- Admission to the LNDS
- By the end of the first year of your thesis – Provide the composition of your Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC)
- Intermediate (Midterm) evaluation – What to expect and how to prepare
- Points to keep in mind over the second half of your thesis project – Towards the preparation of your thesis manuscript
- Thesis defense procedures – To be read well in advance to avoid surprises …
1. Admission to the LNDS
The enrollment to the host university and faculty of your thesis director is usually the first path of your thesis endeavor.
Please see our the information HERE to see the pathway when wanting to become a PhD student @ UNIGE or @UNIL, and to enroll in the LNDS as your doctoral program.
SSP students: Please check the information specfic to your faculty HERE.
2. Setting up your thesis advisory committee (TAC)
Within the first year of the PhD studies, the composition of the Thesis advisory committee (TAC) needs to be communicated to the doctoral program. The due date for sending the TAC composition can be found in your LNDS acceptance letter, and the LNDS coordinator will remind you ahead of time.
New: Students of FBM-UNIL enrolled from A2025 please also consult the website of the FBM doctoral school regarding the first-year evaluation of your thesis project and contact the LNDS coordiantor with questions!
The TAC participates in the intermediate evaluation as well as in the PhD exams according to the modalities in force at the faculty of enrollment of the PhD candidate. In agreement with the candidate, the thesis director is responsible for constituting a TAC. The TAC consists of a president or a representative of the doctoral program (where appropriate at UNIGE), and at least two experts holding a doctoral degree, who are active in research and independent of the PhD candidate’s thesis project, and at least one of whom is external to the thesis director’s department. The Scientific Committee validates the composition of the TAC and designates the person who chairs it. This person is chosen from among the full or associate professors of the partner faculties of the Doctorate in Neuroscience. The thesis director and, if applicable, the thesis co-director participate in the TAC in a consulting role.
The TAC composition must be communicated to the LNDS coordinator, using the official form below, and at the latest 2 months before the intermediate evaluation session to allow for sufficient time to prepare the session and the TAC members.
- Link: Form to submit TAC composition
- For UNIGE students: Link to Recommendations regarding TAC choice, and its in the intermediate and final thesis evaluations
3. Intermediate (Midterm) evaluation
Goal
The intermediate evaluations are organized by each PhD candidate who has been working on the project for 2-3 semesters, but not later than 18 months after the reception of LNDS acceptance letter. The goal is to evaluate the first half of your thesis work (project and course work) . Eventually, the thesis advisory committee (TAC) can make suggestions on the continuation of the project and publications. Ideally, the candidate has achieved at least 9 study credits (ECTS) around the time point of the midterm evaluation; please check with the LNDS coordinator to receive your credit recap.
Format
The evaluation session lasts ~2 hours, for details check the section “Oral presentation” below. The intermediate evaluation is based on:
• the quality of the midterm report provided by the candidate,
• the quality of the oral presentation of the candidate,
• understanding of the field of research (literature, methodology, importance of the work, limits, etc.),
• the originality and the advance of the experimental work,
• the projects formulated for the continuation of the thesis work.
In addition, the TAC asserts on the potential for publication of the results in the form of original articles in international journals with editorial policy, and makes recommendations thereon. In the end of the evaluation session and after deliberation, the TAC issues its conclusions, recommendations and other remarks in a protocol/minutes (“MidtermPV”) signed by the parties and transmitted to the LNDS.
Progress reports
At least one month before the exam, the PhD candidate (mandatory) and the thesis director (not mandatory) are asked to submit a report to the LNDS coordinator by e-mail, using the templates below. These reports (together with some procedural information) are collectively forwarded to the TAC members by the LNDS coordinator.
- Template for student progress report (mandatory)
- Template for thesis director report (not mandatory)
The candidate’s report should describe how the thesis project has evolved so far and the plans and timeline for the remainder of the thesis duration. The thesis project description (max 10 pages plus references) should be organized as follow:
- Aim of the project: 0.5 to 1 page
- Background: 2 to 3 pages
- Already published results (if applicable) and on-going work: 2 to 5 pages
- Perspectives and timeline for completion and defense: 1 to 1.5 pages
- References
The thesis director’s report should describe the progress of the student, both academically and project-related, and the state of the student’s publications.
Both the candidate and the thesis director can report any minor or major problems and describe in detail what these problems are. Yet, there will also be the possibility to discuss problems with the TAC in private during the evaluation session (see section “Oral presentation” below). The reports and presentation should be in English.
Oral presentation
The presentation of the candidate should not last more than 30 minutes, and elaborate on the thesis project, goals, hypotheses, methods and results obtained so far. During the following discussion (moderated by the jury president/ LNDS representative), the TAC members will pose questions, e.g. on the research plan, results obtained, the next project steps and timeline towards PhD completion, as well as on the state of publication(s). Questions can also touch topics beyond the actual thesis topics in order to evaluate the candidate’s general state of knowledge in neuroscience.
