Deadlines and format
If you were admitted to a doctoral research programme in this Faculty from October 2013 onwards, you will undergo a probationary review (formal assessment of progress and recommendation regarding registration) towards the end of your probationary period.
Your department will specify a format for your progress report and the deadline by which it is to be submitted (N.B. the details in your Department may vary slightly from the process set out here - please refer to your department's postgraduate handbook or webpages for the definitive version).
The current report word limits and submission deadlines are:
| dept | report | start | start | start | start | start | start |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| word limit | ET 2025 | MT 2025 | LT 2026 | ET 2026 | MT 2026 | LT 2027 | |
| Astronomy | 10,000 | - | 29 June 2026 | - | - | 28 June 2027 | - |
| Chemistry | 12,000 | 19 Jan 2026 | 29 June 2026 | 08 Oct 2026 | 18 Jan 2027 | 28 June 2027 | 08 Oct 2027 |
| Materials | 15,000 | 09 Jan 2026 | 15 June 2026 | 28 Sep 2026 | 11 Jan 2027 | 14 June 2027 | 27 Sep 2027 |
| Physics | 12,000 | 12 Jan 2026 | 06 July 2026 | 28 Sep 2026 | 11 Jan 2027 | 05 July 2027 | 27 Sep 2027 |
The report deadline for students registered on the EPSRC CDTs in Automated Chemical Synthesis Enabled by Digital Molecular Technologies (SynTech) and Nuclear Energy Futures is 1 September, irrespective of the Department they are in. BBSRC DTP students joining us in ET and those registered on the EPSRC CDT in Aerosol Science are normally treated as ET starters to the Faculty for the purposes of report deadline; if you are unclear what your deadline is please contact us.
Examination access arrangements
Should you wish to make a voluntary disclosure of any disability/chronic illness that might affect the conduct of your viva please complete and email us this https://www.cambridgestudents.cam.ac.uk/files/voluntary_disclosure_form.pdf before you submit. We invite you to do this up to two months in advance to allow us time to consult with the DRC and make appropriate access arrangements - you do not have to wait until you are ready to submit your report.
How to submit
Your report should be submitted onto the Moodle course 'Degree Committee Student Submissions'. Please refer to your department's postgraduate handbook for any additional requirements. You can find a guide for using Moodle to upload your report: Moodle student guide. Please submit the following items:
- your report as a single .pdf file - don't forget to put your name and the title on the front page! Please name your report file in the format of [Surname]_[FirstName]_Report
- a Probationary Review Declaration & Certificate of Submission saved as a .pdf with the naming format of [Surname]_[FirstName]_Certificate. The certificate confirms that:
- you understand the procedure set out on this website
- have familiarised yourself with the University's rules for good practice in academic writing - this is very important and breaches of these rules are taken very seriously
- the work is all your own except as acknowledged in the report
- it does not exceed the word limit. Please do not exceed the word limit - if you do, it is likely that your report will be returned to you for revision.
You should not send your report or any other material directly to your assessors.