Who should be invited to the dinner, and what roles do they have?
The doctoral dinner is your event. It is you who invite the chair of defence, the members of the evaluation committee, and supervisors to the dinner. In addition, it is natural to invite colleagues and others that have aided you with your thesis.
There are no fixed rules for table placements, but you should ensure that yourself and your companion, the members of the evaluation committee, the defence chair, and your main supervisor is seated in the center or at the main table.
It is common that the chair of defence, the third member of the evaluation committee, and the supervisor make speeches. The toastmaster should be informed head that the chair of defence is the first speaker during the doctoral dinner. Moreover, it is customary that you also make a speech where you thank the university, the committee, your academic community, family and so on.
Conferral
Four times per year the University of Oslo hosts a ceremony where new PhDs are formally conferred and granted their doctoral diplomas.
The conferral ceremony is not mandatory, but if you have the opportunity you should participate. The ceremony is usually hosted in the University Aula.
During the ceremony all doctoral candidates are called up on the podium. The Dean will present a short review of each thesis before the Principals presents the doctoral diploma.
Formal attire is expected at the conferral ceremony. You may invite a limited number of guests, such as supervisors, family, and friends to witness the ceremony.
Read more about the conferral ceremony (in Norwegian)
Doctoral diplomas
The doctoral diplomas are written in latin. You will additionally receive an attachment in Norwegian with information about your doctoral degree and your doctoral thesis.
In the event you are unable to attend the conferral, you will be mailed the diploma to your private address after ceremony. Remember to ensure you are registered with the correct address in StudentWeb.