Cross-border doctorates

Within the "University of the Greater Region" network, PhD students can include a period of mobility in their training, thanks to two different schemes: joint supervision and the UniGR European PhD label. Although both schemes are inspired by the same spirit of international openness, the way they work is quite different.

Joint PhD supervision involves preparing a thesis in more than one university in at least two different countries. This scheme enables a PhD student to obtain his or her degree in two institutions. He or she therefore gains a French doctorate (if registered in France) and the equivalent foreign diploma after defending the thesis at a single viva.

The UniGR European PhD label is a supplement to the doctorate which certifies that the student has completed a period of mobility and acquired intercultural skills. This label is available to all PhD students, whether or not they are preparing a jointly supervised thesis. There are two possibilities:

• If the PhD candidate for this label is not under joint supervision, he will only be awarded a doctorate from his home university, but this will have the UniGR European PhD label added to it;
• If the PhD student is being jointly supervised, he will be awarded a doctorate from both the institutions where the thesis has been prepared as well as the UniGR European PhD label.