The PhD English Linguistics program cultivates exceptional researchers through a rigorous curriculum. Students delve into core linguistic subfields like phonetics, morphology, syntax, and semantics. The program aligns with HEC recommendations, offering a comprehensive exploration that equips graduates with theoretical knowledge and practical research skills. The program fosters independent research, critical analysis, and original contributions to the field, preparing graduates for successful careers in research, academia, and various sectors.

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The key aims and objectives of the PhD English programme are to:

• Equip the scholars with the theoretical and practical knowledge of research and advanced concepts in their chosen field to enable them to become experts in the selected areas
• Enable the scholars to pursue independent research in their fields
• Enable the scholars to supervise research work in their areas

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Qualification

Prior to admission into a PhD program, the student shall have been awarded MS/MPhil or equivalent degree as described in this policy OR

ii. Students pursuing MS/MPhil studies and interested in continuing to PhD may be granted provisional admission upon satisfaction with the Admission Committee regarding Statement of Purpose and students’ commitment to the PhD program, provided that confirmation of the admission shall be subject to the fulfilment of the following conditions within a period of one year from the date of provisional admission:

a. Award of MS/MPhil degree, as prescribed in this policy.

b. Clearance of the admission test, as prescribed in this policy.

Intra-disciplinary Qualifications

Consistent with best practices internationally (including leading global universities), intradisciplinary admissions may only be allowed, if:

The university/HEI policy allows, and

The applicant has a strong interest in pursuing a PhD in a different discipline.

The applicant has passed GRE-Subject/Equivalent Test6 with minimum 50% marks in the discipline of admission and has taken 6-9 CH of deficiency courses of level 7.

The admission committee is satisfied that the applicant’s knowledge of the primary area (level 7) has sufficiently prepared him or her to undertake the course of study of the doctoral program (or, in the opinion of the admissions committee, the preparation can be deemed satisfactory by taking a few additional courses after starting the program).
 

CGPA

a) For admission in PhD programs, a minimum CGPA of 3.0 (out of 4.0 in the semester system7) or 60% (in the annual system) in the MS/MPhil/equivalent degree being considered for admission, is required, whether such degree was obtained from Pakistani or foreign universities.

b) If the CGPA/Percentage is not mentioned on the transcript, the candidate must produce equivalent weightage from the parent university.

c) The students having strong demonstrated interest in obtaining PhD degree, but their CGPA is below 3.00 (out of 4.0 in the semester system) or 60% marks (in the annual system) in the most recent degree obtained, may be admitted to a PhD program after fulfilling the following requirements: i. Shall study additional courses of 9-12 CH of level 7 taking a zero semester at admission awarding university/HEI/DAI and score minimum 3.00 out of 4.00 GPA, and

ii. The admission committee is satisfied that the applicant’s knowledge of primary area (level 7) has sufficiently prepared him or her to undertake the course of studies of the doctoral program.

iii. These requirements shall be in addition to any other requirements set in this policy for admission to a PhD program.

Admission Test

a) University is required to:

i. Conduct the test equivalent to GRE/HAT General developed at the University, with the passing score of 60%. OR

ii. Accept a test equivalent to GRE/HAT General, conducted by testing bodies accredited by HEC, with a passing score of 60%.

b) In addition to clause 3.4 (a), the university may conduct subject test for admission in PhD programs, if required.

DURATION

The PhD English Programme is a full-time programme taught on campus. The programme allocates two semesters to the coursework of 18 credit hours. The third semester is used for sitting the comprehensive examination and appearing in the synopsis defence. PhD scholars will then undertake writing a dissertation and submit it within the maximum duration of the programme. The minimum duration of the programme is three years and the maximum duration is eight years without any possibility of extension.

Below is a summary of the duration of the PhD English programme

Course work: 18 Credit Hours

Comprehensive Examination and Synopsis: One semester

Duration: 3 to 8 years

Credit Hours completed through Dissertation: 18                              

Total Credit Hours: 36

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

COURSEWORK

Assessment of the students for each course (other than dissertation) in the PhD programme will be carried out according to the following formula.

Total                      100

PhD English scholars will be governed by the following grading scheme.

0-63                      F

64-69                     C

70-75                     C+

76-79                     B

80-84                     B+

85-100                   A

CANDIDACY AS A PHD RESEARCHER

The following criteria will be used to grant research candidacy to PhD English scholars.

• Completion of coursework of 18 credit hours with CGPA 3.0 out of 4.0 or higher.
• Consent form by Supervisor who is supervising not more than a maximum of five PhD researchers at the time.
• Passing Comprehensive Examination based on the chosen field of research.

RESEARCH WORK

Scholars registered in the PhD programme are required to undertake research as a compulsory requirement of the successful completion of the programme. The following guidelines are laid down for the assessment of the research work.

• A synopsis must be presented submitted after passing the comprehensive examination.
• A scholar may commence research work only after the synopsis is approved by the FUI BASAR.
• The word count for the PhD dissertation must be between 80,000 to 120,000 words.
• A dissertation must have a Turnitin® similarity index of less than nineteen percent (19%) to be judged as free of plagiarism.
• A dissertation that has been deemed free of plagiarism will be evaluated by two foreign examiners and three local/national examiners one of whom will be from within the University.
• Three positive reports are required for the conduct of the public defence of the dissertation for evaluation

RESEARCH PUBLICATION

For award of PhD degree, a PhD researcher shall be required to publish research articles meeting the following criteria:

i. At least:

a. One research article in W category12 journal or two research articles in X category journals, for Science disciplines

b. One research article in X category journal or two research articles in Y category journals, for Social Science disciplines

ii. The PhD researcher shall be the first author of these publications.

iii. The research article shall be relevant to the PhD research work of the PhD researcher.

iv. The article shall be published after approval of the research synopsis.

v. The article shall be published in a relevant research journal.

PROGRAM STURUCTURE

The PhD English coursework will comprise courses of 18 credit hours, to be completed in two semesters, to be selected from the following list of courses.