Validating a Brazilian PhD in the UK – Concern about one low passing grade

[Oakes83Phd]

Hi everyone,

I'm Brazilian and completed a PhD in Physics at a federal university in Brazil. I might consider moving to the UK in the future, and I'm trying to understand how my PhD diploma would be evaluated there.

In my program, I passed all subjects, but in one of them, I got the minimum passing grade — a 6 out of 10, which is considered a pass here. That made me wonder: since the minimum pass mark varies a lot from country to country (some use 50%, some 60%, etc.), could a diploma ever be questioned or invalidated in the UK due to a low passing grade in a single course?

From what I've read (and what ChatGPT suggested), PhD validation in the UK tends to focus more on:

• Whether the degree is from a recognized institution

• The level of the qualification (i.e., doctoral level)

• The originality and quality of the thesis

Also, I heard UK PhDs don’t really use GPAs or numerical grades — just a "pass" or "fail", sometimes "pass with corrections" or "with distinction."

Can anyone confirm if this is accurate? Has anyone here with a PhD from outside the UK gone through UK ENIC or a university evaluation process?

Thanks in advance!

[Oakes83Phd]

thanks a lot.

Edited May 7 by Oakes83Phd