Melbourne School of Graduate Research

The French-Australian PhD Cotutelle Program

What is the Cotutelle Program?

The Cotutelle program allows approved PhD students to be supervised jointly by academics from The University of Melbourne and a nominated French university. The Cotutelle agreement which sets out in detail the terms and conditions of candidature gives approval for the candidate to be enrolled concurrently in two institutions, spending at least 30% of the total maximum time limit (or one year) in each university.

Each student's program takes place under a reciprocal agreement which needs to be drawn up for each student between the two institutions, which sets out in detail the terms and conditions for joint supervision and examination. The candidate pays fees at one institution only. If successful, the student will be awarded a doctoral degree jointly-badged by the two institutions, and stating that the award was made as a consequence of a Cotutelle agreement with the partner institution.

It is important to note that Cotutelles are primarily a device for promoting research, not a process for recruiting international students. It is not aimed at getting PhD students to knock on the door of the administration to look for a "Cotutelle grant" and then ask to find the foreign partner as well. The objective is to allow French and Australian research teams that already have collaborative links and that have found a bright PhD candidate, to jointly propose to both their institutions to approve a Cotutelle project (each Cotutelle PhD has to be approved in writing by both the concerned institutions, since the award is a joint or double degree).

 

What are the benefits of enrolling in the Cotutelle Program?

The Cotutelle program provides a mechanism:

The prime intent of Cotutelle agreements is that they form part of an ongoing or developing cooperative research collaboration between a department or research group in this University and one in France . Examples of research collaboration include:

Of course, not all collaboration needs to be at the level of a Cotutelle. Exchange schemes are widely used and continue to be the most common form of international cooperation involving postgraduates. Typically, a Cotutelle will be a more substantial association, a real collaboration in research supervision, which will raise an existing research collaboration to a higher level. It will provide the best PhD students with international experience and personal links at the early start of their career.

 

What financial support is available to Cotutelle students?

The funding opportunities depend on the location of the student's home institution. The 'home institution' is nominated by the candidate at the time of application and is normally the institution where the candidate will be primarily based.

All students will only be required to pay course fees to their home institution.

For students for whom the home institution is in France:

If the University of Melbourne is the home institution the student:

The Melbourne Scholarships Program is detailed at the Melbourne Scholarship Office website

All students are encouraged to explore a wide range of funding options. Good starting places are:

 

Can I apply for the cotutelle program at an institution outside of France?

Yes. Applicants should use the Application for Cotutelle (Non-French Institution) form available here.

 

Where do I get an application form for the Cotutelle Program?

The Application for the French-Australian PhD in Cotutelle is available for download below in either PDF or Word format.

Download Application for the French-Australian PhD in Cotutelle (MS Word)MS Word Download Application for the French-Australian PhD in Cotutelle (PDF)Adobe Acrobat/PDF

This form must be submitted by the department either at the time of application or after the candidate has commenced and must accompany the contract from the French institution.

It is important to remember that the Application for the French-Australian PhD in Cotutelle is not an application form for PhD candidature. Before a Cotutelle arrangement can be approved, an applicant must be approved as an eligible for the PhD degree. Applicants not currently enrolled at The University of Melbourne must submit a separate application for PhD candidature.

The PhD application form for International students is available from the International Office.

The application form for Australian citizens and Permanent Residents is available at from the forms page.

When setting up a Cotutelle agreement it is important to keep the following points in mind,

  1. A Cotutelle agreement must be drawn up between the two participating institutions in respect of each candidate, detailing the particular arrangements pertaining to that particular candidature. Normally such agreements take effect from the beginning of a candidature.
  2. The agreement must list the supervisors who are to undertake the joint supervision.
  3. The candidature is to be divided between the two countries with alternate stays in each of the two countries and a minimum of one year in each country.
  4. The agreement must set out the arrangements with regard to payment of fees.
  5. There is to be one examination process agreed to by both institutions, and the initial agreement must detail the procedures that will be followed. Both Universities must agree to respect the outcome of the agreed examination process.

 

Once enrolled in a Cotutelle program are tuition fees paid to both institutions?

A PhD student will pay tuition fees only in the 'home' institution.

 

Is there anything that needs to be submitted in addition to PhD thesis for examination?

A thesis written in the language of one of the countries involved should also have a summary of 5000 to 10,000 words including an introduction, brief chapter outline and conclusion in the language of the other.

 

 

How is examination of the PhD thesis conducted in the Cotutelle Program ?

The examination will be carried out in a manner that meets the essential requirements of both institutions. The successful outcome of the examination process would be the award of a jointly badged doctoral degree.

In addition to the preparation of a thesis for examination, all Cotutelle candidates are required to undertake an oral examination. The thesis should only be defended once. This defence would be recognized by the two institutions involved and written into the agreement between the institutions.

The oral examination will take place after receipt of the reports of the examiners, who shall be external to both universities, including third examiners if required. The examiners for the oral examination panel (with the exception of the supervisors) are the same examiners appointed for the thesis. The oral examination panel or jury will consist of equal representation from both institutions and will normally include the two jointly appointed examiners.  It is anticipated that the examiners will typically include one examiner from Australia and one from the partner country. In addition, the Australian supervisor and the partner institution supervisor are on the oral examination panel and play an active role and ask questions of the candidate.

A thesis written in the language of one of the countries involved should also have a summary in the language of the other. A candidate, defending their thesis, in the language of one country should also provide an oral summary in the language of the other. Thus an Australian candidate defending their thesis in English must be prepared to present an oral summary in French.

The academic committee examining the defence of the thesis will be designated by the Chair of the Research Higher Degrees Committee after advice from the Chair of Examiners, based on a proposal from the candidate's supervisor (or the equivalent positions in the French institution).

An oral examination is considered to be necessary to receive a joint international degree. The reports would be forwarded to the jury and the candidate before the date of the defence. A video conference is acceptable if the two institutions agree.

Further information can be found at:

 

Research Training Scheme funding

The completion of a PhD student enrolled under a Cotutelle arrangement will contribute to an Australian higher education institution's total completion count and will be included in the completions component of the formula for allocating Research Training Scheme funding.

 

What award do I receive once I have passed?

The successful outcome of the examination would be the award of a single doctoral degree, with testamurs from both institutions each of which will contain the following expression "Awarded under a Cotutelle agreement between the University of Melbourne and the [name of French institution]".

 

What other publications on Cotutelle are available?

The French Embassy has published three documentations on Cotutelle (joint/double-badged doctoral degree) between France and Australia . They are aiming at students and supervisors involved in the Cotutelle scheme:

These publications are available for download from the French Embassy's website, here.

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