Program Access Information

Information for prospective PhD students is available on the UPV Doctoral School website:

https://www.upv.es/entidades/edoctorado/

All published information is available in three languages (Spanish, Valencian, and English).

Prospective applicants should take note of the following information:

• Information about the pre-registration process and its deadlines: https://www.upv.es/entidades/edoctorado/presenta-tu-solicitud-2025/
• Information on the various PhD programmes offered: https://www.upv.es/entidades/edoctorado/todos-los-programas-de-doctorado-ofertados-en-upv/
• Guidance for new students: https://www.upv.es/entidades/edoctorado/consejos-para-nuevos-estudiantes/

In addition, the pre-enrolment process for PhD studies is managed through the general pre-enrolment system of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV). This provides applicants with an online platform that can be accessed from anywhere.

The online application system includes admission quota management, which ensures that the number of admissions established for the programme is not exceeded.

The admission of each applicant requires two approvals: approval from the Doctoral School, which ensures compliance with the minimum requirements established in Royal Decree 99/2011, and approval from the Academic Committee of the PhD Programme (CAPD), which ensures compliance with the requirements set out in the programme verification report, in accordance with the established criteria and the Evaluation Index (IV) score obtained by each applicant.

The recommended admission profile for the PhD Programme in Telecommunications comprises university graduates with a solid background in engineering and sciences applied to telecommunications who demonstrate an appropriate foundation for conducting advanced research.

Applicants may be admitted without additional training if they hold an official Bachelor’s degree, or an equivalent degree, in Telecommunications Engineering or a related scientific or technological field, such as Electronic Engineering, Computer Engineering, Telematics Engineering, Information and Communication Technologies Engineering or Physics, together with an official Master’s degree of at least 60 ECTS credits providing advanced training in telecommunications, such as the Master’s Degree in Telecommunications Technologies, Systems and Networks or the Master’s Degree in Telecommunications Engineering, both offered by the UPV.

Graduates holding degrees awarded under academic frameworks predating the EHEA, such as the former Telecommunications Engineering degree, shall also be considered to meet the recommended admission profile, provided that their education is equivalent to Master’s level and is relevant to the scope of the programme.

This admission profile does not require any additional training.

From an academic perspective, students are recommended to have a solid foundation in mathematics and quantitative methods; knowledge of signal and systems theory; an understanding of analogue and digital communications; knowledge of electromagnetism, microwaves, photonics or electronics, depending on their area of specialisation; skills in programming and simulation tools; and the ability to read and understand scientific literature.

Other Admission Profiles: university graduates with a background in related scientific or technological fields that do not fully correspond to the core academic content of Telecommunications Engineering may also be admitted to the programme. These include degrees in Industrial Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Mathematics, Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, Physics or other related fields.

In such cases, even where the applicant holds an official Master’s degree in accordance with the applicable regulations, the Academic Committee of the PhD Programme shall assess the suitability of the applicant’s prior education for the proposed research area and may require specific additional training, as detailed in section 3.4. This additional training is intended to ensure that the PhD candidate acquires the necessary foundational knowledge in areas such as signal and communications theory, electromagnetism, communication networks, photonics or electronic systems, as appropriate.

Access Requirements

• As a general rule, access to an official PhD programme requires an official Spanish Bachelor’s degree, or an equivalent degree, and an official Spanish Master’s degree, or an equivalent degree, provided that at least 300 ECTS credits have been completed across both degree programmes.
• Access shall also be granted to applicants who hold official Spanish University degrees, or equivalent Spanish degrees, provided that at least 300 ECTS credits have been completed through these degree programmes and that level 3 of the Spanish Qualifications Framework for Higher Education has been attained.
• Hold a degree awarded under an education system within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), without the need for official recognition, which certifies level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework, provided that the degree grants access to PhD studies in the country in which it was awarded.
• Hold a degree awarded under an education system outside the EHEA, without the need for official recognition, provided that the University verifies that the degree certifies a level of education equivalent to that of an official Spanish University Master’s degree and grants access to PhD studies in the country in which it was awarded.
• Hold another PhD degree.
• University graduates who, having obtained a specialised healthcare training position through the corresponding entrance examination, have successfully completed at least two years of a training programme leading to an official qualification in one of the Health Sciences specialisations may also be admitted.
• Regarding the programme’s specific access requirements, applicants must submit letters of support from the proposed PhD supervisor and tutor. Information on the programme’s research teams and research areas is available on the programme website. For each team, the members of academic staff, their research profiles and their contact details are provided. The tutor and at least one PhD supervisor must be researchers participating in the programme and affiliated with the UPV.

