Regulation

(Government Gazette Β 4996 of August 9, 2023; with amendments and additions)
 

The PhD program is organized in accordance with this regulation, the provisions of the Greek Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports Law 4957/2022 and subsequent amendments and decisions.

Article 1
General provisions
SPEM offers a doctoral program which includes coursework and research towards a doctoral dissertation. There are no tuition fees.

Article 2
Purpose
The objectives of the program are:
a) Creation of new knowledge and development of high-level innovative methods through education of students and participation in original basic and applied research in a production engineering and management-related field of their choice.
b) Training scientists to be capable of contributing to the advancement of science and technology and undertaking leadership tasks in their professional or academic career.

Article 3
Awarded title
The program awards the title "Doctor of Philosophy (Dr.) of the Technical University of Crete."

Article 4
Administration bodies
Apart from TUC Senate and the school Dean, decisions regarding the administration and operation of the program are taken by the SPEM assembly (hereinafter "Assembly") in accordance with the current legislation. The Assembly is also competent to draw up and submit to the Senate proposals for drafting, amending or revising the regulation of doctoral studies.
For the orderly operation and monitoring of the program, the Assembly may appoint a doctoral program coordinating committee (CC), an advisory body composed of the doctoral program director and four other school faculty members.

Article 5
Admission to the program
1. Applicants must have a master's or integrated master's degree from a national or overseas higher education institution with a grade point average at least 8/10 (B–). If the latter criterion is not met, the Assembly decides on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the applicant's research work and academic qualifications.
2. Applications are accepted throughout the year and include:
a) Online application with information about the applicant, the dissertation committee, the supervisor, the language for writing the doctoral dissertation, and the proposed courses of the program to attend. Doctoral students must successfully complete at least four (4) courses corresponding to thirty (30) ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) credits during the first two years of the doctoral studies, in accordance with par 1 and 4 of article 7 hereof.
b) Copies of documents with degrees and transcripts from all institutions graduated. If a required degree has been obtained from an overseas higher education institution, both the institution and the degree must have been included in the respective Registries of the Hellenic National Academic Recognition and Information Center (Hellenic NARIC). In accordance with the current legislation, special procedures are followed if: (i) the overseas institution or the degree is not included in Hellenic NARIC’s Registries, or (ii) the degree is obtained from a foreign institution that has agreement with a private entity in Greece.
c) Copies of papers published in scientific journals and conferences or other information publicly available relevant to the applicant's research work.
d) Detailed curriculum vitae.
e) A PhD research plan, approved by the supervisor, in which the scientific field, research objectives, proposed methodology, expected results and contributions, bibliography and a general schedule are described.
f) Knowledge of the English language, proved from relevant certificates (level B2) or, according to the judgment of the Assembly, from studies at Universities with English as the official language.
g) Two letters of recommendation sent electronically to the School Secretariat.
h) Photocopy of ID or passport.
i) Photograph.
3. The application is evaluated by the Assembly following a proposal by CC or the program director and the opinion of the proposed supervisor. If the application is approved, the Assembly designates the language of writing of the dissertation and the courses to be completed by the student.
4. Applications for changes in the title or the content of the dissertation are accepted with the consent of dissertation advisory committee. If the Assembly deems that the requested revisions constitute a substantial modification of the original dissertation, it considers this to be a new application for admission to the doctoral program.
5. The courses to be completed by the student are designated in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 4 of article 7 hereof.

