| Phase | Credits | Taught or credited components(45 credits) | Research project & dissertation(135 credits) | Signposts or Milestones |
| First semester | 30 | 15 credits for attendance at courses
5 credits for an advanced school or a technical seminar |
The equivalent of 10 credits devoted to producing a complete and up to date review of bibliography and published sources and to mapping useful references | By end of semester:bibliography and map presented to, discussed with and approved by the supervisory committee |
| Second semester | 30 | 15 credits for attendance at courses and/or preparation of a doctoral seminar | The equivalent of 15 credits devoted to gathering material and reading sources accordingly; preparation of draft outline | By the end of semester:review of archival work done and approval by committee of draft outline of the dissertation |
| Third semester | 30 | 5 credits for an advanced school or workshop | The equivalent of 25 credits devoted to continued gathering of data, analysis and organisation of results | By end of semester: analytical table of contents presented and approved by committee |
| Fourth semester | 30 | 5 credits for preparation of a brief article and/or helping in organisation of seminars and teachings | The equivalent of 25 credits devoted to continued gathering of data, writing of one chapter in final form | By end of semester: completed chapter presented and approved by committee |
| Fifth semester | 30 | No taught part, all time to be devoted to final elaboration of text | The equivalent of 30 credits devoted to writing and necessary further controls and checks | By end of semester: majority of chapters complete and presented in pre-final draft to committee |
| Sixth semester | 30 | The equivalent of 30 credits for work on and checks on dissertation | By middle of semester written text entirely completed in pre-final form; reference checks and polishing of prose, work ready for defence |
Credits
Within this programme 45 doctoral credits are accumulated for all learning activities (such as attending lectures, seminars, organizing projects, practical work, self-study and expositions of a work-in-progress) and for all related study activities.
The individual research project of 135 doctoral credits is accumulated also including the final dissertation, awarded when assessment is complete. After the defence is completed the doctoral candidate will be awarded of 180 doctoral credits.
Workload
Using doctoral credits as a measure of time we set a credit for several hours of workload. Workload indicates the time doctoral candidate typically need to complete all required learning & research activities in order to achieve the expected outcomes. As customary, 60 doctoral credits are attached to the workload of a full-time year of learning & research (academic year) and the associated outcomes. In most cases, workload ranges from 1,500 to 1,800 hours for an academic year, whereby one credit corresponds to 25 to 30 hours of work.
Milestones
The claimed phases, milestones and signposts are just indications for a doctoral candidate, and the detailed programme will be done by the supervisory doctoral committee, tailored individually for each doctoral candidate. Same committee is appointing a tutor to each doctoral candidate.
Committee
The work of the candidate is monitored by a doctoral committee, composed by the supervisors together with a number of researchers representing the Algant-Doc Consortium. The doctoral committee may suggest ways of improving the candidate’s (scientific) performance.
Duties
The doctoral candidate must prepare reports on his/her work in progress every six months presenting the preliminary results obtained. The report will include a certificated list of the various courses, seminars, conferences or other relevant/mandatory joint activities that the candidate has attended/participated in. The candidate must gather certificates of attendance.
Dissertation
Successful completion of the doctoral credits programme is represented by the production of a Ph.D. dissertation (thesis) judged to be original and significant.
The thesis will be subject to only one examination (thesis defence), recognized by all degree awarding institutions. The thesis defence shall take place at university determined at the time of signature of the doctoral candidate agreement and and will be governed by local rules. Supervisors shall be present at the defence.
Prior to the thesis defence, the doctorate candidate shall submit his/her work to the doctoral committee and have his/her work examined by at least two external referees for review. The referee shall analyse the thesis and assess it through a report submitted to the university hosting the thesis defence and to the doctoral committee.
Authorization to defend will be granted by the university hosting the defence, which will set a date and call a jury respecting the rules of the degree awarding universities.
The jury shall be composed by at least 3 and at most 8 members, all of them internationally recognized scholars in the field of the thesis, including at least one from each degree awarding universities, and at least one external examiner.
The doctoral committee makes sure that the composition of the jury complies with the relevant university regulations.
Publication
Right after defence the doctoral candidate will be asked to sign a disclosure contract, that will allow Algant-Doc and/or AIR e-libraries (http://air.unimi.it/) make his/her thesis available to the research community. This contract is not exclusive. The disclosure contract will not be deemed as a copyright transfer, the main results of the thesis shall also be published as a paper in a refereed scientific journal.