Completion of Doctoral Studies

The completion of doctoral studies represents the culmination of several years of research and the gradual fulfilment of the Individual Study Plan (ISP). To successfully complete the programme, doctoral students must complete several key final steps that demonstrate their academic independence, research quality, and ability to defend their results:

  • writing and submitting the doctoral dissertation in the required format,
  • successfully completing the pre-defence (“small defence”) of the dissertation,
  • successfully completing the final dissertation defence.

Doctoral Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation is the result of solving a specific scientific research problem. It must contain original results that have been published, accepted for publication, or prepared for publication.

These results must be academically relevant, methodologically sound, and contribute to the development of knowledge in the given field or a related discipline.

Forms of the Dissertation

The dissertation may take one of the following two forms:

1. Monograph Format

  • minimum length of 120 standard pages,
  • a coherent academic text based on the doctoral student’s original research.

2. Collection of Scientific Articles with an Integrative Commentary

  • a collection of academic articles accompanied by an integrative commentary of at least 20 standard pages,
  • at least one article must be published or accepted for publication in:
    • a journal indexed in Web of Science (minimum Q3 according to AIS), or
    • a journal indexed in Scopus (minimum Q2 according to SJR),
  • the doctoral student must be the first or corresponding author of at least three articles,
  • the typical number of co-authors per article is a maximum of four; a higher number must be properly justified,
  • for co-authored articles, the doctoral student’s contribution must be clearly described.

Additional Specification of Requirements

Specific requirements regarding the format, structure, and content of the dissertation, as well as other related formalities, may be further specified in the Study and Examination Regulations and in faculty regulations issued by the Dean.

Pre-Defence (“Small Defence”)

The pre-defence is one of the key milestones near the end of doctoral studies. It serves as an academic evaluation of the first complete version of the dissertation before the department’s academic community and represents an important step before the final defence.

Its purpose is to verify whether the dissertation meets the required standards and whether it is ready—after possible revisions—for submission to the final defence.

The doctoral student submits the dissertation to the Head of the Department, who subsequently arranges the organization of the pre-defence without unnecessary delay.

A written record of the pre-defence is prepared, stating whether:

  • the dissertation is recommended for submission to the final defence after revisions, or
  • the dissertation should be reworked and presented again at another pre-defence.

The record, together with the plagiarism/originality report, is submitted by the Head of the Department to the Dean.

How to Prepare for the Pre-Defence

The pre-defence is not an examination, but primarily an opportunity to receive structured academic feedback before the final submission of the dissertation.

It is recommended to plan the pre-defence in consultation with your supervisor when the first complete version of the dissertation is ready.

During the presentation, you should be prepared to:

  • clearly present the main contributions of your research,
  • explain the methodological approach,
  • describe the structure of the dissertation,
  • openly discuss feedback and comments.

Final Dissertation Defence

The final dissertation defence is the final step in completing doctoral studies. A student may apply for the defence after:

  • fulfilling all study obligations specified in the Individual Study Plan, and
  • successfully completing the pre-defence.

The defence is a public academic discussion of the dissertation results and represents the culmination of several years of independent research.

More detailed information can be found in the Study and Examination Regulations, Article 19 (sections 23–26).

Submission of the Dissertation

The dissertation is ready for submission once comments from the pre-defence have been incorporated.

The dissertation is submitted through InSIS, and the student must also:

  • submit an application for the dissertation defence (available in the Contact Centre under the Doctoral Studies section),
  • provide a list of all published works confirmed by the supervisor, registered in the VŠE publication database.

Additional requirements may follow from faculty regulations issued by the Dean.

Opponent Reviews and Defence Date

The opponent reviews must be delivered to the student no later than two weeks before the defence.

The student is informed about the date and location of the defence electronically at least three weeks in advance, and the faculty simultaneously publishes this information on its website.