Note: The LNDS expects candidates to be able to discuss multidisciplinary neuroscience research with colleagues coming from different research backgrounds.
Before the TAC deliberates, the PhD student and the supervisor are heard separately by the committee. The possible evaluations of the evaluation are “sufficient” or “insufficient”. If the progress of the thesis project or/and the oral presentation of the PhD candidate are deemed insufficient, the PhD candidate can present him-/herself to a second and final intermediate evaluation. This second evaluation must take place between three and six months after the first one.
4. Over the second half of your thesis
- You should of course continue working on your thesis project in the first place …
- You should continue obtaining study credits following the chart provided here
- You should attend the Annual Meeting of the NeuroLeman Network and Doctoral Schools (NLN); from the 2nd year of your PhD you will be requested to present a poster. You will likely also be asked to give an oral presentation during the event before your thesis defense.
Writing and formatting your thesis document
Please find the information concerning your host university in the following documents. The links to templates cited therein can be found under the section “Thesis defense procedures”. Please make sure to look up the adequate information concerning your university and faculty of enrollment!
Here is also a link to the free software to help you with grammar and style checking during thesis (and paper) writing.
Comment on: Writing a thesis based on peer-reviewed articles
If you have at least one original research article published or accepted for publication in a major peer-reviewed journal you can replace content chapters, and/or the methods and results section of your thesis with these articles. Your contribution must be significant for an article to be considered as part of your thesis. Reviews cannot be used to replace any part of your thesis. Each thesis project is different. Sometimes, a chain of experiments leads to a publication in a high-impact journal; sometimes a discovery is dispersed across several publications ….
Please talk to your thesis director about your concept of the thesis manuscript, and contact to LNDS coordinator to inquire on specific aspects and in case of doubts whether your work is eligible for a thesis based on articles.
5. Thesis defense procedures – General points
The thesis defense / PhD exams usually takes place between 3-5 years after the enrollment in the doctoral program.
Please carefully read the sections below covering separately the procedures @ UNIGE and @ UNIL as they are different … Furthermore, the procedures in force vary by the faculty of attachment of the PhD candidate.
Globally, the PhD exams consists of two parts at UNIGE and at UNIL: a private and a public defense of the thesis work. The exams must be done in accordance with the rules in place at the university and faculty of enrollment of the PhD candidate. Documents will need to be submitted for the preparation of the exams as detailed in the following paragraphs.
Please see the guidelines below complementing the offical LNDS rules.
For questions, please contact the LNDS coordinator well in advance of your planned thesis submission.
A short statement regarding the use of AI in thesis manuscripts
In general, the use of generative AIs (e.g., ChatGPT) is not prohibited, but the doctoral student is obligated to disclose their use. For example, in the ‘Acknowledgments’ section o the thesis manuscript.
“During the preparation of this work, the author(s) used OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Grammarly to assist with the grammatical refinement of the paper. After using these tools/services, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication/manuscript.”
Source UNIL-FBM
(Please also HERE see the position of UNIGE)
5.1. Thesis procedures @ UNIGE
Please read first: Document with recommendations regarding the organization of the thesis exams @ UNIGE
Private defense: No later than 3 weeks before the scheduled private defense date, the PhD candidate submits the thesis manuscript to the TAC. The experts in the TAC can be, but must not, be identical to those assisting the public defense. Please check the document above …
During the exam, the TAC makes an assessment of the quality of the PhD candidate’s personal contribution to the presented work as well as his/her knowledge. The possible evaluation outcomes are “sufficient” or “insufficient”. In case of failure (“insufficient”), the candidate may organize a second private defense. The TAC may also suggest modifications to the thesis manuscript. Any changes must be completed before the public defense of the thesis. The private defense is held at least 6 weeks before the public defense, and can take online or in hybrid format.
- Template for private defense protocol
>>> To be filled and signed by all TAC members and the thesis director(s) following the private defense. The protocol must be sent to the student secretariat of the respective faculty in which the candiate is enrolled of enrollment of the candidate and to the LNDS coordinator. The candidate will then also receive the LNDS thesis number.
Public defense of the thesis – Procedure: No later than 6 weeks before the scheduled public defense date, the PhD candidate submits a proposal for the composition of the thesis jury.
No later than 5 weeks prior to the scheduled defense date, the PhD candidate submits his/her thesis manuscript to the director and, if applicable, to the co-director of the thesis and to the other members of the thesis jury for assessment.
No later than 6 weeks prior to the scheduled defense date, the PhD candidate registers for the thesis defense at his/her faculty, providing the following information:
– Date, time and place of the public defense
– An electronic copy of the thesis manuscript (and a paper copy for candidates @ Faculty of Medicine)
– The exam protocol of the private defense
– The composition of the thesis jury, including the professional address of each member and his/her function
– A summary of the ECTS credits obtained in the doctoral program.
