Objectives of the doctorate

The doctorate represents a transitional phase between a person's studies and their own research work and is a means of acquiring knowledge and skills relating to their own subject, as well as those that cut across other areas or have more to do with methodology. It is also an opportunity to build networks within the academic community. It prepares a person for research-oriented work at either a university or in the outside world (wider society, finance, administration, etc.) and equips them to take on a wide variety of demanding professional duties and roles.

The core focus of a doctorate is the acquisition of academic skills by drafting a piece of academic work (dissertation). Depending on the faculty, the dissertation can take the following forms:

• a monograph (an individual, "self-contained" paper) or
• articles published in recognized specialist journals relating to either several or one specific area of research (cumulative dissertation).

The objectives of a successful doctorate are as follows:

• extending the limits of what is currently known through innovative and high-quality work
• the capacity to devise, design and conduct research that has real academic weight, is targeted and shows integrity
• systematic understanding of a subject and mastery of the skills and methods associated with this subject
• the capacity for critical analysis, assessment and synthesis of new and complex ideas
• the capacity to develop further the progress made in technological, social or cultural terms within an academic and professional context
• Satisfying standards associated with national and international peer-reviewed publications