that appear within those self-contained works (articles) or chapters.

3. After depositing your integrated thesis.

To help your research have maximum impact we make your thesis available open access on our repository, BURO .

If any of the publication style material in your thesis should not be made available in this way you will need to complete section C of the form, and have permission from the Dean of the Faculty.

Your Faculty Library Team will be happy to help and advice you with this,

BU's research degrees guidance

BU's Research degree process webpage
BU's 8a Code of Practice for Research Degrees
BU webpage: Research degree process
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Last Updated: May 3, 2024 2:36 PM
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Bournemouth University

Student Blog

How i became tiga’s graduate of the year.

What attracted you to study in BU?

I got to know about BU from a local education fair in Dubai. Studying games as a degree and pursuing it as a career has been a long-time passion for me since I was a child. Knowing that studying abroad would provide me with better opportunities, I felt that the UK would be the perfect choice for me for its high-quality education and multiculturalism. Bournemouth as a town in particular attracted me for being touristic and having an international community, factors that I am already familiar with being born and raised in the U.A.E.

What stood out to you during your time on the course?

Studying in BU gave me opportunities to develop all-round skills; from learning game design principles, to programming, animation, 3D modelling, and even learning business management. It allowed me to explore what I’d like to do, and get involved with ideas I was keen to work on while learning a professional workflow. Prior to university, I felt uncertain of certain modules such as programming, fearing that I wouldn’t be good at them, or dislike them, but now I’ve come to become more comfortable with them.

Examples of projects

Another project I worked on in my first year, is a retro-style action game called ‘Death Upon You’. I was inspired by the boss levels in Super Mario Bros. against Bowser. I thought it would be different to have the player control a villain instead and fight against the heroes.

My dissertation and TIGA award

What I learned for the future

University has allowed me to feel more confident in taking opportunities, and meet people from different backgrounds and skillsets which has given me some versatility. Studying in a different country was definitely a life-changing experience! If you’re considering or pursuing games as a degree, take a shot at learning everything that comes to you, you may end up liking it like I did! As a woman coming from a more traditional background, I have faced challenges around me for wanting to pursue a degree that was/is considered to be male-oriented. The industry is ever-changing and is slowly becoming more welcoming to everyone. If you have the drive for it, don’t give up and go for it!

Find out more

BSc (Hons) Games Design

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Research Ethics

How to apply for a formal ethics review.

To START the formal ethics review, you need to complete an Online Ethics Checklist . Log in using your University credentials and click on ‘ Create’ to begin.

You must not start your research data collection activity or approach your research participants UNTIL you have completed an online ethics checklist and the checklist has been AUTHORISED online. Research ethics forms an integral part of proper scientific conduct, which we expect all staff and students to adhere to.

General Information

Completing the Online Ethics Checklist

Before completing the checklist you should read:

Research Ethics Code of Practice Code of Good Research Practice

Guidance on how to complete the online ethics checklist:

Postgraduate Research Students
Undergraduate and Postgraduate Taught Students

Completing the online ethics checklist:

Section 1: Researcher/Project Details

The summary should be no more than 500 words and written clearly and free from jargon. Please explain any technical terms or discipline-specific phrases. Do not attach a research protocol in place of completing the summary section.
Briefly outline the overall aim of your research and brief justification for undertaking the research. Please explain your main method(s) e.g. survey, interviews, observation (overt or covert), focus group or lab based tests (this not an exhaustive list).
Briefly outline any ethical issues but note that if you intend to involve human participants , you will be prompted to address anticipated ethical issues as you work through the checklist (section 3). If you are not working with human participants or their data there may be other ethical considerations such as managing risks of research misuse ?

Section 2: Filter Questions

The questions that appear in Section 3 are based on the filter questions you select, so it is important that you select only those filter questions that are relevant to your project. However, do not avoid filter questions to side-step answering questions relevant to your research!
Click on the help guides if you are unsure if a question applies to your research or not.

Section 3: My Research

The questions appear in ‘blocks’ and all questions within a block must be completed. Please remember to save any new information given before moving in-between sections. The PDF checklist is generated based on the answers you give to the questions in Section 3. This is the document Reviewers will download to assess the ethical viability of your project.

Section 4: Attachments/Researcher Statement

Do not forget to download the correct version of PI Sheet Template and Participant Agreement Form template .
Remember that throughout the online ethics checklist, you will find help guides by clicking information icon.

