Doctoral candidates supervision

SUPERVISION

The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme is made up of the programme coordinator, who will act as chairperson, the director of the Human Rights Institute and three board members from the different lines of research or areas of knowledge participating in the programme, who are endorsed by the supervision of theses and research projects.

Every academic year, the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme in Human Rights, Democracy and International Justice will organise, with the aim of fostering the supervision or co-supervision of doctoral theses, a conference of informative and scientific content addressed to the teaching staff of the programme, and open to the rest of the faculty of the Universitat de València, where the statistical data of the theses read in the previous academic year will be provided, indicating the subjects, supervisors, grade, scientific productivity and, if any, extraordinary prizes awarded. At the same event, two scientists with extensive experience in the supervision of Doctoral Theses will be invited, one from among the lecturers on the programme and another of recognised international standing, to present their main research lines and their own experience as supervisors. In addition, an annual meeting will be scheduled between the more experienced PhD lecturers and the junior PhD lecturers in order for the younger ones to acquire the necessary skills for the supervision of PhD theses.

With regard to students and in the same vein, every year we held open briefings on job opportunities which are made public through the website of the Institute of Human Rights and in collaboration with the Faculty of Law, where the usefulness and training and professional potential of the doctoral programme are explained to students.

The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme is responsible for the programming, coordination and academic supervision of the doctoral programme. Its functions include guaranteeing its quality through a series of internal mechanisms that can be summarised as follows:

Regular monitoring and supervision of PhD students by their supervisor and co-supervisor. Regular meetings will be schedule to analyse the PhD student's compliance with the objectives proposed at the previous meeting, as well as any possible problems that may have arisen.

Medium-term goals will also be established, depending on the level of development of the thesis, possible publications that may be made, attendance at congresses or the design of stays by the student at other universities.

The Academic Committee will ensure that students can carry out research stays in one or more centres or institutes of higher education.

The mobility stays of PhD students will be managed with the help of their thesis supervisor and in coordination with the advisor at the host university or research centre. The Academic Committee shall endeavour, within its budget availability, to promote mobility and shall seek to facilitate the completion of doctoral theses subject to the “International Doctor Mention” system.

Regarding thesis supervision, students will be subject to the regulations established in the Royal Decree 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies.

www.uv.es/escoladoct/REGLAMENTOS/Reglamento%20de%20Estudios%20de%20Doctorado_cas.pdf

The Doctoral Studies Regulations, approved by the Governing Council of the Universitat de València ACGUV 206/2017, of 25 July, modified by ACGUV/2018, of 10 July, establishes with regard to the supervision of theses:

Article 3. The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme

1. The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme is responsible for the programming, coordination and academic and teaching supervision of the activities of the programme.

4. The Academic Committee of the Programme has the following competences:

a) To propose to the Doctoral School the list of possible PhD students for the supervision of doctoral theses, as well as the research lines offered.

b) To propose the admission to the doctoral programme.

c) To assign to each PhD student the supervisor(s) and advisor(s) of the doctoral thesis, as well as to approve their modification in a reasoned manner.

d) To make public the procedures they consider appropriate in order to guarantee the quality of doctoral theses, both in their preparation and in the assessment process, before they are submitted.

e) Annually evaluate the personalised activities document and the PhD student's research plan.

f) For the purpose of awarding the international mention in the Doctoral Degree, to authorise the stay and activities carried out in another State, either in a higher education institution or in a research institution.

g) All other competences necessary for the proper performance of their duties.

Article 4. Doctoral Thesis Advisors

1. Once admitted and enrolled in the doctoral programme, all PhD students shall be assigned, within a period of three months, an advisor by the corresponding Academic Committee, who shall be a doctor with accredited research experience, linked to the unit or school organising the programme.

2. The advisor shall be responsible for ensuring the interaction of the PhD student with the Academic Committee and, in particular:

a) to ensure that the training and research activity of the PhD student is in line with the programme;

b) to guide the student in the choice of courses, seminars or other non-regulated activities aimed at research training.

Article 5. Supervision of Doctoral Theses

1. The Academic Committee responsible for the programme shall assign each PhD student, within a maximum period of three months from enrolment, a supervisor for the doctoral thesis, who may or may not coincide with the person designated as advisor. This assignment may fall on any doctor with duly accredited research experience, regardless of the university, centre or institution in which they provide their services. A doctoral thesis may be co-supervised by a maximum of three doctors.

2. No doctor of the Universitat de València may supervise or co-supervise more than 10 doctoral theses at the same time.

3. The supervisor may resign from the student's supervisory duties by means of a reasoned resignation letter submitted to the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme, which, if appropriate, will resolve the request and proceed to the appointment of another supervisor so that the student can continue the doctoral programme.

4. The Academic Committee may modify the appointment of the doctoral thesis supervisor at any time during the completion of the thesis, after hearing the PhD students and the supervisor(s), and provided that there are justified reasons.

5. The general regulations of the Universitat de València that regulate the activity of the teaching staff will establish the equivalence in credits of the supervision of doctoral theses.

Likewise, article 9 establishes that the Universitat de València may reach agreements with foreign universities to develop doctoral theses under a joint supervision system. In this case, PhD students will carry out their thesis under the control and responsibility of at least one thesis supervisor from each of the universities signing the agreement.

The Universitat de València has a "Doctoral Commitment Document" approved by the Doctoral Subcommittee on 17 October 2011, which defines the respective rights and responsibilities and the reciprocal commitments of the signatory members in order to ensure the achievement of the objectives defined in the Programme during the period of preparation of the doctoral thesis. In summary, this document includes:

- Reciprocal commitments in the establishment of mutual collaboration.

- Responsibilities and commitment of the thesis supervisor: commitment to regularity, motivation of self-reliant initiatives, original and innovative nature of the project and coherent with the research line.

- Responsibilities and commitment of the PhD student: To report the supervisor regularly on the progress of the project and its results, and commitment to follow any observations made by the supervisor.

- Confidentiality with the data and information that may be provided and commitment to use the information for the corresponding purposes, Intellectual Property Regime, recognising the PhD student the intellectual or industrial property rights that correspond to them in accordance with the current legislation.

- Conflict resolution, in which the Doctoral Programme Coordinator must act as mediator.

The link to the Code of Good Practices of the Doctoral School of the Universitat de València is provided:

https://www.uv.es/escoladoct/NORMATIVA/CODIGO_DE_BUENAS%20_PRACTICAS_ED-UV.pdf

MONITORING OF THE PHD STUDENT

The Doctoral Studies Regulations, approved by the Governing Council of the Universitat de València ACGUV 206/2017, of 25 July, modified by ACGUV/2018, of 10 July, establishes the following procedure in the different articles specified:

Article 4. Doctoral Thesis Advisors

Article 5. Supervision of Doctoral Theses

Article 6. Doctoral Commitment Document

After formalising the first enrolment, the PhD student, the University, the advisor and, if applicable, the supervisor must jointly sign the doctoral commitment, which is related, among other issues, to the procedure for resolving any conflicts that may arise, to aspects relating to intellectual or industrial property and, in general, to the functions of supervision of the PhD student’s research activity.

Article 7. Research Plan and Activities Document of PhD students

1. Once enrolled for the first time, a personalised activity document shall be drawn up for each doctoral student, which must record all the activities of interest for the development of the PhD student, as well as the development of the doctoral thesis, for review by the advisor and the thesis supervisor and evaluation by the Academic Committee of the corresponding Doctoral Programme.

2. Before the end of the first year, the PhD student must draw up a research plan, approved by the advisor and the supervisor. This plan must include the methodology, objectives, means and time schedule for preparing their PhD thesis, as well as a favourable report from the Universitat de València's Ethics Committee in Experimental Research, in the cases indicated.

This plan may be improved throughout the duration of the Doctoral Programme and must be approved by the advisor and the supervisor.

3. Research plans that include experimentation on humans or human biological samples, animal experimentation and the use of pathogenic biological agents or genetically modified organisms will be subject to evaluation by the Ethics Committee.

4. Annually, the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme will evaluate the research plan and the activities document together with the reports issued by the advisor and the supervisor. A positive evaluation will be a requirement to continue in the programme. In the event of a negative evaluation, which must be reasoned, the PhD student must be re-evaluated within six months, for which a new research plan must be drawn up.

If there is a second negative evaluation, the PhD student will be definitively withdrawn from the programme. The applicant may lodge an appeal against these resolutions, which do not exhaust administrative procedures, to be determined upon a report from the Postgraduate Studies Committee by the Principal or by their delegate.

5. For enrolment in subsequent years, a favourable report from the Academic Committee on this personal activities document and the research plan will be required.

6. These documents must be registered at the Doctoral School.

www.uv.es/escoladoct/REGLAMENTOS/Reglamento%20de%20Estudios%20de%20Doctorado_cas.pdf

The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme will promote the presence of international experts in the monitoring committees, preliminary reports and thesis examining boards. This presence is already guaranteed by the existing regulations at the Universitat de València on the requirements for the defence and submission of the doctoral thesis, which must issue favourable reports prior to the reading of the thesis.

Likewise, the existing regulation on the formation of thesis examining boards guarantees the participation of external members of the Universitat de València.

With regard to the provision for PhD students' stays in other national and international centres, the research groups of the Human Rights Institute, as far as possible, promote and manage pre-doctoral stays in research centres with which there is collaboration. Therefore, it is expected for 70% of the students of the Doctoral Programme in Human Rights, Democracy and International Justice to carry out stays in other national and international centres and for 50% of the theses to have an international mention.

Taking into account the data of the last five years, which show that 75% of the graduates of the Doctoral Programme have carried out a stay in an international research centre, the programme plans to maintain this same percentage of PhD students who are able to undertake a stay during their training, although this quota will depend on the external resources and travel grants available.

For part-time students, a percentage of 60% is foreseen. These stays will be encouraged in the modality of co-supervision.

Most of the students who carry out a stay abroad are expected to complete their doctoral thesis with an international mention.

In order to promote stays, students who are in the middle of their doctoral studies and who have not yet undertaken a stay will be asked to propose a plan. The document with the mobility plan shall be attached to the research plan and activity document for approval by the Academic Committee. The aim is to encourage stays and to foster competition for the economic resources available. Exceptionally, if a stay is not foreseen, the student must include a document stating the reasons for not carrying it out, which shall be attached to the research plan and activity document for its evaluation by the Academic Committee.

The Academic Committee of the Programme shall authorise the stay and the activities carried out in an international higher education institution or in an international research centre. It shall also indicate whether these activities are considered appropriate for the purpose of awarding the international mention of the doctoral degree. To this end, the PhD student must submit their application to the Academic Committee of the Programme with the approval of the thesis supervisor and advisor prior to the stay.

Supervision and monitoring of PhD students