At USC, there are three possible formats for thesis defenses, depending on how the participants are involved: face-to-face, blended, or virtual.
- Face-to-face defenses: The defense takes place on USC premises, with all members of the examination committee attending in person.
Notification of in-person defense
- Blended defenses: In this format, at least the PhD candidate and one member of the examination committee are physically present. The remaining members participate remotely via Microsoft Teams or through videoconferencing equipment available at the university faculties.
- Virtual defenses: All participants attend remotely via Microsoft Teams. For more information about virtual defenses check this link.
Notification of remote defense
Defense notifications may be signed by the secretary, the chair of the committee, or, on their behalf, the PhD program coordinator.
The notification must be submitted to the corresponding Doctoral Program, which is responsible for entering the data into the Xescampus system.
If a substitute member is known in advance, their name should be included in the notification.
When planning the date of your defense, please keep the following in mind:
- Deadlines: The thesis defense must take place within a maximum of 3 months from the day after it is authorized by EDIUS. In accordance with current regulations regarding publicity, the defense date must be communicated well in advance to ensure a minimum of 7 calendar days of public notice.
- Permitted days: The defense must be held during the academic calendar period at a USC center (except in the case of virtual defenses). You can consult the non-teaching periods here.
After the defense
The defense minutes, electronically signed by the secretary of the examining committee, must be sent to the following email address within 24 hours: doutoramento [at] usc.es (doutoramento[at]usc[dot]es).
If electronic signature is not possible, the minutes may be physically signed and sent by certified mail or courier to the following address:
Universidade de Santiago de Compostela
Servizo de Xestión Académica - Terceiro Ciclo
Pavillón Estudantil – Campus Vida
15782 – Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña)
The Academic Management Service will enter the defense data into the Xescampus system. This information will be accessible to both the doctoral student and the thesis supervisor(s) through their respective Virtual Secretariats.
The doctoral candidate may apply for the issuance of the Doctoral Degree Certificate at the Academic Management Service.