Article 6
Dissertation advisory committee and supervisor
The dissertation advisory committee (AC) supports and monitors the progress of the student. It consists of the supervisor, who must be a SPEM faculty, retired faculty or affiliated faculty member, and two more members who may be faculty members, professors emeriti, and researchers of Greek or international universities and research institutions. At most one member of AC can be a retired faculty member of a Greek university. All the members of AC must have scientific subjects relevant to the dissertation.
In the event of moving to another school or university or retirement, the supervisor or member of AC may continue to serve the committee and the doctoral program, and the doctorate is awarded by TUC.
Replacement of the supervisor or an AC member who cannot fulfill the delegated duties is approved by the Assembly, following an application by the student or the supervisor/AC member. The replacing supervisor is preferably one of the other AC members. The replacing member must satisfy the provisions of the first paragraph of this Article.
Any problems that result in impossibility of cooperation of the student and the AC are referred for resolution initially to the CC or the person appointed for handling complaints or grievances and, if no resolution is reached, to the Assembly and the competent TUC bodies.
The number of doctoral students supervised by a faculty member should be compatible with the supervisor workload and the available infrastructure of SPEM.

Article 7
Curriculum
1. Program structure:
a) The program includes coursework to provide students with the scientific background required for their research.
b) By decision of the School's Assembly, the course lectures may be delivered using distance learning methods, as long as the participation of doctoral students by physical presence is not required, in accordance with the course syllabuses and the current legislation.
c) The student is required to successfully attend a minimum of four (4) courses with 30 ECTS credits. At least three (3) courses must belong to the SPEM doctoral program; the remaining ECTS credits can, upon approval by the Assembly, be completed with courses from other doctoral or master's programs offered at TUC, as long as free attendance is provided for them. The courses assigned must not have already been attended by the student during previous studies. To complete the required ECTS credits, the Assembly may also approve the completion of additional educational or research activities.
d) Attendance to SPEM courses other than the doctoral program, is provided in excess of the number of students and free of charge.
e) The Assembly may, on a case-by-case basis, assign additional courses from the undergraduate program, if their attendance is deemed necessary for the student to acquire the scientific background required for his research.
f) A course of the doctoral program has a minimum passing grade of six (6). For every other course, the passing grade is defined by the regulations of the study program to which the course belongs.
g) The student must successfully complete all courses undertaken within the first two (2) years of study; failure to fulfill this requirement leads to dismissal from the program.
2. Student registration, course enrollment and course attendance:
a) The registration of new students is done upon approval of their application.
b) One week before the beginning of each semester the student must electronically register in all course to be attended in that semester.
c) During that week students may change their registration statements (i.e., cancel a registration or enroll in a new course).
d) The course instructors are responsible for specifying the course requirements, lecturing and evaluating students.
3. The teaching workload is assigned to instructors by decision of the Assembly following a proposal of the CC. Primary course instructors must hold a PhD degree and belong to the categories of lecturers provided by the existing Greek legislation for graduate studies.
4. Indicative list of courses offered
The courses offered per semester are presented below. Each course has seven and a half (7.5) ECTS credits.

Fall Semester
Advanced topics in computational mechanics
Business intelligence and data analytics
Financial management
Man-machine dynamic systems
Manufacturing modeling and simulation by CAD/CAE systems
Matrix analysis and computations
Multicriteria analysis and financial decisions
Optimal control with computational applications
Quantitative methods in marketing
Queueing systems
Rational energy management of production systems
Robotic systems and mechanisms
Service quality and customer satisfaction
Special forecasting topics: innovative economies and societies
Special topics in non-linear programming
Systems development and product design using intelligent optimization methods
Web-based data for sustainability and entrepreneurship

Spring Semester
Advanced design and operation control of energy systems
Advanced numerical analysis
Energy and environmental applications of catalysis
Entrepreneurship and business evolution
Fuzzy systems and control
Metaheuristic and evolutionary algorithms for supply chain management problems
Multicriteria decision systems
Numerical methods for fluid mechanics and heat transfer
Numerical methods for partial differential equations
Optimal design of materials and structures
Philosophical research on technological and social development
Problem solving methods in management
Production planning and scheduling
Special topics in information and decision systems
Sustainable management of energy systems

The Assembly may modify the courses, their content, and ECTS credits or the semester in which they are offered.

