Cotutelle PhD Agreements: Joint Doctoral Supervision Between Two Universities

What a cotutelle is

A cotutelle, sometimes called a joint or binational doctorate, is an agreement between two universities in different countries to jointly supervise one PhD candidate through a single research project. You have one supervisor at your home institution and a second co-supervisor at the partner institution, and both universities award you a diploma at the end, tied to the same body of research.

This differs from a standard PhD with an external collaborator or a research visit abroad. In a cotutelle, both universities are formally bound by a signed agreement covering supervision, funding, residency, and which institution's regulations govern your defense. Without that signed agreement, you have an informal collaboration, not a cotutelle.

How the agreement is set up

The agreement is negotiated and signed before you defend, ideally early in your doctorate once both supervisors agree to co-supervise. It typically covers the research topic, both supervisors' roles, the language and location of the final defense, how the jury is composed, and what each university expects for tuition, fees, and access to funding, according to guidance from Université Grenoble Alpes's doctoral college . Draft this early. Retrofitting a cotutelle agreement onto research you have already mostly completed is far harder than setting it up from the start.

Funding and who pays what

Funding arrangements vary by agreement and are one of the most negotiated points. Some cotutelles combine a stipend or contract from one institution with fee waivers or reduced fees from the other. Others rely on external funding, such as a national doctoral school grant or a joint scholarship covering both mobility periods. There is no universal funding model, so clarify the exact financial terms, including who covers your travel between the two countries, before signing the agreement, not after you have relocated.

Residency requirements at both universities

Most cotutelle agreements set a minimum period you must spend in residence at each institution, not just visiting for a defense. The exact length is set in the individual agreement and differs by university pair and country, so check the specific terms rather than assuming a standard split. Some universities frame this in terms of full-time semesters or terms of residency at each site. Others define it as a rough proportion of your total doctorate. Ask both doctoral schools for their minimum residency policy before you sign, since this affects your visa planning, housing, and how your time abroad counts toward your home institution's progress requirements.

Plan your residency periods around your research timeline, not the other way around. If your fieldwork, lab access, or archive materials sit mainly at one institution, negotiate a residency split that reflects that reality rather than an arbitrary even split, and get the agreed split written into the agreement itself so both doctoral schools hold you to the same expectation.

The degree you receive at the end

You defend your thesis once, typically before a joint jury with members from both institutions, and both universities issue you a diploma recognising the same doctorate, according to a Campus France overview of the cotutelle model . You end up with one completed research project and two formal qualifications, both fully valid in their respective countries, rather than two separate doctorates.

Check how each institution's national system labels this outcome before you rely on it for a specific job market. Some countries issue a single joint diploma bearing both university names and seals, while others issue two separate diplomas referencing the same thesis and the cotutelle agreement. Ask both doctoral schools directly which format they use, since it affects how the qualification is recognised by employers and other universities later.

Who a cotutelle suits

A cotutelle makes most sense when your research genuinely needs expertise, data, equipment, or fieldwork access split across two countries, and when both supervisors are willing to commit real time to co-supervision rather than a nominal title. It adds administrative complexity: two sets of institutional rules, two funding sources to coordinate, and travel logistics on top of the research itself.

If your project does not need a genuine second institutional base, a shorter research visit or an informal collaboration is usually simpler and avoids the extra bureaucracy a formal cotutelle agreement requires. Discuss the decision honestly with both potential supervisors before committing, since undoing a signed cotutelle agreement partway through your doctorate is far harder than choosing the right structure from the start.

Steps to set one up

1. Identify a co-supervisor at a partner university whose expertise complements your home supervisor's, usually through existing research collaborations or your supervisor's network.

2. Confirm both institutions' doctoral schools support cotutelle agreements and check their specific procedural requirements.

3. Draft the agreement covering supervision roles, funding, residency minimums, defense language and location, and jury composition.

4. Get sign-off from both doctoral schools and, where required, both universities' central administration.

5. Plan your mobility periods around the agreed residency minimums well before your funding or visa applications are due.

6. Defend once, before the jointly agreed jury, and receive diplomas from both institutions once the defense is approved.