As a PhD supervisor it is important that you are familiar with the different responsibilities that are laid upon you and the different aspects you are involved with during the PhD study.

NEW INTERNAL PHD SUPERVISORS (MAIN AND CO) MUST ATTEND THE FIRST COMING PHD SUPERVISOR COURSE
 
As a starting point it is imperative that you allign your expectations with the PhD student you are supervising. This founds the crucial starting point for the entire PhD study and it is therefore of outmost importance that you and the PhD student are on the same track.

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INITIAL PHASES OF THE PHD STUDY
When a PhD student is accepted for enrollment  at the Doctoral School of Engineering and Science it is crucial to the PhD study that the supervisor and PhD student allign their expectations towards eachother and the PhD study at hand. A missallignment here may lead to issues later on, issues that could have been avoided.

As a supervisor you must actively assist the student in completing the PhD plan that is due for submission no later than 2 months after the study is commenced. Once the plan is ready for submission it is uploaded by the PhD student through PhD manager where the supervisor, followed by the head of program must approve the PhD plan. The same procedure is to be followed when the updated version is submitted, no later than 11 months after enrollment. Only the PhD study director can provide an extemption in relation to these timeframes.

Key elements to remember when initiating a PhD study:

• Clarification of mutual expectations - A template for inspirational purpose
• Create a PhD plan in cooperation with the PhD student and upload within 2 months after enrollment through PhD manager. 

 DURING THE COURSE OF EACH INDIVIDUAL STUDY THE SUPERVISOR MUST ATTEND TO THE FOLLOWING:

• Ensure that the PhD student in question develops into an independent researcher and obtains the skills stipulated in the ministerial order.
• No later than 11 months after enrollment an updated PhD plan is uploaded through PhD manager.
• Complete progress reports for each PhD student every 6 months. This is done through the PhD manager portal, an email is sent to the supervisor once a progress report is due. Inspiration for the evaluation process.
• Cooperate with the head of the assigned doctoral program on the PhD study in question.
• Sign applications for leave of absence and applications for financial support.
• Assess and approve outcome of conference participitation. (6 ECTS maximum during a PhD study). If you are planning to obtain more than 6 ECTS via conference participitation, please contact the doctoral school.
• In some cases a PhD study may encounter unforseen issues during the three years of study. It is important that the supervisor and/or the student adresses these issues sooner rather than later. Unresolved and seemingly irrelevant issues may lead to serious problems later on in the study.

Should you encounter issues that you cannot resolve amongst yourselves please contact the doctoral school who will initiate contact to the PhD Study Director. 

As the PHD study near completion there are a several elements that is to be handled by the PhD student and the supervisor. To assist in relation to this process the doctoral school recommends that the supervisor and PhD student makes themselves familiar with these elements as soon as possible.

THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS MUST BE TAKEN CARE OF:

• An assessment committee must be forwarded to the doctoral scool for approval - the thesis cannot be uploaded before the committee is approved. 
• The thesis is formatted according to the VBN guidelines.
• Dissertations with affiliated papers (this can also account for monographs)  co-author statements is to be sent to the Doctoral School for assessment. Once these are approved by the PhD study director the student is notified. 
• A supervisor statement is to be sent to the Doctoral School. Once this is done the student must be notified. By submitting this statement the supervisor acknowledges that the PhD study is completed satisfactory. All elements in the template must be filled out. An incomplete supervisor statement is subject to rejection.