UM Academic Calendar
ACADEMIC REGULATIONS will be considered as registered students upon settlement of tuition fees. However, if a returning student fails to settle tuition fee within the specified period, the student will be charged late registration fee in addition to the penalty for late tuition fee payment. 3. Student Cards a. Once registered, students will be issued with student cards (UM Campus Card). b. A temporary student card will be issued to students who have registered, but have not yet submitted all the required documents. A formal student card will be issued after the student has submitted all the required documents. c. A student card cannot be used by anybody other than the holder. d. In case of loss or damage of a student card or temporary student card, a student may apply for a replacement. Application forms for such replacement are obtainable at the Registry. A card replacement fee will be charged to the student. e. The student card will be renewed once the student achieves the PhD candidacy, no administration fee will be charged to student in such a case. f. Students may refer to the ‘Regulations and Guidelines Governing the Use of the UM Campus Card’ for further details. Late Registration a. Students may apply for late registration if they cannot complete the process within the scheduled period. Application for late registration should be submitted at least three working days before the scheduled registration period by completing application forms obtained from the Graduate School. b. Applicants for late registration must settle the tuition fees on/before the deadline specified on debit notes. Otherwise, penalty of late payment will be levied. c. Late registration fees will be charged to students who do not apply for late registration three working days before the scheduled registration period. Students who have applied for late registration but failed to complete the process within the approved period will also be charged a late registration fee. d. Late registration can be considered once only. e. Apart from medical reasons, registration can only be delayed for at most ten calendar days after commencement of classes. If late registration is anticipated for medical reasons, a medical certificate should be attached to the student’s application for late registration. Applications for registration later than the above period will not be accepted except for medical reasons and other extraordinary circumstances. Students will not be entitled to register if there is any outstanding fee. Double Registration

General Regulations Governing PhD Programmes
(Revised and approved by the Senate on 18 July 2011)

A. ADMISSION
1.

Admission is governed by the University Admission Regulations. Applicants must satisfy the University entrance requirements, and any additional requirements imposed by the academic unit they intend to enter.

2. 3.

Students may not enrol/register in any other higher education programme in Macao in the same academic year. A student of the University is required to observe the General Regulations, and those regulations and procedures which govern admission requirements, examinations, fees and charges. 4.

B. GENERAL
1.

The University offers full-time programmes of study leading to the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). Students will be awarded the appropriate PhD degree provided that they have: a. undertaken a programme of study for a period normally of not less than 3 years; and b. passed the prescribed examinations; and c. written a thesis and passed the oral defence; and d. paid the prescribed fees; and e. fulfilled the requirements of the regulations of the University. Each individual academic unit may issue special rules applying to specific PhD programmes, within the general framework of the present General Regulations. However, any standard for qualification requirements, performance of candidates and/or else, as provided for in the present General Regulations, may not be set to a lower or less strict level by the special regulations issued for any programme by the relevant academic unit. Students must register in a programme of study on the specified dates in any one academic year.

2.

3.

5. 6.

4.

C. ACADEMIC YEAR

An academic year will normally cover the period from September through August.

Students are not permitted to register simultaneously in another higher education programme at this University or any other Higher Education Institution in Macao. If a student is found to be in breach of this regulation, he/she will be required to discontinue studies at this University.

D. REGISTRATION
1.

New students are responsible for completing registration in person on the date and at the time and location specified for the first semester. Registration is not completed until all fees have been paid and all registration materials properly completed and submitted to the Graduate School. All returning students are not required to report for registration. All returning students

E. CANDIDATURE
1. 2. A student is registered as a provisional PhD candidate at his/her initial registration. A student must achieve PhD candidacy within a period ranging from 24 to 30 months after his/her initial registration at the University of Macau by passing the qualifying examination and thesis proposal assessment. The maximum period for passing the qualifying examination and thesis proposal assessment of each programme is

2.

