Access profile

In relation to scientific and technological areas associated with geotechnical engineering, the admission requirements for students can be summed up in three words:
1) knowledge,
2) ability and
3) motivation.

That is:
1) Students should have sufficient educational experience to access the frontier of knowledge in one of the programme’s subject areas.
2) They should be academically mature and have sufficient ability to go further so that they can make a new, original contribution to the state of knowledge or technology in the area of the doctoral thesis. Consequently, they should be able to research, develop and create. They must have the ability to analyse and synthesise, a critical spirit, the capacity to work, and the ability and skills required for team work and oral and written communication. A command of the English language is also essential. It is important to have a good source of funding.
3) Students should be really motivated and ready for a long-term project, they must be ambitious but realistic, with personal maturity and emotional intelligence and a plan for the future that enables them to benefit from the effort and cost that doctoral studies represent.
To date, most of the students on our doctoral programme have had these characteristics. Many of them are now lecturers or researchers in universities, service institutions and research centres in Spain, Latin America and the rest of the world.

The natural route into the doctoral programme is via the master’s degree in Geotechnical Engineering at the UPC. If students have completed this degree, they do not need to take additional master’s degree subjects (bridging courses).

Students who come from other master’s degrees must show that they have basic knowledge of fundamental subjects in the area of geotechnical engineering. If students do not have this knowledge, they must take bridging courses in subjects of the master’s degree in Geotechnical Engineering at the UPC. The academic committee of the doctoral programme will decide which additional subjects each student must take, depending on what they have studied in their master’s degree.

Main entrance qualifications:
Engineers or university graduates, preferably in the areas of civil engineering, geological engineering and architecture. In addition, candidates must have a master’s degree in the area of civil engineering, earth sciences or other related areas. Other curricula and educational backgrounds will be assessed by the programme’s academic committee.

Output profile

Doctoral candidates who complete a doctoral degree will have acquired the following competencies, which are needed to carry out quality research (Royal Decree 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies):

a) A systematic understanding of the field of study and a mastery of the research skills and methods related to the field.
b) An ability to conceive, design or create, put into practice and adopt a substantial process of research or creation.
c) An ability to contribute to pushing back the frontiers of knowledge through original research.
d) A capacity for critical analysis and an ability to assess and summarise new and complex ideas.
e) An ability to communicate with the academic and scientific community and with society in general as regards their fields of knowledge in the manner and languages that are typical of the international scientific community to which they belong.
f) An ability to foster scientific, technological, social, artistic and cultural progress in academic and professional contexts within a knowledge-based society.

The award of a doctoral degree must equip the graduate for work in a variety of settings, especially those requiring creativity and innovation. Doctoral graduates must have at least acquired the personal skills needed to:

a) Develop in contexts in which there is little specific information.
b) Find the key questions that must be answered to solve a complex problem.
c) Design, create, develop and undertake original, innovative projects in their field.
d) Work as part of a team and independently in an international or multidisciplinary context.
e) Integrate knowledge, deal with complexity and make judgements with limited information.
f) Offer criticism on and intellectually defend solutions.

Finally, with respect to competencies, doctoral students must:
a) have acquired advanced knowledge at the frontier of their discipline and demonstrated, in the context of internationally recognised scientific research, a deep, detailed and well-grounded understanding of theoretical and practical issues and scientific methodology in one or more research fields;
b) have made an original and significant contribution to scientific research in their field of expertise that has been recognised as such by the international scientific community;
c) have demonstrated that they are capable of designing a research project that serves as a framework for carrying out a critical analysis and assessment of imprecise situations, in which they are able to apply their contributions, expertise and working method to synthesise new and complex ideas that yield a deeper knowledge of the research context in which they work;
d) have developed sufficient autonomy to set up, manage and lead innovative research teams and projects and scientific collaborations (both national and international) within their subject area, in multidisciplinary contexts and, where appropriate, with a substantial element of knowledge transfer;
e) have demonstrated that they are able to carry out their research activity in a socially responsible manner and with scientific integrity;
f) have demonstrated, within their specific scientific context, that they are able to make cultural, social or technological advances and promote innovation in all areas within a knowledge-based society;
g) have demonstrated that they are able to participate in scientific discussions at the international level in their field of expertise and disseminate the results of their research activity to audiences of all kinds.

Number of places

15

Duration of studies and dedication regime

Duration
The maximum period of study for full-time doctoral studies is four years, counted from the date of first enrolment in the relevant programme until the date on which the doctoral thesis is deposited. The academic committee of the doctoral programme may authorise a doctoral candidate to pursue doctoral studies on a part-time basis. In this case, the maximum period of study is seven years from the date of first enrolment in the programme until the date on which the doctoral thesis is deposited. To calculate these periods, the date of deposit is considered to be the date on which the thesis is made publicly available for review.

