Doctorate Board

The Dean is a member of the Doctorate Board of Leiden University, which is chaired by the Rector Magnificus. The Doctorate Board is responsible for the following tasks:

• awarding doctorates and honorary doctorates, 
• recognising co-tutelle and joint doctorate agreements,
• granting the Ius Promovendi to non-professors and 
• deciding on amendments to the PhD regulations.

The Dean is formally responsible for determining whether a PhD candidate fulfils the educational requirements and, if necessary, for granting the candidate an exemption from those requirements.

Appointing the supervisor(s) and co-supervisor(s), establising the PhD and Examining Committees

The Dean appoints the supervisor and co-supervisors and establishes the PhD committee and examining committee. The Dean is chair of the PhD committee and secretary of the examining committee. Someone else may be appointed to replace the Dean in these positions; this is a requirement if the Dean is a supervisor.

Admission to the defence

Within six weeks of receipt of the PhD dissertation, the PhD committee informs the secretary whether the candidate may be admitted to the defence. The secretary informs the Dean of this decision, and the Dean then admits the PhD candidate to the PhD ceremony (using appendix C).

The Dean also assesses the non-scientific components of the dissertation, including the title page (front and back), the preface and/or closing text, acknowledgments, assignments, quotations/mottos, the table of contents, curriculum vitae, propositions, the summary, the inner and outer covers of the dissertation, both back and front.