Doctorates at the D-GESS

Candidates with either an MA or an MSc in a natural or engineering science may pursue their doctoral studies in the Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (GESS).
The first step is to contact your preferred supervisor for your thesis. You must have authorisation in writing from your doctoral supervisor before you can register with the Doctoral Administration Office at ETH Zurich. The Doctoral Administration Office will check your documentation according to formal criteria (your dossier should be complete and comply with the requirements stated in the Ordinance on Doctoral Studies). Subsequently, the office will forward the registration to the Head of Department.
The candidate’s final grades must be sufficient to enable him or her to apply for a PhD at the university which issued the candidate’s MA or MSc degree. The thesis supervisor will verify whether this condition is met. In case of doubt, the Doctoral Committee will decide.
See also "Switching to ETH Zurich and external thesis projects" below.
 

The type, extent and deadline for the fulfilment of any additional admission requirements will be determined by the Prorector for Doctoral Studies at the request of the Doctoral Committee (in consultation with the supervisor of the doctoral thesis). The aim is to make the additional requirements meaningful – it is primarily a question of supplementing existing qualifications with a view to meeting the subject-specific demands of the doctorate at ETH Zurich.
The achievement of the admission requirements will be assessed and may not be solely examined by the thesis supervisor. If the achievement record is to be submitted in the form of a literature review, it must not be assessed by the thesis supervisor. Credits acquired in the process of complying with the admission requirements may not be counted towards the 12 ECTS credits required for the doctoral programme.
A deadline to meet the admission requirements is set individually and should generally not exceed one year. Extensions of this period are only possible in well-justified, exceptional cases and require permission from the Rectorate. If the previous achievements of a candidate (especially during his or her education) have been assessed positively by the Doctoral Committee and the admission requirements have been determined, a recommendation to the Prorector for Doctoral Studies will be issued to provisionally admit the candidate to doctoral studies at ETH Zurich. Information on the communication of the admission requirements can be found here.
 

Doctoral students who have already started their thesis at another university may transfer to ETH Zurich, provided that the remaining time is sufficient for all ETH requirements to be met (registration deadlines, meeting of admission requirements, research plan, acquiring 12 ECTS credits, defending the thesis within ETH’s regular timeframe).

Important: ETH Zurich does not accept doctoral candidates who are still enrolled at another university. Before applying to ETH Zurich, you must therefore withdraw from your former university.

External thesis projects, thus candidates who prepare their doctoral thesis outside of ETH Zurich but who will earn their doctorate from ETH, must obtain authorisation from the Department Conference. Without this authorisation, final admission to doctoral studies at ETH Zurich is not possible. The supervisor of the thesis examines whether the doctorate is external, or rather if conflicts could emerge regarding empolyment, financing or intellectual property rights. This examination should take place at an early stage, as an external doctorate has to be approved within the section first, then from the doctoral committee, and ultimately from the department conference.  

The deadline for drafting the research plan is 12 months from the date of registration or provisional admission to doctoral studies at ETH Zurich. The thesis supervisor and doctoral candidate are both responsible for observing this deadline.
Upon completion, the research plan will first be reviewed and approved by the relevant section of the department. Every section has defined its own Download approval process (PDF, 62 KB). Next, the supervisor will inform the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office via e-mail (), that the section has approved the research plan and submit it as PDF file. At the same time, the supervisor will submit the form Download Approval of the Research Plan (PDF, 85 KB) (to be signed by hand) to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office via internal mail. The Doctoral Committee will then examine mainly the formal aspects, before approving the research plan. Only then will the candidate be fully admitted to doctoral studies at ETH Zurich.
If there is no general agreement of the research plan within the section of the department, the Doctoral Committee will also examine its content. On the candidate’s insistence, research plans rejected by the section must nevertheless be submitted to the Doctoral Committee.
The title page of the research plan must be designed according to the Download template (PDF, 51 KB). Furthermore, the research plan must contain a summary of one page, which will provide an overview of the most important features of the research plan and place the project in a broader scientific context. It should be written in a clear, non-technical language and be easily understood by a wide audience. The research plan contains a schedule, a bibliography and a CV.

