The thesis defense in the online form being currently applied at Hue University
Online application assessment is possible
At the beginning of July 2021, Hue University has just issued temporary guidelines for application assessment of PhD and pre-doctoral students in the online form. Notably, online candidates are individuals who are living and working in areas affected by the pandemic according to the current announcement of the Ministry of Health, thus being unable to attend the concentrated recruitment at Hue University.
Online application assessment also meets the need of many learners in the current period when the COVID-19 pandemic is still complicated. According to Nguyen Ngoc Thuong, an alumnus of Hue University (living in Binh Dinh), postgraduate study and doing research is a legitimate need of many. However, if they have to attend the concentrated recruitment during the pandemic period, there are so many difficulties. Not only do students in some provinces and cities must comply with the regulation of 21-day concentrated isolation, but their travel also causes many concerns.
According to Dr. Nguyen Cong Hao, Head of the Department of Training and Student Affairs of Hue University, the application of online application assessment still ensures the input quality thanks to some strict regulations. While documents and procedures must be prepared by candidates and the training unit, a technical system to serve the online application assessment must be available for both Hue University and candidates. Besides, the online software must be selected according to the recommendations in the relevant dispatch of the Information Security Department - Ministry of Information and Communications.
The order of the online application assessment is also clearly defined. In addition to the technical checking of connection between Hue University and the candidate, the head of the subcommittee administering the official application assessment must check the connection between the candidate and the professional subcommittee to ensure smooth communication.
“The progress of the online application assessment will be fully recorded by Hue University and stored together with the students' records. The minutes of the online application assessment will be recorded and made public right in the assessment session by the secretary of the specialized subcommittee,” said Dr. Nguyen Cong Hao.
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Tuyen, Vice Rector of the University of Science, application assessment PhD and pre-doctoral students in the online form is necessary now. In parallel with direct application assessment, this form of application can be applied to candidates who are not from areas affected by the pandemic.
Both forms are guaranteed to be fair, for candidates must present their research proposal and related processes according to regulations. The only difference is meeting the panel in person or presenting through an online connection platform.
“Recently, Hue University and its member universities have effectively applied the defense of master's and doctoral theses in the online form. The output problem is more complicated than that of input. Based on previous experience, it can be applied for online application assessment,” evaluated Dr. Tran Ngoc Tuyen.
Removing “bottlenecks”
According to Dr. Nguyen Van Huy, Head of Training Department, University of Foreign Languages, Hue University, the training units of Hue University attract many learners from all over the country. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact. If applying only direct application assessment form, it will cause difficulties for both the learners and the enrollment plan of the training units.
On June 28, 2021, the Ministry of Education and Training issued Circular 18 (Circular 18/2021/TT-BGDDT) on the Regulation on enrollment and training at doctoral level. The Circular takes effect from August 15, 2021 and replaces Circular No. 08/2017/TT-BGDDT dated April 4, 2017 of the Ministry of Education and Training. In addition to paying attention to the changes in input and output according to the regulations of the ministry, in the context of pandemic, training units also need to be flexible with solutions and create favorable conditions for enrollment.
According to university leaders, the thesis defense in the online form removes the "bottlenecks" of the output and also opens up opportunities to remove input difficulties in the context of pandemic by means of online application assessment. It is important that there are regulations and guidelines, which need to be effectively applied and implemented at the unit with solutions that ensure technical conditions, objectivity and honesty.
Story and photo: HUU PHUC