Thesis Preparation

• The chosen thesis topic requires an original, innovative and topical research to be achieved within an expressly established deadline.
• The doctoral student shall write a thesis proposal of at least 20 pages to be submitted to his Thesis Director. It includes:
  • definition of the research area;
  • detailed problem statement;
  • rationale;
  • literature review;
  • description of the adopted methodology;
  • preliminary plan;
  • selected and commented bibliography.
• The doctoral student shall be acquainted with the number of theses supervised by his Director. Taking into account that a Thesis Director can only effectively supervise a limited number of doctoral students, (four at most, in accordance with the regulations of the Doctoral College, article 7.3), and that a doctoral student is entitled to a personal supervision, it is very important that the Thesis Director shall devote the necessary time for the proper functioning of the research and shall provide the appropriate means to assist the student in completing his work.
• The doctoral student shall, throughout his thesis preparation, inform his Director about the current state of the research progress and the difficulties encountered during work. He is also required to submit a semestrial report to his Thesis Director up to ten pages. The Thesis Director, in turn, shall write his semestrial assessment report concerning the research progress and submit it to the Head of the Doctoral Commission.
• Two semestrial meetings at least shall be held with the Thesis Director. The first two meetings shall deal with the thesis statement, choice of the bibliography related thereto, and the detailed examination of the draft plan initially submitted by the student. However, it is possible to hold more frequent regular meetings upon a joint agreement between the doctoral student and his Thesis Director.
• The doctoral student shall strictly abide by the work calendar established with the Thesis Director, regularly report the status of his research and the encountered difficulties, and take into consideration the information and advice communicated to him. He shall prepare for the interviews with his Thesis Director and facilitate the work of the latter by submitting clear and comprehensible work.
• The minimum duration to achieve the doctoral studies is six semesters, as from initial registration. A semestrial extension, of maximum four consecutive semesters, even if the student changes his research topic (Rf. Change of Doctoral Thesis Topic Request Form), may be granted by the President of the Doctoral College, following a report and a justified opinion from the Thesis Director and the Head of the Doctoral Commission. Following this deadline, the topic is deemed cancelled and the doctoral student is excluded from the program. (Rf. Registration Extension Request in Doctoral Studies Request Form)
• The doctoral studies registration is renewed each semester.
• In the event of joint supervision, the follow-up is done in cooperation with the partner university and under the control of the USEK Doctoral College.
• In the event of co-direction, the distribution of responsibilities between the two directors is determined by the President of the Doctoral College upon the proposition of the Head of the Doctoral Commission.
• In the event of clash between the doctoral student and his director or the laboratory director, a mediation process is to be initiated. It involves the Doctoral Commission which listens to the litigant parties. The Doctoral Commission shall prove its impartiality. Its decisions may ultimately be appealed at the USEK Doctoral College.

Thesis Follow-up

• The supervision of the doctoral student is personal. The regularity of meetings throughout the research enables the director to closely follow the progress of work and assess its results. To this end, a thesis follow-up sheet should be filled out by the PhD student and the thesis director.
• The Thesis Director informs the applicant of new directions that the work may take and this in agreement with him. He shall also share with the student, prior to the thesis defense, his critical comments and assessments.
• A semestrial report is written by the Thesis Director and forwarded to the Chairperson of the Doctoral Commission for follow-up. This report depicts the progress status of research and includes a comprehensive evaluation of the doctoral student work.
• The doctoral student involved in the preparation of a doctoral thesis shall, every year, take part in the annual colloquium of the doctoral students organized by the Doctoral College to present the progress status of his research to other doctoral students.
• An individual administrative follow-up is provided by the Head of the Doctoral Commission.

Thesis Registration, Submission, Defense and Publication

• Before submitting the final version of the thesis, the PhD student is required to comply with APA reference style requirements in terms of the format and the referencing method. The document should be of around 220 to 250 pages all inclusive.
• In terms of thesis registration, submission, defense and publication, if need be, the doctoral student shall be aware of all procedures and forms related thereto and abide by them.