Doctoral defence and post-doctoral party (School of Engineering)

The protagonists at the defence shall arrive in the following order: first the doctoral candidate, then the Custos, and last the opponent(s). The audience shall rise to acknowledge their arrival. 

The Custos and the opponent(s), if they have doctors' degrees, shall carry their doctoral hats as they enter and leave the lecture hall. During the defence, their hats stand on the table in front of them, with the lyre emblem towards the audience.

When everyone has taken his or her place, the Custos shall welcome everyone, introduce the doctoral candidate and the opponent(s) and declare the proceedings open: ”At this defence, the dissertation of NN, Master of Science in Technology, will be presented for examination for the degree of Doctor of Science. Professor NN of the university of X will act as the official opponent. As the official Custos appointed by the Aalto University School of Engineering, I declare this defence open”.

The doctoral candidate shall stand to deliver the Lectio Praecursoria, which shall last a maximum of twenty minutes. The opening phrase is ”Honoured Custos, honoured opponents, ladies and gentlemen.”

The candidate generally gives the Lectio Praecursoria in his or her own language (Finnish or Swedish). In the event that the candidate does not speak Finnish or Swedish, he or she shall use the language approved by the faculty as the language of the defence. In some other cases, it is appropriate to give the Lectio Praecursoria in the language of the defence. After the Lectio Praecursoria, the proceedings continue in the language of the defence. After the closing statement of the opponent, the proceedings continue in the candidate's own language (Finnish or Swedish). It is courteous to give the opponent, who does not speak Finnish or Swedish, a translation of the Lectio Praecursoria or to inform him or her of its contents.

The candidate may give the opponent(s) a list of mistakes noticed in the manuscript and may also distribute copies to the audience.

After the Lectio Praecursoria the candidate, still standing, shall say in the language of the defence: ”I ask you, honoured professor(s)/doctor(s) NN (and NN) appointed as opponent(s) by the School of Engineering to present the observations that you consider appropriate for this dissertation”.

The opponent (or one of the opponents) stands and makes a short statement in which he or she deals with the position and significance in science of the subject of the dissertation and other questions of a general nature. After this statement, the opponent and the candidate sit down.

At the beginning of the examination proper, the opponent(s) generally focus(es) on the methodology and general questions, after which follows a detailed examination. The whole defence shall not exceed four hours.

At the end of the examination, the opponent(s) present(s) a closing statement. The candidate and the opponent(s) stand for the closing statement.

The candidate, remaining standing, thanks the opponent(s) and then the opponent(s) sit(s) down. The candidate turns to the audience and says: ”Ladies and gentlemen, I ask those of you who have observations to make on the dissertation here presented to kindly request the floor from the Custos.”

The Custos shall preside over the discussion by giving the floor and ensuring that the candidate has the opportunity to answer each point in turn and that the discussion remains relevant.

It is advisable that the Custos makes clear at the defence that anyone besides the opponent(s) who intend(s) to make an official observation about the dissertation shall give notice of this intention at the defence, otherwise that person loses the right to make such an observation. (Any observations about the defence shall be made to the department within two weeks of the defence.)

The Custos shall present the thanks of the Aalto University School of Engineering  to the opponent(s).

The Custos shall close the defence by standing and saying, ”I declare this public examination closed”.

The protagonists leave the hall in the same order as they entered, first the candidate, then the Custos and finally the opponent(s).

Men, tailcoat

A black tailcoat, trousers with a satin stripe down the outside seam. The coat is not buttoned up. Black waistcoat, white dress shirt, with starched front and collar. White tie, no pocket handkerchief during the day. Black socks, thin-soled shoes (not patent leather during the day). No wrist watch. Outdoor clothes: black overcoat or cape, white scarf and white gloves

Men, dark suit

Single- or double-breasted, black suit (giving the impression of being dark). The material may have a discreet stripe. If a waistcoat is worn, it should be of the same material as the suit or toning with it. White shirt, the tie or bow tie should be subdued and tone with the suit (not white), dark socks and thin-soled shoes.

Women

Black suit or high-necked dress (giving the impression of being dark). No hat, gloves or obvious jewelry.

Doctor’s gown

If the opponent wears an academic gown, the doctoral candidate and the Custos shall agree whether to wear a tailcoat or dark suit.

As formal decisions on the doctoral thesis are not made until the conclusion of the public examination, invitations to the post-doctoral party were traditionally not sent in advance. In the past, the doctoral candidate contacted the Opponent before the public examination to enquire whether the doctoral candidate could make dinner arrangements, and after obtaining a positive response, the candidate "hinted" at the successful outcome to the guests to be invited. Nowadays, however, doctoral candidates send invitations in advance. Permission to defend the thesis in a public examination, given by the Doctoral Programme Committee, is sufficient indication of the quality of the thesis. The doctoral candidates themselves formulate the wording of their invitations, but it is recommended that the invitations contain information on the dress code, especially if the doctoral candidate prefers the guests not to wear tailcoats and evening dresses, as is the custom, or wishes to suggest alternative styles of dress.
In addition to the Opponent and the Custos, the invitees to the post-doctoral party should include professors working in the field of the thesis and others who have aided in the thesis work. The additional opponents, that is, persons who ask questions or make comments at the public examination, were previously invited to the celebration, but, according to an unwritten rule, they were not to accept the invitation.

The post-doctoral party may be arranged at home, in a restaurant or in the facilities of a student association (osakunta) or one's own department.

Men usually wear a tailcoat and a white waistcoat (a black waistcoat at the public examination), while women wear an evening dress. The doctoral candidate wears a black evening dress. The traditional colour used in academic celebrations is black, but other colours have also become common. Instead of a tailcoat, men may wear dark suits, in which case women wear a short formal dress. Should the doctoral candidate wish the guests to wear some other style of dress, this should be stated in the invitation.

The doctoral candidate is the host or hostess of the party, and the Opponent is the guest of honour, seated immediately to the right of the doctoral candidate. If there are two opponents at the public examination, they will be seated on both sides of the doctoral candidate. The next guest in the seating order is the Custos, seated to the left of or opposite the doctoral candidate. The other guests then follow, usually in the order of their academic achievements.

The doctoral candidate offers food, drinks and possibly other forms of entertainment to the guests invited to the post-doctoral party. The candidate starts by welcoming all those present before dinner is served.

Speeches are made after the meal when coffee has been served. The doctoral candidate thanks the Opponent and others who have aided in the work. The Opponent's answer is usually light-heartedly dignified rather than too solemn or formal. Next, the Custos may address those present. After this, other guests may speak in the order in which they were mentioned in the doctoral candidate's address. If the doctoral candidate wishes to thank his or her family members, this should be done at the conclusion of the candidate's address.