Cotutelle

The UB can establish agreements with universities outside Spain for the international joint supervision of doctoral theses (cotutelle). This is intended to facilitate scientific collaboration between UB research teams and groups at foreign institutions.

  • Under a cotutelle agreement, doctoral students carry out their work under the direction of a supervisor from each of the universities that have signed the joint supervision agreement and will be awarded a doctoral degree certificate by both universities, as provided for in the agreement and in the applicable regulations.
  • To initiate a cotutelle agreement, students must meet the access requirements, be admitted to the doctoral programme, formalize their enrolment and have received approval for the research plan.

Procedure for Requesting a Cotutelle Agreement

  • Deadline: Submit the cotutelle request sumultaneously to the research plan submission. In any case, it should be submitted before the end of the first academic year.
  • Documentation: Request of cotutelle and model of agreement, available at the forms section “Thesis in Cotutelle”.
  • Submit to: Generic Instance directed to the SED of Mathematics and Computer Science.

Approval Process

Requests for joint supervision must be authorized by the Academic Committee of the doctoral programme. If the request is authorized, the SED will forward the approved draft agreement to the Legal Services and Agreements office, which will arrange for the agreement to be signed by both universities and sent to all interested parties.

Required Content of the Joint Supervision Agreement

The specific joint supervision agreement must comply with current regulations on thesis preparation and defence at the UB and at the other participating universities. The agreement must be written in at least one of the official languages of the University of Barcelona, and must include the following:

  • The names of the co-supervisors of the thesis.
  • The periods during which the doctoral student will conduct research at each of the universities, and the activities to be carried out there.
  • The dedication regime for the thesis (full-time or part-time).
  • The institution where the thesis defense will take place.
  • The commitment of both institutions to award the doctoral degree based on a single defense.
  • The language in which the thesis will be written.
  • The language in which the thesis will be defended.
  • The final date to defend the thesis, according to the regulations governing the maximum duration of doctoral studies, including any extensions.

Development

The candidate must submit the yearly monitoring reports, including during academic years spent outside UB.

The time allocated for the preparation of the thesis must not exceed the duration established by the university where the thesis will be defended, and must be distributed between both universities in accordance with the terms set out in the cotutelle agreement. During the training period required to obtain the doctoral degree, the candidate must have completed a minimum stay of six months at each of the institutions included in the cotutelle agreement. These research stays may be completed in a single period or in several, and must involve research activities. Both the stays and the activities carried out must be specified in the cotutelle agreement.

During the thesis preparation period, doctoral candidates must enroll at UB and pay in full the student insurance (if applicable), as well as the fees corresponding to specific and learning support services and any additional non-academic services requested. The fee for thesis supervision, monitoring, and ongoing evaluation must be paid during the academic year in which the stay at UB takes place.

Theses under cotutelle arrangements may also qualify for the international mention if the research stays are carried out at institutions other than those included in the formalized cotutelle agreement.

Thesis Defence

In order to defend the thesis under a cotutelle agreement at UB, the corresponding procedures must be completed in accordance with the applicable regulations.

To defend the thesis at the foreign university, the procedures must comply with the legislation in force in that university. However, the reports and defense record required by UB must also be duly completed and signed, following the Spanish grading system (fail, pass, good, excellent). If the thesis is awarded the grade of “excellent,” the procedure for granting the Cum Laude distinction,will be initiated.

Degree Issuance (UB)

To request the doctoral degree from the University of Barcelona when the thesis has been defended at the foreign university, the doctoral candidate must:

  • Have paid the registration fees for the corresponding academic years.
  • Submit a digital copy of the doctoral thesis.
  • Submit the completed forms: UB institutional repository file, TDX thesis repository and  TESEO sheet  available at the Deposit and Defence section of the forms site.
  • Request: Electronic office (PR-000033)