The completion of a doctoral thesis on a joint supervision basis requires the prior establishment of a specific agreement between the institutions concerned in accordance with the  model of the University of Alcalá or, where appropriate, the model established by the other university, if it contains equivalent provisions and is reported favourably by the University of Alcalá.

By virtue of this agreement, which will respect the principle of reciprocity, each institution will recognise the validity of the doctoral thesis on the basis of a single presentation, and each institution undertakes to issue the title of Doctor, once the appropriate procedures have been completed.

Once signed, the modification of any of the provisions of the specific co-supervision agreement may only take place on a strictly exceptional basis and will require the agreement of the Academic Committee of the Programme and the thesis supervisors, as well as the prior authorisation of the Committee responsible for doctoral studies. In the event that a substantial modification is required, an addendum to the agreement will be drawn up, which must be approved by the Governing Council of the University of Alcalá.

The doctoral student who is enrolled at the University of Alcalá in a Doctoral Programme and who is interested in carrying out a doctoral thesis in co-supervision between the University of Alcalá and a foreign university must apply in writing on the standardized form. This document must be sent to the Coordinator of the Doctoral Programme in which the student is enrolled, duly completed and accompanied by the documentation indicated. After a report from the Academic Committee, the Doctoral Programme Coordinator will send the application to the Vice President with competence in doctoral matters.

The application for co-supervision must be made before the end of the first academic year of the doctoral program. Exceptionally, for justified reasons, it may be requested in the following academic year, provided that the permanence of the doctoral student and the limitation of the deadlines for the defense of the thesis as established in the R.D. 99/2011 are respected.

Once authorisation has been granted for a thesis to be carried out under a co-supervision scheme, the doctoral student shall enrol annually, until the defence is completed, in the two or more Universities, in accordance with the regulations of each one of them, and must provide the Doctoral School of the University of Alcalá with the corresponding proof of enrolment. In any case, the corresponding public price approved by the Region of Madrid must be paid at the University of Alcalá, as academic supervision for the preparation of the doctoral thesis, unless otherwise agreed in the agreement in relation to the amount of fees or other amounts.

During the development of the thesis, the interested party shall hold the status of doctoral student, for which he/she must comply with the requirements established for the admission, enrolment, assessment and continuance processes established by the University of Alcalá, as well as the rules applicable in other universities.

The doctoral thesis must be carried out under the guidance and supervision of a Director at each of the two universities signing the specific agreement (co-directors), appointed in accordance with the requirements of each institution. If the involvement of three or more co-directors is deemed necessary, approval must be obtained from the Doctoral School. In no case shall the number of Directors exceed three.

The duration of the thesis will be four years for full-time students and seven years for part-time students. In the case of doctoral students with a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33 percent, the duration will be a maximum of six years for full-time students and nine years for part-time students.

If necessary, the duration may be extended up to the maximum duration of the studies established by Article 3 of Royal Decree 99/2011, in its current wording, which regulates official doctoral studies.

The defence of the thesis may not take less than one year from the signing of the agreement, and there must be at least one annual assessment of the doctoral student at the University of Alcalá, except in cases where the Doctoral School authorises a different period.

The research work for the elaboration of the doctoral thesis will be carried out through the fulfilment of alternating periods of stay at each of the universities participating in the specific agreement. The minimum period of stay at one of these universities may in no case be less than six months, which may be completed in a single period or in several periods. For the purposes of calculating the 6 months, stays carried out prior to the authorisation of the co-supervision may be considered if the activities carried out during the stay are relevant to the thesis and provided that this is approved by the Academic Commission of the Doctoral Programme and the Doctoral School.

The publication, exploitation, and protection of the results of the research carried out will be ensured by both institutions in accordance with the specific procedures and regulations in force in the field of intellectual property in each country, and will be specifically reflected in the agreement signed between the two institutions.

The thesis must be written in the official language in accordance with the regulations of one of the partner universities, or in English. If it is not written in Spanish, it must be supplemented by a written summary, including the conclusions, in Spanish. The specific agreement shall determine the language in which the thesis is to be written.

The thesis will be subject to a single defence at any of the universities in accordance with the general procedure, the requirements of their regulations and the terms of the agreement.

Once the doctoral thesis has been written, the doctoral student will deposit the thesis at all universities, under the regulations applicable at each one of them.

The admission for the defence of the doctoral thesis must be carried out in accordance with the procedure and requirements of the respective regulatory rules and the protocol of action outlined in the specific agreement. In any case, and if the reading and defence take place at the University of Alcalá, the doctoral student must also present an official certificate accrediting the stays carried out at the respective foreign universities (minimum of six months in each).

In the case of defence at a non-Spanish university, in addition to that university, the entire procedure related to the deposit and defence of the thesis must be carried out at the UAH in the usual manner for any doctoral thesis defended there. The composition of the examination board and the date of the reading must be communicated to the Doctoral School of the University of Alcalá prior to the reading and defence.

The doctoral student must pay, where applicable, the corresponding fees for the reading and defence of the doctoral thesis only at the university where it takes place.

The examining panel for the doctoral thesis shall be appointed in accordance with the provisions of the specific agreement. Its composition shall be in accordance with the rules of the university where the examination is to be held.

The expenses incurred by the members of the panel will be financed in accordance with the terms of the agreement or, failing this, will be the responsibility of the university where the thesis is examined. Should the examination take place at the University of Alcalá, the financing will be in accordance with the same criteria used for theses with an international mention.

Once the doctoral thesis has been examined successfully, the interested party may request the issue of the corresponding certificates at both universities, in accordance with the provisions of the relevant agreement and the regulations in force at each one of them.

The certificate will be issued after payment of the corresponding fees at both institutions.

In the case of the University of Alcalá, the doctoral certificate will include on its obverse side the statement "thesis in co-supervision with the University U".

The completion of the thesis under co-supervision will be compatible with the inclusion of the "International Doctorate" and/or "Industrial Doctorate" mention when the requirements established in the corresponding regulations are met and the application for this mention is made within the timeframe specified in these regulations.

For the inclusion of the mention "International Doctorate" in the title of Doctor, the doctoral student must carry out one or more stays for at least three months at institutions other than those of the formalised agreement.

The University of Alcalá runs the "María de Guzmán" Residence and Collaboration Scholarship Program for doctoral co-supervision for doctoral students from other countries. These scholarships cover the accommodation expenses of the beneficiaries in the CRUSA University Residence in a double room during the length of their stay for doctoral research.