Exemption request

(before or at the start)

In order to gain access to the process leading toward a doctorate, a PhD candidate at the University of Amsterdam must hold a Dutch Master degree or doctoraal diploma. If you obtained your prior degree outside of the Netherlands, you will need to request exemption from these requirements.

You can be exempted if the degree you hold is found to be equivalent. In order to determine this, you will have to submit an official request for exemption to the Doctorate Board.

More information and the official form to use can be found on the UvA webpage of the doctoral programme on admission.

Doctoral programme - admissions

With the exemption request you will need to send in several certified documents concerning your previous education. You might not have certified copies of all your university diplomas or you might want to hold on to the one set you have. In that case it is also possible to go to the office of the Doctorate Board in person and show your original diploma's there.

Do this well in advance, if possible before your stay at the ILLC!

If you do not satisfy the requirements, then your entire stay at the ILLC might be wasted, or you might encounter long delays.

The decision on your exemption request will take between 4 to 6 weeks. If you feel, however, that it is taking too long, please contact the office of the Doctorate Board.

Office Doctorate Board

If needed, you can also ask the ILLC PhD team for assistance. In any case, please make sure to send a scan of the exemption request and of the decision by the Doctorate Board to the ILLC PhD mailbox.

ILLC PhD mailbox

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Admission request

(before or at the start)

PhD candidates at the University of Amsterdam are only officially recognized and registered as such once they have been admitted to the doctorate at this university.
N.B.: Please note that this is a different admission than the admission by the ILLC (or Faculty of Humanities) after an application procedure, whether this procedure was for a paid position or for a position on your own funds

The admission to the doctorate at the UvA involves determining your eligibility to prepare for a doctoral thesis. You must therefore demonstrate that you satisfy the statutory educational entry requirement by presenting the required certificates (the Dutch master diploma [or doctoraal diploma] or the official exemption of these requirements).

The admission also involves appointing your supervision team, including the so-called promotor. As is explained in the section on Supervision, in the Netherlands not all professors have the right to be a PhD promotor (ius promovendi). If your main supervisor does not have that right, someone else will need to be appointed as promotor: preferably someone with ius promovendi amongst the researchers already involved in your supervision. The role of the promotor can range from fully involved supervisor to purely administrative. It is a good idea to discuss the involvement of every member of your supervision team with your main supervisor and to state it clearly in your Training and Supervision Plan (TSP).

Supervision page

Typically a promotor should be appointed before or at the start of your PhD track and therefore you should request for admission to the Doctorate right at the beginning.
PhD candidates who are here on their own funding will start under the guidance of a mentor. Only after six months a supervisor and promotor should be appointed. For these candidates it is allowed to arrange the admission at or soon after six months.

More information and the official form to use can be found on the UvA webpage of the doctoral programme on admission.

Doctoral programme - admissions

The admission request must be signed by the Dean of the Faculty where you are going to graduate, so you should email the contact person at this faculty for an appointment.

Faculty of Science

Faculty of Humanties

The decision on your admission request will take between 4 to 6 weeks. If you feel, however, it is taking too long, please contact the office of the Doctorate Board.

Office of the Doctorate Board

If needed, you can also ask the ILLC PhD team for assistance. In any case, please make sure to send a scan of the admission request and of the decision by the Doctorate Board to the ILLC PhD mailbox.

ILLC PhD mailbox

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Training and Supervision Plan (TSP) (Opleidings- en begeleidingsplan or OBP)

(within the first 3 months)

Together with your supervisors, you will need to set up a Training and Supervision Plan (TSP). You will find the TSP form on your personal tracking page when you open the 'Forms and Documents' tab and scrolling down. Please note that both you and your main supervisor can view and edit this form. The instructions on how to fill in this form can be found on a separate page.

Once this form is signed by you and at least your main supervisor, it should be submitted as a pdf to the ILLC PhD mailbox. The ILLC PhD team will upload it to your tracking page.

After the first year assessment interview and after each annual evaluation the TSP should be adjusted.

