External examiners: Research programmes
Information you need to know
The Doctoral Academy is part of Liverpool John Moores University. See further information on the institution.
Liverpool John Moores University is the Data Controller.
Our Data Protection Officer can be contacted at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.
This privacy notice explains how we use your personal information and your rights regarding that information.
For information about how the wider university uses personal data, please see the Privacy Notice section of our website.
Information we are collecting
We collect and process personal data relating to you in order to correspond with you and provide access to the university’s IT systems.
This includes:
- your full name and title
- current role
- current employer
- email address
- where necessary, your home address (for example where hard copy documents are required)
Where you submit claims for fees or expenses, we also collect additional information to enable payment to be made.
This includes:
- your bank account details
- sort code
- date of birth
- National Insurance number
If your nomination as an external examiner is approved, this is subject to a right to work check. To carry out this check, we will collect information about your residency or citizenship status, such as passport details or other evidence of your eligibility to work in the UK. This information may be provided through a digital identity verification provider, via a government verification service, by presenting original documents in person or by secure post, or by providing an electronic copy where your work is carried out entirely outside the UK.
Where original documents are submitted by post, they will be returned to you securely once the verification process has been completed.
Where we use a digital identity verification service, this may involve the temporary processing of passport information and a live image for identity verification purposes. In these cases, personal data may be held by the provider for a limited period before being reduced to basic account details.
The university will retain a copy of right to work documentation following verification and store this securely within its systems. In all cases, a record confirming that your right to work has been verified will be retained electronically and securely.
Source of the personal data
Most of the personal data we process is provided directly by you, including the information described in the section above.
In some cases, we also receive information about you indirectly as part of the external examiner nomination process. When you are nominated, the Lead Supervisor completes a university nomination form to confirm your suitability for appointment. As part of this process, information from your Curriculum Vitae may be used, including details of your current place of work, employment history, main areas of teaching or research, and educational background.
This information is used solely to assess your suitability for appointment and to support academic governance processes.
Why we are collecting your data and the legal basis for this
We process personal data in accordance with the principles of the GDPR and only where there is a valid lawful basis to do so.
The lawful basis we rely on is Article 6(1)(b) of the UK GDPR, where processing is necessary for the performance of a contract. This allows the university to consider and confirm your appointment as an external examiner, support you in carrying out your role, and administer payments and expenses.
We use your personal data to assess and process your nomination, including evaluating your suitability for appointment. Your information is also used to carry out right to work checks and to meet legal and regulatory requirements relating to your eligibility to work in the UK.
During your engagement, we process your data to support you in carrying out your role and to manage your ongoing relationship with the university. This includes maintaining records of your appointment, monitoring activity, and ensuring compliance with institutional and national requirements, such as the Research Degrees Regulations and expectations set by the Office for Students, including the identification and management of potential conflicts of interest.
We also use your data to administer payments, including the payment of agreed fees and reimbursement of reasonable expenses incurred as part of your work with the university.
Who has access to this data
Your personal data will be used only by relevant LJMU staff where the data is necessary for them to undertake their designated role.
Access is provided to staff involved in the nomination, administration, governance and support of research degree examinations. This includes the nominating supervisory team, Heads of Department or Directors of School, the Doctoral Academy, relevant faculty Research Degrees Committees and the university Research Degrees Board, as well as faculty administrative offices and central services such as Finance and IT Services. IT Services includes responsibility for systems used to support examinations, such as the university’s secure eDoc platform.
Your name, current role, place of work and contact email address are available to staff and students involved in the examination process through the university’s secure e‑Doc system.
If a student makes direct contact with you, you are advised to refer any queries to the Doctoral Academy.
Your examiner reports are stored securely within the University’s PGR Examinations inbox and within the Doctoral Academy’s secure repository/e‑Doc system.
Preliminary reports are shared with the other examiner(s) and the Independent Chair and, in exceptional circumstances, with the postgraduate researcher.
Final joint reports are shared with the other examiner(s), the Independent Chair, the postgraduate researcher, the Lead Supervisor, and members of the university’s Research Degrees Board
Reports may also be shared with other relevant university staff where required for quality assurance or regulatory purposes.
