The authorization to organize the doctoral training is granted, by domain or set of fields of study, jointly with the universities hosting a thematic graduate college approved by ARES and belonging to the graduate college overseen by the corresponding FRS-FNRS. This one is unique in the French Community.
For the award of a doctorate in art and sciences of art, universities hosting an approved doctoral college belonging to the doctoral college of the field, necessarily work in collaboration with one or more Higher Schools of Arts. Postgraduate studies include doctoral training and work related to the preparation of a doctoral thesis.
Doctoral studies and doctoral preparatory work are carried out in research teams at university or in close collaboration with and under the direction of the university ; they may lead to a level 8 of certification exclusively issued by a university.
Doctoral programs are supervised by associated teams in a thematic doctoral college approved by ARES on the advice of the University Thematic Chamber. They are linked to the specific skills of the research teams and give the graduates a high scientific and professional qualification. They can lead to the issuance of a training certificate in research with a lump-sum of 60 ECTS of training. They essentially consist of specific activities related to the profession of researcher and therefore cannot include more than 30 ECTS of learning activities (courses organized by the institution, including lectures, tutorial exercises, practical work, laboratory work, seminars, creative exercises and workshop research, excursions, visits and training courses).
Holders of an in-depth master's degree in the same field benefit from an automatic valuation of the maximum 30 ECTS for these learning activities.
Under the general conditions fixed by the academic authorities, students with a scientific research master’s degree for at least 120 ECTS have access to third-cycle studies with a view to obtaining the related degree.
Moreover, in addition to a diploma, degree or second-cycle certificate issued in the French Community or elsewhere, the jury of the studies concerned may award all the higher studies successfully completed by a student for at least 300 ECTS, with any additional conditions.
By way of derogation from these general conditions and the additional conditions which they lay down, the academic authorities may also admit to postgraduate studies holders of a diploma, degree or certificate issued outside the French Community who, in this system of origin , gives direct access to doctoral courses or studies and work related to the preparation of a doctoral thesis, even if the studies sanctioned by these titles or degrees are not organized in separate cycles or in at least five years.
This admission must be exceptional and duly justified, in particular on the basis, of the formal and genuine proof of this ability to pursue doctoral studies in the original system.
All doctoral students are students. As members of the academic community, they are represented on the different bodies of their university at which decisions about programmes and regulations are taken.
There are three possibilities for the financing of a doctoral thesis, and the status of the doctoral student depends on which option is used:
The position of assistant involves participation in the work of supervising students (supervision of practicals, seminars, invigilating at examinations, etc.) for up to 50% of the time, whereas doctoral students with a grant or under an employment contract are not subject to such an obligation.
Since 1996, the universities have been authorised to award doctoral grants which are not subject to withholding tax on professional income, but are subject to social security. In principle, therefore, the doctoral student receiving a grant from a university should benefit from the same social status (in terms of sickness and invalidity cover, family allowance, unemployment benefit, pension, pension etc.) whether he or she is a scholarship holder or under an employment contract. However, the social cover (entitlement to unemployment benefit, maternity leave and holiday pay in particular) may vary depending on the type of grant.
Current expenses associated with doctoral research (operating costs, use of equipment) are normally payable by the unit to which the student is attached. Additional resources are available for certain occasional expenses, such as participation in conferences, seminars and meetings and research trips abroad.
There are two types of graduate college: graduate colleges overseen by the Scientific Research Fund - FNRS and thematic graduate schools.
The "landscape" decree doesn't stipulate anything about supervision arrangements for PhD students.
The university institutions have progressively implemented various initiatives with a view to publicising employment opportunities, training PhD students in the acquisition of transversal skills, and assisting graduates in finding a job.
The universities have close links with the socio-economic world through research work conducted in collaboration with industry, a research commercialisation policy, the creation of numerous spin-offs and the development of science parks.
The website dedicated to doctoral studies in Belgium provides the latest information about collaboration between universities and businesses: Enterprise-University interface units have been created by each of the universities under their own individual arrangements.
According to the site, the interface units have the following roles:
The Council of French-Speaking Rectors has published a guide to facilitate such partnerships, and public grants are available to finance cooperation projects.
The LIEU network brings together interface services and services for the commercialisation of research performed in universities and hautes écoles in the French Community.
The doctoral degree is awarded to students who :
The academic degree of doctor is awarded after defending a thesis demonstrating the doctorand’s creativity and ability to carry out scientific research and disseminate its results. The doctoral examination consists of:
The faculty boards in particular are authorised to specify the prerequisites for admission to the preparatory work for a thesis or prior to the submission of a thesis, additional practical procedures relating to submission, the organisation of the private examination and the public defence, and the deliberation procedures and operational arrangements of the specific examination boards.
Third-cycle programmes in higher education comprise research training, leading to a research training certificate, and the preparation of a doctoral thesis, leading to the academic degree of doctor. These qualifications are at level 8 of the European Qualifications Framework for life long learning.
Diplomas certifying the academic degrees and certificates attesting successful completion of studies are awarded by boards made up of academic authorities.
They may only be awarded to students who have satisfied the conditions for access to studies, were regularly enrolled for a number of years corresponding to the minimum duration of studies, and have obtained the minimum number of credits for the corresponding study programme. They are delivered within three months of the announcement of awarding of the academic degree. Diplomas are signed by at least one academic authority or its delegate, and by the president and secretary of the board. Diplomas respect the form determined by the Government. They refer explicitly to the accompanying supplement to the diploma. The minimum information specified by the Government appears in French on the diploma. The supplement to the diploma includes the list of courses taken by the student, the conditions of access to studies, and the assessments certified by the awarded academic degree. The personal elements of this supplement, relating to the individual student, may be collected in an annex to the supplement. In this case, only the annex must be signed by the secretary of the board, whereas the common part of the supplement is certified by the institute.
For third-cycle university studies, the title is the name of the accredited graduate college or the research domain(s). The degree of doctor is mentioned in the title of the defended thesis.
There are no organisational variants for third-cycle higher education.