Q: Who do these regulations apply to?
A: These regulations apply to all doctoral candidates enrolled in the doctoral subjects listed in Appendix 1 of the regulations  and starting their studies in fall semester 2025 (matriculation date) or later. Students under the 2014 Faculty of Medicine or the 2016 Faculty of Science regulations may continue under those rules until end of fall semester 2033, but supervision transfers to the new interfaculty doctoral committee from the date of entry into force. Switching voluntarily is not allowed.

Q: What is the purpose of the regulations?
A: They set the legal and procedural framework for doctoral education in Medical and Health Sciences under the GSMHS, from admission to awarding the degree. They define responsibilities, procedural steps, academic standards, and quality assurance measures.

Q: What is the role of the GSMHS Coordination Office?
A: The Coordination Office serves as the central contact point for all GSMHS doctoral students and supervisors regarding doctoral education. It implements the interfaculty doctoral board’s requirements, manages the monitoring platform (“PhD module” in UNIverse), tracks deadlines and document submissions, and ensures compliance with procedures.

Q: What are the academic requirements for admission?
A: Normally, a relevant Master’s degree from a Swiss university or Swiss Federal Institute of Technology that qualifies for the chosen doctoral subject is required. Degrees from other recognized institutions are assessed for full, partial, or no equivalence by the interfaculty doctoral committee. If a degree is only partially equivalent, the committee may still recommend admission with conditions, provided the applicant’s prior studies are relevant to the doctoral subject. These conditions may require completion of essential missing foundations, amounting to no more than 24 ECTS credits in addition to the program’s regular requirements.

Q: How is the application submitted?
A: Applications are submitted to the University’s Student Services within official enrollment deadlines. They must include:

• A provisional title and brief description of the intended dissertation project;
• A written commitment from a Group I member of one of the two faculties, qualified in the chosen subject, to act as supervisor
• If known, the names of the other committee members.

Q: Who decides on admission?
A: Student Services first checks formal requirements, then sends the dossier to the lead faculty (the faculty of the Group I supervisor) and onward to the interfaculty doctoral committee for review. The committee makes a recommendation, and the lead faculty’s research dean requests approval or rejection from the University Rectorate, which issues the final decision.

Q: Is continuous enrollment required?
A: Yes. Enrollment at the University of Basel must be maintained for the entire duration of doctoral education until completion, termination, or dissolution of the supervisory relationship. After that, candidates must de-register promptly.

Q: What is the doctoral agreement and when must it be completed?
A: The doctoral agreement is the central planning document for the doctorate. Within six months of matriculation, the candidate and the first supervisor must submit a signed doctoral agreement to the interfaculty doctoral committee for approval via the PhD Module in UNIverse.

Q: Where to find the doctoral agreement? 
A: The doctoral agreement is at the UNIverse PhD module

Q: What does the agreement contain?
A: The doctoral agreement contains

• Fulfillment of any admission conditions;
• Composition of the doctoral committee (second supervisor required);
• Framework conditions, including institutional affiliation, funding plan, and expected duration (especially for part-time PhDs);
• Doctoral subject and program (and if applicable, simultaneous pursuit of the MD degree);
• Preliminary research plan ("proposal");
• Overview of planned coursework;
• Any further agreements between the committee and the candidate.

Q: How is it updated?
A: The doctoral agreement must be reviewed annually. Administrative changes are reported via the PhD Module in UNIverse. In the second year, the agreement must be updated to include the midterm progress report.

Q: Who is on the doctoral committee?
A: The first supervisor (main responsibility), the second supervisor, and optionally (a) further advisor(s). Interdisciplinary projects should have members from all relevant fields.

Q: What are the eligibility rules for supervisors?
A: First supervisors (usually a Group I member) must normally hold at least 50% employment at the University of Basel or an associated institution during the entire supervision period. Group II members or external supervisors may be approved upon justified request if they meet equivalent qualifications. Supervisors must not have close personal relationships (e.g., family ties) that could create dependency.

Q: What does the committee do?
A: It ensures scientific quality and progress, meets at least once per year, evaluates the first year’s results (to decide if the project continues), and produces a midterm progress report after about two years. It signs all official applications with the student.They also evaluate the thesis. 

Q: What is an external expert and who can take on this role?
A: The external expert acts as an independent reviewer during the dissertation evaluation process. The external expert must be an active expert in the field, not affiliated with the University of Basel or its associated institutions in the last five years, not employed at the dissertation’s external site, and free from collaborations or dependency relationships with the committee members within defined time limits. Must hold a habilitation or equivalent.

Q: When is the external expert proposed?
A: 3–6 months before submission, proposed by the doctoral committee to the interfaculty doctoral committee, which must approve.

