Thesis Management and Supervision

Guidelines and Procedures

Doctoral training and the conditions for the award of the doctoral degree are defined by the decree of May 25, 2016, which sets the national regulatory framework
This decree was amended by the decree of August 26, 2022, which in particular specifies what constitutes a thesis supervisor or co-supervisor

 

Commitments

Faculty members or researchers affiliated with the Graduate School commit to :

The following may serve in these roles:

  • University professors or equivalent persons, as defined by the provisions relating to the appointment of members of the Conseil National des Universités (CNU)

  • Teaching staff holding a rank equivalent to that of university professor but not under the authority of the Ministry of National Education

  • Faculty members or researchers holding an HDR (Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, accreditation to supervise research)

  • Individuals holding a doctoral degree, selected for their scientific expertise by the head of the institution, upon recommendation of the Graduate School’s management

In the case of co-supervision, at least one of the co-supervisors must belong to a research team affiliated with the Graduate School (GS)
Joint supervision between two research units allows for pooling the expertise of both units and gives the doctoral candidate the opportunity to benefit from the material and financial support of both units on which they will depend
At the University of Lille, if the co-supervisor is affiliated with an institution that is not a partner of the GS, a co-supervision agreement, managed by the Doctoral Affairs Office, must be signed
In this case, the defense remains unique and takes place at the university where the doctoral candidate is officially enrolled

At the SMRE Graduate School:

  • By way of derogation, a colleague who does not yet hold an HDR may be granted authorization to act as thesis supervisor or co-supervisor (see supervision request without HDR)

  • A thesis supervisor or co-supervisor may supervise a maximum of 5 doctoral candidates simultaneously, and no more than 3 new supervisions/co-supervisions per year. These criteria also apply to colleagues without HDR who are members of the supervisory teams, in order to ensure high-quality doctoral supervision

It is possible for a doctoral degree holder who does not have the HDR (Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches, accreditation to supervise research) to take part in the supervision of a thesis, but this person cannot formally and officially hold the role of thesis co-supervisor

The SMRE Graduate School limits to two the number of co-supervisors who may support a thesis supervision

The SMRE Graduate School encourages co-supervision (by a doctoral degree holder without HDR) in order to allow these colleagues to prepare for obtaining the HDR

Co-supervision may, where appropriate, be carried out by a representative of the company in which the doctoral candidate conducts part of their research work

Change in Thesis Supervision

Information regarding the supervision and/or co-supervision of a thesis is provided by candidates when submitting their application, in accordance with the requirements of the SMRE Graduate School

When creating their profile on ADUM, doctoral candidates must confirm this information to allow the official registration of the thesis supervisory team

During the course of the thesis, any changes to the supervisory team must be reported to the Graduate School by a simple letter, co-signed by the current and future thesis supervisor(s) as well as by the laboratory director

This procedure allows for the updating of information in ADUM

Note: Except in specific cases—such as a supervisor obtaining the HDR or a supervisor changing institution—the conditions of thesis supervision cannot be modified at the end of the thesis

 

Practical Guides for ADUM

Consult the available practical guides:

Several tutorials are available to guide you through the different procedures:

Information regarding application and enrollment is available here:

The Graduate School strongly recommends that the supervisory team supports each doctoral candidate during the enrollment process on ADUM
Your assistance is particularly valuable for completing information on funding conditions, the thesis discipline, and the Individual Training Agreement (CIF)
Consult the practical guide for doctoral candidates

Enrollment must be renewed each academic year. The CIF must be updated by the doctoral candidate and validated by the thesis supervisor on ADUM

Enrollment or re-enrollment is fully digital and follows the order below:

  1. By the thesis supervisor

  2. By the thesis co-supervisor

  3. By the laboratory director

  4. By the Doctoral Studies Office

After the defense: