Credit for work completed prior to candidature

JCU recognises that some candidates may have already completed work towards their research project before commencing their candidature. For example, they may have transferred to JCU part-way through their HDR candidature. Candidates may include studies undertaken towards another research degree, provided that the work:

• Was completed after the candidate was qualified for entry to their current program at JCU;
• Has not been counted towards a completed award at JCU or elsewhere;
• Was conducted with adequate advisory oversight at an acceptable institution; and
• Is of a nature and quality appropriate to the current program at JCU.

Candidates may include publications in their thesis, so long as the work that led to that publication was carried out under the conditions given above. Conversely, work published, accepted for publication, or submitted for publication prior to meeting these conditions cannot be included in the thesis. When trying to determine whether previously published work can be included in the thesis, key factors to consider include:

• Was the research work supervised in a manner consistent with the University's advisory policies? If not, then it cannot be included.
• Did the research that led to the publication contribute, in part or in whole, to the candidate being awarded another degree? If yes, then it cannot be included.
• Is the research part of the candidate's basis of admission to candidature at the University? If yes, then it cannot be included.
• Is the research considered to be of Research Doctorate (or Research Masters, if appropriate) standard? If not, then it cannot be included.
• Was the research carried out with the required ethics approvals? If not, then it cannot be included.

If there is still any uncertainty or ambiguity about the appropriateness of including previously published work in the thesis, please request formal advice from the Dean, Graduate Research.

Any publications that cannot be included can be listed in a section detailing additional publications by the candidate relevant to the thesis but not forming part of it.