Doctoral Program in Biomedical Engineering 2020–2021

The RD 99/2011 highlights the high professional training of doctors in various fields, especially those that require creativity and innovation. Therefore, the doctors of the program will have acquired, at least, personal skills and abilities to:

1. Develop in contexts in which there is little specific information.
2. Find the key questions that must be answered to solve a complex problem.
3. Design, create, develop and undertake innovative and innovative projects in their field of knowledge.
4. Work both as a team and independently in an international or multidisciplinary context.
5. Integrate knowledge, face complexity and formulate judgements with limited information.
6. The criticism and intellectual defence of solutions.

CMECES1 - Having acquired advanced knowledge at the frontier of knowledge and demonstrated, in the context of internationally recognized scientific research, a deep, detailed and well-founded understanding of the theoretical and practical aspects and scientific methodology in one or more research areas

CMECES2 - Having made an original and significant contribution to scientific research in its field of knowledge and that this contribution has been recognized as such by the international scientific community

CMECES3 - Having demonstrated that they are capable of designing a research project with which to carry out a critical analysis and an evaluation of imprecise situations in which to apply their contributions and their knowledge and work methodology to make a synthesis of new and complex ideas that produce a deeper knowledge of the research context in which you work

CMECES4 - Having developed sufficient autonomy to initiate, manage and lead teams and innovative research projects and scientific collaborations, national or international, within its thematic scope, in multidisciplinary contexts and, where appropriate, with a high component of knowledge transfer

CMECES5 - Have shown that they are capable of developing their research activity with social responsibility and scientific integrity

CMECES6 - To have justified that they are capable of participating in scientific discussions that take place internationally in their field of knowledge and of disclosing the results of their research activity to all types of public

CMECES7 - Having demonstrated within their specific scientific context that they are capable of making advances in cultural, social or technological aspects, as well as fostering innovation in all areas in a knowledge-based society.

The requirements for access to doctoral studies are set by the RD 99/2011, of 28 January. In general, access to the programme is open to those who hold an official Spanish Bachelor's and Master's degree or equivalent, having passed a minimum of 300 ECTS credits in these two degrees.

Students with a foreign degree issued by a country included in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) may apply for admission directly (info). If the degree was issued by a non-EHEA country, the application for admission with a foreign degree that has not been recognised (info) must be submitted.

Interested parties can find more information about acceso and admission at the Doctoral School section and at the administrative office of the programme (see contact details in the general information section of the programme).

Interested students can obtain further information about

 Admission profile:

Given the multidisciplinary nature of the scientific field of the Program, degrees of provenance are very diverse. The most appropriate previous training for admission to the Doctoral Program in Biomedical Engineering will correspond to graduates with scientific and technological profiles and who have completed a master's degree in Biomedical Engineering or a master's degree related to the scientific field of the Program. In addition to this academic profile, certain personal characteristics are considered important, such as interest in the research projects developed in the program, critical and analytical capacity, having initiative, perseverance and perseverance in their work, ability to work as a team and to communicate adequately orally and in writing.

Specific criteria for admission and weightin:

The main access qualifications are the following:
• Degrees that have direct access. Students who have completed the Master's degree in Biomedical Engineering will have direct access to the doctoral program without the need for training complements.
• Qualifications that require training complements. Other equivalent qualifications will be accepted, in which there has been a training in techniques that have special relevance for the development of a doctoral thesis in Biomedical Engineering. The academic commission will determine the required training complements.

The criteria for admission to the program also include the following aspects:

• Personalized prior contact with the student will be particularly valued through interviews, questionnaires or exercises to assess their suitability to the program and their motivation.
• Other aspects will be valued, such as knowledge of languages ​​or previous research experience.

Selection criteria:

With the aim of prioritizing and selecting students who meet all access requirements, the following weighting of the admission criteria is established:
• Academic record: 50%
• Personalized contact and interview: 25%
• Motivation: 5%
• Knowledge of languages: 10%
• Research experience: 10%

The body responsible for the admission of students is the Study Commission of the Joint Doctoral Program in Biomedical Engineering of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and the University of Zaragoza. In accordance with the collaboration agreement between both universities, that Commission may authorize the function of admission to the Program Coordinators of each university.

For other aspects about the management of the admission process see the page of the Doctoral School (https://escueladoctorado.unizar.es/admisi%C3%B3n-en-un-programa-de-doctorado-puntos-clave).

Profile: Students who access from other masters, according to the previous academic training, may require the completion of training in subjects of the Master in Biomedical Engineering, with a number less than 60 ECTS. The complements will be, in all cases, research training and will be proposed by the study commission, depending on the student's curriculum.

