Procedures for doctoral students

Initial procedures

Procedure

Deadlines*

Deadline for admission**

Documents

Platform

Pre-registration

Ordinary:

January-May

Ordinary:

June-July

Identity card/ passport
Curriculum vitae
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Language certificate
Academic report

HELIOS

Extraordinary:

June-June and September-December

Extraordinary:

consult the doctoral programme

* and ** for exact dates see the upm website, link: https://www.upm.es/Estudiantes/Estudios_Titulaciones/Estudios_Doctorado/informacion

Procedure	Deadlines	Documents	Platform
Assignment of tutor and thesis supervisor
Enrolment*	Before the start of the academic year	Identity card/ passport Curriculum vitae Bachelor’s degree Master’s degree Language certificate Academic report	UPM Platform
Commitment to doctoral training and supervision	In the first months of the doctorate	Two originals signed by the student, the tutor and the thesis supervisor(s) (Spanish/English)

* Enrolment can be done by Self-enrolment or at the Secretary’s Office (if it is outside the Self-enrolment period).

Annual procedures

Procedure	Information	Deadlines	Documents	Platform
Research plan	The generation of this document every academic year is mandatory and is regulated in Article 11 of Real Decreto 99/2011, which regulates official doctoral studies. This document must be approved by both the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme (CAPD) and the Doctoral Committee of the UPM (CDUPM) in order to continue in the Doctoral Programme. The first research plan determines the title of the Doctoral Thesis.	Start of each academic year		THESIS
Doctoral Activities Document	–	–	–	–
Enrolment	A payment letter will be obtained for the academic supervision of the doctorate corresponding to the academic year in progress, which must be paid in due time and form.	At the end of the academic year (May-July	–	UPM platform
Change of thesis title	The initial title of the thesis is specified in the first Annual Research Plan, and it is not necessary to change the title of the thesis for this first title. This procedure must be approved by the CAPD and the Doctoral Commission of the UPM (CDUPM).	Can be done at any time as needed (does not need to be done annually).	It is not necessary to fill in any documentation, just fill in the information in THESIS.	THESIS

Annual research plans

Each year students will draw up a Research Plan that will be evaluated and reported on by the thesis supervisor(s). The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme (CAPD), in view of the plan and the report of the thesis supervisors, will also evaluate the aforementioned Plan and the activity of the doctoral student.

You can find all the detailed information, dates and deadlines for submission, corrections and the regulations, on this page: https://www.upm.es/Estudiantes/Estudios_Titulaciones/Estudios_Doctorado/PlanesAnuales

Procedures for the defense of the thesis

A basic quality criterion for the presentation of the doctoral thesis shall be that, as a result of the corresponding work, at least one article has been published in an indexed scientific journal of scientific journal of prestige in the field of the thesis topic.

1. Procedure for the Assignment of the Pre-Defence Thesis Committee: The PhD student will inform the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme of the completion of the work, prior to its final drafting, attaching a report from the director(s) of the doctoral thesis. Within a maximum period of 90 days from the submission of the aforementioned report, the PhD student will carry out a pre-reading before a committee of experts, chosen by the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme, in the presence of his/her supervisor(s). The pre-reading may be replaced by an equivalent mechanism that guarantees the quality of the doctoral thesis: a committee of external experts,

signs of quality mentioned in the previous paragraph, etc.

2. Procedure for the Assignment of the Doctoral Thesis Committee:The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme will propose a committee, which will be submitted to the Doctoral Committee of the UPM. The committee will be composed of five full members and two alternates, all of whom must be PhD holders, University Professors, or researchers from Research Centres, in accordance with current regulations. No more than two members from the same university or organization can be part of the thesis committee. The thesis supervisor(s) may only be part of the committee when the thesis is presented within the framework of bilateral co-supervision agreements with foreign universities that provide for such arrangements. A member may not be part of the committee if they meet any of the abstention criteria established in Article 28 of Law 30/1992 of 26 November.

3. The Doctoral Committee of the UPM will appoint a chair and a secretary from among the members of the committee. As a general rule, a member of the UPM’s Academic Staff (PDI) will be appointed as secretary.

4. In the event of a justified resignation by a full member of the committee, the head will proceed to replace them with an alternate member.

5. If the chair needs to be replaced due to an unforeseen cause, they will be replaced by a person proposed by the chair of the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme, chosen from the remaining members of the committee. In any case, the replacement must be communicated to the Doctoral Committee of the UPM as soon as possible.

6. The appointment of the committee will be communicated to the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme, which, within a maximum of five days, will send each member of the committee a notification of their appointment and a copy of the doctoral thesis. The Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme must also notify the doctoral candidate and the supervisor(s) of the appointment of the committee within a maximum of five days.

Pre-defence
Procedure		Information	Deadlines		Documents		Platform
Deposit Request
Pre-defence	pre-reading	Pre-defence evaluated by three experts who will compose the pre-defence panel. This procedure must be approved by the CAPD.		When the work on the thesis has been completed and the minimum requirements for pre-defence have been met.		Favorable report from the supervisor(s) for the thesis to be accepted for the pre-defence procedure. Application for the pre-defence procedure. Report from three experts to form the pre-reading committee. Scientific performance: the PhD student must have completed his/her CV through Politécnica Virtual so that it can be verified that he/she meets the requirements for a Thesis to be admitted to the defense process at the UPM (see Doctoral Thesis Regulations, section ‘Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Regulations’).Politécnica de Madrid”) Draft of the doctoral thesis.	Email to the Doctoral Programme Coordinator
	Expert Reports	Pre-defence assessed by expert reports. This procedure must be approved by the CAPD.		When the work on the thesis has been completed and the minimum requirements for pre-defence have been met.		Favorable report from the supervisor(s) for the thesis to be accepted for the pre-defence procedure. Application for the pre-defence procedure. Report from experts. Scientific performance: the PhD student must have completed his/her CV through Politécnica Virtual so that it can be verified that he/she meets the requirements for a Thesis to be admitted to the defense process at the UPM (see Doctoral Thesis Regulations, section ‘Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Regulations’).Politécnica de Madrid”) Draft of the doctoral thesis.
	Quality indicators	Pre-defence evaluated by means of the scientific results of the thesis. This procedure must be approved by the CAPD.		When the work on the thesis has been completed and the minimum requirements for pre-defence have been met.		Favorable report from the supervisor(s) for the thesis to be accepted for the pre-defence procedure. Application for the pre-defence procedure. Scientific performance: the PhD student must have completed his/her CV through Politécnica Virtual so that it can be verified that he/she meets the requirements for a Thesis to be admitted to the defense process at the UPM (see Doctoral Thesis Regulations, section ‘Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Regulations’).Politécnica de Madrid”) Draft of the doctoral thesis.
Authorisation for thesis defense/Deposit		The letter of payment of the fees for the defense of the doctoral thesis is requested from the Student Secretary’s Office. At If a mention is requested, there may be additional documentation to be provided (see ‘Mentions’).	When the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme (CAPD) has approved the application for the defense procedure.		Abstract (Spanish) Abstract (English) Final version of the doctoral thesis Letter of payment corresponding to the fees for the defense of the doctoral thesis		THESIS
Inserting data into the TESEO Database		The doctoral student must start the insertion of data from his/her doctoral thesis in the Teseo database. To do this, you will have to register as a doctoral student through the following link: Once registered, you will obtain the credentials to access the system and the data in your file. You can enter your personal, academic and doctoral data, as well as information about your thesis, the details of your supervisor(s) and information about the members of the examining board. In the Department section, the student must enter the Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería de Sistemas Informáticos (i.e. the center and the department coincide in the case of this PhD programme). Once you have done this, you must leave the form unclosed.	The doctoral thesis has been deposited at the Vice-Rectorate for Research, Innovation and Doctoral Studies of the UPM.		The doctoral thesis has been deposited at the Vice-Rectorate for Research, Innovation and Doctoral Studies of the UPM. Doctorate of the UPM.		TESEO

Mentions	Information	Documents
International Doctor	The pre-defence procedure (by pre-reading or by external reports) must be approved by the CAPD. If the option chosen is pre-reading, a proposal, for approval by the Academic Committee of the Doctoral Programme (CAPD), of three experts to form the pre-reading panel. If the option chosen is external reports, a proposal, for approval by the CAPD, of three experts from outside the UPM to draw up reports on the thesis work.	Additional documentation to be submitted to the Academic Committee of the PhD Programme (CAPD). Request for international mention in the doctoral degree. At the time of depositing the thesis at the Rector’s Office Certificate(s) of the stay(s) abroad (stating the identification details of the stay and the report of the activity carried out by the PhD student during the stay). Reports from at least two non-Spanish PhD experts on the thesis. Curriculum Vitae of the experts reporting on the thesis, clearly stating which university each of them holds a doctorate from.
Industrial Doctor	Consult the following documentation at this link (): Reglamento doctorado industrial. Industrial doctorate model agreement.	● Industrial Doctorate Model Agreement ● Request for Industrial Doctorate Mention
International supervision	Consult the following documentation at this link (): Cotutela de tesis doctoral. Procedure and agreement. Instructions for applying for co-supervision.	● Co-supervision application form
Honorable mention ‘cum laude’	The ‘cum laude’ mention is regulated in article 14 of Royal Decree 99/2011, which regulates official doctoral studies, and in article 30 of the regulations for the preparation and assessment of doctoral theses at the UPM (see Doctoral Thesis Regulations, section ‘Regulations of the Polytechnic University of Madrid’). Politécnica de Madrid”). The PhD student will be notified of the awarding of this honorable mention.	–

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