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UM Academic Calendar determined by the academic unit concerned. 3. Unless special approval of an extension of this period is granted, a student failing to achieve PhD candidacy as governed by the above term will be discontinued from the enrolled PhD programme. All applications related to extension beyond the stipulated period to achieve PhD candidacy should be submitted to the individual Faculty Graduate Studies Committee for consideration. The recommendation of Faculty Graduate Studies Committee will be forwarded to the Dean/Director concerned for approval. A provisional PhD candidate who would like to extend his/her PhD study period to achieve PhD candidacy should submit the following documents to the Graduate School: a. a completed application form for extension of study period for PhD degree programme; b. a brief qualifying examination & PhD thesis assessment report; c. a proposed plan of research for the extension period. (b and c should be endorsed by the thesis supervisor before submission.) Letter Grades D F 3. 4. 1.0 0 Grade Points (Pass) (Fail) Percentage 50-52 Below 50 Scale 10 Below 10

Except programmes offered by the Faculty of Law, letter grades are official grades. For programmes offered by the Faculty of Law, scales are official grades. grades are for reference only. Definition of Grades Letter Definition Grade Other

4.

Remark Used when work is necessarily delayed through no fault of the student, such as a medical problem. This grade must be converted to a regular grade by the commencement of the following semester; otherwise it will be converted to ‘F’. Given to the result of a thesis. Given to the result of a thesis. Assigned when a student has officially withdrawn from a course. The result will not be counted towards the GPA.

I

Incomplete

P NP W

Pass Not Pass Official Withdrawal

F. COURSEWORK
1. PhD students may be required to complete the requirements on coursework as requested by the faculty/institute concerned. These students are required to enrol in their courses at the general office of their academic units. Such students are expected to complete their coursework requirements within their normal period of study and before the qualifying examination. Students who have not completed registration are not allowed to proceed to course enrolment. Students should pay the tuition fees before course enrolment in each semester. Students should always look carefully at their enrolment records. If they are not sure that their enrolment records are correct, they may seek advice from the academic unit concerned. Students are responsible for following up any errors or omissions.

The study period for all PhD students is as follows: Minimum Period Normal Period Maximum Period 3 years 5 years 7 years

H. PERIOD OF STUDY

2. 3. 4.

A student who wishes to extend the study period beyond the normal period should apply at least three months before the end of the normal period in writing to the academic unit concerned. All applications should follow the following procedures: 1. The student who would like to extend his/her PhD study period should submit the following documents to the Graduate School: a. a completed application form for extension of study; b. a brief progress report on the thesis; c. a proposed plan of research for the extension period. (b and c should be endorsed by the thesis supervisor.) The Graduate School will check the student’s status and admission date. After checking, the Graduate School will forward the request for extension of study to the Faculty/Institute concerned and should then be discussed and considered by Faculty GSC; The decision of Faculty GSC will be forwarded to the Dean/Director concerned for consideration and approval; After approval from the Dean/Director concerned, the Graduate School will inform the student in writing about the decision.

G. GRADING SYSTEM
1.

All courses carry a credit. This credit is earned by the achievement of a grade from ‘A’ to ‘D’, ‘F’ carries zero credit. Grades are awarded according to the following system: Letter Grades Grade Points Percentage A 4.0 (Excellent) 93-100 A3.7 (Very Good) 88-92 B+ 3.3 83-87 B 3.0 (Good) 78-82 B2.7 73-77 C+ 2.3 68-72 C 2.0 (Average) 63-67 C1.7 58-62 D+ 1.3 53-57

2.

Scale 19-20 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11

2.

3. 4.

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In principle, the academic unit concerned should only consider the application for extension of study period of an exceptional case.

K. QUALIFYING EXAMINATION
1. 2. 3. The qualifying examination will assess the ability and background of the student for the enrolled PhD programme. Each faculty/institute will define the form and operation procedures of the qualifying examination according to its own needs. A student who fails the qualifying examination on the first attempt may take the examination again. If the student fails the examination a second time, he/she will be discontinued from the relevant PhD programme.