Points to remember

If you intend to conduct interviews/focus groups (any other face to face activities with participants) , please make sure you attach a Participant Information Sheet (PI Sheet) and Participant Agreement Form (PAF), any recruitment adverts, interview protocol, observation schedules or debrief information sheets to your checklist. If you are conducting a survey, attach a copy of the questions.

PI Sheet/PAF templates are available, so please make sure you download an up to date version every time you submit a checklist for a new project. If you’re seeking an Amendment, you may need to consider whether a revised PI Sheet/PAF is required.

Gatekeepers: If you need to use a gatekeeper to access participants, please confirm who the Gatekeeper is and their involvement. You should obtain a written agreement from the Gatekeeper, which clarifies their role & responsibilities and which should contain an acknowledgement that they support the research. Confirmation needs to be agreed before data collection commences .

Referral Services: If it is explicit in your participant information that you intend to refer participants to third party referral services e.g. the Samaritans, the referral service should be informed of the planned research activity before the data collection starts; this is both courteous and professional. Confirmation that this will be done should be made clear within the summary when completing the checklist.

Questionnaire/Online Surveys: When conducting survey/questionnaires the questionnaire should be designed to include a short version of the PI Sheet (preamble) to be used for informing participants about the ethical dimensions of your questionnaire/survey. You should ensure that their consent to participate is recorded (particularly if collecting personal information). There is a template available to download and adapt.

Recruitment Materials: Attach a copy of correspondence you intend to distribute e.g. poster, recruitment email etc. Remember you must display the Ethics ID on any flyers, posters or social media posts.

Keeping your information secure

The University's Data Protection website has information on Data Protection and Research , Privacy Notices, Information Security and much more..... Some highlights are given below:

Guidance on keeping you and BU safe and other useful guidance and policies on protection against unauthorised recording, access, use, disclosure, modification, loss or destruction of information. If you intend to use mobile devices – please refer to the Mobile Device Security Guide (staff version) or Mobile Device Security Guide (student version).
Recognise a data breach – A data breach is a security incident in which information is accessed without authorisation. If you’re ever concerned about a potential data breach at BU, it’s important to call the IT Service Desk as quickly as possible on 01202 965515 (option 1). See Policy for more details.
If you’re collecting data outside of the UK, you need to be aware of restrictions regarding the transfer of data to and from the UK. To help navigate this complicated area of law, there is a useful website https://www.dlapiperdataprotection.com (made available from DLA Piper) which compares data protection laws from around the world; for the transfer of data please click on the tab ‘Transfer’.
Familiarise yourself with the different Information Classification Types (also see flow chart ) so you know the correct handling procedures.

Useful links on the anonymisation of data and the use of anonymised data:

Guidance from the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

https://ico.org.uk/media/1061/anonymisation-code.pdf

Guidance from the UK Data Service:

https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/manage-data/legal-ethical/anonymisation/
https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/manage-data/legal-ethical/anonymisation/qualitative

Guidance from the UK Anonymisation Network (UKAN):

The Anonymisation Decision-Making Framework

Specific Information

Additional information for staff.

The Review and Approval Process

All Research ethics checklists are reviewed and approved by an appropriate central research ethics panel :

Please note: If you are a member of staff registered on a part-time PhD and you are seeking approval for research in relation to your PhD, please complete the checklist as a Postgraduate Researcher and not a member of Staff. The review and approval process for postgraduate research will apply.

OEC workflow process - low risk projects
OEC workflow process - high risk projects

General Information:

The system identifies risk by the responses you give to the questions raised in the checklist.

What to expect when completing the checklist – this guide provides an overview of the questions you will be prompted to answer.

You must n ot start your research data collection activity UNTIL you have completed an online ethics checklist and the checklist has been APPROVED .

Post Ethics Review

We have guidance on how to manage your study files, how to apply for an Amendment, should you need to change your research protocol, project dates etc and the monitoring of research projects.

Additional Information for Postgraduate Research Students

You must not start your research data collection activity or approach your research participants UNTIL you have gone through the ethics review process (this usually means completing an online ethics checklist, receiving a Favourable Opinion (from the Reviewers) and the checklist has been APPROVED online.

Your checklist is automatically sent to the supervisor you selected to check before proceeding for further review. (At this stage, the status of your checklist will change to ' submitted ').