Personal tracking page

TSP - instructions

ILLC PhD mailbox

The main part of the TSP is a description of your research project, the expected output and the planning. 

The TSP should also include details on the division of responsibilities among your main supervisor and any other supervisors involved in the project. See the page on supervision for more information.
It should also help you to agree with your supervisors on how you will report on your progress and how you will receive feedback and guidance from them.  

Supervision page

Beside the sections on your research project and form of supervision, the TSP should also contain information on the (academic and skills) courses you are going to take, what teaching and/or organising tasks you are going to get involved in, and what other research related activities you will take on, like visiting a summer school, or  a research visit abroad. The TSP - instruction page will guide you.

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Appointment of supervisors

(at 6 months, only for PhD candidates who have their own funding)

PhD candidates who are here on a scholarship or private funding generally have 6 months to establish their research topic and find supervisors who are willing to guide them towards a research plan and graduation. These PhD candidates are appointed a mentor at the start to guide them through these first 6 months. Once a research topic or field is established and supervisors have been found, they will need to send in an admission request (see above) and adjust their Training and Supervision Plan (TSP).

Finding a supervisor is a very important step, because without supervisors you cannot continue your PhD track at the ILLC. However, not to worry: your mentor is there to help you with this process.

Once supervisors are found the PhD candidate should send an email to the ILLC PhD mailbox.

ILLC PhD mailbox

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9-Month Report and feedback

(before 9 months)

At the end of the first year, your supervisors and the director of the ILLC PhD Programme will conduct a first evaluation of your progress (see below). In preparation for this, you need to submit a substantial progress report at the end of the 9th month since the start of your PhD track.

The 9-month report consists of a scientific contribution and a short plan for the research tasks that are to be conducted in the future years.

The scientific contribution can be a paper (or one of the final drafts of a paper), a pilot study (for experimental research) or a literature review in the research field you are interested in - something that gives a clear picture of what you have done so far and also what you plan to do over the next years.

You must discuss the specific content of this report in advance with your supervisors. The report should not contain any material that you have co-authored with others.

You can submit your report (in PDF format) by sending it to the ILLC PhD mailbox.

ILLC PhD mailbox

You will receive feedback on your report from your supervisors within three weeks. This will generally be in a personal meeting. As a result of this feedback, you may agree with your supervisors on specific tasks and actions for the next three months, in preparation for the First Year Assessment interview.

The main supervisor will fill in and sign a short form, which confirms that the 9-month report has been handed in and feedback has been given. The main supervisor can find a short form on the personal tracking page of the PhD candidate and sends this as a PDF to the PhD mailbox. ILLC PhD mailbox Back to timeline

First Year Assessment interview and go/no-go decision

(at 12 months, 1 year)

At 12 months you will have the first assessment interview with your supervisors and an external observer, who may be the director of the PhD Programme, the director of ILLC, or, a member of academic staff at the ILLC who is not part of the supervision team and who is at least as senior as the main supervisor. All researchers involved in supervising your project are advised to be present at this interview. You may also invite an external mediator, provided other parties are informed of this in advance.

This interview should lead to a decision regarding the extension of your position to the full span of 4 years (or 3 years and 2 months). This go/no-go decision is based on the work you have done since the start of your appointment, how you have dealt with specific tasks, actions and advice regarding points for improvement, as well as on the 9-Month Report and possible adjustments you have made to this after receiving feedback.

Your main supervisor will write an assessment using a form available on your personal tracking page (PhD candidates can view this form, but only supervisors are able to edit it.) You will get a chance to read it, discuss it, and make comments. Once you have agreed with the content of the report, all parties involved will sign it.

Personal tracking page

In case of a positive decision, the Training and Supervision Plan (TSP) should be adjusted as a result of the assessment.

In case of a negative decision, your contract will not be extended, and you will be officially notified at least 3 months before the end of the first 16 months (Faculty of Humanities) or 18 months (Faculty of Science).

Detailed step-by-step instruction of first year assessment for supervisors

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