epfl phd thesis timeline

A PhD timeline for finishing quickly [Free Gantt Download]

Navigating the labyrinthine journey of a PhD program is no small feat.

From the day you step into your graduate program as a bright-eyed doctoral student, you’re immediately thrust into a complex weave of coursework, research, and milestones.

By the second year, you’ve transitioned from coursework to research, laying the groundwork for your dissertation—a pivotal component in your scholarly endeavour. 

Come the third year, you face the critical oral examination, a hurdle that could make or break years of hard work.

But how does one streamline this multifaceted journey? The answer lies in a well-planned PhD timeline.

This blog serves as an invaluable guide for any PhD student looking to complete their doctoral studies efficiently, walking you through each milestone from coursework to graduation.

How to Begin with the PhD Timeline Planning?

Planning your PhD timeline is an essential first step in your PhD program.

Success in any PhD program depends, to a large extent, on effective time management and keeping track of progress through a thoughtfully crafted PhD timeline. 

Start with outlining all your major requirements:

• coursework,
• dissertation,
• and the expected time needed for each task.

I also highly recommend factoring in failure time – give yourself a little bit of wiggle room for when things, invariably – go wrong. 

It’s crucial to remain realistic about the time you can commit daily or weekly while keeping long-term goals in mind.

Regular check-ins on your PhD timeline and supervisor will help you stay on track and allow you to adapt if necessary.

Adjustments may be needed as you progress through your PhD program, but having a timeline as a guide can make the journey less daunting and more achievable. 

Elements to include in a 3-year PhD timeline

The initial stage in this timeline typically involves coursework, often lasting one year, where the student engrosses themselves in advanced study in their chosen field.

Once the coursework is done (USA PhDs), they focus on proposing, conducting, and presenting their initial research.

By the end of the second year, most students should have a clear direction for their dissertation, a core component of the PhD process.

In this third and final year of the PhD timeline, the student focuses primarily on completing their dissertation, which involves collecting data, analyzing results, and organizing their research into a substantial, original, and cohesive document that contributes to contemporary knowledge in their field.

Regular reviews and modifications of the PhD timeline may also be necessary to accommodate various unpredictable circumstances, thus making this timeline both a guide and a flexible workplan.

It is a significant tool in successfully navigating the maze of becoming a PhD holder. 

Create Your PhD Timeline for a 3 year completion

Creating a timeline for a 3-year PhD program requires careful planning, as you’ll have multiple milestones and tasks to complete.

This timeline may vary depending on your specific field, institution, or country, but here is a general outline you can use as a starting point:

Free Gantt chart excel template

Here is a free template you can modify for your own research:

Example Gantt chart for a USA PhD

Here are some common steps involved in completing a PhD, which I’ll use to create the Gantt chart:

• Orientation and Coursework (Semester 1) : Familiarization with the university, department, and coursework.
• Coursework (Semester 2) : Continued coursework and possible teaching/research assistantships.
• Select Advisor and Research Topic : Usually done towards the end of the first year or the beginning of the second year.
• Preliminary Research : Initial research and literature review.
• Complete Coursework (Semester 3) : Wrap up any remaining required courses.
• Research Proposal : Develop a full research proposal including methodology.
• Qualifying Exams : Exams to transition from a Ph.D. student to a Ph.D. candidate.
• Begin Research : Start of actual research based on the approved proposal.
• Conduct Research : Data collection, experiments, and analysis.
• Intermediate Review : A review to assess the progress of the research.
• Write Papers : Start writing papers and possibly publishing in journals.
• Finalize Research : Final experiments and data analysis.
• Write Dissertation : Writing the actual Ph.D. dissertation.
• Dissertation Defense : Defending the dissertation before the committee.
• Graduation : Completing all requirements and graduating.

Example Gantt chart for a UK, European and Australian PhD

For Ph.D. programs outside the United States, especially in Europe and some other parts of the world, students often go straight into research without the need for coursework. Here are some common steps for such programs:

• Orientation : Familiarization with the university and department.
• Select Advisor and Research Topic : Usually done at the beginning of the program.

Wrapping up

The journey to earning a PhD is complex and demanding, filled with academic milestones from coursework to research to dissertation writing.

The key to a smooth and efficient doctoral journey lies in well-planned time management—a structured PhD timeline.