Where you are appointed as an external examiner for a dual award, your personal and contact details (excluding home address, bank details, National Insurance number and date of birth) may be shared with the partner institution involved in delivering the award.
How the university protects your data
The university is committed to keeping your personal data safe in line with data protection legislation and our information security and data protection policies.
Personal data collected as part of your nomination and appointment as an external examiner is handled securely throughout the lifecycle of your engagement.
Your data is collected at the nomination stage by the nominating supervisory team using the examiner nomination form. During the nomination process, this information is stored securely by the Doctoral Academy. Copies may also be held securely by Faculty Research Degrees Committees, limited to documentation required for committee business
Once appointed, your personal data continues to be stored centrally and securely by the Doctoral Academy and within the university’s secure e‑Doc system for the duration of your appointment
All records are stored in secure digital files with restricted access.
Personal data used to process fees and expense claims is handled securely and only where necessary for payment purposes.
Fee and expense claim information (including name, home address and bank details) is stored within the university’s secure e‑Doc system, the PGR Examinations inbox, and the University’s Oracle Finance system.
How long the university keeps your data
We will only keep your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected. This includes meeting legal, regulatory, accounting and reporting requirements.
Personal data is retained in line with the university’s Records Retention Schedule. Unless explained otherwise, the retention periods set out below apply.
If your nomination is not approved, personal data relating to the nomination will be retained securely by the Doctoral Academy for one year from the decision not to appoint you. It will then be securely deleted.
If your nomination is approved, personal data relating to your appointment will be retained for the duration of your appointment and for a further six years after your engagement ends. It will then be securely deleted.
Fee and expense claim information held by the university’s Finance Department is stored securely in both paper and electronic formats, including within the university’s Oracle Finance system. These records are retained for seven years from the date of submission, after which they are securely deleted
To allow the University to respond to queries, the Doctoral Academy also retains copies of fee and expense claim forms. These copies are held electronically in secure files. They are retained for one year from the date of submission and then securely deleted.
Your rights
As a data subject, you have a number of rights. You can:
- access and obtain a copy of your data on request - this could be in a portable electronic format
- request that the University changes incorrect or incomplete data if you think that it is inaccurate or out of date
- request that the University delete or stop processing your data, for example where the data is no longer necessary or legally required for the purposes of processing.
If your personal data has been provided by consent, you have a right to withdraw that consent at any time.
If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact the Data Protection Officer at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.
If you do not provide data
We need to collect certain personal data from you in order to meet our legal and regulatory obligations and to support your engagement with the university in the role of external examiner.
If you do not provide the information we request, we may not be able to consider your nomination as an external examiner, you may not be able to carry out your duties, or, in some cases, the university may need to end your engagement as an external examiner.
If you do not provide the personal data required to process fees or expenses, the university will not be able to make those payments.
Transfers of data outside the UK
We normally keep your personal data within the UK. In some cases, however, we may need to transfer it to another country - for example, to deliver a contract with you or to work with a partner organisation such as a university based overseas.
Whenever this happens, we make sure your information stays protected. This could be through a UK “adequacy regulation” (which confirms that the other country’s data protection laws are up to UK standards) or by putting strong safeguards in place.
These safeguards might include model contractual clauses, formal data sharing or processing agreements, or binding corporate rules. In short, even if your data travels abroad, it will continue to be treated with the same care and respect as it would under UK law.
Automated decision-making
We do not use computers to make decisions about you based solely on your personal data. Any decisions that affect you will always be made by a human, ensuring that you are treated fairly.
How to complain to the university
You have a right to complain to the university if you think it has not properly responded to your request for personal information or feel it has not handled your personal data responsibly.
If you are not satisfied with how your request for information or how your personal data has been handled, you should set out your complaint in writing to:
Maria Burquest
University Secretary and General Counsel
Legal and Governance Services
2nd Floor Exchange Station
Tithebarn Street
Liverpool
L2 2QP
or by email via DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.
How to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office
You have the right to complain to The Information Commissioner if you believe that our processing of your personal data does not meet our data protection obligations. The Information Commissioner can be contacted using the following details:
Post: Information Commissioners Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK95AF.
Telephone: 0303 123 1113.
Email: contact can be made by accessing the ICO website.