If a doctoral candidate has a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33%, the maximum period of study is six years for full-time students and nine years for part-time students.

For full-time doctoral candidates, the minimum period of study is two years, counted from the date of an applicant's admission to the programme until the date on which the doctoral thesis is deposited; for part-time doctoral candidates it is four years.

When there are justified grounds for doing so, and the thesis supervisor and academic tutor have given their authorisation, doctoral candidates may request that the academic committee of their doctoral programme exempt them from the requirement to complete this minimum period of study.

Temporary disability leave and leave for the birth of a child, adoption or fostering for the purposes of adoption, temporary foster care, risk during pregnancy or infant feeding, gender violence and any other situation provided for in current regulations do not count towards these periods. Students who find themselves in any of these circumstances must notify the academic committee of the doctoral programme, which must inform the Doctoral School.

Doctoral candidates may request periods of temporary withdrawal from the programme for up to a total of two years. Requests must be justified and addressed to the academic committee responsible for the programme, which will decide whether or not to grant the candidate's request.

Extension of studies
If a doctoral candidate has not applied to deposit their thesis before the expiry of the deadlines specified in the previous section, the academic committee of the doctoral programme may, at the request of the doctoral candidate, authorise an extension of this deadline of one year under the conditions specified for the doctoral programme in question.

Dismissal from the doctoral programme
A doctoral candidate may be dismissed from a doctoral programme for the following reasons:

• The doctoral candidate submitting a justified application to withdraw from the programme.
• The doctoral candidate not having completed their annual enrolment or applied for a temporary interruption.
• The doctoral candidate not having formalised annual enrolment on the day after the end of the authorisation to temporarily interrupt or withdraw from the programme.
• The doctoral candidate receiving a negative reassessment after the deadline set by the academic committee of the doctoral programme to remedy the deficiencies that led to a previous negative assessment.
• The doctoral candidate having been the subject of disciplinary proceedings leading to their suspension or permanent exclusion from the UPC.
• A refusal to authorise the extensions applied for, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.3 of these regulations.
• The doctoral candidate not having submitted the research plan in the period established in Section 8.2 of these regulations.
• The maximum period of study for the doctoral degree having ended, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.4 of these regulations.

Dismissal from the programme means that the doctoral candidate cannot continue studying at the UPC and that their academic record will be closed. This notwithstanding, they may apply to the academic committee of the programme for readmission, and the committee must reevaluate the candidate in accordance with the criteria established in the regulations.

A doctoral candidate who has been dismissed due to having exceeded the time limit for completing doctoral studies or due to an unsatisfactory assessment may not be Academic Regulations for Doctoral Studies Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Page 17 of 33 admitted to the same doctoral programme until at least two years have elapsed from the date of dismissal, as provided for in sections 3.4 and 9.2 of these regulations.

Legal framework

• Royal Decree 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies (consolidated version)
• Academic regulations for doctoral studies (CG/2023/09/08)

Organization

• Olivella Pastalle, Sebastià

• Gili Ripoll, Jose Antonio
• Olivella Pastalle, Sebastià
• Pinyol Puigmarti, Nuria Merce
• Sanchez Vila, Xavier

• Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (PROMOTORA)

Building C2 (North Campus)
Tel.: (+34) 934 011 784
E-mail: doctorat.ET.camins@upc.edu

Access profile

In relation to scientific and technological areas associated with geotechnical engineering, the admission requirements for students can be summed up in three words:
1) knowledge,
2) ability and
3) motivation.

That is:
1) Students should have sufficient educational experience to access the frontier of knowledge in one of the programme’s subject areas.
2) They should be academically mature and have sufficient ability to go further so that they can make a new, original contribution to the state of knowledge or technology in the area of the doctoral thesis. Consequently, they should be able to research, develop and create. They must have the ability to analyse and synthesise, a critical spirit, the capacity to work, and the ability and skills required for team work and oral and written communication. A command of the English language is also essential. It is important to have a good source of funding.
3) Students should be really motivated and ready for a long-term project, they must be ambitious but realistic, with personal maturity and emotional intelligence and a plan for the future that enables them to benefit from the effort and cost that doctoral studies represent.
To date, most of the students on our doctoral programme have had these characteristics. Many of them are now lecturers or researchers in universities, service institutions and research centres in Spain, Latin America and the rest of the world.

The natural route into the doctoral programme is via the master’s degree in Geotechnical Engineering at the UPC. If students have completed this degree, they do not need to take additional master’s degree subjects (bridging courses).

