PhD by Thesis

TUITION & FEES:

Tuitions and fees (non-refundable) for the international university online programmes provided in English are invoiced in EURO and are for the entire programme

Tuition for Distance Educational Programmes for Instruction Not in Real Time.
ACCREDITING AGENCIES:

• General Education Law, Law No.582 (system of higher education)
• National Council of Universities CNU for institutional authorisation of universities before they achieve autonomy by Act of Law No. 89 Law on Autonomy of Institutions of Higher Education: UCN is a fully autonomous university with full and recognised degree awarding authority
• National Council for Evaluation and Accreditation of the National System for Quality Assurance in Education CNEA, Law No. 704 (Currently UCN is in the Quality Assurance process with the CNEA)
• Federal Ministry of Science and Research (BMWF, 2012-2015), Vienna, Austria, for approval and registration of UCN programmes provided in Austria by UCN European Programmes in compliance with Austrian federal Law on Quality Assurance in Higher Education – currently approved and registered by Quality Assurance and Accreditation Agency AQ Austria as legally provided in Austria according to § 27 of the Austrian Act on Quality Assurance in Higher Education, HS-QSG, BGBl. I Nr. 74/2011 as amended (2015-)
• UCN is a member of ODAEE the Organisation of the Americas for Excellence in Education and the IAU International Association of Universities.
• UCN is a member of the IAU International Association of Universities and also listed in the International Handbook of recognized universities.
• UCN is a member of CHEA (Council on Higher Education Accreditation) International Quality Group CIQG (USA)

PhD by Thesis

The PhD is a research doctorate, requiring course-work beyond the Master´s level plus research and dissertation contributing to theory or practice in relation to the discipline as well as to development of professional practice by contributing to field-specific knowledge and hence impact practice beyond research.
List of programmes in this category of research thesis doctorates

• Administración y Gerencia de Empresas, Finanzas, Business Administration and Management, Finance
• Psicología, Psychology
• Ciencia Ambiental y Gestión Ambiental, Environmental Science and Environmental Management
• Ciencias de la Salud, Health Sciences
• Psicología, Psychology
• Educación, Education

Dissertation Thesis

1. The range of themes for theses, their extent and particulars, as well as the requirements for theses are announced by the University based on the proposals examining committee for the thesis examination.
2. A doctoral thesis is a monothematic work which brings about new findings, it is not a compilation of literature, as a rule it presents personal original research pursued by the Applicant.
3. In general, the thesis is written in Spanish language. An Applicant of different nationality or a foreign Applicant shall ask the admission commission for a possibility to write the thesis in a foreign language. In case of available language capacity the admission commission shall approve the request. A thesis written in a language other than Spanish or English shall include a summary written in Spanish or English language in extent of up to 10 pages.
   
   According to available enrolments and tutoring capacities particularly the following study languages are approved: Spanish, English, German.
4. The use of Master-theses or doctoral theses having already been used for the award of an academic degree is not allowed. The Applicant cannot submit as a rigorous thesis his/her diploma thesis or any other qualification thesis, neither the work of a compilation character. The University can accept a prior dissertation and doctorate only for the purpose of revalidation of the degree in order to award the equivalent degree.
5. The Applicant submits to the examining committee the thesis. The thesis has to be written in text editor, printed and bound in hard cover. Upon request of the Applicant or order recommendation of the examination committee the submission of an electronic version is permitted. Two hardcopy editions of the thesis must be sent to the University.
6. To evaluate a thesis the examining committee nominates at least one staff member possessing the “assistant professor” or “professor” title or the academic title PhD, Dr. or an equivalent degree at doctoral level. The evaluator/s are appointed by the examining committee.
7. The evaluator first evaluates the methodological aspect of the thesis. In the event of the positive evaluation, the thesis shall be evaluated from a specialized, subject-specific perspective. Positive evaluations of the thesis are necessary preconditions for the invitation of the Applicant to the thesis defence and examination.
8. The nominated evaluator shall submit to the examining committee within 60 days from the delivery of the thesis to the evaluator the evaluation of the thesis in which s/he shall state if the thesis does or does not meet the requirements determined by the examining committee and this given study plan. In the evaluation the evaluator shall also present comments on the content of the thesis and, in conclusion of the evaluation, state if s/he does or does not recommend the thesis for the oral defence, or if s/he recommends to rewrite the thesis.
9. In the event that the evaluator does not recommend the thesis for the defence, the Applicant can rewrite the thesis and resubmit it for evaluation on the next deadline for theses submission as determined by the examining committee. If s/he fails to submit the thesis on the given deadline s/he shall be excluded from the registration of Applicants for examinations and thesis defences. The Applicant can ask the examining committee in writing for the extension of the thesis submission deadline not more than twice.
10. Within the six months from the thesis submission before the thesis examination the examining committee shall notify the Applicant in writing of the place, date and time of the online-examination and at the same time notify him/her the result of the evaluation of the thesis.
11. Precondition of the invitation to the thesis defence and examination is the positive evaluator evaluation.

Entry Requirements:

Graduate degree plus MBA, MA, MSc, MPhil or equivalent Master or Postgraduate Degree qualification or first cycle degree entitling the holder in the the country of award to enroll directly in doctoral research programmes at the MPhil level.