In case of a cumulative thesis planned co-authors for individual chapters and own authorship contributions (please indicate your own contribution according to the rules set in the authorship declaration) must be indicated. The research contribution for each paper/chapter should be clearly stated and describing what the input consists of (conception, design, analysis, data acquisition etc.).  

If additional admission requirements have been set, the research plan can only be submitted once these conditions have been successfully met.
Deadline extensions are possible in exceptional cases. Applications should contain a substantial justification and be sent to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office by using Download this form (PDF, 125 KB) for Approval by the Doctoral Committee (form to be signed by hand).

At the request of the thesis supervisor, the Doctoral Committee will appoint at least two co-referees. The supervisor suggests the co-referees via email to (including a CV or an informative link to the person) and confirms that the co-referee is entitled to grant doctorates. Exceptions can be approved by the doctoral committee upon a justified request.

This appointment can be made at the same time as the recommendation for the candidate’s full admission, but has to be made no later than than three years after the provisional approval. At this stage of the doctorate, not all members of the Examination Committee will have to be appointed. However, one of the co-referees should be involved in the thesis supervision from the beginning and be informed regularly about the progress of the thesis. This co-referee may be chosen from D-GESS, or other ETH departments or universities. Should the main supervisor be unable to perform his or her duties for an extended period of time or drop out completely, the Doctoral Committee may ask the co-referee to take over the duties of the thesis supervisor after consulting with the respective section of the department and the doctoral candidate.
 

For the acquisition of obligatory ECTS credits, please study the detailed requirements for doctoral studies in the D-GESS. Courses offered by the University of Zurich are considered to be courses outside of ETH Zurich. There is no specific catalogue of ETH courses for doctoral studies.

For the crediting of courses, summer schools, etc. outside of the ETH’s regular course catalogue, detailed documentation, certificates, letters from the course tutor, etc. must be provided, which accurately state the course level and the amount of work involved. This is especially important for candidates who are transitioning relatively late to doctoral studies at ETH Zurich.

Time spent abroad during the doctoral thesis must be discussed with the thesis supervisor and specified in the research plan. In the case of time spent at other universities or similar institutions, the supervisor and the doctoral student must ensure (e.g., by obtaining a written confirmation) that the host institution will offer suitable working conditions and will not claim any intellectual property rights as a result of the doctoral thesis.  

Together with the Download notification on the examination committee and conflict of interest (PDF, 79 KB) to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office, the form «Confirmation of Course Attendance for Doctoral Students» including proof of the courses registered in mystudies must be submitted 3 months prior to the doctoral examination.

According to the detailed requirements for doctoral studies in D-GESS, the Doctoral Committee has to submit a progress report after four years, informing of the status of the doctoral thesis and setting a timeframe for the doctoral examination.
The Download progress report (PDF, 40 KB) must be submitted in good time to:
 

The doctoral thesis may be a monograph or consist of several individual contributions for specialist journals (cumulative doctoral thesis). A cumulative doctoral thesis will include at least one article in sole authorship and at least two additional articles written in sole or first authorship. Additional articles do not have to be written in sole or first authorship. At least one member of the Examination Committee must not be a co-author of any of the articles. The remaining members of the Examination Committee must not be a first author of any of the articles. In justified exceptions, the condition of sole or first authorship (both with regard to the articles as well as the Examination Committee) may be waived upon application, provided that the doctoral candidate has made an essential contribution. In this case, the supervisor will submit a written application at the time of submission of the research plan or at the latest when registering for the doctoral examination to the Doctoral Committee for approval of the exemption (). The Doctoral Committee will decide on the application.

Furthermore, a cumulative doctoral thesis should comprise an introduction and a conclusion, to set the papers in context and to disclose the candidate’s own scientific contribution to co-authored articles. Papers that have already been accepted or published can also be submitted. For all articles, the status at the time of submission of the doctoral thesis needs to be stated (i.e., draft, submitted, revised, accepted, published).

NB: For all co-authored contributions of cumulative doctoral theses or monographs, the Authorship Declaration and Confirmation must be completed and sent to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office () 3 months prior to the doctoral examination and before registration for the doctoral examination. Without an authorship declaration that features all necessary signatures, the doctoral examination cannot take place.
 