Students who come from other master’s degrees must show that they have basic knowledge of fundamental subjects in the area of geotechnical engineering. If students do not have this knowledge, they must take bridging courses in subjects of the master’s degree in Geotechnical Engineering at the UPC. The academic committee of the doctoral programme will decide which additional subjects each student must take, depending on what they have studied in their master’s degree.

Main entrance qualifications:
Engineers or university graduates, preferably in the areas of civil engineering, geological engineering and architecture. In addition, candidates must have a master’s degree in the area of civil engineering, earth sciences or other related areas. Other curricula and educational backgrounds will be assessed by the programme’s academic committee.

Access requirements

As a rule, applicants must hold a Spanish bachelor's degree or equivalent and a Spanish master's degree or equivalent, provided they have completed a minimum of 300 ECTS credits on the two degrees (Royal Decree 43/2015, of 2 February).

Applicants who meet one or more of the following conditions are also eligible for admission:

a) Holders of official Spanish degrees or equivalent Spanish qualifications, provided they have passed 300 ECTS credits in total and they can prove they have reached Level 3 in the Spanish Qualifications Framework for Higher Education.
b) Holders of degrees awarded in foreign education systems in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), which do not require homologation, who can prove that they have reached Level 7 in the European Qualifications Framework, provided the degree makes the holder eligible for admission to doctoral studies in the country in which it was awarded.
c) Holders of degrees awarded in a country that does not belong to the EHEA, which do not require homologation, on the condition that the University is able to verify that the degree is of a level equivalent to that of official university master's degrees in Spain and that it makes the holder eligible for admission to doctoral studies in the country in which it was awarded.
d) Holders of another doctoral degree.
e) Holders of an official university qualification who, having been awarded a post as a trainee in the entrance examination for specialised medical training, have successfully completed at least two years of training leading to an official degree in a health sciences specialisation.

Note 1: Regulations for access to doctoral studies for individuals with degrees in bachelor's, engineering, or architecture under the system prior to the implementation of the EHEA (CG 47/02 2014).

Note 2: Agreement number 64/2014 of the Governing Council approving the procedure and criteria for assessing the academic requirements for admission to doctoral studies with non-homologated foreign degrees (CG 25/03 2014).

Legal framework

• Royal Decree 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies (consolidated version)
• Academic regulations for doctoral studies (CG/2023/09/08)

Admission criteria and merits assessment

The suitability of an applicant’s background will be assessed according to the following criteria:

a) Whether a student’s academic background (subjects taken) is in line with the disciplines in the programme.

The suitability of a student’s background will be assessed in the following terms:
a1) Suitable academic background.
a2) Suitable academic background with bridging courses.
a3) Unsuitable background.
An evaluation of a1 indicates that the student can enter the programme with no need for bridging courses, and a2 means that the student can enter if they take bridging courses. An evaluation of a3 indicates that the student has not been accepted.

Sections b1, b2 and b3 are evaluated on a scale of 1 to 10. To enter the programme, students must have a score that is no less than 6 for any section and an overall score above 7. The overall score will be calculated as a weighted average, in which sections b1 and b2 are worth 35% and section b3 is worth 30%. This overall score can also be used to prioritise applications if there are more applicants than available places.

Training complements

The natural route into the doctoral programme is via the master’s degree in Geotechnical and Earthquake Engineering at the UPC. Students who enter through this route do not need to take bridging courses.

Students who enter the programme through other master’s degrees must take bridging courses (a maximum of 60 ECTS) in subjects from the master’s degree in Geotechnical and Earthquake Engineering at the UPC. The academic committee of the doctoral programme will decide which additional subjects each student must take, depending on what they have studied in their master’s degree and the research line they will explore in their thesis. Below is a list of subjects from the master’s degree that is associated with the doctoral programme, by line of research.

For students who will focus on research lines in the area of soil and rock mechanics and nanotechnology of engineering materials, the bridging courses will be selected from the following list of subjects of the master's degree in Geotechnical and Earthquake Engineering at the UPC (or similar):
• Rock Mechanics
• Underground Excavations
• Water and Heat Flow in Deformable Porous Media
• Unsaturated Soil Mechanics
• Numerical Models in Geotechnical Engineering
• Modern Monitoring Techniques for Ground Movements
• Soil Behaviour and Advanced Modelling
• Constitutive Equations of Materials
• Modelling of Flow and Transport in Porous Media
• Geographic Information Systems
• Geomechanical and Geotechnical Engineering
• Geotechnical Design and Construction
• Geomechanics of Breakage
• Quaternary Geology
• Slope Stability

