MAIN SUPERVISOR

The main supervisors has to be employed at Aalborg University (Faculty of Medicine). Furthermore the main supervisor needs to be associate professor as a minimum.
The main supervisor is responsible for the completion of the PhD project.

CO-SUPERVISOR

It is a requirement from the Doctoral School that the PhD project is assigned at least one co-supervisor that can provide academic/professionel feedback in fields where the main-supervisor may not be an expert.

It is not required that co-supervisors are employed at AAU or at Aalborg University hospital. 

There are specific requirements in relation to the Industrial PhD program. Here the company/organization needs to appoint two supervisors. Read more at Innovationsfonden.

APPROVING/CHANGING SUPERVISORS

Changes to the supervisor setup must be approved by the PhD Study Director and accepted by all the involved parties (department, supervisors, PhD student).

Forward the requested changes to aauphd@adm.aau.dk

As a main supervisor you have overall responsibility for the sucessfull completion of the PhD study.

The Doctoral School recommends that the first step is an allignment of expectations between the main supervisor and the PhD student. 

The following describes the responsibilities af the main supervisor during the different phases of the PhD study:

INITIAL PHASE

It is adviced that a discussion between the PhD student and the main supervisor clarifies the following topics as a minimum:

• Aim and purpose of the project
• Mutual expectations
• Supervisor - student role
• It is expected that the supervisor plays an active role in relation to creating the 2 month PhD plan. This is a crucial step for any PhD project and furthermore presents a good opportunity for the PhD student and supervisor to clarify mutual expectations. 

In general the PhD supervisor has the primary academic responsibility for a successful implementation of the PhD plan and for the formal conditions of the individual PhD project.

DURING THE PHD STUDY

The supervisor must take active part in the PhD study and ensure that a number of criteria are kept. This includes a good scientific level and good scientific conduct.  

After 11 months the updated PhD plan must be uploaded. Please remember to include information regarding the pre-defense in the 11 month updated

PhD plan. 

As a supervisor you are obligated to complete a progress report for each PhD student. In addition to this you must take part in the 11 month pre-defense and the updated PhD plan. You are obligated to ensure that the PhD students progresses according to the timeframe provided in the initial and updated PhD plan.

Should you encounter difficulties in relation to the supervision of a PhD student, that you cannot solve amongst yourselves, please contact the PhD Study Director. It is important that action is taken as soon as possible in order to risk that the PhD study is terminated.

In addition the supervisor must attend to the following:

• Assess applications for leave of absence, excluding parental leave.
• Approve/sign applications for financial support.
• Cooperate with the head of Doctoral Program and relevant department on the PhD project in question.

FINISHING THE PHD STUDY

Prior to submission the following elements must be attended to:

• Approved supervisor statement (completed and signed by the main supervisor)
• Approved co-auhtor statements
• Approved assessment committee (established by the main supervisor in collaboration with the department)
• The thesis must not be submitted before these element are in order.

Rules and documents in relation to the establishment of the assessment committee

It is mandatory for all new internal PhD supervisors to participate in the first coming course for PhD supervisors.

The course ensures a commom frame of reference for all PhD supervisors at the Doctoral School and ensure that new supervisors are up to date with new rules and procedures.

The course runs once a year with two course dates - find the full course description and signup at www.phd.moodle.aau.dk

Questions regarding the course dates and the like can be sent to aauphd@adm.aau.dk

This booklet is an introduction for phd supervisors at Aalborg University.

It aims to introduce you to the most common issues and challenges experienced when supervising phd students, especially international PhD students. The intention is also to provide you with a set of strategies and tools to facilitate successful collaboration with your phd student.

See booklet