This blog serves as an invaluable guide, offering detailed tips for planning out each academic year in both U.S. and international PhD programs. It emphasizes the importance of starting with an outline of major requirements and factoring in “failure time” for unforeseen challenges.

For those looking to navigate their PhD journey in three years or beyond, having a flexible but comprehensive timeline can be the compass that guides them successfully through the academic labyrinth.

Whether you’re just starting out or already deep into your research, the principles and strategies outlined here can help streamline your path to that coveted doctoral hood.

Dr Andrew Stapleton has a Masters and PhD in Chemistry from the UK and Australia. He has many years of research experience and has worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow and Associate at a number of Universities. Although having secured funding for his own research, he left academia to help others with his YouTube channel all about the inner workings of academia and how to make it work for you.

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In general, EPFL master thesis guidelines Apply.

Find here below the section guidelines

The start date is usually the first day of each academic semester. Handing-in date depends on the project duration and is calculated automatically on IS-A when registering.

The Master’s projects can start between January 1 and May 31 for the spring semester. The Master’s projects can start between June 1 and December 31 for the fall semester. The Master’s projects should in any case start on a Monday, and be submitted on the Friday at noon.

Students have to register the master project on IS-Academia, latest 2 weeks after the start of the semester, as any other course (academic calendar).

The master project lasts 17 weeks when it’s achieved at EPFL. The duration is 25 weeks if the project is achieved out of EPFL (industry or other university) : in either case, add one-week holiday (i.e. 18 or 26 weeks).

Extension requests made during the master project will not be considered.

Choosing a Master project in a laboratory

We recommend to look for your project at the end of the previous semester. Browse through the following pages

• lab webpages dedicated to projects
• Extraction list from the IS-A project porta l

These project lists are non-exhaustive and other projects can be found by contacting directly the labs of interest.

Reserve your project as early as possible. Meet with the professor in charge and define the objectives and work to be accomplished.

Watch OUT ! The project supervisor is a Professor or MER affiliated to the section ; exceptions have to be asked to Sebastian Gautsch

Master project in another university

A master project in another university , in Switzerland or abroad, lasts  25 weeks (+1 week holiday, i.e. 26 weeks).

The period is determined jointly with the EPFL professor and his or her counterpart at the host university. It is not possible to change it afterwards.

Setting up a master project in another University requires a close coordination between the host university and the Professor. Students can’t accept an offer from a University without involving the Professor in the definition of the objectives.

Project’s objectives

At the beginning of your project, the professor will give you a description of the objectives and the work to be accomplished:

• Template for a master project description

Master projects in industry (PDMe)

Students can choose to carry out a PDMe which includes the engineering internship and the PDM (25 weeks + 1 week holiday). Upon request and validation by the section, the duration can be reduced to 17 weeks (+1 week holiday) if an internship has been conducted in the same company.

Setting up a master project in industry requires a close coordination between the company and the Professor. Students can’t accept an offer from a company without involving the Professor in the definition of the objectives.

• Procedure for students (2nd half of page)
• General presentation and documents related to internships and master theses in industry

Contact person for internships and master theses in industry : Mrs Hind Klinke

Registration

Register the master project on IS-Academia as soon as the registrations open (with course registration module), set the project’s information.

Don’t forget to tick the confidential box on your IS-academia page. Your EPFL supervisor will be asked to confirm the data.

Hand-in procedure

You must send the electronic pdf version of your master thesis by email to Isabelle Schafer and the supervisor, on the hand-in day indicated in IS-Academia. Submission time is latest 12:00 (noon, Swiss local time) . Use web transfer if the file size is too large for email.

The master’s projects registered as “non-confidential” must be uploaded on IS-A on the submission day, before noon. Please upload only your final report in PDF format, with a maximum size of 20 MB.

If the file is too large, please compress it using Adobe or reduce its size by removing some images or other elements.

A paper version may be required by the professor: to be confirmed with him/her directly.

The project title can be corrected in the IS-A registration entry up to the day of submission. The title is mentioned on the student’s diploma supplement.

Evaluation method

The examination of the master project consists of an evaluation of the final report, followed by an oral exam with the the professor in charge and an external expert designated by the professor. The examination expert is chosen by the teacher responsible for the Master project from amongst experienced EPFL staff member or persons external to EPFL, and by virtue of their competence in the subject to be examined . The teacher responsible for the Master project cannot choose a staff member from their unit or a phd student.