For students who will focus on research lines in the area of groundwater hydrology, bridging courses will be selected from the following list of subjects of the master’s degree in Geotechnical and Earthquake Engineering at the UPC (or similar):
• Water resources and Infrastructure
• Soil Mechanics
• Water and Heat Flow in Deformable Porous Media
• Environmental Isotope Techniques in Groundwater Hydrology
• Aquifers Balance and Recharge
• Reactive Transport
• Statistical Methods in Groundwater Hydrology
• Hydrogeochemical Modelling
• Groundwater and Environment
• Geographic Information Systems
• Modelling and Upscaling of Solute Transport in the Subsoil
• Aquifer Mechanics
• Hydrogeology and Public Works
• Variable Density, Multiphase Flow
• Quaternary Geology

Taking subjects from the master’s degree in Geotechnical and Earthquake Engineering associated with the programme, each of which has specific objectives, methodologies and assessment processes, will prepare students to gain competencies. The link to the programme is: https://camins.upc.edu/ca/estudis/master/met

Enrolment period for new doctoral students

Dates to be set every academic year, between September and October. Extraordinary period in February.

More information at the registration section for new doctoral students

Enrolment period

Dates to be set every academic year, between September and October.

More information at the general registration section

Procedure for the preparation and defense of the research plan

Doctoral candidates must submit a research plan, which will be included in their doctoral student activity report, before the end of the first year. The plan may be improved over the course of the doctoral degree. It must be endorsed by the tutor and the supervisor, and it must include the method that is to be followed and the aims of the research.

At least one of these annual assessments will include a public presentation and defence of the research plan and work done before a committee composed of three doctoral degree holders, which will be conducted in the manner determined by each academic committee. The examination committee awards a Pass or Fail mark. A Pass mark is a prerequisite for continuing on the doctoral programme. Doctoral candidates awarded a Fail mark must submit a new research plan for assessment by the academic committee of the doctoral programme within six months.

The committee assesses the research plan every year, in addition to all of the other activities in the doctoral student activity report. Doctoral candidates who are awarded two consecutive Fail marks for the research plan will be obliged to definitely withdraw from the programme.

If they change the subject of their thesis, they must submit a new research plan.

Formation activities

Activity: Tutorial (compulsory).
- 288 hours.

Activity: Courses and seminars.
- 60 hours.

Activity: Workshops.
- 30 hours.

Activity: Publications.
- 30 hours.

Activity: Mobility.
- 480 hours.

Activity: Training in information skills.
- 1.5 hours.

Activity: Research methodology.
- 12 hours.

Activity: Innovation and creativity.
- 8 hours.

Activity: Language and communication skills.
- 18 hours.

Activity: Assessment based on doctoral student activity report (DAD) and research plan.
- 4 hours.

Procedure for assignment of tutor and thesis director

The academic committee of the doctoral programme assigns a thesis supervisor to each doctoral candidate when they are admitted or enrol for the first time, taking account of the thesis supervision commitment referred to in the admission decision.

The thesis supervisor will ensure that training activities carried out by the doctoral candidate are coherent and suitable, and that the topic of the candidate’s doctoral thesis will have an impact and make a novel contribution to knowledge in the relevant field. The thesis supervisor will also guide the doctoral candidate in planning the thesis and, if necessary, tailoring it to any other projects or activities undertaken. The thesis supervisor will generally be a UPC professor or researcher who holds a doctoral degree and has documented research experience. This includes PhD-holding staff at associated schools (as determined by the Governing Council) and UPC-affiliated research institutes (in accordance with corresponding collaboration and affiliation agreements). When thesis supervisors are UPC staff members, they also act as the doctoral candidate’s tutor.

PhD holders who do not meet these criteria (as a result of their contractual relationship or the nature of the institution to which they are attached) must be approved by the UPC Doctoral School's Standing Committee in order to participate in a doctoral programme as researchers with documented research experience.

The academic committee of the doctoral programme may approve the appointment of a PhD-holding expert who is not a UPC staff member as a candidate’s thesis supervisor. In such cases, the prior authorisation of the UPC Doctoral School's Standing Committee is required. A UPC staff member who holds a doctoral degree and has documented research experience must also be proposed to act as a co-supervisor, or as the doctoral candidate’s tutor if one has not been assigned.

A thesis supervisor may step down from this role if there are justified reasons (recognised as valid by the committee) for doing so. If this occurs, the academic committee of the doctoral programme will assign the doctoral candidate a new thesis supervisor.

Provided there are justified reasons for doing so, and after hearing any relevant input from the doctoral candidate, the academic committee of the doctoral programme may assign a new thesis supervisor at any time during the period of doctoral study.