The Examination Committee is usually chaired by a member of the Doctoral Committee. In addition to the thesis supervisor, it includes at least two co-referees who hold the right to award doctorates either at ETH Zurich or at another university. Exceptions can be appoved by the doctoral comittee upon a justified request. It is possible to enlist further co-referees, particularly for interdisciplinary topics. For the appointment of co-referees, the following applies:

a) The main supervisor will disclose any conflicts of interest according to this list when appointing the examination committee (Download form (PDF, 79 KB)). The list has to be sent to the GESS doctoral administration 3 months prior to the examination. One of the co-referees has to be from outside the D-GESS and should be connected neither to the candidate nor the supervisor in any way that might cause a conflict of interest to arise.

b) If the co-referee who has co-supervised the doctoral thesis from the outset (see section «Appointing co-referees») is from another department at ETH Zurich, the co-referee referred to in a) should be from a university other than ETH Zurich. This rule may be waived in justified cases. The Doctoral Committee will decide on the respective cases (applications to be submitted to ).

Honorary professors (Titularprofessoren) or private lecturers (Privatdozenten) may only serve as thesis supervisors if they are full-time employees at ETH Zurich and if they are approved by the Doctoral Committee of D-GESS. Any change in the composition of the Examination Committee must be submitted to the Doctoral Committee by the thesis supervisor with a short explanation prior to the submission of the doctoral thesis.

According to the Expense Regulations, the compensation for external co-referees and co-examiners is CHF 400. Together with travel expenses and other expenses (at least one co-referee has to attend the defence of the thesis in person), this amount has to be paid by the chair of the thesis supervisor. Co-referees from universities further afield may attend the doctoral examination by videoconference, if possible.
 

The defence of the doctoral thesis (called doctoral examination at ETH Zurich) must be completed within 6 years of enrolment. Requests for exceptions have to be addressed to the Rectorate (see Extension of thesis deadline).

Three months prior to the planned doctoral examination, the doctoral candidate will inform the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office of the final composition of the Download Examination Committee (PDF, 79 KB). See also the section on the "Examination Committee". In case of a conflict of interest Doctoral Committee has to confirm the the Examination Committee.

For all co-authored articles / chapters that are part of cumulative doctoral theses or monographs, the Authorship Declaration and Confirmation must be completed and submitted to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office either in hard copy or electronically prior to registering for the doctoral examination.

The doctoral candidate will register at the Doctoral Administration Office of ETH Zurich with the corresponding form no later than 12 working days prior to the doctoral examination. Upon registration, a bound copy of the doctoral thesis has to be submitted. The title page must conform to the specifications. Together with the thesis, the Doctoral Administration Office will then forward the registration for the doctoral examination to the department.

The confirmation of acquired credits, which is part of the registration form for the Doctoral Examination, has to be signed by the department (GESS doctoral administration). (See section "Doctoral Studies")

Important notice: The doctoral candidate is responsible for agreeing on a date with the members of the Examination Committee and the Department Coordinator. For this purpose, she or he will ask the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office who will chair the doctoral examination and then look for a suitable date for the examination. The doctoral candidate is also responsible for reserving a room. The D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office can only set the date of the examination after the confirmation the Examination Committee members by the Doctoral Committee, and once all the necessary information is available for the invitation to the doctoral examination.
 

The reviewers will comment on the scientific as well as the linguistic quality of the doctoral thesis. In the case of cumulative doctoral theses, they will also assess, in particular, whether the candidate’s independent scientific contribution is clearly marked and complies with the required scope. The doctoral thesis can only be rated as satisfactory/unsatisfactory; honours are not awarded at ETH Zurich. Their reports also determine whether any additional requirements have to be met for publication. If any additional requirements are imposed, a deadline must be specified by which they have to be met and whether they need to be resubmitted to the Examination Committee or only to the supervisor for checking. If the deficiencies are substantial in scale and/or relate to key parts of the doctoral thesis, it is to be rejected as unsatisfactory. In this case, the doctoral examination has to be repeated.

The reports have to be submitted to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office at least one week prior to the doctoral examination. The Doctoral Administration Office will then send the reports to all members of the Examination Committee so that they can prepare for the doctoral examination based on their colleagues’ observations.

Should the majority of the reviewers conclude that the doctoral thesis cannot be recommended for acceptance, it is up to the Examination Committee’s discretion to either cancel the doctoral examination in agreement with the doctoral candidate or postpone it until a later date.
 

Generally, the doctoral examination is chaired by a member of the Doctoral Committee. She or he should not come from the same section as the candidate.

The doctoral examination is public. It lasts for 90 minutes and includes:

− 30 minutes for the presentation of the thesis and the main findings from the candidate’s research;
− 60 minutes for questions by the Examination Committee.

Then the Examination Committee discusses the thesis in private. The result will be announced immediately.
The doctoral examination is considered as having been passed if both the thesis and the oral examination are assessed as satisfactory.

Additional requirements may be formulated for the written thesis:

a) Slight changes are to be discussed bilaterally between the candidate and the supervisor and co-referee(s) and are incorporated into the version of the thesis to be published without further examination. In this case, the doctoral examination is regarded as having been passed;
b) Minor changes are to be defined by the Examination Committee and will only have to be submitted to the thesis supervisor. If he/she agrees with the implemented changes, the examination is regarded as having been passed;
c) Major changes are to be defined by the Examination Committee and must be implemented by the candidate within a certain period (of maximum 6 months). The thesis must be resubmitted to the entire Examination Committee for approval; then, the final decision will be made on the acceptance or rejection of the thesis. For this, the Committee will not have to meet again; a written communication from the committee members to the chair will be sufficient;
d) If the deficiencies are substantial in scale and/or relate to key parts of the thesis, it is to be rejected as unsatisfactory. In this case, the doctoral examination will have to be repeated.

An independent external co-referee’s evaluation that departs from the assessment of the other reviewers will be treated as of particular importance. In the case of a negative opinion, the Doctoral Committee will seek an additional opinion from another independent co-referee. This person will take part in the examination in an advisory capacity. The Examination Committee will then decide on passing the doctoral examination. If the votes are equal, the vote of the Chair of the Examination Committee will count twice.

Important notice: Recording devices of any kind are prohibited during the doctoral examination (mobile phones must be switched off during the examination). If a doctoral examination is recorded in full or in part, it can be judged as failed by the Examination Committee.
 

If the doctoral examination is regarded as being passed, the Doctoral Committee will apply in the next meeting of the Department Conference (DC) for the awarding of the doctorate to be approved. The DC then submits an application to the Vice-Rector for Doctoral Studies for the awarding of a doctoral degree.

If any conditions have been set for the doctoral thesis, an application to the DC can only be made once these requirements have been met.

If the doctoral examination is failed, this failure must be reported to the DC and the Doctoral Administration Office of ETH Zurich. The doctoral examination can be repeated within 6 months.
 

Before submitting the deposit copies to the Doctoral Administration Office of ETH Zurich, an electronic version of the doctoral thesis has to be uploaded to the Research Collection. The duties of publication for doctoral theses are regulated in the Ordinance on Doctoral Studies and the Rector’s Implementation Provisions.

The doctoral thesis deposit copies must be submitted to the Doctoral Administration Office (form) at the latest 6 months after the relevant examination date.

How to file a request for a time-limited publication embargo and more information can be found here.
 

The title of all doctorates awarded by ETH (regardless of the subject area) is Dr. sc ETH (in full: Doctor of Science).
No grade or honours are awarded.
 

A change of supervisor requires the consent of the new supervisor. The form for Change of Supervisor must be signed by the new (and if possible also by the former) supervisor and submitted to the Doctoral Administration Office of ETH Zurich. 

As soon as it becomes apparent that the doctoral programme cannot be completed within 6 years (maximum intended period from the date of enrolment until the doctoral examination), an application for an Extension of Deadline for Doctoral Studies has to be submitted to the D-GESS Doctoral Administration Office ().

Discontinuation of doctoral studies has to be reported to the Doctoral Administration Office of ETH Zurich with the Withdrawal Form for Doctoral Students. The de-registration will be carried out as soon as the withdrawal form has been submitted together with the ETH card.