Your checklist is initially reviewed by your Supervisor and they can send the checklist back to you if questions have not been answered correctly or you have not attached supporting study documentation such as an participant information sheet, participant agreement form or questionnaire. If your Supervisor returns the checklist to you online, comments will be included in the email notification from 'research ethics'. (At this stage the status of your checklist will change to ' open '). If you need to reply to the automated email (e.g. if you have a question about the comments made), please click 'reply all' , so that your Supervisor is copied into your response (if their email address is missing - add it, as they need to be able to respond to your enquiry).

When your Supervisor is happy with the checklist and supporting documents, they will either:

forward your checklist for ‘low risk’ projects onto an appropriate departmental Ethics Champion (at this stage the status of your checklist will change to ' reviewed ') OR
forward your checklist for ‘high risk’ projects onto an appropriate central research ethics panel (REP) (at this stage the status of your checklist will change to ' forwarded ')

What happens when your checklist is forwarded to one of the two central research ethics panels?

Panels are operating normally but online via Teams

You will be invited to attend a Panel meeting and you should be accompanied by a member of your Supervisory Team (usually your first supervisor). Once the Panel is ready we will add you to the meeting so please ensure you are online.

Panel meetings are informal and you will be asked questions about your ethics checklist project. You will be expected to demonstrate an awareness and engagement with research ethics principles and attending Panel allows for clarification on points of uncertainty and aids the review process.

Time management - plan ahead - ethics approval can take between 2 - 6 weeks

The system identifies risk by the responses you give to the questions raised in the checklist.
If you know it's going be identified as high risk, make sure you build in sufficient time to allow for the review process into your research timetable – plan ahead!
OEC workflow process - high risk projects
OEC workflow process - low risk projects
The system identifies risk by the responses you give to the questions raised in the checklist.

You must not start your research data collection activity UNTIL you have gone through the ethics review process and completed an online ethics checklist and the checklist has been APPROVED .

Additional Information for Undergraduate & Postgraduate Taught Students

You must not start your research data collection activity or approach your research participants UNTIL you have completed an online ethics checklist and the checklist has been APPROVED.

Your checklist is automatically sent to the supervisor you selected to check before proceeding for further review. (At this stage, the status of your checklist will change to ' submitted ').

Your Supervisor can send the checklist back if questions have not been answered correctly or you have not attached the correct paperwork (e.g. participant information sheet, participant agreement form or questionnaire). When your Supervisor is satisfied that the checklist is complete, they will:

approve ‘Low risk’ projects (at this stage the status of your checklist will change to ' approved ')
forward ‘High risk’ projects to designated Ethics Programme Team (at this stage the status of your checklist will change to ' forwarded ').

What happens when my checklist is forwarded to an Ethics Programme Team?

Your checklist will undergo an additional review. Teams can send the checklist back for further changes if they consider questions have not been adequately addressed.

Time management - plan ahead - ethics approval can take up to 2 weeks

See Review & Approval Flowchart

The system identifies risk by the responses you give to the questions raised in the checklist.

You must not start your research data collection activity UNTIL you have completed an online ethics checklist and the checklist has been APPROVED .

Once your online ethics checklist has been APPROVED, the online form cannot be edited. If your project changes as you progress, you need to consider whether your current ethics approval is still relevant. If you need to make changes, these changes need to be approved. Click the link ' post ethics review ' for information on how to submit an Amendment Request Form.

Bournemouth University

BU Research Blog

Latest research and knowledge exchange news at Bournemouth University

Developing Your Proposal

< Return to the R esearch Lifecycle

Support for developing your proposal for external funding is provided by the Funding Development Team in RDS. We are a team of Research Facilitators (with funder specialism for major funders, UK, international and industrial collaboration), and Faculty-focused Funding Development Officers. We can assist with all aspects of developing your proposal to increase your chance of success.

Research and knowledge exchange development framework.

The RKE development framework offers a range of opportunities for BU academics to develop their skills, knowledge and capabilities in relation to research and knowledge exchange through thematic pathways. Details of workshops, on-line support, writing retreats, funder visits, and many more activities can be found here .

Initiative pathways include:

Peer Review

All Faculties have their own peer review system in place, which is explained on the Intention to Bid Form . Check what this is with your Faculty FDO.