I. RESEARCH SUPERVISION
1. The Faculty Graduate Studies Committee of each faculty/institute will administer the appointment of supervisor(s) and thesis advisory committees of its PhD students. a. The supervisor has the primary responsibility for directing and advising a student throughout his/her study period, especially during the preparation of the thesis. i. Supervisor(s) of a student should be appointed at the admission of a student. ii. Supervisor(s) must submit a written report on the progress of the student to the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee every six months. The thesis advisory committee is intended to provide additional academic advice to the student during the preparation of the thesis. i. Each newly admitted PhD student will be assigned a thesis advisory committee to provide guidance both before and after the presentation of the thesis proposal. The committee can be formed at latest after the qualifying examination but before the thesis proposal assessment. More specifically, prior to the student’s oral presentation of the thesis proposal, the committee will provide opinions about the acceptability of the proposed thesis topic, the appropriateness of the proposed methodology, and the adequacy of the literature search. Upon approval of the student’s thesis proposal, the committee will advise the candidate about the preparation of the thesis and assist the supervisor in monitoring the candidate’s progress. ii. The membership of the advisory committee should include the thesis supervisor(s) plus one or more advisors. The members, appointed by the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee, should represent academic disciplines relevant to the thesis topic. When appropriate, members may be selected from more than one faculty/institute. In addition, members may be appointed from outside UM if required.

L. THESIS PROPOSAL ASSESSMENT
1. 2. 3.

b.

The thesis proposal assessment will examine the quality of the planned research, ensuring that it meets UM standards.

The thesis proposal assessment may be carried out only after the student has passed the qualifying examination. The thesis proposal assessment will include submission of a written proposal from the student and its presentation to an assessment panel. The assessment panel will include a chairperson appointed by the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee (this chairperson should not be a member of the thesis advisory committee), along with the thesis advisory committee members and at least one supervisor. A student who fails the thesis proposal assessment the first time may take the assessment again. If the student fails the assessment a second time, he/she will be discontinued from the enrolled PhD programme. A student who passes the thesis proposal assessment will be considered as a PhD candidate at the University of Macau. The Faculty Graduate Studies Committee which administered the thesis proposal assessment will submit the passed thesis proposal together with the names of the student, supervisor(s) and the thesis advisory committee to the Graduate School for official approval of thesis registration.

4. 5.

2.

The appointments of the supervisor(s) and thesis advisory committee of a student are recommended by the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee and officially approved by the Graduate School. Changes of the supervisor(s) and/or the membership of the thesis advisory committee can be made upon the recommendation of the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee and by approval of the Graduate School.

3.

M. THESIS FORMAT, SUBMISSION AND PUBLICATION
1. Candidates are advised to study thoroughly and follow strictly the Guidelines Governing the Format of PhD Theses when writing their thesis. Candidates may refer to the Graduate School’s home page (http://www.umac.mo/grs/academic.html) for details of the said Guidelines. Before a candidate submits a thesis for examination, he/she shall pass one copy of the thesis to the supervisor(s) for assessment. If the supervisor(s) confirm(s) that the thesis is ready for submission, a "thesis submission" form should be completed as endorsement. A candidate shall submit five copies of his/her thesis, together with the “thesis submission” form, to the academic unit concerned. The thesis shall conform in layout, binding and presentation as required by the academic unit concerned. The examination committee shall declare in writing to accept/reject the thesis. If a thesis is rejected by the examination committee, the candidate shall re-submit the

J. ASSESSMENTS
1. 2. 3. 4.

Each PhD student must pass three assessments during his/her study. The three assessments include a qualifying examination, a thesis proposal assessment and a final thesis oral defence examination. The qualifying examination and thesis proposal assessment are administrated by the Faculty Graduate Studies Committee. The Graduate School coordinates with the academic unit concerned to administer the final thesis oral defence examination.

2.

3.

4. 5.