• Detailed Semester/Master thesis report template
• Example of a master thesis

An oral presentations of the work progress at mid-semester is strongly recommended. A final presentation at the end of the project is mandatory. The oral exam generally takes place within two to four weeks after the date of submission. The date of the oral exam is mutually agreed between the student, the teacher in charge and the external expert

• Recommendations for intermediate and final presentations
• Template for intermediate and final presentations

In order for the student to receive his/her diploma during the Magistrale of the current year (beginning of October), the Registrar’s Office must have received the grade before the end of September.

• Procedure for entering grades in IS-A

The section also recommends to complete the following form (which is a supplement to the evaluation) and to send the PDF to the Section for the student’s file.

• Project evaluation sheet (template)

Microengineering section has several Prizes that are attributed each year to exceptional master theses. The professor decides to recommends the student to apply for one of these prizes at the end of the oral defense. It is up to the student to follow the described application procedure.

Amélioration de la fiabilité des évaluations environnementales des bâtiments

This PhD thesis focuses on improving reliability of the LCA of buildings by a better control of the origin and magnitude of uncertainties. It contributes to: - The development of a methodology for assessing uncertainty in LCA of buildings; - The construction and enrichment of a database capitalizing uncertainties at material and product scales, which would be useful in the assessment of building impacts’ uncertainties; - The development of a contribution and sensitivity analysis methodology, which identifies the key parameters influencing the robustness of results. - The development of a methodology for robust comparisons among projects based on contribution and sensitivity analysis. - The identification of optimal environmental dimensions of building structures. This study has also identified the evolution of environmental impacts based on the parameters of structural design. For optimum dimensions the environmental impacts of two reinforced concrete structures were performed. The methodologies used in this research are suitable for the developers of LCA software to enhance the functionality of making comparisons among projects (this work can be implemented in the ELODIE software). The results can be used by architects, civil engineers, thermal engineers, statisticians, environment and life cycle engineers, allowing them to identify the most important contributors to the environmental impacts of buildings and their uncertainties.

Université Paris Est

Life cycle assessment...

Uncertainty

Variability

Sensitivity analysis

Contribution analysis...

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EPFL is one of the two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology and is located in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Internship and Master Thesis

Good evening,

I am a First Year Master student of Computer Science at EPFL. I know I have plenty of time to figure things out, but I was wondering if you could give me an opinion regarding whether merging the 6-month internship with the Master Thesis would be a good idea to save time or not. I know that for those who would like to pursue a PhD. this is not advisable since a research Thesis would be better appreciated, but in my case I am not looking to pursue a PhD.

Do you guys have any experience in this regard or tips / key takeaways on this topic?

Thanks for your time.

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PhD on Bioclimatic Design of Sustainable Campuses

J. Kaempf, S. Coccolo, JL Scartezzini © 2017 A. Walch EPFL

As major consumers of energy, cities are both agents and victims of CO 2 induced climate change. In her newly published PhD thesis, Silvia Coccolo investigates how bioclimatic urban planning can simultaneously reduce energy consumption and create a comfortable outdoor environment in the context of rising temperatures.

Using advanced optimisation methods, the author studied the energy demand and outdoor human comfort of urban areas located in a temperate and in a hot and arid climate: the campuses of the EPFL in Lausanne and of the Swiss International Scientific School (SISS) in Dubai.

In order to quantify outdoor environmental conditions in correlation with energy performance, a new module was developed for the software CitySim, integrating, among other, human biometeorological factors and urban greening.

Based on results for present and future climate scenarios, a set of architectural bioclimatic design recommendations invites architects to transform climatic adversities into design opportunities.

Furthermore, thanks to interdisciplinary collaboration, the SISS campus is the first building in UAE to be certified by the Minergie standard for Tropical Climates, previously developed in a joint project by EPFL Middle East, Dr. Kriesi of Kriesi Energie GmbH and the LESO-PB team.

Silvia Coccolo's PhD thesis was supervised by Prof. Jean-Louis Scartezzini of the EPFL Solar Energy and Building Physics Lab and Prof. Jérôme Kaempf of Haute école d'ingénierie et d'architecture de Fribourg.