Admission Criteria

The CAPD is responsible for assessing applications by applying an Evaluation Index (IV) on a scale from 0 to 100 points. Applicants must obtain a score of more than 70 points.

Given the international nature of the programme and the need to consult specialised literature, applicants are recommended to have an English-language proficiency level equivalent to at least B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), or an equivalent level.

The IV shall be calculated in accordance with the following cases:

• Where an applicant has completed a Master’s degree of at least 60 ECTS credits in telecommunications or a related field, such as wireless and optical communications, microwaves and electromagnetic radiation, signal processing, information theory, communication networks, cybersecurity, data science, artificial intelligence applied to communication systems, advanced electronics, photonics or quantum technologies, the following equation shall apply: IV = 20· E + 30· T + 50· M
• E is the weighting factor for the applicant’s overall academic record, covering both undergraduate and postgraduate studies, based on the overall average grade on a normalised scale from 0 to 1; T is the weighting factor for the Bachelor’s degree; and M is the weighting factor for postgraduate education.
• Weighting factor for the Bachelor’s degree (T):
  • Degrees in Telecommunications Engineering: T = 1.
  • Related degrees, such as Computer Engineering, Electronic Engineering or Physics: T = 0.75
• Weighting factor for the master’s degree (M):
  • Official Master’s degree in Telecommunications or with 100% alignment with the PhD programme’s research area, subject to prior assessment by the CAPD: M = 1
  • Master’s degree with content that is 75% aligned with the PhD programme’s research area, subject to prior assessment by the CAPD: M = 0.75
  • Other Master’s degrees with content that is 50% aligned with the PhD programme’s research areas, subject to prior assessment by the CAPD: M = 0.5

Where an applicant has not previously completed any Master’s-level credits, holds an official Spanish Bachelor’s degree comprising at least 300 ECTS credits and has attained level 3 of the Spanish Qualifications Framework for Higher Education, the following equation shall apply: IV = 20·E + 80·T. E is the weighting factor for the Bachelor’s degree academic record, based on the overall average grade on a normalised scale from 0 to 1, and T is the weighting factor for the degree, whose value is determined according to the categories listed above.

• There are two distinct admission profiles: the recommended admission profile, which does not require any additional training, and other admission profiles based on related degrees, which may require additional training.
• As established by the applicable regulations, this specific additional training must be successfully completed during the initial stage of the PhD dissertation and within a maximum period of one academic year.
• Only applicants who meet the conditions described in the admission criteria and obtain a value of M = 1 shall be exempt from additional training and may be admitted directly to the PhD programme.
• Students admitted with a value of M = 0.75 shall complete up to 9 ECTS credits of additional training, while students admitted with a value of M = 0.5 shall complete up to 15 ECTS credits.
• Additional training shall be completed through courses from the research-oriented Master’s Degree in Telecommunications Technologies, Systems and Networks.
• All courses in this Master’s degree are related to the topics covered by the research areas described in Dimension 6 of this document and are therefore consistent with the scientific scope of the programme.
• Additional training may also be completed through courses from the Master’s Degree in Telecommunications Engineering.
• This Master’s degree qualifies graduates for the regulated profession of Telecommunications Engineer. Therefore, the specific courses to be completed must be assessed and approved by the Academic Committee of the PhD Programme, which shall determine their suitability according to the PhD candidate’s admission profile and proposed research area.