Q: What course work is required in the doctoral programs?
A: At the start of the dissertation, the student creates an individual study plan worth 18 ECTS, in agreement with the doctoral committee (especially the first supervisor). Changes must be updated annually. The plan lists course names, format, dates, duration, and ECTS credits. Credits for admission conditions are listed separately.
The plan should include:

• Courses complementing scientific skills (e.g., research methodology, statistics, philosophy of science).
• At least 2 ECTS from transferable skills (e.g., presentation skills, scientific writing, project management, leadership). Language courses do not count.
• Attendance at research seminars and journal clubs (max. 4 ECTS).
• Other agreed training (e.g., study visits, summer schools, workshops).
• Active conference participation (poster/oral) — max. 8 ECTS.
• Organizing conferences/workshops — max. 3 ECTS.
• Teaching (at least 10 hours in the doctoral subject) — max. 4 ECTS.

Q: Are there any specific requirements for courses depending on the doctoral program?
A: Each doctoral program defines a list of recommended courses for enrolled students. Some programs also require participation in certain compulsory courses before graduation. More details are available on the doctoral program pages.

Q: What standards apply for the dissertaion?
A: The dissertation must be an original, independent research work conducted primarily during the doctoral period. Any joint work must clearly identify the candidate’s contributions. Language is generally English.

Q: What forms can the dissertation take and what should it contain?
A: The thesis, which may take the form of a cumulative or monographic work, or a combination of the two, must contain:

• A title page in accordance with the template;
• A table of contents;
• A text containing the doctoral student's acknowledgments;
• A list of the members of the thesis committee;
• An abstract;
• A “lay summary” understandable to the general public;
• A curriculum vitae in accordance with the template.

Q: What is a cumulative dissertation?
A: A cumulative dissertation usually comprises at least three articles for which the doctoral candidate is the lead author and which have been submitted for publication in critically edited journals or have already been accepted or published. Articles that can be credited toward a cumulative dissertation include original empirical work, reviews, secondary analyses, and case studies. Cumulative dissertations must include at least one original work in which new empirical research results collected/obtained by the doctoral candidate themselves are presented. All articles included in a cumulative dissertation must already have been submitted to a journal at the time of submission of the cumulative dissertation.

Q: What is a monograph?
A: If a dissertation is written as a monograph, it corresponds to a comprehensive, self-contained treatise on a research topic or a specific problem. The monograph usually consists of a summary, introduction, methodology, results, and discussion (including conclusions). The monograph may refer to the author's own publications that have been published in critically edited publications. If publications that have been published in critically edited publications are integrated into a monograph, the result is a combination of a cumulative dissertation and a monograph

Q: Can a shared first authorship article be used as part of a dissertaion?
A: A publication can be counted as a full publication towards a dissertation by doctoral students as “equally contributing first authors” (shared first authorship). Each author can have the publication counted towards their dissertation. The respective individual contribution of the first authors must be clearly stated in the dissertation. As a general rule, a publication may only be used once by each first author for a qualification thesis (regardless of the qualification level, e.g., master's, doctorate, habilitation).

Q: Is there a minimum number of articles that must be published before graduation?
A: The number of publications to be included in a dissertaion (in particular in a cumulative dissertation) is decided by the doctoral candidate together with the doctoral committee. It is recommended that agreements regarding the number of publications and authorship be clarified as early as possible and recorded in writing in the doctoral agreement.

Q: How is the graduation procedure started?
A: The candidate applies to the interfaculty doctoral committee, providing the dissertation (PDF), proof of completed conditions, updated doctoral agreement, ECTS documentation, publication overview (for cumulative dissertations), and signed declarations on authorship and AI use. All documents must be uploaded via the PhD Module in UNIverse.

Q: What is the exam format and who participates?
A: It is a public oral colloquium, usually in English, lasting at least one hour. Examiners are the doctoral committee plus the external expert. The chair must be an independent Group I member or adjunct professor from one of the two faculties.

Q: How is the dissertation assessed?
A: At least two confidential reviews are required — always one by the external expert and one by the first supervisor. If the first supervisor is a group II member or external, and additional, independent review by the second supervisor is required. The reviews include a grade (6.0–1.0 scale) and recommendation.

Q: How is the final distinction calculated?
A: The overall grade is the weighted average of the dissertation grade (double weight) and the doctoral examination grade (single weight). Distinction levels range from summa cum laude (≥5.80) to rite (4.00–4.49).

Q: What is the passing requirement?
A: Minimum grade 4.0. The exam can be repeated once if failed; a second failure ends the doctorate.

Q: What degree is awarded after completion?
A: Successful candidates receive the joint degree “Doctor of Philosophy” (Dr. phil., PhD) in Medical and Health Sciences, awarded by both the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Science.

Q: When is the promotion official?
A: After passing the examination, submitting the final dissertation within two years, and issuance of the doctoral certificate. Until then, the candidate may use the title “Dr. phil. des.” in Medical and Health Sciences.

Q: What does the doctoral certificate include?
A: The names of the University and faculties, deans’ signatures, candidate’s details, awarded degree, dissertation title, doctoral subject, examination date, and final distinction. It is issued in German and English.

Q: What happens in cases of academic misconduct?
A: If discovered before the degree is awarded, the procedure can be terminated and the candidate’s “Dr. phil. des.” title revoked. If found after award, the promotion can be revoked entirely.