S. Coccolo, J.-L. Scartezzini and J. H. Kämpf (Dirs.). Bioclimatic Design of Sustainable Campuses using Advanced Optimisation Methods. Thèse EPFL, n° 7756 (2017)

• All LESO-PB - Solar Energy and Building Physics Laboratory news
• All Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering | ENAC news

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PhD positions: Call for applications in 2024

The Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Göttingen conducts fundamental research in the field of solar system physics. With its approximately 300 staff members, it is one of the leading institutes in the field of solar physics and planetary research. In particular, the institute is involved in numerous international space missions. The International Max Planck Research School for Solar System Science at the University of Göttingen and TU Braunschweig ("Solar System School") offers a research-oriented doctoral programme in Solar system science. In the context of this IMPRS, the MPS offers PhD projects in three main areas:  ''Sun and Heliosphere'', ''Solar and Stellar Interiors'', and ''Planetary Science''. Solar System School students collaborate with leading scientists in these fields and graduates are awarded a doctoral degree from the University of Göttingen or the TU Braunschweig.  

This call is closed. Please see the time line for information about the ongoing selection process.

The MPS invites applications for PhD Positions in Solar System Science

The Solar System School is open to students from all countries and offers an international three-year PhD program in an exceptional research environment with state-of-the-art facilities on the Göttingen Campus. Successful applicants will be offered a 3,5-year doctoral support contract with remuneration dependent on TVöD (75% E13) according to the German public salary scale, as well as postdoc wrap-up funding.

The language of the structured graduate program is English, with complimentary German language courses offered (optional). The program includes an inspiring curriculum of scientific lectures and seminars as well as advanced training workshops and provides relocation costs and travel funds to attend international conferences.

Applicants to the Solar System School should have a keen interest in Solar system science and a record of academic excellence. They must have, or must be about to obtain, an M.Sc. degree or equivalent in physics, chemistry, geosciences or a related field, including a written Masters thesis, and must document a good command of the English language.

Review of applications will begin on 1 October 2024

Review of applications for a starting date of October 2025 will begin on 1 October 2024 , but other starting times are also negotiable. The positions are awarded on a competitive basis.

How to apply

Applicants must submit the following documents through the online application portal between 1 August and 1 October 2024:

• an application form to be filled online, including two short texts describing the applicant's scientific interests and their motivation to apply for PhD projects in the Solar System School , along with the applicant's choice of up to three PhD projects;
• a curriculum vitae in pdf format;
• degree certificates and full transcripts of all academic records: i.e. scanned copies of B.Sc. and M.Sc. degree certificates (or equivalent), and lists of all courses with credits and grades issued by the respective school or university, with English or German translations;
• certificate to prove proficiency in the English language, for candidates whose most recent academic education has not been in English or German for at least two years (e.g. transcript of TOEFL / IELTS scores or equivalent);
• contact details for two or three academic referees who have been contacted by the applicant and who have agreed to write a letter of recommendation on behalf of the applicant. The referees will subsequently be contacted by the School and will be asked to submit their letters through the online portal no later than 10 October 2024 .

It is highly recommended to also submit

• GRE Physics or GRE Chemistry test scores or equivalent for candidates who have obtained their Master's degree at a university outside of the European ECTS area.

The Max Planck Society strives for gender equality and diversity. The Max Planck Society seeks to increase the number of individuals of underrepresented genders and therefore explicitly encourages individuals of underrepresented genders to apply.

The Max Planck Society is committed to employing more individuals with severe disabilities. Applications from individuals with severe disabilities are explicitely encouraged.  

To apply, please register then login at the Online application portal . For further information, please browse the answers to Frequently Asked Questions and direct any further inquiries to the IMPRS scientific coordinator, Dr. Sonja Schuh, at [email protected] .

The career and family audit

This page: Call for applications 2024 for several PhD positions in solar system science © MPS

Choose your project interests and apply via the online application portal:

Solar system science phd thesis projects offered, imprs phd online application portal, admission tests - please see faq pages, curriculum - structured phd study program, imprs partner institutions on göttingen campus, funding of doctoral candidates in imprs, download call for applications and poster.

• Call for PhD applications 2024 669.25 kB
• Solar System School Poster 2024 5.11 MB

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