Please contact the LNDS coordinator for up-to-date checklists of the afculties for thesis submisison and public defense preparation.
Faculty contacts:
– Medicine
– Sciences
– FPSE
No later than 3 weeks prior to the scheduled defense date, the thesis director must send the thesis report(s) to the Student secretariat∙of the Faculty of enrollment of the PhD candidate. The report must have been approved and signed by all members of the jury, and conclude that the thesis can be defended to the thesis jury. Any modifications to the thesis manuscript that are proposed by the jury must be completed before the defense.
Public defense of the thesis – Evaluation: During the defense, the thesis is evaluated by the jury, which assesses the PhD candidate’s scientific research, as well as the quality of the manuscript and of the oral presentation. The possible evaluation outcomes are “accepted” or “refused” in the Faculties of Medicine and Science, or are expressed by an average mark between 0 and 6 in the Faculty of Psychology and Education. The outcome “accepted” or a mark equal to or higher than 4 is necessary for the successful completion of the doctoral exam.
- Template of public defense protocol (Faculty of Medicine or Sciences). Must be filled and signed by all jury members. To be sent to the secretariat of your faculty; please put the LNDS coordinatorin copy. (doc format HERE)
- Template of public defense protocol (FPSE). Must be filled and signed by all jury members. To be sent to the secretariat of your faculty; please put the LNDS coordinatorin copy. (doc format HERE)
Following the public defense, the thesis must be submitted to the UNIGE university library (incl. the imprimatur page you will receive from your faculty of enrollment once they received the report about your successfull public defense) and your PhD imploma must be ordered. These last steps must be completed within 6 months after the public thesis defense.
IMPORTANT: PhD candidates have to stay enrolled at UNIGE until this last step of thesis archiving and diploma ordering has been completed!
Some more information on thesis procedures potentially useful for candiates enrolled at the
– Faculty of Sciences
– Faculty of Medicine
– FPSE
5.2. Thesis procedures @ UNIL
Private defense: No later than 5 weeks prior to the scheduled date of the private defense “séance d’épreuve” (FBM) or the thesis colloquium (SSP), the PhD candidate submits to the Thesis Office of his/her faculty of enrollment:
– Date, time, and place of the private defense
– An electronic copy of the thesis manuscript
– The composition of the thesis jury as defined, including the professional address of each member and his/her function
– A summary of the ECTS credits obtained in the doctoral program.
Please read first: An overview of the thesis procedures in place for FBM and SSP PhD candidates
– FBM: Template for LNDS thesis title page (note: recent UNIL change still not implemented lacking the visual ID of the faculty)
– SSP: Template for LNDS thesis title page
No later than 5 weeks prior to the private defense, the PhD candidate sends to each member of the jury a copy of his/her thesis manuscript. With exception of the president, each member of the jury produces a report in which his/her opinion of the work is presented. These reports must be sent to the Thesis Office of the faculty of enrollment no later than one week before the private defense session (thesis colloquium). At the end of the defense, the thesis jury deliberates and provides its assessment of the thesis work according to the rules in force at the faculty of enrollment of the PhD candidate.
– Template for thesis reports of the jury members for the Thesis Offices FBM and SSP
For PhD candidates enrolled at the FBM, the jury assigns a grade to the thesis manuscript, the quality of the candidate’s personal work, as well as the quality of his/her presentation and knowledge. This evaluation is expressed by three marks between 0 and 6. Each of the three scores must be equal to or greater than 4 to pass the private defense.
For PhD candidates enrolled at the SSP, the jury may:
– accept the manuscript
– accept the manuscript with some reworking
– refuse the manuscript as is and schedule a second thesis colloquium within 6 months
– reject the thesis.
Public defense of the thesis: Upon successful completion of the private defense, the thesis director (at the FBM) or the Dean’s Office (at the SSP) sets the date and place of the public defense in agreement with the thesis jury and the PhD candidate. The public thesis defense takes place at least 3 weeks and at most 6 months after the private defense session. The thesis jury decides whether the thesis defense was successful.
Following the public defense, the thesis incl. the imprimatur page must be submitted to the university library (BCU) and your PhD degree must be ordered by filling the template. These last steps must be completed within 6 months after the public thesis defense.
IMPORTANT: PhD candidates have to stay enrolled at UNIL until this last step of thesis archiving and diploma ordering has been completed!
5.3. Former UNIGE thesis defense procedures & Comparison “old” vs “new”
Please find in the document “What to do and to keep in mind” all information needed towards the end of your thesis @ UNIGE (deadlines, addresses etc).
The documents and protocol templates cited can be found here (under the section of the “new” thesis procedures @ UNIGE that automatically apply to PhD students enrolled since A2021 or later.
Please do not hesitate to contact the LNDS coordinator with questions; we are in a transition phase between the old and the new UNIGE thesis procedures ….
Please see below a little comparison of old and new to clarify differences …
