It is the main supervisor's responsibility to contact relevant academics and submit an application to the Research Committee, where he/she is to appoint the adjudication committee. The application must state the reason for the selection of committee members, and the CV of all committee members must be attached. The adjudication committee is made up of the first and second opponents and a coordinator. The coordinator must be familiar with the Norwegian doctoral system and preferably be an academic employed at AHO. All of the three members shall have a doctorate, and both genders must be represented. The reader cannot be a member of the assessment committee.
The adjudication committee will usually be given a three-month deadline from when they receive the dissertation until they submit their report. Deviations due to holidays, illness, or similar can occur. The committee decides the defence date. All contact with the adjudication committee must go through the research administration.
The committee must hand in their report to the Research Committee at AHO at least five weeks before the date of the defence. The report must end up with one of these three conclusions:
- the dissertation is deemed worthy of defence in a public disputation,
- the dissertation is not considered worthy of defence (rejection)
- the committee ask for minor revisions before the final decision is made