Checkpoints for PhD candidates

Throughout the PhD trajectory all PhD candidates who are part of the Donders Graduate School (DGS) have annual checkpoints to discuss the progress of the project.

Checkpoint 1:

The first checkpoint meeting is scheduled around 3 months after the start of the project. This checkpoint is meant to discuss whether the PhD candidate has settled and to check whether the TSP has been submitted in Hora Finita.

Checkpoint 2:

1 year after the start of the PhD Project. This is an official evaluation meeting with an external advisor. Prolongation of the PhD contract is discussed, especially for the PhD candidates who have an 18 months + 30 months contract at the university (Faculty of Social Sciences, Faculty of Science etc).

Evaluation meeting procedure for PhD candidates
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Checkpoint 3:

2 years after the start of the PhD project. During this meeting the same external advisor joins again. The PhD candidate will give a short presentation of the content of the thesis and the timeline. The focus of this meeting will be on what is necessary to finish the thesis and on its feasibility. The rule of thumb that should be applied is that the candidate is at the half-way point of their thesis, and when allowance is made for writing up, they cannot be expected to have a higher output in the last two years than in the first two.

Checkpoint 3
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Checkpoint 4:

3 years after the start of the PhD project. During the meeting the supervision team and the PhD candidate discuss the progress of the thesis, how the supervision is experienced and what is necessary, personal development and career perspectives.

Checkpoint 5:

45 months after the start of the PhD project (4 years minus 3 months). The PhD candidate and the supervision team discuss  the progress of the thesis, how the supervision is experienced and what is necessary, personal development and career perspectives. The PhD candidate uploads a summary of the intended content of the thesis and the timeline towards finishing the thesis in Hora Finita.

In case the end of the employment contract or the expected end date is within the next year, the PhD candidate and the supervision team discuss what is necessary to submit the thesis to the manuscript committee.

Annual Checkpoints:

After Checkpoint 5, checkpoints will continue on an annual basis (i.e. 57, 69, 81 and so on months after the start of the PhD project) until the manuscript is submitted in Hora Finita. The PhD candidate and the supervision team discuss  the progress of the thesis, how the supervision is experienced and what is necessary, personal development and career perspectives. The PhD candidate uploads a summary of the intended content of the thesis and the timeline towards finishing the thesis in Hora Finita.

In case the end of the employment contract or the expected end date is within the next year, the PhD candidate and the supervision team discuss what is necessary to submit the thesis to the manuscript committee.