Interruption / extension of doctoral studies

The normal duration of doctoral studies is 3 years. The following changes may occur:

Interruption

  • It does not involve the payment of any tax.
  • During the interruption, the doctoral scholarship is suspended.
  • It is granted FOR GOOD REASONS: the approval is granted only on the basis of a motivated request, endorsed by the doctoral supervisor and approved by the Doctoral School Council. Possible examples of “good reasons” include: maternity, childcare leave, health problems, carrying out an activity outside the country or in another locality for more than a month.
  • According to the Decision of the Senate of the University of Bucharest, the total duration of interruptions approved for a doctoral student cannot exceed 2 years (24 months), except for situations for raising and / or caring for the child, for which the maximum duration is 3 years (36 months).
  • Except in cases of force majeure, the interruption can be decided only during the doctoral program (during the normal duration of 3 years and the extension of maximum 2 years), and not during the periods of grace or postponement of the public defense.

Extension

  • It involves the payment of the doctoral study fee for the approved period.
  • The request must be motivated, signed by the doctoral supervisor and approved by the Council of the Doctoral School.
  • The total duration of approved extensions for a doctoral student may not exceed 2 years (24 months).
  • Students who did not meet all their obligations in the individual study plan (courses, reports) are eligible only for extension periods.

Grace period

  • It does not involve the payment of the tuition fee.
  • It is granted only to doctoral students who have completed the doctoral program (including the normal period of 3 years and possible periods of interruption and / or extension), but failed to officially complete and submit the thesis doctorate, and only after fulfilling the obligations from the individual study plan (successful support of all research reports and other activities provided in the individual plan approved by the Doctoral School Council).
  • It is recommended that the grace period be granted only to doctoral students for whom the supervisor certifies that they have written at least 50% of the doctoral thesis.
  • For those who have not met this condition it is recommended to request / grant extension periods (with fee).
  • The total duration of approved of grace period for a doctoral student may not exceed 2 years (24 months). The public defense of the doctoral thesis must be done within the grace period.

Postponement of the thesis

  1. It does not involve the payment of the tuition fee.
  2. It is granted only in special situations, when the approached topic requires a longer period of study or experimentation, at the proposal of the doctoral supervisor and with the approval of the Council of the Doctoral School. The postponement is for a maximum period of 4 years.
  3. The period of postponement of the defense is granted only to doctoral students who have completed the doctoral program, but have failed to complete the thesis. At the end of the doctoral program (normal duration and extension of 2 years) the student can opt for either the grace period (maximum 2 years) or the period of postponement of the defense (maximum 4 years).
  4. The period of postponement of the defense can be granted after the grace period, provided that, in total (cumulative), the period of grace and the period of postponement of the defense does not exceed 4 years from the completion of the doctoral program (within these 4 years the student also has the public defense, it is not enough to officially submit it or hand it over for reading to the doctoral supervisor).

Termination of the status of “doctoral student

  • The status of doctoral student ceases when the doctorate is granted (not on the date of the public defense of the thesis) or by expulsion.

Further details, here.

Art. 18. Extension and discontinuation of doctoral studies programme

(1) The duration of the PhD programme is three years.
(2) Doctoral studies may be interrupted for a good reason, with the approval of the Council of the Doctoral School. The duration of the studies is prolonged with the cumulative periods of approved interruptions.
(3) The duration of doctoral studies may be extended at the request of the doctoral student up to 2 years if the doctoral student fails to achieve the proposed scientific objectives and the steering committee considers that he/she can fulfill them the extension period. The application must be endorsed by the doctoral supervisor and the Council of the Doctoral School. The extension must be approved by the Council for University Doctoral Studies.
(4) If the doctoral student fails to complete the thesis within the term stipulated by the doctoral studies contract and any additional documents, the doctoral student shall have a grace period of maximum two years, according to the legal provisions in force.
(5) Doctoral students who have exceeded 12 months for one of the following forms of extension of the duration of doctoral studies – extension, grace period or postponement of the public defense of the doctoral thesis – are considered ex officio as being in situation of risk of abandonment of the doctoral studies and registered as such in the records of the doctoral school.
These doctoral students will have to present every six months a progress report to the doctoral supervisor and the guidance committee, who will analyze the situation and propose concrete support measures for the completion and submission of the doctoral thesis. These proposals for measures will be submitted to the Doctoral School Council, which may decide whether to approve them on the basis of its responsibilities or whether to endorse them and submit them for approval to the CUDS. Any subsequent request for extension, grace period and postponement of public support shall be accompanied by a report by the PhD supervisor, including the results of the analysis and the proposed measures, as well as the progress reports referred to in the previous paragraph.