Individual requirements:

Individual admission evaluation and eligibility assessment is required.
After completion of coursework, examinations and written research the thesis (dissertation or comprehensive project report) is defended by the candidate before the panel of examiners.

The total workload of the PhD in corresponds with equivalence of three years of study or 180 ECTS credits.

Students must focus on a specialisation or interdisciplinary research. The study area must be offered by UCN as doctoral programme.

THESIS: Two hardcopies of a thesis must be shipped to the following mailing address:

Universidad Central de Nicaragua UCN
Semaforos del Zumen 3 C. abajo (oeste), 1 C. al lago (norte)
+ 505 2279-1160 + 505 2269-3103
Lic. Danilo Avendaño Martínez
Dirección de Relaciones Públicas e Internacionales
Coordinador de Programas Internacionales
Universidad Central de Nicaragua UCN

PhD by Prior Output

Doctorate by Publication
A doctorate for scientific publications is possible in compliance with the exclusion clause of doctorate by thesis, as far as this procedure is provided in the particular plans and programmes of study and the conditions thereof are regulated by these plans and programmes.

This is not a short cut to a PhD, however offered to recognised busy researchers and full time professionals who have been publishing academic work or the equivalent. The PhD by Publication, Prior Output or Achievement is quite common among British Universities, having introduced this doctorate to academia.

The PhD by Prior Output aims to demonstrate that the work submitted is of high distinction, does constitute an original and significant contribution to the advancement of knowledge or to the application of knowledge or to both, and does establish that the applicant is a leading authority in the field or fields of study concerned, and that the work put forward is already ‘published’. 

The objective is not to review all of an applicant’s published output, but a selection that presents a substantial coherence and linked original contribution. The PhD by Prior Output should be as original and coherent as a conventional PhD degree. The work presented should be already ‘published’ work, open to critical academic peer scrutiny, including written publications in peer reviewed refereed journals and/or published under an academic or University Press, academic publisher, monographs from an academic press, official reports for organisations, portfolios of creative works, or alike. The submitted work presents an original contribution to knowledge and will include work that has been published recently. The submission should be conceived of as adding to a current debate. The publications should emphasise a common academic research area, with a reasonable core argument, and must be original, research-based, of doctoral thesis quality and embedded in an academic discourse.

Applicants can submit published work for examination only after a minimum period of six months from enrolment.

The doctoral degree of PhD by Prior Output is awarded by UCN after the successful presentation of prior output and a covering document of 10,000 to 15,000 words, and an examination. The covering document should contextualise the prior output, demonstrate that it constitutes a coherent entity, and underline the independent and original contribution to knowledge achieved.

Tuitions

Tuitions vary by the duration of programme (short or regular) and the single or dual degree options.
Tuitions are due in full with enrolment for the complete programme.

Refund policy

Tuitions are due in full with enrolment. Once the programme has started (tuitions collected) no tuitions will be repaid. Students, who do not pay tuitions after admission are not enrolled.

Degree Regulations

The applicable degree regulations for DBA and postgraduate degree programmes of UCN apply.

Duration and workload of a course

Successful completion of a course with a workload of 6 ECTS credits is estimated to be approximately 150 hours. Students should allocate approximately eight hours a week for reading, personal study, completion of reflection activities and submission of assignments. There is one marked assignment per module. Courses are offered on a part-time basis and are designed to be completed within four months. The asynchronic e-learning mode of the programme allows students to proceed at their own pace. Official study time for the short Executive DBA programme is two years (120 ECTS), and three years (180 ECTS) for the regular DBA programme.

Study language

The programme is conducted in English or German. English or German proficiency is required for the DBA programme.

Student Support

The programme is administered and provided by UCN European Programmes. Students are eligible for UCN European Programmes student support regarding tutoring and assistance in the programme.

Examination Criteria (Dublin Descriptors) are Qualifications that signify completion of the third cycle are awarded to students who:

• have demonstrated a systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of the skills and methods of research associated with that field;
• have demonstrated the ability to conceive, design, implement and adapt a substantial process of research with scholarly integrity;
• have made a contribution through original research that extends the frontier of knowledge by developing a substantial body of work, some of which merits national or international refereed publication;
• are capable of critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas;
• can communicate with their peers, the larger scholarly community and with society in general about their areas of expertise;
• can be expected to be able to promote, within academic and professional contexts, technological, social or cultural advancement in a knowledge based society;

Terms:
The word ‘professional’ is used in the descriptors in its broadest sense, relating to those attributes relevant to undertaking work or a vocation and that involves the application of some aspects of advanced learning. It is not used with regard to those specific requirements relating to regulated professions. The latter may be identified with the profile / specification.

The word ‘competence’ is used in the descriptors in its broadest sense, allowing for gradation of abilities or skills. It is not used in the narrower sense identified solely on the basis of a ‘yes/no’ assessment.

The word ‘research’ is used to cover a wide variety of activities, with the context often related to a field of study; the term is used here to represent a careful study or investigation based on a systematic understanding and critical awareness of knowledge. The word is used in an inclusive way to accommodate the range of activities that support original and innovative work in the whole range of academic, professional and technological fields, including the humanities, and traditional, performing, and other creative arts. It is not used in any limited or restricted sense, or relating solely to a traditional 'scientific method'.

Third Cycle Qualifications