Doctoral Programme in Fine Arts: Public examination event

Published 31.5.2023 | Updated 21.2.2024

The proceedings of a public examination event are first briefly summarised below and then covered in more detail.

Summary of public examination proceedings

• The doctoral candidate, Custos, and Examiner arrive. The audience stands.
• The doctoral candidate, Examiner, and Custos settle to their places.
• The Custos declares the start of the event.
• The audience sits down.
• The doctoral candidate presents a lectio praecursoria.
• The Examiner presents their introductory statement.
• The examination lasts between 2-3 hours.
• The Examiner presents a conclusive statement.
• The doctoral candidate thanks the Examiner.
• The Custos accepts possible questions from the audience.
• The Custos declares the event to be over.
• The doctoral candidate, Custos, and Examiner leave. The audience stands.
• The audience leaves.

After the event, the doctoral candidate accepts congratulations. First congratulations are offered by the Custos, Examiner, professors, and family. Other people congratulate in the order of arrival. Coffee and something sweet or salty are offered.

Seating order

It is customary to fill the seats in the following order:

• First row: Dean, professors
• Second row: doctoral candidate’s family
• Third row: teachers of the Academy

Dress code

The doctoral candidate is usually dressed in a dark suit or a long sleeved black dress or two-piece suit.  The dress code is agreed upon beforehand with the Custos and Examiner.

There is no dress code for the audience. The examination is public and open to everyone, and therefore it is quite acceptable to attend in everyday clothing. Guests invited by the doctoral candidate generally dress in a dark suit or other more formal clothing.

Forms of address

At the public examination, the form of direct address is “Mr/Madam Examiner / Candidate / Custos”. The doctoral candidate and Custos may agree in advance on the degree of formality. The participants do not have to resort to pre-formulated modes of expression. Some of the expressions traditionally used at public examinations are, however, mentioned below.

Arrival

The public examination begins when the participants enter the auditorium and the audience rises from their seats. The doctoral candidate enters the auditorium first, followed by the Custos and the Examiner, in this order.

Opening of the examination

The Custos introduces the doctoral candidate and the Examiner and opens the examination by saying for example: “As the Custos appointed by the Academy of Fine Arts, I declare the public examination of the doctoral thesis in fine arts of (name), hereby to begin.” The audience may then sit down.

Lectio praecursoria

The candidate stands up to deliver their introductory lecture, lectio praecursoria, in which they present their artistic work and research method. This lecture may last 20–30 minutes at most. The introductory lecture may begin, for example, with the following words: “Mr/Madam Custos, esteemed Examiner, ladies and gentlemen”.

The lecture is usually given in the same language as the public examination, unless otherwise agreed beforehand.

After the introductory lecture, the candidate turns to the Examiner and asks them formally to present their comments by saying, for example: “I now call upon you, esteemed Examiner appointed by the Academy of Fine Arts, to present your critical comments and remarks on my doctoral thesis in fine arts.”

Structure of examination

Examiners’ statement

The Examiner stands up to make a short statement, touching upon the status and significance of the topic of the candidate’s research in art and in art theory, as well as artistic research. The candidate listens to the statement standing up.

After the statement, the Examiner and the candidate take their seats.

Examination

In the actual examination, the Examiner discusses the candidate’s doctoral research, starting with the research topic and proceeding to the production part and the theoretical part of the research, their mutual relevance, general conclusions, sources, as well as other relevant criteria. The candidate responds to the comments, defending their choices, conclusions, and results.

The Examiner may spend two hours at most on the examination, since sufficient time should be reserved for possible questions from the audience.

Conclusion of examination

At the conclusion of the examination, the Examiner and the doctoral candidate stand up. The Examiner makes a final statement and (as a rule) announces that they will propose to the Academy of Fine Arts that the research be accepted as a doctoral thesis. The doctoral candidate remains standing to thank the Examiner.

Possible questions from the audience

After thanking the Examiner, the doctoral candidate asks the audience to make any comments they may have. The candidate can say, for example: “If anyone present wishes to make any comments concerning my doctoral thesis in fine arts, please ask the Custos for the floor.”

The Custos will ensure that the doctoral candidate has the opportunity to reply to each comment and that the comments do not digress from the topic in hand.

Conclusion of the event

Finally, the Custos stands up to announce that the examination is completed. The total amount of time spent on it may not exceed three hours. The doctoral candidate, the Custos and the Examiner leave the auditorium in the same order in which they entered: the doctoral candidate will leave first, followed by the Custos and the Examiner. The audience must not applaud or cheer during the public examination.

Congratulations will be saved for when the doctoral candidate has left the auditorium and has had the opportunity to first thank the Examiner and the Custos.