Publishing scientific articles is a mandatory condition for admission to a dissertation defence in Uzbekistan. The number of publications required, and the standards journals must meet, are set by the Higher Attestation Commission (HAC), with the specific requirements depending on the degree being sought.
Who sets the publication requirements for a defence?
In Uzbekistan, the awarding of academic degrees falls under the Higher Attestation Commission. The HAC establishes the procedure for awarding the degrees of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and Doctor of Science (DSc), and it also approves the list of publications recommended for presenting a dissertation’s main scientific findings.
Articles are accepted for a defence if they have appeared in journals from this list, or in reputable foreign journals. The list is updated periodically, so it is worth checking a specific journal’s current status shortly before submitting an article.
The number of publications for PhD
To obtain a PhD, the total number of scientific works published on the dissertation topic must be no fewer than seven. Of these, at least three must be scientific articles, including one published in a reputable foreign journal.
The dissertation’s main scientific findings are published in periodical scientific publications. For the social sciences and humanities, an additional condition applies – the main works must be authored without co-authors.
What are the requirements for a DSc dissertation?
For a DSc, the bar is higher: the total number of scientific works must be no fewer than twenty, of which at least ten must be articles in journals from the HAC list. Applicants who have already defended a PhD may only count works published after that defence.
Further conditions depend on the field of research. For the social sciences, humanities and economics, a monograph based on the dissertation results must be published. For other fields, including pedagogy, psychology and philosophy, at least two articles in reputable foreign publications are required.
A journal does not always count in the same way
Not every publication is automatically credited by the HAC when a dissertation is reviewed. Before submitting an article to a journal, it is worth bearing several points in mind:
- as a rule, the journal should be on the HAC list at the time the article is published, rather than at the time of the defence
- a foreign publication counts if the journal has international recognition and is indexed in the relevant scientific databases
- articles in the social sciences and humanities are accepted for a defence only where the work has a single author
- the make-up of co-authors and how results are divided between them is worth clarifying with the dissertation council in advance
How to plan your publications so as not to delay your defence
Peer review in journals from the HAC list, and even more so in foreign journals, takes time – anywhere from several weeks to several months. Leaving this part of the preparation until the last stage carries a real risk of not gathering the required number of articles in time for the defence.
To spread the work evenly, the following order can help:
- Study the current HAC list for your scientific specialism.
- Spread future articles across the stages of your research, rather than preparing them all at once before the defence.
- Submit material to a foreign publication early, since peer review there usually takes longer.
- Check a journal’s status periodically, as the HAC list changes over time.
The HAC’s publication requirements for a dissertation defence in Uzbekistan vary by the degree sought, but they follow a common logic – scientific findings should be made available to the professional community before the work goes to defence. Planning publications well in advance reduces the risk of a delayed defence and allows attention to remain on the substance of the dissertation, rather than a last-minute scramble for missing articles.
Planning your dissertation defence and not sure you’ll manage to gather enough publications in time? The specialists at “Scientific Publications” can help you choose suitable journals and support you at every stage – from preparing your article to seeing it through to print. To receive a free consultation, fill in the form below, and our manager will be in touch with you shortly. Onwards to new scientific achievements!
