Thesis examination and outcomes

The big day has arrived, and you receive the outcome of your thesis examination. Hopefully it’s a time of celebration. However, there are a wide range of possible outcomes, all of which have been carefully considered by the chair of examination and the faculty committee. Below is an explanation of the examination process, and each possible outcome. 

Examination process

The examination process is administered through the Research Education Candidature System (RECS). RECS allows you to track the progress of your examination. If you have concerns with delays, contact HDRAC for an update. 

When the examiners’ reports are returned, they will be reviewed by your lead supervisor and the chair of examination. If required, your head of school or postgraduate coordinator may be consulted.

The chair of examination will provide a recommendation of outcome to the relevant committee. The committee will then review all the relevant information and confirm the recommended outcome or make a different decision. HDRAC will then notify you of the outcome in writing. 

Examination outcomes

There are 5 possible outcomes from a thesis examination: 2 ‘award outcomes’, where your degree is awarded to you; and 3 ‘non-award’ outcomes.

Award outcomes

Award without conditions or corrections

If your thesis has been accepted with no corrections, you will be sent copies of your examiners’ reports and prompted through RECS to lodge your thesis with the University of Sydney Library.

Award with corrections

You will be informed of the examination outcome and provided with copies of the examiners’ reports, which will include a detailed description of required corrections. You will be given a deadline for completion of the corrections, usually 3 months, though if corrections are very minor in nature the timeframe might be shorter.

Your revised thesis will be sent to the chair of your examination committee, who will review your corrections. If the submitted corrections fail to meet the required standard, you will be given notice in writing to submit further corrections and given a new deadline. It’s important that you submit by this deadline. If you need extra time, we recommend you contact HDRAC in advance to request an extension. 

Non-award outcomes

Revise and resubmit for a second examination

While an ‘award subject to corrections’ outcome is reviewed only in part by the lead examiner, a ‘revise and resubmit’ outcome starts the examination process over again entirely.

You will be notified in writing as to why your degree was not awarded, provided with your de-identified examiners’ reports, and given a new date to revise and submit your thesis for re-examination. Usually, you’ll be allowed 2–4 research periods to complete your revisions, and you will need to re-enrol. In most situations, your original examiners will be used again, and your thesis will be completely re-examined – either by oral or thesis-only mode. A thesis can have only one opportunity for revision and re-examination. 

Non-award with option to award another degree

If the HDR Examinations Subcommittee (HDRESC) determines that your degree will not be awarded, they can instead determine that you may be awarded a different degree. You may need to submit corrections by a specified due date to receive the other degree, usually within 3 months. 

Non-award

This outcome is very uncommon. If HDRESC determines that you will not be awarded a degree, you will be notified by the Associate Dean (Research Education) and your candidature will be terminated.

Examiner-As-Assessor

In some extremely rare cases, examiners’ recommendations differ dramatically, and consensus cannot be reached on your outcome. In these cases, an external third person known as an Examiner-as-Assessor is appointed, who is a highly experienced examiner and internationally recognised in your field. They will first provide an independent report on your thesis, After this, they will be sent de-identified examiner’s reports to review, and to help inform their recommendation. A final decision will be made by the HDR Examinations Subcommittee.

If you disagree with the outcome

In all non-award outcomes (revision and re-examination, award of another degree and non-award of degree), you will be provided with the examiners’ reports, the chair of examination’s recommendations, and any reports by your supervisor.  

If you disagree with the decision, you have the right to provide a written response. You have 2 weeks from the date of notification to state your intention to respond, and 6 weeks from the date of notification to provide your written response to the relevant committee.  

If you respond, the relevant committee must consider all relevant documents, including your comments, and either confirm or revise their decision. We strongly recommend that you contact us for advice before responding. 

Your response is an opportunity to engage with your original decision-makers (similar to a Stage 1 Academic Appeal). You have further appeal options if your response is not successful in changing your outcome.

Appealing the outcome

Thesis examination decisions are academic decisions. Under the Student Academic Appeals Rule you have the right to appeal an academic decision.

We strongly encourage you to seek support from SUPRA in preparing an appeal of a thesis outcome, as you will have limited opportunities to appeal.

Additionally, you should discuss your appeal with your supervisory team, where possible, or trusted academic mentors with specialist knowledge in your discipline. They should be able to support you with any discipline-specific concerns or disagreements coming up in your examination process.

Policies

Policies relevant to thesis examination can be found on the University Policy Register and include the following: 

• Higher Degree by Research Policy 2026
• Higher Degree by Research Thesis and Examination Procedures 2026
• University of Sydney (Student Academic Appeals) Rule 2021.

Written by SUPRA Postgraduate Advocacy Service October 2025.