EDDH Annual report

To evaluate the progress of the thesis and the knowledge of the doctoral candidate, the thesis director (and co-director if applicable) and the doctoral candidate meet once a year to write a report.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE ENTIRE PROCESS MUST BE COMPLETED WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE FIRST NOTIFICATION SENT TO THE DOCTORAL STUDENT.

The information is entered into an online tool that will generate a final PDF document sent to all participants at the end of the process.

Access online tool: link sent to doctoral candidates by the doctoral program at least 3 months prior to deadline.

Connection: with your MS account creditentials.

Annual report’s process

Each year, starting one year after your admission date, you have to submit an annual report to your thesis director on the state of progress of your work (art. 10 of the Ordinance on the doctorate).

To prepare your report, you will receive the link to the online tool 3 months before your annual report is due.

In the online tool, you are requested to fill in 3 sections with the information below:

  • your basic information;
  • your research progress;
  • and a self-assessment of your progress: this section is completed separatly by you and your thesis director(s), then discussed during a meeting (collaborative review).

Please note that the content you fill in is not confidential and will be revealed to all parties after the independent self-assessment and once the process is completed.

For reports initiated after 9th September 2025, you have the option to:

  • attach a PDF file to your report, but we recommend that you do not use this option and enter all your information in the form.

Please note that the option to upload a PDF file is not available for first-year reports.

  • arrange a confidential meeting with your mentor as part of your annual report (tick box). In this case, they will receive an email (with you in cc) informing them of your wish to meet, with a provisional PDF version of your report (sections 1 and 2) attached. You are responsible for organizing this meeting, which can take place at any time during the process. Only the director of your doctoral program will know whether you decide to meet with your mentor or not (if they have to check your report*).

*After the collaborative review, the report will be sent to the director of your doctoral program for verification only if:

  • it is rated as: “needs some improvement” or “unsatisfactory”;
  • you disagree with the content of the report.
Should you have any questions:
Annual report’s process

Each year, starting one year after the admission date, doctoral candidates have to submit an annual report on the state of progress of their work (art. 10 of the Ordinance on the doctorate ).

A notification to write the report will be sent by the program coordinator to the doctoral candidate at least 3 months prior to due date so that the whole process can be completed on schedule.

Once your doctoral candidate completed the annual report, you will be requested by email to connect to the online tool to review the information provided and complete your progress evaluation. Please note that the content you fill in is not confidential and will be revealed to all parties after the independent self-assessment and once the process is completed.

You will then be asked by email to arrange a face-to-face meeting with your doctoral candidate (and the co-director if applicable) to review the information, discuss goals achieved and planned, and evaluate overall progress.

During this collaborative review, you will have to give a general appraisal of the progress of your doctoral candidate:

  • exceeds expectations: the progress made during the previous year is exceptionally good; the thesis is on track; only a few doctoral candidates will receive this rating during their PhD;
  • meets expectations: the progress during the previous year is good; the thesis is on track; this is the most common rating;
  • needs some improvement: the progress made during the previous year is short of expectations; the thesis can get back on track if the doctoral candidate follows the feedback received; an intervention by the doctoral program director is not needed; some doctoral candidates may receive this rating during their PhD;
  • unsatisfactory: the progress made during the previous year was insufficient; this signals a serious risk of failure; an intervention by the doctoral program director is necessary; this assessment is rare.

The report will be sent to the candidate’s doctoral program director for verification if:

  • it is rated as: “needs some improvement” or “unsatisfactory”.
  • the doctoral candidate disagrees with the content of the report.

And if the report is rated as “unsatisfactory” or the doctoral candidate disagrees with the content, a meeting will be held to seek appropriate measures to resolve possible problems and conflicts, and to improve the performance.

At the end of the process, everyone involved will receive a PDF version of the report by email. Please note that neither the report nor the information is stored in the online tool once the report is completed.

Should you have any questions:
Annual report’s process

Each year, starting one year after the admission date, doctoral candidates have to submit an annual report on the state of progress of their work (art. 10 of the Ordinance on the doctorate ). 

A notification to write the report will be sent by the program administrative assistant to the doctoral candidate 3 months prior to the due date so that the whole process can be completed on schedule.

A confidential meeting between the mentor and mentee is a mandatory element of the annual report. The doctoral candidate is responsible for organizing this meeting early enough so that the process can be completed on schedule. Thank you for confirming that the meeting has taken place, by connecting via the following link: https://phd-annual-report.epfl.ch.

For reports initiated after 9th September 2025, a confidential meeting between you and your mentee is an optional part of the annual report. If your mentee chooses to meet with you, this can take place at any time during the process. You will receive an email informing you of their wish to meet, with a provisional PDF version of their report attached. Only the candidate’s doctoral program director will know whether your mentee decides to meet with you or not.

Once the annual report process is complete, you will receive a PDF version of the report by email.

The following topics could be discussed:

  • Advancing as a researcher (what has gone well, less well, how to improve, goal setting, which resources are needed, …)
  • Facets of career-building (contributions to the community, conferences, awards, networking opportunities, participating in possible soft skill courses on writing, communicating, managing, spin-off training, …)
  • Work-life balance
  • Communication (within the laboratory, with the thesis director(s) and other lab members, matching expectations in terms of progress and future goals, …)
  • Life after the PhD (what kind of career options are there and how to explore them, …)
Should you have any questions:
Annual report’s process

You will be notified by email each time:

  • an annual report of a doctoral candidate in your program is rated as: “needs some improvement” or “unsatisfactory”;
  • the doctoral candidate disagrees with the content of the report.

And if the report is rated as “unsatisfactory” or the doctoral candidate disagrees with the content, you should hold a meeting held to seek appropriate measures to resolve possible problems and conflicts, and to improve the performance.

In the online tool, you will have to confirm that you have checked the annual report and you may indicate any comments you have.

You and the administrative assistant will receive a PDF copy of every report of EDDH doctoral candidates by email.

Please note that neither the report nor the information is not stored in the online tool once the report is completed.

Should you have any questions: