Doctoral program in Cognitive Science and Language

Objectives and competences

Objectives and competences

Objectives

Competences

Doctoral studies guarantee, as a minimum, the acquisition by the doctoral candidate of the following basic competences as well as those others that appear in the Spanish Higher Education Qualifications Framework:
a) Systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of the skills and research methods related to this field.
b) Ability to conceive, design or create, implement and adopt a substantial research or creative process.
c) Ability to contribute to extending the frontiers of knowledge through original research.
d) Ability to carry out critical analysis and evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas.
e) Ability to communicate with the academic and scientific community and society in general about their areas of knowledge in the ways and languages commonly used in the international scientific community.
f) Ability to promote, in academic and professional contexts, scientific, technological, social, artistic or cultural progress in a knowledge-based society.

Admission pathways

Access

In general, to access an official doctorate program you must have an official Spanish bachelor's degree, or equivalent, and a university master's degree and have passed a minimum of 300 ECTS credits in all university degree and master's studies. It can also be accessed by anyone who is in any of these cases:

      
• Be in possession of official Spanish university degrees or equivalent Spanish degrees, provided that at least 300 ECTS credits have been passed in the set of these courses, accrediting level 3 of the Spanish Qualification Framework for Higher Education.

      
• Be in possession of a title obtained in accordance with foreign educational systems belonging to the European Higher Education Area (EEES), without the need for it to be approved, which accredits a level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework, provided that this title is valid for to access doctoral studies in the country of dispatch. This admission does not imply, in any case, the approval of the previous title that the interested party is in possession of or the recognition for other purposes than that of accessing doctoral studies.

      
• Be in possession of a degree obtained in accordance with foreign educational systems outside the EEES, without the need for it to be approved, after verification by the University of Barcelona that this degree accredits a level of training equivalent to the official Spanish master's degree university and which, in the country of dispatch, entitles you to access doctoral studies. This admission does not imply, in any case, the approval of the previous title that the interested party is in possession of or the recognition for other purposes than that of accessing doctoral studies.

      
• Be in possession of another doctoral degree.

      
• Equally, university graduates who, after obtaining a place in training through the corresponding test for access to specialized health training places, have passed with a positive evaluation at least two years of training in a program to obtain the title, can access official of one of the specialties in health sciences.

      
• The graduates, architects or engineers who were in possession of the diploma of advanced studies obtained in accordance with what was established in Royal Decree 778/1998, of April 30, or who had reached the research sufficiency regulated in Royal Decree 185/ 1985, of January 23.

Admission requirements

The admissions process is overseen by the Academic Committee of the doctoral programme. The admission procedure includes assessment against a series of criteria that reflect the recommended applicant profile.

Recommended applicant profile

The doctoral programme is intended for students with an interest in research and solid training in one of the programme's research areas, in philosophy, linguistics and psychology. Priority will be given to students who can demonstrate interdisciplinary experience, such as that obtained in the master's degree in Cognitive Science and Language.

The programme may also be of interest to professionals and holders of pre-EHEA or EHEA degrees in other language-related areas. The programme aims to meet the demands of specific groups or students or professionals:

1. Students who have completed a master's degree related to one of the programme's research areas
(who have obtained 60 credits for subjects directly related to research in the area of cognitive sciences and language). Students who have taken the inter-university master's degree (UB, UAB, UPF, URV and UdG) in Cognitive Science and Language have a particularly suitable profile. However, students who have successfully completed a different master's degree linked to the doctoral programme's research areas will also have the requisite academic preparation. This includes all students who have studied social and human sciences, health sciences or education sciences (for example, philologists, translators, speech therapists, educational psychologists, etc.). These students may have completed a master's degree related to aspects of philosophy (such as the inter-university master's degree in Analytic Philosophy), linguistics and philology (master's degrees associated with teaching and learning a foreign or native language, applied linguistics, and translation) and psychology (such as master's degrees related to cognitive psychology and the relationship between behaviour and cognition).

2. Subject to approval by the Academic Committee, students with other official qualifications in fields related to those mentioned above may be also admitted. In these cases, candidates must provide evidence of research training and of specific training in one of the doctoral programme's research areas, as well as a good command of English.

Admission and selection criteria

The Academic Committee has set the following specific admission requirements for the standard admission pathways:

1. To be eligible for admission, candidates must hold one of the following qualifications:

a) Inter-university Master¿s Degree in Cognitive Science and Language (from the UB, UAB, UPF, URV and UdG), and master's degrees in similar disciplines, described in the "Recommended applicant profile" section.

b) A master's degree issued by a higher education institution in the European Higher Education Area, of the same academic level and offering equivalent research training to the master's degrees indicated above, at the discretion of the Academic Committee.

c) A qualification issued by an education system outside the European Higher Education Area, which shows that the holder has a level of education equivalent to the master's degrees mentioned in Section a.

2. Knowledge of English. Candidates must provide official certification of English language proficiency (at level B1 CEFR or higher). If this is not possible, a representative designed by the Academic Committeewill assess the candidate's English language skills in a personal interview.

Candidate evaluation criteria

The Academic Committee will give priority to applications from candidates who meet the specific requirements and hold one of the university master's degrees listed above.

The Committee will also consider the following aspects, which are prioritized according to the weighting shown:

1. The academic record and other academic merits. In particular, it will consider whether the candidate has sufficient training to begin a thesis on a research topic related to the programme's scientific areas. Credit will be given to candidates in possession of one of the master's degrees associated with the programme. For candidates with other master's degrees, the following factors will be considered: a) English-language tuition, and b) quality indicators for the master's degree and the university at which it was taken. Weighting: 50%.