Article 8
Length of doctoral study
1. The doctoral degree cannot be awarded earlier than three (3) full calendar years from the date of designation of the AC. The maximum length of doctoral study is six (6) calendar years.
2. Before the expiry of the maximum length of study, a student may request, by means of an adequately justified written request, an extension of completion of the doctoral dissertation of at most one (1) calendar year.
3. Under exceptional circumstances (health issues, or working conditions, military service, etc.) suspension of studies may be approved. During the suspension period, the student does not enjoy the rights and benefits provided for doctoral studies. Suspension of studies may be granted during the first year of preparation of dissertation only for serious health issues and is not granted after the maximum duration of studies (6 years).
4. The total time from the date of designation of the AC cannot exceed eight (8) calendar years.
5. Applications for extension or suspension of studies must be accompanied by recommendations from the ACs. They are submitted to and decided by the Assembly.

Article 9
Benefits, rights and obligations of doctoral students
1. Studies in the doctoral program have no tuitions.
2. Benefits and rights. Doctoral students:
a) Have access to medical and hospital care, food and accommodation, facilities for movement and for participation in cultural and entertainment events, etc., under conditions determined in accordance with the current legislation and relevant ministerial decisions.
b) Retain, after the completion of their doctoral dissertation, the right to use electronic services such as e-mail and resources of TUC aimed at graduates.
c) Have access to electronic services that require user identification (e-mail, software available for students, library electronic subscriptions, etc.) and the university library in order to meet educational, teaching and research needs. Access is also provided to the research and educational infrastructure of the university, after consultation with the supervisor and agreement of the head of the corresponding academic unit.
d) May participate, with the consent of the supervisor, in teaching activities and funded research projects in accordance with the applicable legislation.
e) Are eligible for scholarships, subject to established evaluation criteria.
f) Can participate in management bodies in accordance with the current legislation.
3. Responsibilities. Doctoral students:
a) Must enroll on time in the assigned courses and fulfill the requirements and conditions established by the course instructors.
b) Are responsible for the timely submission of progress reports as described in the next article.
c) Have sufficient physical presence and research activity at the School and publish their work internationally.
d) Must participate in other academic activities assigned to them by the School Assembly with the supervisor agreement.
e) Must complete the doctoral program within the time frame specified in Article 8 hereof.
For questions or problems which may arise during their study, students may consult with the supervisor and the AC and, if no resolution is reached, with the doctoral program CC and finally the SPEM Assembly.

Article 10
Progress reports
1. In September each year the doctoral student submits an annual Progress Report (PR) to the members of AC. The PR outlines the research progress on the subject of doctoral dissertation during the previous year, the student's performance in the courses assigned, and a plan of activities and expected advancements for the next academic year.
2. The AC members sign the PR and provide written comments on the student potential lack of or inadequate compliance with obligations and recommend corrective actions.
3. The signed PR accompanied by AC member comments, if any, are submitted no later than October of each year by the supervisor to the secretariat for doctoral studies for notification of the SPEM Assembly.
4. The submission of annual PRs is mandatory for all non-suspended students and provided that a transient period of six (6) months has elapsed after the AC designation.
5. Students must orally present the progress of their doctoral research in either public meetings or closed workshops organized by the doctoral program CC or their ACs.

Article 11
Student dismissal and student disciplinary procedures
1. Students are deregistered (dismissed) from the doctoral program by decision of the Assembly, in the following cases:
a) On their own request (by writing) to the Assembly.
b) The maximum length of study has been exceeded.
c) Eight (8) calendar years have elapsed after the designation of AC.
d) Failure to submit one PR on time followed by a deregistration recommendation of the supervisor or failure to submit two PRs on time.
e) During one semester one of the following happens: 
i) unexcused absence from studies or inadequate compliance with obligations, as noted in a notification made in writing to the student by the AC and forwarded to the Assembly;
ii) inadequate compliance with obligations assigned by the Assembly.
f) Accumulation of three (3) failures in courses.
g) After the definite rejection of the doctoral dissertation in accordance with Article 13 hereof.
2. The student who has been deregistered in accordance with the previous paragraph is entitled to receive a certificate documenting the successfully completed courses.
3. Student engagement in plagiarism, cheating (during course exams or projects) results in deregistration following a relevant decision of the Assembly. In the same cases, the doctoral degree is withdrawn when the violation is uncovered after graduation. Other rules and regulations under the disciplinary legislation issued by the Greek Ministry of Education for doctoral students also apply.