If there are academic reasons for doing so (an interdisciplinary topic, joint or international programmes, etc.) and the academic committee of the programme gives its approval, an additional thesis supervisor may be assigned. Supervisors and co-supervisors have the same responsibilities and academic recognition.

The maximum number of supervisors of a doctoral thesis is two: a supervisor and a co-supervisor.

For theses carried out under a cotutelle agreement or as part of an Industrial Doctorate, if necessary and if the agreement foresees it this maximum number of supervisors may not apply. This notwithstanding, the maximum number of supervisors belonging to the UPC is two.

More information at the PhD theses section

Permanence

The maximum period of study for full-time doctoral studies is four years, counted from the date of first enrolment in the relevant programme until the date on which the doctoral thesis is deposited. The academic committee of the doctoral programme may authorise a doctoral candidate to pursue doctoral studies on a part-time basis. In this case, the maximum period of study is seven years from the date of first enrolment in the programme until the date on which the doctoral thesis is deposited. To calculate these periods, the date of deposit is considered to be the date on which the thesis is made publicly available for review.

If a doctoral candidate has a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33%, the maximum period of study is six years for full-time students and nine years for part-time students.

If a doctoral candidate has not applied to deposit their thesis before the expiry of the deadlines specified in the previous section, the academic committee of the doctoral programme may, at the request of the doctoral candidate, authorise an extension of this deadline of one year under the conditions specified for the doctoral programme in question.

Dismissal from the doctoral programme
A doctoral candidate may be dismissed from a doctoral programme for the following reasons:

• The doctoral candidate submitting a justified application to withdraw from the programme.
• The doctoral candidate not having completed their annual enrolment or applied for a temporary interruption.
• The doctoral candidate not having formalised annual enrolment on the day after the end of the authorisation to temporarily interrupt or withdraw from the programme.
• The doctoral candidate receiving a negative reassessment after the deadline set by the academic committee of the doctoral programme to remedy the deficiencies that led to a previous negative assessment.
• The doctoral candidate having been the subject of disciplinary proceedings leading to their suspension or permanent exclusion from the UPC.
• A refusal to authorise the extensions applied for, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.3 of these regulations.
• The doctoral candidate not having submitted the research plan in the period established in Section 8.2 of these regulations.
• The maximum period of study for the doctoral degree having ended, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3.4 of these regulations.

Dismissal from the programme means that the doctoral candidate cannot continue studying at the UPC and that their academic record will be closed. This notwithstanding, they may apply to the academic committee of the programme for readmission, and the committee must reevaluate the candidate in accordance with the criteria established in the regulations.

A doctoral candidate who has been dismissed due to having exceeded the time limit for completing doctoral studies or due to an unsatisfactory assessment may not be Academic Regulations for Doctoral Studies Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Page 17 of 33 admitted to the same doctoral programme until at least two years have elapsed from the date of dismissal, as provided for in sections 3.4 and 9.2 of these regulations.

Legal framework

• Royal Decree 99/2011, of 28 January, which regulates official doctoral studies (consolidated version)
• Academic regulations for doctoral studies (CG/2023/09/08)

List of authorized thesis for defense

Last update: 08/03/2025 05:45:04.

List of lodged theses

Last update: 08/03/2025 05:30:16.

List of defended theses by year

Select a year: 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025

Last update: 08/03/2025 06:00:09.

Research groups

UPC groups:

• GHS-Hydrogeology Group
• MECMAT-Mechanics and Nanotechnology of Engineering Materials
• MSR-Soil and Rock Mechanics

Teachers

Doctoral Programme teachers

• Alonso Perez de Agreda, Eduardo
• Arroyo Alvarez de Toledo, Marcos
• Buill Pozuelo, Felipe
• Carol Vilarasau, Ignacio
• Corominas Dulcet, Jordi
• Fernandez Garcia, Daniel
• Folch Sancho, Albert
• Gens Sole, Antonio
• Gili Ripoll, Jose Antonio
• Hurlimann Ziegler, Marcel
• Josa Garcia-Tornel, Alejandro
• Lantada Zarzosa, Nieves
• Ledesma Villalba, Alberto
• Lloret Morancho, Antonio
• Lopez Garello, Carlos Maria
• Moya Sanchez, Jose
• Nuñez Andres, M. Amparo
• Olivella Pastalle, Sebastià
• Pinyol Puigmarti, Nuria Merce
• Prat Catalan, Pere
• Puig Polo, Càrol
• Romero Morales, Enrique
• Saaltink, Maarten W.
• Sanchez Vila, Xavier
• Sempere Torres, Daniel
• Vaunat, Jean