Joint supervision

What is the joint supervision?

A thesis prepared at two universities

 

Work towards the completion of the thesis is carried out at both universities and jointly supervised. A single thesis is submitted, with a joint assessment panel, and both universities issue their own doctoral degree. Both universities recognize the validity of the thesis and award the corresponding doctoral degree.

Joint supervision is a good option for an international thesis, but it should be borne in mind that in these cases the duration is likely to be longer.

How do I arrange joint supervision of my thesis?

In order to arrange joint supervision, a specific agreement must be signed between the two universities.

If you want to request the preparation of the thesis under the Joint Supervision regime, you must be enrolled in a doctoral program at the University.

A specific agreement will need to be signed between the two universities in question, setting out how the programme will be organized. It is important to note that the legislation of each country is likely to be different, so the agreement must respect the regulations in place at each of the universities.

The agreement must contain the following information:

  1. The names of the thesis supervisors and tutors (there can be a maximum of three supervisors).
  2. The periods of research that the doctoral student must complete at each of the universities and the activities they will be expected to carry out.
  3. The student's time commitment (part-time or full-time).
  4. Host institution for the thesis defence.
  5. The commitment of the two institutions to each issue a doctoral degree certificate, with a single thesis defence.
  6. The language in which the thesis is written.
  7. The language in which the thesis defence is carried out.
  8. The deadline for the thesis defence, in accordance with the academic progress requirements for doctoral studies, taking into account any extensions to the period of study.

How do I request joint supervision?

You must request thesis co-supervision from the academic committee of the doctoral program in which you are enrolled, presenting a research project with the approval of the foreign university with which you wish to carry out the co-supervision.
The deadline for requesting it is before the end of the first academic year in which you are enrolled.

How do I prepare a thesis under joint supervision?

Preparing the thesis under joint supervision

The procedure for preparing the thesis and the corresponding administrative procedures are the same as for theses prepared only at the UB (enrolment, research plan, progress reviews, etc.). You must also meet the requirements set by the other university.

You will have a supervisor at each university (in exceptional cases, there may be three).

Furthermore, you must spend a period of at least six months at the UB and a period at the other university as determined by that university.

You must enrol each year; the fees payable to each university will be stipulated in the joint supervision agreement.

How do I present my thesis if there are two supervisors?

The thesis is presented at one of the universities, generally according to the procedures in place at that university (in terms of deadlines, number of members and composition of the examination panel, the structure of the defence itself, etc.).

The doctoral degree certificate from the UB states on the reverse: "Thesis carried out under joint supervision with the University...".