Rights and responsibilities of tutors and supervisors
Supervisor
- Upon admission to the PhD programme, the relevant Academic Committee shall assign each PhD candidate one or two thesis supervisors, who must be PhD holders with proven research experience and currently in active employment. Emeritus professors may not act as sole supervisors of a doctoral thesis, but may act as co-supervisors.
- Co-supervision of a thesis requires the prior authorisation of the Academic Committee, which may subsequently be revoked if, in the opinion of the Academic Committee, the co-supervision is not conducive to the progress of the thesis.
- Where there are academic grounds or interdisciplinary considerations, or in the case of programmes developed through national or international collaboration, additional co-supervisors may be appointed on an ad hoc basis; they must meet the requirements set out in Article 2 of the University of Zaragoza’s Doctoral Thesis Regulations, unless the Academic Committee exempts them from this requirement in light of their curriculum vitae and the necessity or relevance of their co-supervision, in which case this must be expressly justified.
-The thesis supervisor bears ultimate responsibility for overseeing all the doctoral candidate’s research tasks, for the coherence and suitability of the training activities, for the impact and novelty of the doctoral thesis topic within its field, and for providing guidance on the planning and, where applicable, the alignment of the thesis with other projects and activities in which the doctoral candidate is involved.
Rights of thesis supervisors
To be part of EDUZ as collaborators if they are not members of the programme’s teaching staff.
To receive academic recognition for their activities as a supervisor within the framework of the University of Zaragoza.
To withdraw from supervising the thesis, provided there are justified reasons.
To sit on the assessment panel for the theses of their PhD students submitted under joint supervision agreements with foreign universities that provide for this.
Recognition, in works intended for publication or dissemination and resulting from research carried out jointly with the doctoral student, of their status as a co-author, provided that their contribution warrants such recognition in accordance with current legislation on intellectual property.
All those recognised as such under the law, the University’s Statutes and its own regulations.
Duties of thesis supervisors
To sign the Doctoral Charter.
To provide the doctoral candidate with the necessary means and resources to acquire the competences and skills set out in the doctoral programme.
Be available to maintain regular contact with the doctoral candidate, enabling effective and appropriate supervision of their work.
To promote the integration of the doctoral candidate into research groups and networks, thereby supporting their research and professional career, as well as their national and international mobility, and, where appropriate, endorsing the placements and activities necessary to obtain the designation of ‘International Doctorate’.
Assist the PhD student in drawing up their research and training plans, and approve these annually.
Regularly review the Activity Reports of their PhD students and validate activities that are duly justified.
Ensure that the results of the thesis are disseminated in various scientific forums and through scientific journals and publications.
To promote scientific excellence in the doctoral theses they supervise, ensuring that the research carried out is relevant to society, is based on principles of equity and social responsibility, and represents a genuine advance in knowledge. To authorise, where appropriate, the submission of doctoral theses in the form of a compendium of publications.
Ensure that their PhD students follow safe working practices, in accordance with current legislation.
Ensure that their PhD students comply with the standards set out in the codes of ethics and the conditions relating to publication, authorship, intellectual and industrial property, and copyright.
Ensure that their PhD students take the necessary measures to comply with legal requirements regarding data protection and confidentiality, as well as to ensure the proper management of data.
To assign doctoral students only those activities that are related to their status as researchers in training.
To meet the needs of their PhD students with disabilities, in accordance with the guidelines established by the University.
All obligations set out in general legislation, in the regulations of the Autonomous Community, and in the Statutes and regulations of the University of Zaragoza
Supervisor
The Academic Committee shall also assign a supervisor to the PhD student upon their admission; this supervisor shall be a PhD holder with proven research experience (including at least one recognised period of research activity). The supervisor must be affiliated with the University of Zaragoza and will, preferably, be a member of the programme’s teaching staff or, failing that, a person whose collaboration and knowledge of the programme are endorsed by the Academic Committee. In exceptional cases, supervisors may be individuals from outside the University of Zaragoza who are associated with the programme.
The supervisor may or may not be the same person as the director of the doctoral thesis.
The supervisor is responsible for ensuring that the doctoral candidate’s training and research activities comply with the principles of the doctoral programme and the EDUZ, and shall be responsible for facilitating their interaction with the Academic Committee and its Director, where applicable.
Rights of supervisors
To be part of EDUZ, as collaborators if they are not members of the programme’s teaching staff.
To receive academic recognition for their activities within the framework of the University of Zaragoza.
To withdraw from supervising the thesis, provided there are justified reasons.
All those recognised in legislation, the Statutes and the University’s own regulations.
Duties of supervisors
To sign the Doctoral Charter.
Support their PhD students throughout their studies, providing information, guidance and learning resources, in close collaboration with the thesis supervisor.
Facilitate the planning of their PhD students’ study programmes.
Ensure that their PhD students follow safe working practices, in accordance with current legislation.
Regularly review their doctoral students’ Activity Reports and approve activities that are duly justified.
Assist your PhD students in drawing up the document setting out their research plan and personal training plan, which they must submit to the Academic Committee before the end of their first year, counting from the date of enrolment.
To periodically review and endorse the research and training plans of their PhD students.
Be familiar with university regulations, in particular those specific to EDUZ.
To meet the needs of their PhD students with disabilities, in accordance with the guidelines established by the University.
All obligations set out in general legislation, in the regulations of the Autonomous Community, and in the Statutes and regulations of the University of Zaragoza.
Regulations
Internal Regulations of the Doctoral School. Agreement of 13 May 2026, of the Governing Council of the UZ