Dialogue is particularly encouraged at the Oxford Academy for Advanced Studies which aims to be a bridge between Britain and the Islamic World, but welcomes people from any background.
Postgraduate students bring their own perceptions of the doctorate.
Surely, success in the dissertation should be the goal of every candidate. Curiously, success in exams may not always be the top goal. Several years ago I persuaded an Oxford University don to put on a demonstration of the tutorial for which Oxford and Cambridge are famous. The student read her essay. The don offered her comments and criticisms.