Successful Application Library

These applications have resulted in successfully funded bids and have been made available to Bournemouth University staff with the aim of assisting them with their future applications. Please be especially mindful that requirements of grant proposals and schemes may have changed since these proposals were submitted, it is essential that you always consult the latest funder guidelines for information on current requirements for applications.

To view the documents within the Application Library please click on the titles/headings within the library.

The Application Library is presently being updated with further applications however there are currently still plenty for you to view. Please note the following usage policy: The examples are for use by Bournemouth University members of staff only and Principal Investigators have given their approval to share their applications on this basis. (Please also note: Any information that is deemed confidential in these documents has been deleted)

RDS provide an induction to new to BU academics and researchers. This covers a broad range of topics, which includes but is not exclusive to: an overview of RDS; research funding opportunities; developing – research plans, networks; ethics, outputs; and how to apply for funding at BU. The next induction will take place on 19th October 2022. If you wish to attend then please book through the OD pages .

Bournemouth University Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) is a model for supporting and conducting health related research in Dorset. It supports researchers in improving the quality, quantity and efficiency of research across the University and local National Health Service (NHS) Trusts. BUCRU is partly funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Research Design Service (RDS) to provide support to researchers in developing grant applications in the area of health and social care aimed at national peer reviewed competitions.

BUCRU can provide support in the following areas: Methodology collaboration, including statistics; Patient and public involvement; Identifying and linking collaborators; Advice on writing grant applications; Mock funding panel for providing feedback; Grant application workshop; Residential Research Retreat. Please contact them for more information.

Support for developing your proposals include:

We have dedicated Research Facilitators, who are currently faculty-facing, but will change to funder-focus as of August 2022 (see below). Their focus is to identify potential funding opportunities through horizon scanning and cascade these across BU; and within their funder specialisms – provide support to researchers to develop their bids through building research teams (including external collaborators as well as inter/multi-disciplinary teams within BU) and, advising on bid content and structure to ensure a high-quality bid is submitted to external funders. Support for all other types of bids will be provided through Faculty Leadership and Research Mentors.

From August 2022, all Research Facilitators will have a funder focus, as follows. The current post titles will change to ‘Research Facilitator for…’:

NIHR : National Institute for Health and Care Research
Medical Research Council (MRC – UKRI)
Natural Environment Research Council (NERC – UKRI), and
Wellcome Trust
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC – UKRI)
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC – UKRI)
The British Academy
The Leverhulme Trust
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) central funding (i.e., not targeted to a specific research council)
Innovate UK
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC – UKRI)
The Royal Society
Research England (UKRI)
Major infrastructure funds
Support for funding from the proposed Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) will be determined in due course.
European Union – Horizon Europe
European Research Council
National Institute of Health (NIH – US)
Other international funding opportunities

Contacts for each post will be confirmed in June.

We also have Funding Development Officers (FDO) who will assist with all operational aspects of the pre-award process, to include checking eligibility and funder guidance, advising on timescales, costing and pricing, producing pre-award contractual documentation, institutional approval and proposal submission. So, if you have an idea about what you want to apply for, contact your FDO and we’ll kick start the process. Find out more about us here including who your FDO is for your Faculty.

Useful documents for application preparation :

Intention to Bid Form – this is mandatory for any application for funding. The form should be completed and submitted to the Funding Development Team as soon as you are aware that you will be applying for funding.
RKE Application timeline – this sets out each of the BU processes that an application will need to go through, including Legal Services review and adherence to BU financial regulations.
Sample costs for applications (external) – RDS FDT will always provide actual costs for all applications. However, to enable you to complete the intention to bid form, we have provided a broad guide on estimated costs.
BUs guide to full economic costing FAQ – this guide will help you understand the TRAC methodology approach used in all HEIS in calculating the true economic costs of research projects
Full economic cost thresholds – this sets out the fEC thresholds that external bids must meet in order for a bid to financially viable and supported for submission by BU approvers.
Maximising income in R&KE activity – this guide will help you understand how to ensure your externally funded R&KE bid/award maximises the income that BU could receive through externally funded awards, helping to shape a sustainable research environment at BU.

The research blog contains a wealth of information on writing a good proposal. There is a research toolkit , which contains information on research ethics and tips on research council applications , such as how to write: a research/lay summary ; case for support ; impact statement ; justification of resources ; data management plan ; and ethics .

>Proceed to stage 3 – Research Process