Requirements of the principal supervisor

The principal supervisor has the primary responsibility for the entire PhD programme and offers regular supervision and guidance to the PhD student.

• The principal supervisor must be employed at the Faculty either as an associate professor, senior researcher, professor, clinical associate professor or clinical professor. Part-time lecturers and clinical teaching associate professors are not included.
• If the principal supervisor changes jobs during your PhD and thus is no longer employed at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, you must change principal supervisor.
• It is mandatory for all principal PhD supervisors to participate in a SUND Seminar on Responsible Conduct of Research.
• As of 1 January 2020, it is mandatory for all principal PhD supervisors to complete PhD supervision: Rules and regulations (online).
• As of 1 January 2021, all new principal PhD supervisors at SUND are required to complete PhD supervision: advice, tools and practices (including PhD supervision: rules and regulations) within the first year of supervising a PhD student.
• As of 1 January 2021, all principal PhD supervisors at SUND, who have not enrolled and supervised any PhD students for the past five years as principal supervisors, are required to complete PhD supervision: advice, tools and practices (including PhD supervision: rules and regulations) within the first year of supervising a PhD student.
• The principal supervisor must ensure that two people with a close personal relationship or family relationship are not in the same supervisor group.

Responsibilities during the application process

• Prepare the enrolment application in collaboration with the PhD student.
• Discuss how to create a positive supervision process and fill in an expectation alignment with the PhD student.

Responsibilities during the PhD programme

• Ensure that the entire PhD study is carried out as planned and notify the Graduate School of any major delays or significant deviations.
• Support the PhD student in training dissemination skills, and be present at informal presentations of research results.
• Encourage and help the PhD student to participate in active research environments, including stays at other, mainly foreign, research institutions, private research enterprises etc.
• Prepare regular assessments in collaboration with the PhD student in accordance with the dates set in the enrolment certificate.

Responsibilities related to thesis submission and defence

• Propose members for the assessment committee approximately two months before the expected PhD thesis submission date.
• Assess the complete PhD programme.
• Prepare the defence in cooperation with the PhD student.
• Set the date, time and venue for the defence.