2. Curriculum vitae. Credit will be given for previous knowledge of the topics covered by the doctoral programme. Credit will also be given for experience in this field. Certified English language skills (or, for international students, Spanish, Catalan or English) will be taken into consideration. Weighting: 30%.

3. Statement of interest. The statement of interest must clearly indicate the candidate's reasons for applying to the doctoral programme in Cognitive Science and Language. Credit will be given to candidates who present research proposals or highlight areas of interest in which they wish to work in the future. Credit will also be given for a particular interest in research activities carried out by staff assigned to the doctoral programme. To clarify the reasons given in the statement of interest, some candidates may also be asked to attend a personal interview. Weighting: 15%.

4. Letters of recommendation. These may be written by former lecturers or people who have had a professional or academic relationship with the candidate. Letters of recommendation must refer to the candidate's previous training, analytical skills and general motivation for learning. Weighting: 5%

On the basis of the scores, a shortlist of suitable candidates will be drawn up and assessed against the required admission profile.

The admission criteria are the same for full-time and part-time study. However, students who wish to study part-time must explain the reason for their choice. To be eligible for part-time study, candidates must:

1. Be in full-time employment (a copy of the contract will be required).

2. Have an accredited physical, sensory or psychological disability.

3. Be studying part-time on another specialized course.

4. Be the primary carer of a dependent person (proof will be requested).

5. Be responsible for the care of a child or children aged under 3 years.

6. Be an elite athlete.

7. Other circumstances will be considered by the Academic Committee.

Enrolment

You can find all the information and enrolment prices at the Doctoral School

Lines of research and teaching staff

Research lines

101137 - Cognition, perception and action
101133 - Analytic philosophy
101132 - Philosophy of the mind and cognitive sciences
101135 - Linguistics and cognition
101134 - Applied and theoretical linguistics
101136 - Language processing, representation and acquisition

Research plan and progress reports

You can find all the information at the following links:

    
• Research Plan
   
• Activities document
   
• Annual monitoring report and evaluation

Training activities

 

The doctoral programme includes both training in transferable research skills and training specific to the field, in the form of compulsory and optional activities.  

All the activities that doctoral students have to complete in the doctoral programme’s research stage are recorded in the activity report. The compulsory activities must be completed in the first two academic years. Cross-disciplinary activities offered by the university may also be included in it. 

This doctoral programme includes the following planned training activities: 

1. Attendance of or participation in research courses (seminars, summer courses, workshops, conferences, etc.), specifically for the thesis.  

2. Attendance of or participation in (with an oral or poster presentation) national and international conferences and scientific meetings.  

3. Preparation and submission for publication of journal articles and book chapters.  
4. Mobility (including Erasmus study exchanges and traineeships): research visits at other universities and research institutes.  

 

Doctoral thesis

Criteria for theses by publication: 

Theses by publication must include at least the following number of publications (papers or book chapters):  

a) two publications, when both journal articles or book chapters have been published in publications with a high impact factor (first quartile or CARHUS Plus+ A); or  

b) three publications, when one of the journal articles is published in a journal with a high impact factor (first quartile or CARHUS Plus+ A) and the other two in second quartile or CARHUS Plus+ B publications. 

The impact factor will have to be assessed by each branch of the doctoral programme.  

When the thesis consists of two publications, the doctoral student must be listed as the lead author for book chapters or books.  

When it consists of three publications, the doctoral student must be listed as the lead author of at least two of them (including one in a first-quartile publication).  

In case of book chapters, the doctoral programme's academic committee will decide on their inclusion in the thesis.  

Thesis languages: Catalan, Spanish, English. 

Theses subject to data protection: There are no special requirements for such theses at the UB and the URV. The UAB has a protocol for theses subject to technology transfer or protection measures (uab.cat/web/estudiar/doctorat/tesis-sota-proteccio-1345791940598.html).  

Programme thesis readings 

UB: 

• Faculty of Philology and Communication: ub.edu/portal/web/filologia-comunicacio/doctorat-tesis 

• Faculty of Philosophy: ub.edu/filosofia/tercercicle/tesis_diposit_lectura.htm 

• Faculty of Psychology: ub.edu/portal/web/psicologia (in the News section, there is a link to Theses). 

UAB:  

Theses deposited at the UAB Doctoral School can be viewed at: uab.cat/web/estudiar/doctorat/publicitat-de-les-tesis-dipositades-1345682725563.html 

URV:  

doctor.urv.cat/ca/doctorands/diposit-defensa-tesi/tesis-doctorals-peroode-exposicio-publica 

Publication in TDX: 

UB: 

ub.edu/portal/web/filologia-comunicacio/aprovacio-diposit-i-tramits-previs-a-la-defensa-de-la-tesi-doctoral 

UAB 

Since January 2020, the UAB Doctoral School has entered the details of deposited theses in the TDX and TESEO repositories. As a result, no further action is required of doctoral students. The information is the same as that entered for the thesis's online deposit.  

URV 

doctor.urv.cat/ca/doctorands/diposit-defensa-tesi 

Career opportunities

What can you work on ?

Among those specific to the bachelor's and master's degree, students in this programme also receive training in the following areas:
1. Scientific field: research in theoretical linguistics and related fields.
2. Publishing: from editing and proofreading to translation.
3. Children's field: children's language development and communication disorders (speech therapy).
4. Adult disorders: both neurological and psychiatric (speech therapy and neuropsychology).
5. Computational field: application in the field of Computational Linguistics and artificial intelligence.
6. Social field: language planning and policy.

Contact us

PhD coordination: fdieguez@ub.edu

Phone: 934 034 696​​​​​