Consistency and inconsistency in PhD thesis examination

This is a mixed methods investigation of consistency in PhD examination. At its core is the quantification of the content and conceptual analysis of examiner reports for 804 Australian theses. First, the level of consistency between what examiners say in their reports and the recommendation they provide for a thesis is explored, followed by an examination of the degree of discrepancy between examiner recommendations and university committee decisions on the theses. Two groups of discrepant recommendations are identified and analysed in depth. Finally the main sources of inconsistency are identified. It was found that the comments of a small minority of examiners were inconsistent with each other or with the committee decision in a significant way. Much more commonly the texts of examiner reports were highly consistent and were closely reflected in the final committee decision.