Procedure for obtaining a doctoral degree

The documents needed to start the doctoral procedure:

• Form to request a DOI – The DOI number must be on the inner front page of the dissertation, so please fill in this request form first, and send it before submitting all the other documents.
• Application form for the doctoral procedure
• Copy of your absolutorium (pre-degree certificate)
• Proof of language competence (the language certificate with which you got admitted to the Doctoral School)
• Copy of your MA degree
• Doctoral dissertation: electronic version in pdf format, AND a printed hard copy (with the name of the author and the date of submission on the spine)
• Thesis booklet: sent electronically in pdf. The booklet should contain the summary and main findings of the dissertation and it must also have a list of the publications which are relevant for the topic of the dissertation separately from the doctoral student’s other publications.
• Curriculum Vitae (Europass or similar type)
• Short biography written as running text in the third person singular. (The secretary of the defence committee reads it to formally introduce the doctoral student during the defence.)
• List of publications printed/saved as a pdf from MTMT
• Declaration of the supervisor that the publications meet the requirements set by the Doctoral School
• Joint declaration of the supervisor and the programme leader that they support the initiation of the doctoral procedure. They may also make a recommendation for the members of the committee.
• Minutes of the pre-defence

The dissertation and the thesis booklet should be submitted using the following format for file names:

• Surname_Firstname_dissertation.pdf
• Surname_Firstname_thesis_booklet.pdf

Other formats are not acceptable. Only complete submissions are accepted. The application should be submitted to doktori.fokozat@ppk.elte.hu. The hard copy of the dissertation should be handed in at the Registrar’s Office. The doctoral procedure is held between 1 September and 30 June. No public defence can be held in August. A public defence in July is possible only if special justification is laid out and the Doctoral Council votes on the initiation of the procedure before 30 June.

List of documents containing more information about the procedure

• List of documents
• Information on the use of MTMT
• Information on COVID-related extension

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the deadline for starting the doctoral procedure?
The deadline to start the procedure is the same as the deadline to submit the dissertation. The dissertation must be submitted within three academic years after completing the complex exam.
Example: If you passed your complex exam in the academic year of 2023/24, you must submit your dissertation until 31 August 2027.

What are the requirements for starting the defence procedure?
The following four conditions must be met:

1. You must have your absolutorium in order to start the defence procedure.
2. A pre-defence must be held before requesting to start the procedure.
3. You must meet all the publication criteria set by the doctoral school.
4. All the documents listed above must be submitted.

What is the pre-defence?
During the pre-defence (aka. home defence, research center disputation), the invited professionals review the dissertation, and they may make recommendations on how to make changes to the text. The supervisor is responsible for organizing the pre-defence. The event is open for the public, and the Secretariat of the Doctoral Schools advertises it online on the Faculty’s website. The pre-defence committee is made up of at least a chair and a reviewer. The proceedings must be recorded on  the minutes. The minutes must be signed by one of the professors present at the pre-defence and the programme leader.

When should I have my pre-defence?
The Regulations do not specify a timeframe. When organizing the pre-defence, you should consider that the reviewer(s) may ask for significant revisions. In that case, you should leave enough time to make the necessary changes.

What are the publication requirements?
To start the doctoral procedure, you must have at least three scientific publications of which you are the first author. The Doctoral Schools may further specify their requirements in their Operational Regulations. Please check the regulations here: 

• OR of Doctoral School of Education
• OR of Doctoral School of Psychology

What are the formal requirements of the dissertation?
The length of the dissertation is 70-250 pages without the bibliography and annexes. The font is Times New Roman, 12 pts font size, with margins of 2.5 centimeters, and a binding margin of 3.5 centimeters. The DOI must be on the inner front-page. A sample for the cover and the inner front page can be found on pages 170–171 of the Doctoral Regulations. The Doctoral Schools may specify further requirements in their Operational Regulations.

Who can be a member of the public defence committee?
The Faculty Doctoral Council makes the decision about the members of the committee, but the supervisor and the programme leader may make a recommendation. All members of the public defence committee must have a doctoral degree (PhD). The members cannot be the co-authors of any of the doctoral student’s publications. The chair of the committee must be employed by ELTE and must have one of the following titles: (full) professor, professor emeritus, associate professor with habilitation. For more information on the conflict of interest see (3) of Section 53. of the University Doctoral Regulation (page 36).

How long is the doctoral procedure and how does it conclude?
The average length of the procedure from submission to public defence is six months. However, the maximum length of the procedure from submission to getting the PhD is one year.

First, the Registrar’s Office formally checks the submitted documents and forwards them to the Doctoral School for a professional assessment. The Doctoral School makes a recommendation for the Faculty Doctoral Council, which makes the decision whether the submission is accepted or not. In case of a favourable decision, the Registrar’s Office sends the dissertation to the reviewers, who have 60 days to assess the dissertation (July and August are not counted!). The two reviews are sent to the doctoral student who has 30 days to write responses to the reviews. The Registrar’s Office starts organizing the public defence after it receives the responses. The Faculty advertises the public defence on the Hungarian Doctoral Council’s website, the Faculty website, and the Faculty circular. Based on the result of the defence, the Faculty Doctoral Council submits a proposal to the University Doctoral Council. The University Doctoral Council is in charge of awarding the PhD degree. The award ceremony is organized by the Educational Directorate about 4-6 months after the Council's decision. 

What happens during the public defence?
You may find the protocol of the public defence HERE

What if I cannot submit the dissertation until the deadline?
It is possible to submit a request to extend the submission deadline by one year in special cases deserving equity. The extension cannot be longer than one year, and the request must be submitted before the deadline of the dissertation submission expires. Make sure that you attach documents that prove the grounds of your request. The request form is available HERE.

I cannot find an answer to my question here. What should I do?
If you can’t find an answer here, please check the relevant passages of the University Doctoral Regulations (Sections 58-72) and the Faculty Doctoral Regulations (Sections 30-35). You may also contact the Registrar’s Office at doktori.fokozat@ppk.elte.hu.

You may find the slideshow of the information session of 11 November 2024 by CLICKING HERE.