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UM Academic Calendar thesis following the above mentioned thesis submission procedures within the period as decided by the examination committee. The re-submission deadline shall not exceed the maximum period of study. A candidate shall only re-submit the thesis once only. 6. A candidate must submit properly bound copies of the final version of the thesis approved by the examination committee upon successful completion of the oral defence examination. The exact number of copies of thesis and the submission deadline will be specified by the academic unit concerned. The Library copy of a thesis must be bound by the official contractor appointed by the UM to ensure a uniform appearance of the PhD theses. The bound Library copy must be first sent to the Graduate School for checking before it will be finally housed in the Library. Candidates can contact the Graduate School for details about the thesis binding arrangements. A candidate must also submit a soft copy of the said thesis to the academic unit concerned for onward transmission to the University Library, in ways and format as determined by the University Library. All PhD theses will be published with the ProQuest UMI Dissertation Publishing. Exceptions would be allowed for special cases with sound justification and proper approval. The University Library will process the thesis publication procedures with the UMI. chairperson and two-thirds of the other members. 5. 6. 7. Prior to the oral defence examination, the examination committee shall decide the speaking order and method of its members. The thesis presentation session and the question and answer session of an oral defence examination shall not exceed 2 hours. After the thesis presentation and the question and answer session, the examination committee shall discuss and evaluate the candidate's performance. By open ballot voting, the committee shall decide to go into the final resolution deliberation session. Final Resolution Deliberation Session: a. A resolution must be decided by open ballot voting with supporting statements. No committee voting member can abstain from voting. b. The final resolution of the defence examination shall be delivered as pass (P), conditional pass (CP) or fail (NP). c. If the final resolution is conditional pass, the candidate shall re-submit the revised thesis for assessment within the duration specified by the examination committee, normally no longer than 6 months. If the candidate fails to do so, a failing grade shall be granted. The oral defence examination and the resolution-deliberation discussions must be put on record. A proposal for the award of degrees shall be submitted to the Senate for approval. The minutes of the oral defence examination shall record the voting results and comments on the oral defence.

7.

8.

8.

9.

9.

N. EXAMINATION COMMITTEE
1.

The examination committee members shall be appointed normally within 3 months after the thesis is submitted. The candidate shall normally be informed of the official composition of the examination committee within two weeks after the official appointment. The examination committee shall be chaired by the Rector or his/her representative and shall be composed of the supervisor and at least three examiners. The Chair and the supervisor shall be non-voting members. The examination committee members shall normally be those who have completed a graduate degree at doctoral level in the relevant discipline and have involved in supervision of theses.

P. APPEAL AGAINST RESULTS

2. 3.

No appeal against the final academic decision of an examination committee is permitted.

Q. CONTINUATION FEE

4.

The continuation fee shall be paid by a student who needs to continue beyond the minimum period of study. The minimum period of study for doctoral programmes is three academic years. The continuation fee is applicable to students admitted in/after the academic year 2004/2005 as well as to students who resumed their studies in/after the above mentioned academic year.

R. GRADUATION O. ORAL DEFENCE EXAMINATION
1. 1. The oral defence examination is compulsory and shall be held normally within 2 months after the day on which the thesis is officially accepted by the examination committee for oral defence examination. The academic unit concerned shall give the candidate at least one week’s notice of the date of oral defence examination. The oral defence examination is an open examination. The PhD candidate shall present the thesis and defend it in front of an examination committee. The oral defence examination shall not take place without the presence of the

Graduation and Issue of Graduation Certificates Upon successful completion of thesis writing and oral defence and with the approval of the Senate, academic awards are conferred on students at a congregation, which is usually held in September/October each year. Students eligible for academic awards for that particular year will be notified in August/September in writing of the details regarding the congregation, the collection of academic dress, and the award certificate. The graduation certificate will be issued once only, as there will be no second printing. Students are therefore strongly advised to ensure the safe-keeping of this important document.

2. 3. 4.

