Admission

Admission is the action whereby the respective PhD programme grants an eligible applicant entry to the specified higher education programme. It is equivalent to the effective acceptance of a student into a specified programme of studies at a specified institution of higher education.

The PhD in Software, Systems and Computing Academic Committee shall first verify that students meet the UPM's entry criteria and then proceed to select and admit students according to the number of vacancies established by the PhD programme.

Students shall be admitted to the PhD in Software, Systems and Computing Programme based on the criteria and weights listed below. Submission of all required documents is mandatory and all submitted documents should be in Spanish or English (if the original documents are in other language, an official translation into Spanish or English is required):

  • Curriculum Vitae (20%)
    • Professional and research experience: Consideration shall be given to previous experience, especially related to the PhD programme research areas.
  • Academic information: Degree certificates and academic transcripts (25%)
    • For students who have taken the master's degree associated with this PhD programme, consideration shall be given to students' academic achievement.
    • For students of other master's degree programmes, consideration shall be given to academic achievement and the similarity of the skills and knowledge acquired through the master's degree to the PhD's research lines.
    • Consideration shall be given to students' higher education academic record.
  • Certification of foreign language proficiency (15%)
    • Students must certify a proficiency level of B2 (CEFR) or equivalent in English.
  • Letters of recommendation (15%)
  • Letter of motivation (5%)
    • Students must submit a letter of motivation, stating, at minimum, their areas of interest, their basis for applying for admission to this PhD programme and the reasons for wishing to specialize in a particular area.
  • Interview (20%)
    • The PhD Programme Academic Committee may invite candidates to a personal interview.

The PhD in Software, Systems and Computing Academic Committee will evaluate the documentation and will publish the decision in the established dates after checking all the documentation. This Committee shall contact candidates, if necessary, to gather any additional or fill in any missing information. Having received the admission letter, students should enrol in the established dates.

Students who do not fulfil the admissions profile established for this PhD programme (university graduates with Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Computing), but who are considered capable of learning the skills required for admission, may be admitted conditionally upon taking a number of Bridge Courses established by the PhD in Software, Systems and Computing Academic Committee.