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1. Can I be eligible for admission to a PhD Programme before completing my Master’s Degree?

To access the PhD Programme regulated by the RD 99/2011 it is necessary to meet certain entry requirements:

  • To hold an official Spanish Undergraduate Degree, or equivalent, and a University Master’s Degree (300 ECTS must be recognised).
  • Other possible ways to access this Programme are:
    • To hold a qualification obtained in accordance with foreign education systems, without the need for its legal recognition, after verification by the university that this certifies a level of education equivalent to that of the official Spanish Master’s Degree and that it enables the holder to access doctoral studies in the country issuing the certificate. This admission does not imply the legal recognition of the previous qualification, for other purposes.
    • To hold another Spanish PhD Certificate.
    • To be a PhD student under previous university regulations.
    • To hold a Spanish degree in Psychology, or one that has been validated (for example, a degree in Philosophy and Educational Sciences, Psychology Section).
    • Graduates who hold the Advanced Studies Certificate obtained in accordance with the provisions of RD 778/1998 or have achieved the research proficiency regulated in RD 185/1985, provided that they have the condition of the previous point.
    • In the case of degrees obtained abroad, it is important to bear in mind that it is necessary to:
      1. Officially translate the documentation written in a language other than Spanish and/or Catalan.
      2. Officially legalise the documentation if you come from outside the European Higher Education Area.

2. I have studied abroad. What steps do I have to follow regarding the legalisation of my studies?

If you have studied outside Spain and you hold a degree issued by a foreign university, you will have to present the documentation translated by an official translator (if the university that issued the degree belongs to the European Higher Education Area - I.I.I.S.), and if it does not belong to the I.I.I.S., in addition to the translation, you will have to present the legalisation of the documents.
You can consult the legalisation procedures at the Doctoral Studies Service. . If you still have any doubts, you can address your enquiries to the administrative contact of the PhD programmes: doctorado@uv.es

3. Can I access the programme with any other Master’s Degree?

No. You must have taken the Master’s Degree in Developments in Research and Treatment in Psychopathology and Health (in process of extinction), which is related to this PhD programme, or the current one Master’s Degree in General Health Psychology. In cases when these studies have not been taken, the completion of other studies of the same level and branch of knowledge must be proved. In the latter case, the Academic Committee of the PhD Programme in Clinical and Health Psychology can establish the requirement of taking some optional subjects of the current Master’s Degree in General Health Psychology.

4. If I have an Undergraduate Degree, Technical Engineering or Technical Architecture (equivalent to 180 ECTS) and the Master’s Degree I have completed has less than 120 ECTS... Can I access a PhD programme?

No. According to article 6 of the RD 99/2011, in order to access a PhD programme, it is necessary to recognise 300 ECTS, as indicated in a previous section. If you do not reach 300 ECTS, you can:

  • Make the adaptation to the Undergraduate Degree.
  • Complement the missing credits with the Official Master's Degree in General Health Psychology, of 60 ECTS.

5. What are the admission requirements for students?

The following criteria will be assessed:

  1. Average mark of the Undergraduate Degree (20%).
  2. Average mark of the Master’s Degrees indicated in previous sections (30%).
  3. Language proficiency, fundamentally knowledge of English, in accordance with the current official certificates that formally accredit the level of knowledge of this language (10%).
  4. Other achievements related to academic training, accredited collaboration and professional experience in Clinical and Health Psychology (30%).
  5. Personal interview (10%).

It will be considered of utmost importance to already have a thesis supervisor. The teaching staff and research lines can be found on this website.
If the thesis supervisor(s) does not belong to the PhD Programme in Clinical and Health Psychology, the CAPD in Clinical and Health Psychology must approve the thesis supervisor(s), and it is also essential that the thesis supervisor is a member of the PhD Programme teaching staff. Emphasis is placed on these requirements in later points.

6. When do I have to pre-enrol and where can I apply for admission?

The admission form is made during a single period established by the Office of the Principal, generally starting at the end of July and finishing in October. Each academic year may vary slightly. Updated information is available on the Doctoral Studies Service.
The admission form is made online through the Doctoral Studies Service.
If you are planning to do your PhD thesis at the Universitat de València and you do not yet have someone to guide and/or supervise the thesis of the PhD Programme, it is very important that, prior to pre-enrolment, you contact the research line in which you wish to do your PhD thesis. This PhD Programme considers it essential to have the support of a member of the Programme's teaching staff who will accept your admission to their work team, or who will guide your thesis if the supervisor(s) does not belong to the Programme. This is an informal process you have to deal with on your own.
Exceptionally, those students who have external funding, and as long as there are places available, may apply for admission to the programme outside the official deadline established by the Universitat de València. The next step is to contact the Academic Committee of the Programme (doctorpcs@uv.es) for a personalised evaluation.

7. Do I need to have a thesis advisor and/or supervisor before pre-enrolling?

The answer is yes, as mentioned in a previous section. It is very important that, prior to the pre-enrolment, you first contact the research line in which you wish to carry out your PhD thesis. For this PhD Programme you must have the support of a member of the teaching staff who will accept your admission to their work team, or who will tutor your thesis if the supervisor(s) is external to the Programme. This is an informal process you have to deal with on your own.

8. Can I work on a part-time PhD thesis?

Yes, it is possible to work on your PhD thesis part-time, as long as you have included it in your pre-enrolment application and the Academic Committee approves it. To do this, it is highly advisable that you include in your motivation letter the reasons that prevent you from pursuing your doctoral studies full-time, and that you have the approval of the professor who will guide and/or supervise your thesis.

9. What is the duration of the doctoral studies?

For students enrolled in programmes regulated by the RD 99/2011, 3 years (plus 2 extensions of one year each) on a full-time basis and 5 (plus 2 extensions, the first of two years and the second of one year) on a part-time basis are established. For the purposes of this assessment, sick and pregnancy leaves or any other cause provided for in the current legislation shall not be taken into account.
Remember that it is compulsory that if the corresponding years have elapsed without having submitted the application for the thesis deposit, you must apply for an extension to the Academic Committee. You must submit this application within the usual deadline (from 1 to 25 July) established for the annual activity report by the Academic Committee.You can apply for temporary leave from the programme for a maximum period of one year, extendable by up to a year. This request must be addressed to the Academic Committee responsible for the PhD programme within the usual deadline (from 1 to 25 July) established for the annual activity report by the Academic Committee.

10. How do I know if I have been admitted?

From the end of the deadline established for the admission form, the Academic Committee of the programme has 15 working days to communicate the result of the admission process. The result of the admission will be announced by the coordinator of the programme to the Doctoral Studies Service, which will publish the lists of those admitted, those excluded and the waiting list. The Universitat de València will contact the “admitted” students by e-mail after the publication of the list of admitted, excluded and waiting list, and will inform them of the procedure to follow in order to formalise their enrolment in the corresponding PhD programme.

11. How do I enrol?

Once you have been admitted to the PhD programme, you have to enrol for academic supervision. Enrolment is done online and is organised by the Doctoral Studies Service of the Universitat de València. In those cases in which complementary training is required, you must also register for them at the time of the enrolment for academic supervision.
When you enrol for the programme, the person guiding your thesis (always a member of the PhD Programme) will be the one in charge of helping you and evaluating with you the training activities to be carried out throughout the programme. On the other hand, whoever guides your thesis will be in charge of supervising your PhD thesis. Provided that the thesis supervisor(s) is a member of the PhD Programme teaching staff, it is usual for the advisor(s) to also be one of the thesis supervisors.After enrolling for the first year, the PhD student, the University, the supervisor and, if applicable, the director must jointly sign the doctoral commitment document, concerning, among other issues, the procedure for resolving any conflicts that may arise, aspects relating to intellectual or industrial property and, in general, the functions of supervision of the PhD student's research activity.

12. Who should I contact if I have any doubts once I have enrolled in the programme?

The websites of the PhD Programme and the Doctoral Studies Service are the main information points. They contain all the information you need to follow the PhD Programme, so use them independently as the main reference point.If you cannot solve your doubts this way, your supervisor is the first person you should contact next. If your supervisor cannot help you, this person will direct you to the PhD Programme contacts: