Cotutelle de Thèse

A Cotutelle de thèse is a doctoral arrangement jointly established by two universities – a Swiss university and an international partner university. Doctoral candidates are enrolled at both universities and pursue their doctorate in accordance with the applicable regulations of both partner institutions. However, they submit only one dissertation, which is jointly assessed by both universities.

During the doctorate, candidates spend a substantial part of their dissertation period at the partner university. This enables them to expand their academic network, gain international research experience, and engage in depth with different research cultures and academic systems. The dissertation project is supervised by supervisors from both partner universities.

The doctorate is completed within a joint procedure: there is only one doctoral examination, in which both universities are involved. The diploma indicates that the dissertation was completed within the framework of a Cotutelle de thèse.

Co-supervision by a professor or a qualified researcher from an international university can significantly enrich a doctoral project, both academically and scientifically. It enables doctoral candidates to develop their project within different research contexts, incorporate international expertise, and build academic networks beyond UZH.

The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at UZH supports international co-supervision arrangements where they are academically appropriate and agreed upon with the responsible supervisors, institutes, or departments. A cotutelle agreement is not required for international co-supervision. International co-supervisors can therefore be involved in the supervision of a doctorate without establishing a joint doctoral procedure or a joint degree between two universities. As a result, co-supervision is generally much easier and faster to arrange than a cotutelle procedure.

A cotutelle goes significantly beyond co-supervision. It requires both universities to contractually regulate a joint doctoral procedure and to formally coordinate central matters such as admission, enrolment, research stays, supervision, examination procedures, publication, funding, and the award of the degree. Depending on the specific arrangement, questions concerning employment, research activities at both universities, duration of stays, resources, insurance, or further legal requirements may also become relevant. A cotutelle is therefore only possible if all parties and institutions involved fulfil the relevant requirements and agree on the contractual terms.

Conversely, international doctoral candidates may come to UZH as guests for a research stay. In consultation with the responsible supervisors and the participating institutes or departments, they can conduct research, study, establish academic contacts, and participate in the academic life of the faculty.

• Candidates must already be admitted to at least one of the desired partner universities and fulfill the admission requirements for a doctorate at the second partner university.
• Candidates must present sufficient reason based on the content of their thesis as to why two institutions are necessary to complete the doctoral study. The added value compared to a regular co-supervision should be recognizable.
• The planned research stays at the partner universities must be balanced. The doctoral candidate spends one third or at least 12 months of the doctorate at the partner university, the rest at the home university. The home university is the university where the doctoral candidate first enrolled. 
• The doctorate was not started (enrollment date) at either university later than 12 months ago.The cooperation agreement can only be concluded in the first year of the doctorate.

• UZH is generally open to contracts with recognized foreign universities. However, there is no legal claim to a cotutelle de thèse with the participation of UZH.
• For each cotutelle, a cooperation agreement is concluded between the two universities, which regulates the modalities of the joint supervision.
• Doctoral candidates have to comply with the requirements for doctoral studies of both institutions according to their respective regulation in force.
• Doctoral candidates are generally enrolled at both partner institutions, whereby fees are only paid at one university.
• A joint examination (defense) takes place at one of the universities. The partner institutions must pay for expenses incurred in connection with the defense (e.g. travel and accommodation); in case of UZH these costs are born by the institute in question.
• Upon completion, each of the two universities awards the degree of doctor, stating that the degree was awarded following a jointly supervised dissertation.

A Cotutelle arrangement is administratively complex, as each agreement must be negotiated individually between two universities. Therefore, applications must be well justified, and a preliminary meeting with the doctoral coordinator is mandatory.

A longer research stay at a university abroad may also be possible through other routes. Please therefore first consider other options for networking and exchange, such as a regular doctoral programme with co-supervision at the desired university, a stay as aninvited visiting student (PhD) , or as an visiting scholar (German: akademischer Gast).

If you are interested in a Cotutelle at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of the University of Zurich, please follow the steps below:

1. Application to the Graduate School
Drafting a Cotutelle agreement with a partner university usually takes around 6 to 18 months. The application for a Cotutelle must be submitted to the Graduate School no later than the end of the seventh month after enrolment in the doctoral programme. A mandatory information meeting with the doctoral coordinator is required before submitting an application.

If UZH is the home university (place of first enrollment in doctoral studies), the application form must be submitted by the following deadlines:

• Enrollment at UZH on 1 August: Cotutelle application by the end of February at the latest.
• Enrollment at UZH on 1 February: Cotutelle application by the end of August at the latest.

If the partner university is the home university (= place of first enrollment in the doctoral studies), the application form must be received by the Graduate School PhF no later than the end of the seventh month after enrollment at the partner university. Applications submitted later than this cannot be considered.

Send us the completed application form (DOCX, 73 KB) to cotutelle@phil.uzh.ch.
Based on this information, the Vice Dean Graduate School will decide whether the requirements for a cotutelle are met.

2. Cotutelle Agreement
If the Vice Dean Graduate School approves the application, a cotutelle agreement can be developed between the two universities involved. Approval by the Vice Dean Graduate School is subject to the completion of the drafting of the agreement within five months (i.e., the agreement is ready for signatures).

As soon as the doctoral students have received the confirmation of admission from both universities, all parties involved sign the agreement.

3. Matriculation
Doctoral students must be enrolled at both universities for the entire duration of the doctoral studies. Fees must be paid at one university only. If there is no enrollment requirement for the partner university, doctoral students must pay the fees at UZH for the entire duration of the doctorate. All doctoral students must pay the registration fees and the semester fees for the first semester at UZH.

Doctoral students are responsible for admission and enrollment at UZH and at the partner university. Cotutelle doctoral students are also subject to the regular application and enrollment deadlines for the doctorate at UZH:

Information on the doctorate at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of UZH
Information on admission to doctoral studies at UZH