Joint PhD programs

Joint PhD programs allow doctoral students to obtain a dual doctorate in France and in the partner country for the same thesis.

Joint PhD programs are governed by the following principles:
 

• Students in joint PhD programs are registered simultaneously–and for the entire duration of their program–at two institutions, one in France, the other abroad.
• Students in joint PhD programs carry out their work under the responsibility of a thesis supervisor at each partner institution. These supervisors undertake to carry out their duties by fully collaborating with their counterparts.
• Students in joint PhD programs must complete their doctorate while alternating their attendance at both institutions.
• Students will defend their thesis once, following which they will be awarded their doctorate in France and in the partner country (with each country simultaneously awarding the degree).

In accordance with the French government order dated August 26, 2022, which amended the order dated May 25, 2016 setting out the national framework for training and the procedures leading to the award of a PhD, an agreement must be put in place to determine the specific conditions for students pursuing a joint PhD program. The joint PhD agreement will be the reference document containing the administrative and academic specifications for doctoral students.

The framework put in place must therefore ensure that each institution's own rules for awarding PhDs are respected, including regulatory obligations. This may result in a restrictive framework for doctoral students, as they will have to comply with and fulfill the administrative and academic procedures of two institutions. 

> Information on how to implement joint PhD programs can be found in the Joint Thesis Supervision Guidebook, as well as in the FAQ.

Joint supervision Thesis Guidebook (.pdf)

Setting up a joint PhD program is a long and demanding process. It may take several months or even an entire academic year to negotiate and sign the agreement. For this reason, applications for a jointly supervised program should preferably be submitted before registering for the first year of the PhD.

The application form below is to be downloaded and completed by the UPEC thesis supervisor, and sent (along with supporting documents if necessary) to doctorat@u-pec.fr.

Download the application file (.pdf)

Applications will only be accepted for first year PhD students.

Download the set up form for a joint supervision thesis (.pdf)

If the Thesis Committee rejects a joint PhD program application, the reason for the rejection will be provided and, where appropriate, a proposal to resubmit the application will be made to the thesis supervisor.

Once the doctoral student has been registered and the set up form has been sent to doctorat@u-pec.fr, the UPEC doctorate team will provide a detailed draft agreement to the partner institution including, where applicable, the clauses added by the partner institution in the set up form. It is also possible for the partner institution to draft the agreement using its own existing template.

Students are to complete the administrative registration process for their joint PhD program before the registration deadlines set by UPEC.