Complements to be taken: The study commission will establish the training complements to be taken by each student, depending on the subjects studied in their master's degree and the research line chosen for the thesis. The study commission of the program will monitor the training complements and will establish the appropriate criteria to limit its duration.

The possible subjects of the Master in Biomedical Engineering to study according to the training obtained previously can be seen in the following link

https://estudios.unizar.es/estudio/asignaturas?anyo_academico=2017&estudio_id=629&centro_id=110&plan_id_nk=547&sort=curso:

Doctoral students, as researchers in training and students of the University of Zaragoza, must register annually with the corresponding fees for the academic supervision of the doctoral programme while they continue their doctoral training. The enrolment period will be the one established for this purpose in the calendar of the corresponding academic year.

As a general rule, enrolment will be done online through the Virtual Secretariat of the University of Zaragoza, having previously obtained a personal identification number (PIN) and password from the identity management service of the University of Zaragoza. Those who are unable to enrol online will be allowed to do so in person by going to the Doctoral School Section during opening hours. For the first, second and subsequent enrolments, doctoral students will have to present various documents about their previous studies, depending on whether they have been studied in countries within or outside the European Education Area.

The website of the Doctoral School provides complete and updated information about the enrolment procedure including key points, prices, discounts and insurance,  legalisation and translation of documents and various practical details.

The procedures for the supervision of students on the programme are set out in article 11 of Royal Decree 99/2011 regulating doctoral studies. Thesis supervision is also covered by Title I of the Regulations on Doctoral Theses of the University of Zaragoza.

Doctoral students admitted to the programme will register annually for academic supervision at the University of Zaragoza. The academic committee of the programme will assign a thesis supervisor and a tutor, who may or may not coincide. The thesis supervisor will be responsible for the overall management of the student's research tasks, for the coherence and suitability of the training activities, for the impact and novelty of the subject matter of the doctoral thesis in his/her field, and for guiding the planning and, where appropriate, its adaptation to that of other projects and activities in which the student is enrolled. The tutor is responsible for ensuring that the training and research activity is in line with the principles of the programme and the Doctoral School and will ensure the interaction of the PhD student with the programme's Academic Committee, the body responsible for supervising the progress of the research and training and for authorising the presentation of the thesis of each PhD student on the programme.

The supervision of doctoral students will be set out in the Doctoral Charter which, once enrolment has been completed, will be signed by the doctoral student, his/her tutor and supervisor, the programme coordinator and the director of the School for Doctoral Studies. For further information on thesis supervision, please contact the programme's administrative office (see contact details in the programme's general information) or the programme coordinator.

The mechanisms for monitoring doctoral students are in accordance with the provisions of Article 11. Doctoral supervision and monitoring of RD 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies.

Before the end of the first year of enrolment, the PhD student must present a document that includes the research plan and the personal training plan. This may be improved and detailed throughout their stay on the programme and must be endorsed by the supervisor and tutor.

The research plan shall include, at least, the methodology to be used and the objectives to be achieved, as well as the means and timetable for achieving them.

The personal training plan will contain a forecast of the different training activities to be carried out during the doctoral thesis (courses, seminars, mobility actions, etc.).

The activities document is the record of all the activities - stays, courses, attendance at conferences, etc. - that the PhD student carries out from enrolment in the doctoral programme until the submission of the doctoral thesis.

These documents, as well as the director's and tutor's reports, are managed through the doctoral management application, SIGMA.

The academic committee of the programme will annually evaluate the progress of the doctoral student in terms of his/her research plan and the activities document together with the reports that the director and tutor must issue for this purpose. A positive evaluation will be a prerequisite for continuing on the programme. In the event of a negative evaluation, the PhD student must be evaluated again within a maximum period of six months. In the event that significant shortcomings continue to occur, the Academic Committee must issue a reasoned report, after hearing the interested party, and the doctoral student will be definitively withdrawn from the programme.

Once the thesis has been completed, the PhD student must proceed to its deposit and defence in accordance with the provisions set out in the thesis regulations of the University of Zaragoza and in the procedure that develops it, available on the EDUZ regulations website

The program has a quality assurance procedure in the Doctoral Theses in Biomedical Engineering:

The Doctoral School of the University of Zaragoza offers its doctoral students various transversal training activities focused on facilitating the acquisition of the necessary skills to actively participate in the knowledge society and to successfully manage in a complex and changing labour market. The activities in module 1, Communication skills, help PhD students to effectively disseminate research and its results and to share knowledge in an attractive way, both in writing and orally. Module 2, Scientific Information Management, provides training in searching, processing and managing bibliographic information. Module 3 includes activities that improve the doctoral student's readiness to manage in a professional environment. The activities in module 4, Research and Society, provide doctoral students with a space for reflection on issues of interest to participate fully and responsibly in today's diverse, digital and global society. Module 5 contains activities on instrumental or technical aspects necessary to apply cutting-edge research methodologies.

The training offer is completed with online activities for all G9 doctoral students, teaching and research training activities organised by the Institute of Education Sciences of the University of Zaragoza and with those carried out within the framework of inter-university and international Doctoral Conferences.

The complete offer for each academic year is published here.

Title: TUTORIES. Optional
Duration: 288h.
Control procedures: Annual report director

Title: Complementary COURSES. Optional
Duration: 18h.
Control procedures: attendance report. Registration in the Doctorate Activities Document. Follow-up of the thesis director.

Title: SEMINARS Optional
Duration: 3h
Control procedures: attendance report. Registration in the Doctorate Activities Document. Follow-up of the thesis director.

Title: WORKSHOPS. Optional
Duration: 3h
Control procedures: attendance report. Registration in the Doctorate Activities Document. Follow-up of the thesis director.

Doctoral students enrolled on doctoral programmes benefit from the mobility grants established in various national and international calls for applications. The calls of the Erasmus+ programme stand out. In the Modality Erasmus+ Studies, doctoral students can choose from a wide range of destinations as most of the agreements signed by the University of Zaragoza with other universities include places for doctoral students from all branches.

This mobility is carried out in accordance with the procedure Q-312_1. Procedure for the Management of the International Mobility of Undergraduate, Master and PhD Students.

With regard to the Erasmus+ Internships mode, doctoral students have access to two calls: the University of Zaragoza's own call and the one carried out by the Campus Iberus of International Excellence for the universities that are part of it, including Zaragoza.

Other interesting mobility calls are the Erasmus+ Short Mobility, the UNITA mobility, the external internships, those specifically aimed at Ibero-American students and those that finance international stays for pre-doctoral students, among others.

The mobility of doctoral students at the University of Zaragoza is also encouraged through the signing of co-supervision agreements with several foreign universities.

The Doctoral School of the University of Zaragoza has rules, regulations and procedures to facilitate the achievement of its various objectives. It is worth highlighting the Internal Regulations of the Doctoral School, the Instruction of the Doctoral School: Requirements for access, admission, dedication and permanence in the doctoral studies of the University of Zaragoza adapted to R.D. 99/2011. 99/2011; the Procedure for the elaboration of the Report on the Quality of Doctoral Studies and its different Programmes (ICED); the Code of Good Practices for the School and the doctoral programmes; the Doctoral Charter; the Procedure and model agreement to request the mention of doctorate industrial in the thesis or the Regulation of extraordinary doctoral awards. The aforementioned documents, drawn up with the participation and consensus of the various bodies of the Doctoral School, are published on its website.

The regulations section of the Doctoral School's website contains other important regulatory references for doctoral studies such as RD 99/2011 regulating official doctoral studies, the Regulations for Doctoral Studies (2012) and the Regulations on doctoral theses (2014), both from the University of Zaragoza.

Rules of duration and permanence in the doctorate are established in Instrucción de23 de mayo de 2018 de la Escuela de Doctorado relativa al acceso, admisión,dedicación y permanencia en los estudios de doctorado de la Universidad deZaragoza (R.D. 99/2011).

Full-time thesis should be complete in three years, from the date of admission to the doctoral program, although the Academic Committee of the program may authorize the extension of this period for one more year. Part-time doctoral students will have five years from their admission to the presentation of the thesis, and the Academic Committee may authorize an extension for two more years. Exceptionally, an additional year of extension can be added.

PhD candidates may request a change in dedication (full-time / part-time) as well as the temporary withdrawal for justified reasons of the Academic Committee. They can cause a definitive withdrawal and see their file closed in these cases: if the available time to deposit the thesis is exceeded or if they receive two consecutive negative evaluations of the research plan.

These processes are explained in detail on our website (info) and the doctoral students are told how to proceed in cases of temporary withdrawal (info).

Doctoral activity in an academic year is governed by the deadlines established in the specific doctoral academic calendar. This calendar, which is approved well in advance, sets the periods for application for access, admission to programmes, registration at the University of Zaragoza, presentation by doctoral students of the research plan and the activities document, as well as the deadlines for the defence of doctoral theses.

The website of the Doctoral School publishes the calendar for the current academic year, as well as for the two previous years.

The Doctoral School is the unit of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia / University of Zaragoza responsible for providing technical and administrative support to the university community linked to doctoral studies.

International Relations Service

Library and Documentation Service

Language and Terminology Service

Research Assistance and Support Unit

The laboratories of the research groups of the thesis directors.