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The University reserves the right to withhold conferment of an award on a student who has not paid fees or other monies owed to the University, or who has otherwise failed to discharge all obligations towards the University. the Graduate School office or can be downloaded from the Graduate School’s homepage, before leaving the University. Students are required to clear all outstanding matters with the department concerned. 2. All graduates are not required to come in person to the University to complete the check-out procedures. However, students who have any outstanding records must clear their records with the department concerned. Otherwise, certificates of graduation and other official documents will not be issued. A student may authorise another person to process the check-out procedures by filling in Graduate School’s official authorisation letter. I.D. copies of both parties must be submitted. Students who withdraw voluntarily from the University sever their connection with the University. These students’ resumption will depend upon the decision of the Dean of the faculty or the Director of the institute concerned. If students leave the University in the course of study without going through the check-out procedures, no official document (such as testimonial, transcript or graduation certificate) will be issued. Students who defer or are required to discontinue their studies in the 1st semester should complete check-out procedures by April of the following semester; students who defer or are required to discontinue their studies in the 2nd semester should complete check-out procedures by November of the following academic year. An administration fee will be charged to students if they carry out check-out procedures after the specified dates.

S. DISCONTINUATION OF STUDY
A student shall be required to discontinue studies under the following circumstances: 1. A student who has failed a second qualifying examination. 2. A student who has failed a second thesis proposal assessment. 3. A student who cannot achieve PhD candidacy within the maximum period as determined by the academic unit concerned. 4. A student who cannot or is not in a position to complete his/her course of study within the permitted period. 5. A student whose thesis has been rejected by the examination committee for a second time. 6. A student who has failed the oral defence examination. 3.

4.

5.

T. DEFERMENT OF STUDY
1.

Students may defer their studies at the University by completing an application form from the Graduate School and securing the required signatures from the Dean of the faculty or the Director of the institute concerned before leaving the University. The University does not guarantee such students that the degree programme/courses will remain constant. Students can apply for deferment of study for not more than one year at one time. If students wish to defer study for more than one year, they must submit another application 4 weeks before the end of the previous approved period of deferment. The total approved period of deferment of study cannot accumulate to more than three years. Non-registered new students can apply for deferment of study for not more than one academic year. Application for such deferment should be made before the specified registration date. Non-registered new students must fulfil all the conditions stated in their offer letters and submit the required amount of advance payment before they become eligible to apply for deferment of study. Such applications will only be permitted for medical reasons and exceptional cases with sound justification. For medical reasons, students are required to submit medical certificates issued by hospitals at the time of application. For exceptional cases with sound justification, students are required to specify the reason and submit written certification at the time of application. Non-registered new students are not permitted to transfer to another research area when they apply for resumption of study. For the following reasons, a student shall submit medical certification: i. Maternity; ii. Seriously ill and cannot recover within a short period of time.

6.

2.

V. WITHDRAWAL FROM THE UNIVERSITY

3.

Students who are unable to complete a semester because of illness or other emergency may be given permission to withdraw. They must get a “Student Clearance Form” from the Graduate School office, obtain signatures as indicated on the form, and return the completed form to the Graduate School office. For students attending courses, withdrawal grades will be recorded for each course at the time the student receives permission to withdraw. The grades are either “W”, meaning that the student officially withdrew from the University before the examination period, or “F”, meaning that the student did not take the examinations but withdrew during or after the examination period. However, if a student withdraws from the University after completing all the courses and examinations of a semester, all academic credits are given for the courses taken in that semester. Students who withdraw officially from the University and later wish to return must apply for resumption of study. Resumption of study is not granted automatically. (See the item "Readmission/Resumption of Study" for details.) All current students who have not yet settled tuition fees (including continuation fee) and have not applied for withdrawal of study 10 calendar days after the commencement of classes in any semester are considered as unofficially withdrawn students.

4.

For other reasons, the application can be considered depending on individual cases.

U. CHECK-OUT PROCEDURES
1.

All withdrawing, suspended or discontinued students and those applying for deferment of study are required to complete the student clearance forms, which are obtainable at

W. READMISSION/RESUMPTION OF STUDY
Students who have officially withdrawn from the University wish to return to the University

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UM Academic Calendar after an absence of one or more semesters may apply for resumption of study. Written applications for resumption of study must be sent to the Graduate School before the approved deferment period ends. The applicants must meet all the admission requirements prevailing at the time of resumption. Resumption of study is not granted automatically. Those students who have unofficially withdrawn from the University may also apply for readmission to the University. Written requests must be submitted to the Graduate School. An administration fee will be charged. Readmission is not granted automatically. Readmitted students must make up the check-out procedure personally. However, they are not required to obtain the approval from the Dean of the faculty or the Director of the institute concerned for withdrawal. All resuming and readmitted students are required to submit to the Graduate School a Medical Examination Report (GRS/Form/005) during registration. This report is to prove that the student is physically fit to pursue study at the University. If a student has already had a medical check-up within three months prior to registration, he/she may submit a certified true copy of that medical report. All resuming and readmitted students should pay their tuition fees according to the tuition schemes of the resuming/readmitted year. handling fee will be charged. Please refer to the Table of Fees for further details. b. To avoid delay, please remember that requests for transcripts by other parties must bear the student’s authorisation before the Registry can process the requests. During examination and assessment periods, the issuing of transcripts may be suspended or delayed. The University reserves the right to withhold an academic transcript or a testimonial from a student who has not paid fees or other monies owed to the University, or who has otherwise failed to discharge all obligations towards to the University.

c.

2.

Certified True Copy of Academic Documents Students may apply for certified true copies of academic documents issued by the University such as graduation certificates and academic transcripts from the Registry. Application forms for such services are obtainable at the Registry office. Refer to the Table of Fees for the relevant charges. However, the Registry will provide a free service to students who apply for admission to the programmes offered by the University.

Z. PLAGIARISM X. CHANGE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
1. Students should inform the Graduate School immediately of any change of personal particulars entered in the students’ registration records. For changes of address (such as home address, postal address and email address) and contact numbers, requests may be sent through fax or email. For changes of other personal particulars, students must go personally to the Graduate School office and personal identification documents must be presented.

Plagiarism is a serious academic offence and the University shall penalize the student who is proved to have incorporated others’ works as his/her own work according to the “Student Discipline Regulations”.

2.

Application forms are obtainable at the Graduate School office or can be downloaded from the Graduate School’s homepage. All current students can also directly change their addresses and telephone numbers through the University's Student Information Web Services (http://isw.umac.mo). Other than changes of address or telephone number, applications for changing a student’s registered particulars will not be accepted after graduation or withdrawal from the University.

3.

Y. CERTIFICATION
1.

Academic Transcripts and Testimonials a. An academic transcript is a certification of a student’s record of academic performance at the University and it shows the student’s grades obtained in a programme up to the latest final examination taken. Students can apply for transcripts after the academic reports have been released. A testimonial is a certification of the student’s present registration status with regard to his/her studies at the University. Application forms may be obtained from the Registry office or can be downloaded from the Registry homepage. The charge per copy may be found in the Table of Fees. The completed form must be submitted to the Registry Office. If students submit their applications by post in Macao, a cheque or cashier’s order for the amount due should be enclosed. For overseas applicants, payment must be paid by either cashier’s order or bank draft; an additional

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Annex

FEES AND CHARGES For details about fees and charges, please refer to the “Fees and Charges” section of the UM Academic Calendar or the home page of the Treasury Section of the Finance Office.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS Notices such as important announcements, examination schedules or university activities will be posted on notice boards. There are also electronic bulletin boards, which display messages campus-wide and can be easily accessed through the campus computer network. In addition, the University sends important notices to students through SMS* (short message service) or emails (university’s accounts only). Students should check the campus notice-boards, electronic bulletin boards and university’s email accounts to learn about University news and events. *Students need to register for the SMS service through the University’s Student Information Web Services (http://isw.umac.mo) before they can receive the University’s important notices through SMS.

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