Article 12
Completion of the doctoral dissertation
1. During the doctoral study and before the dissertation defense, the student must have made a number of scientific publications on subjects related to the subject of dissertation. The minimum requirements are:
a) two articles in peer-reviewed international scientific journals
b) or one journal article as above and one of the following:
i) an article in conference proceedings after peer review of the full text;
ii) a chapter in a collective scientific publication after peer review of the full text;
iii) registered patent (national, European, or international).
2. The student prepares dissertation in the language approved by the Assembly. In case the writing language is not Greek, the student must include an extensive summary in Greek in a separate section of the dissertation.
3. Upon completion of the dissertation, the student submits it to the School Secretariat, with notification to the AC, along with a request for public defense. Under the responsibility of the supervisor, the dissertation is checked for plagiarism using special software. The student request and the plagiarism report are forwarded to the SPEM Assembly.
4. The Assembly, after verifying the fulfillment of the formal obligations of the student (certification of courses, publications, etc.) sets up the dissertation examination committee taking into account the opinion of the AC. According to the current legislation, the examination committee can be set up even despite a negative recommendation of the AC, as long as the student has fulfilled the all requirements for the doctoral defense.
5. The examination committee is made up of seven (7) professors with adequate knowledge of the subject of dissertation, of which three (3) are the AC members and the other members are appointed by the Assembly. At least four (4) members of the examination committee must be TUC faculty members and at least two (2) must be SPEM faculty members. The other committee members must belong to the categories provided by the current legislation for the composition of the AC, as described in Article 6 but without the restriction on the number of retired faculty members.
6. The School Secretariat informs the designated members of their participation in the doctoral examination committee and forwards to them the dissertation. If a member cannot fulfill its duties, it is appropriately replaced under the current legislation.

Article 13
Public defense of doctoral dissertation
1. The members of the examination committee review the dissertation and submit their comments to the doctoral candidate who then revises the manuscript to address the committee members' comments and returns the revised dissertation to the committee members.
2. A dissertation defense is scheduled after at least thirty (30) days from the date when the School Secretariat has sent the original dissertation. This time can be shortened with the agreement of all members of the examination committee.
3. No later than three (3) days before the dissertation defense, the School Secretariat announces: the name of student, the dissertation subject and a summary, the names of the examination committee members, and the time, place and, if available, the internet link to the defense session.
4. During the dissertation defense, the doctoral student orally presents the dissertation before the examination committee members and the public. This event, which takes place either in person or via teleconference media, is presided over by the Dean of the School or, in his absence, the supervisor of dissertation.
5. After the presentation of dissertation, the student answers questions from the examination committee members and, with their consent, from the other audience.
6. The committee then deliberates without the presence of third parties, judges the work in terms of quality, completeness, original thinking and contribution to science, and makes one of the following decisions:

a) With the consent of at least five (5) members the defense is deemed successful and the dissertation is approved as is.
b) With the consent of at least five (5) members the defense is deemed successful and it is decided that the dissertation needs minor improvements, according to remarks summarized in the dissertation assessment report. The student is provided with a period of fifteen (15) days to adequately address the remarks and submit to the committee a revised dissertation and a report of the changes made. Within fifteen (15) days of submission of the revisions, the committee members evaluate the improvements and, with the consent of at least five (5) members, sign a relevant certificate of dissertation approval. The time of receipt of the doctoral degree is considered to be the time of signing this certificate.
c) The members of the committee agree that that the dissertation needs to be re-examined after a substantial revision addressing the critical comments summarized in the dissertation assessment report. Within five (5) months from the first defense, the student must submit the revised dissertation to the Secretariat and the examination committee. A re-examination is set within one (1) month from the submission of the revised dissertation; it follows a similar procedure to that of the original defense and the decision is either approval of dissertation with a positive evaluation by at least five (5) members of the committee or rejection otherwise. The re-examination cannot take place longer than eight (8) calendar years apart from the date of designation of the AC.
d) In any other case the dissertation is rejected.
7. The decision is publicly announced and recorded in the dissertation assessment report, which is signed by all the members of the examination committee and deposited at the School Secretariat.
8. A rejected dissertation may not be resubmitted as a new application for admission to the SPEM doctoral program.

Article 14
Doctoral degree granting and swearing-in - Graduation ceremony
1. After the approval of dissertation the next steps follow:
a) the assessment report or (case 6a of the previous article) or certificate (case 6b) and the final text of dissertation are submitted to the School Secretariat
b) the Secretariat sends the dissertation and a completed census form to National Documentation Center of Greece
c) the text of dissertation is posted in the electronic institutional repository of TUC Library
d) a records check is carried out to verify that the doctoral student has no outstanding issues with TUC's services.
2. The doctoral degree awarding and swearing-in of the Doctor of the Technical University of Crete is held during an Assembly of SPEM. Afterwards the TUC Doctor receives:
a) A printed doctoral diploma. The doctoral diploma is awarded without numerical or other designation and is issued and signed by the competent authorities.
b) A doctoral diploma supplement.
3. The graduation ceremony takes place at a later time, in the presence of the TUC Rector, Senate, and School Deans.

Article 15
Theses with co-supervision
Dissertations co-supervised by of SPEM and other departments, research centers and institutes are also possible. The specific conditions of co-supervision dissertation are determined in accordance with the existing legislation in a special cooperation protocol approved by the collaborating entities.

Article 16
Industrial PhDs
A dissertation in collaboration with a company is also possible. The purpose of industrial PhDs is conduct industrial or applied research for the production of innovative products or services. The specific conditions for industrial doctorates are provided for in a special cooperation protocol approved by the cooperating bodies. The requirements for admission in an industrial doctorate program, changes of existing dissertations to the category of industrial PhDs as well as matters concerning the presence of company representatives in the meetings of advisory and examination committees, and the financing and insurance of the student are determined in accordance with existing legislation.

Article 17
Program quality assessment
The assessment by graduate students of the available infrastructure, course instructors, and courses offered in the second and third (graduate and doctoral) cycles of study takes place every academic semester. The assessment results are included in the annual internal quality evaluation reports of the School's Internal Evaluation Team (ΟΜΕΑ).
ΟΜΕΑ supports the TUC Quality Assurance Unit for the collection and registration of quality data in the information system managed by the National Authority of Higher Education, which is responsible for the evaluation and certification of Greek universities.

Article 18
Doctoral Resources
The costs and use of equipment and infrastructure necessary for the operation of the SPEM doctoral program Studies can be covered by:
• TUC's regular government budget
• research projects
• direct funding, through TUC’s Special Research Fund Account , other bodies of the wider public or private sector or legal sources, following a relevant decision of TUC Senate after a relevant proposal of the SPEM Assembly.
The School may take initiatives to attract endowments and financial support or equipment provision for the needs of the doctoral program.

Article 19
Transitional provisions
This regulation is binding with regard to the prescribed procedures and requirements for carrying out the doctoral research and defense of dissertation and for the tasks of all active doctoral students, supervisors, and advisory and examination committees.
The courses already assigned to the current students and the composition of existing committees apply as approved on a case-by-case basis.
Any matter not provided for in this regulation shall be resolved by a decision of the SPEM Assembly and other competent bodies per current legislation.