Progression through the study plan
doctoral combined specialized, language of instruction: Czech
Included in the programme: LF D-PATFYZ Physiology, Pathological Physiology, Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry
Study-related information
- Final state examination and dissertation defenceThis requirement applies only to Ph.D. students who started their studies before March 2025:
The students have to undergo not only the dissertation thesis defence, but also the State Doctoral Examination, which takes place within the Ph.D. Conference of Biomedical Sciences and is mandatory for eligible students.
As part of the examination:
• Students in their third year give a 20-minute presentation on the results of their dissertation project, placing their research into the broader context of biomedical sciences.
• This is followed by a discussion, which includes both questions specific to the student’s project and theoretical questions related to the specialisation and scientific background.
For the Ph.D. candidates who started their studies after March 1st, 2025, in connection with the amendment to the Higher Education Act, the state doctoral examination is abolished. However, due to the programme's multidisciplinary nature, the doctoral board of the doctoral degree programme will verify that the student possesses in-depth knowledge of the subject under study (concerning the dissertation topic and research) during the thesis debate and defence.
DOCTORAL THESIS DEFENCE:
Before the defence of the doctoral thesis is performed, the following conditions have to be met:
• fulfil the requirements of the given individual study plan
• complete at least 4 core courses, each from a different field of study
• complete at least 4 field-specific courses
• meet the publication activity requirements at least in the specified range
• undergo an internship abroad (with a duration of at least 30 days)
• present original data at an international conference (poster or oral talk)
• submit the doctoral thesis
• pass the final state doctoral examination (the requirement applies only to students who started their studies before March 2025)
• acquire the total amount of 240 credits over the course of studies
Thesis defence procedure
The defence includes:
Study and research obligations
- Doctoral thesis
The main activity of a Ph.D. student is the continuous work on the thesis project, completed with the dissertation thesis defence. It includes:
- creating a literature review of the thesis,
- data collections,
- statistical evaluation,
- sample processing,
- data analysis and interpretation,
- presentation of results, etc.
In the dissertation thesis, the student presents the results of the scientific work achieved during his/her doctoral studies. The thesis itself must fulfil the following standards regulated by the Dean's Directive No. 5/2021, in brief:
- 60–100 standard pages
- Original results, either already published or accepted for publication
- A collection of already published papers, including a comprehensive introduction to the addressed topic and a summarising commentary
- If submitting the results of a collective scientific work, the parts the student has worked on must be marked. In this case, the thesis must be accompanied by a statement from the supervisor confirming and evaluating his/her authorship and contribution.
Students enrolled in the English Ph.D. programme submit their thesis in English. In contrast, students enrolled in the Czech Ph.D. programme are recommended to submit their thesis in English as well (in line with the faculty’s efforts to internationalise doctoral studies). However, these students may also submit their dissertations in Czech and Slovak. The formal requirements for the dissertation thesis (such as obligatory and optional parts, typography, etc) are set in the official thesis template, available on the faculty server.
- Publications
Minimum requirements of the publication activity are:
- at least one first-author publication of an original paper in a journal with an IF, value above the median of the field (Q1 or Q2),
- or two original first-author publications in a journal with an IF, value in Q3 of the dissertation field.
- Participation in conferences and professional forums
Every Ph.D. candidate presents original data at an international conference.
- Research internships and international cooperation
Conditions of internships are regulated by Directive No. 2/2024.
Every external Ph.D. candidate enrolled in the so-called combined form of the Ph.D. programme is obliged to spend an internship abroad with a duration of at least 30 days (stays of less than 7 days cannot be included in the cumulative length), or alternatively, participate in an international project with results published or presented abroad or by another form of direct participation of the student in an international cooperation (the regular attendance at the project team meetings is mandatory).
By the end of semester 7, every PhD candidate presents the thesis project at the internal PhD candidates' conference.
- Specialized courses and theoretical training
All students of doctoral degree programmes at the Faculty of Medicine (FM MU) must complete at least four courses from the faculty-wide core courses taught in English only. The compulsory curriculum is divided into six thematic areas, with a focus on the development of scientific and soft skills and career options after a Ph.D., with a special focus on ethics in biomedical research:
CORE COURSES: Common and compulsory to all doctoral study programmes (every Ph.D. candidate is obliged to select at least 4 courses from these thematic areas):
- FRESHERS: Skills for Research Careers (mandatory for all Ph.D. candidates)
- Ethics in Biomedical Research
- Acquisition of Scientific Information
- Clinical Data Analysis
- Planning, Organisation, and Evaluation of Clinical Trials
- Computer Network User
FIELD-SPECIFIC COURSES (indicative list, the student will take at least 4, depending on the specific topic of the dissertation):
- Molecular Biology and Genetics
- New Trends in Pathological Physiology
- Trends in Medical Immunology
- Life Science Seminar
- Teaching skills
All Ph.D. candidates with a work contract at the FM MU are obliged to complete an online course Basics of Medical Education (with the final test), which covers the basic principles and concepts of education.
Ph.D. candidates without a work contract may complete the online course Basics of Medical Education. Voluntarily interested candidates should contact the Office for Qualifying Development.
A wide range of educational activities offered by the university's Centre for Competence Development is then available to all Ph.D. students.
Ph.D. candidates in a combined form of study do not have any teaching obligations.
- Language competenciesStudents are expected to have a minimum C1 level of English. Doctoral studies at FM MU are conducted mainly in English to maximise internationalisation. All core courses are offered exclusively in English (except courses organised by the Czech Academy of Sciences). The proportion of foreign Ph.D. candidates in our Ph.D. school has been increasing; therefore the lingua franca of the entire school is English in all official and unofficial events.