Off-campus Ph.D. program on Cleaner Production, Cleaner Products, Industrial Ecology and Sustainability » Registration

Information on procedures

Introduction

In this brief overview, the procedures and guidelines of the Erasmus University's International Ph.D. Program on Cleaner Production, Cleaner Products, Industrial Ecology & Sustainability are presented.

Prof.Dr. Wim Hafkamp is the Scientific Director of the Ph.D. Program.
Prof.Dr. D. Huisingh is advisor of the Ph.D. Program and leads the Ph.D. Intensive courses.
Dr. Frank Boons coordinates the Program and the advising of the candidates.
Mrs. Trude de Groot manages the Secretariat of the Program.

Applicant acceptance procedure

After the prospective candidate's preliminary application forms are received by our staff, the Erasmus University Application Committee performs the first evaluation, using the following criteria:

  • The candidate has a M.Sc. degree in an appropriate field or discipline, comparable to Dutch standards. The copies of diplomas and transcripts (list of grades) must be certified by an appropriate university seal. It is preferable if the transcripts are sent from the "home" academic institution to Erasmus University in a closed envelope;
  • An up to date Curriculum Vitae;
  • Birth certificate or copies of relevant pages of the candidate's passport with her/his personal data;
  • A list of Publications;
  • A minimum of 5 years of professional work experience;
  • Three letters of recommendation.

If an applicant's academic background does not include a formal M.Sc., the Advisor of the Council of Deans will determine whether the educational level combined with the applicant's work and scientific output (articles, books) are sufficient for admission to the Ph.D. Program.

Be sure that all documents are clearly readable and suitable for copying.
For the formal approval, by the Erasmus University's Council of Deans, the selection criterion must have been met and the applicant's documents must be complete.

After receiving all documents, the Erasmus staff will evaluate them and send them to the Council of Deans having the task as the Ph.D. Examination Committee of the University. This Committee has to ask advice of an independent organisation (NUFFIC) on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Education. This organisation evaluates all diplomas with respect to the entrance requirements of Ph.D. Programs.
After an applicant has been approved, s/he will receive an official letter of notification of acceptance from the Rector Magnificus as chairman of the Council of Deans.
Please note that the total procedure can take several months before the final decision is made.

Program design and progress reports

The International Off-Campus Ph.D. Program is designed on the basis of an ideal-type situation as a three-year program with an annual 2-week Ph.D. INTENSIVE and self-study with interactive communication with the Ph.D. supervisor(s). In practice, Off-Campus Ph.D. candidates need 5 to 6 years in average to complete their Ph.D. thesis.
The candidate is responsible for submitting quarterly progress reports via e-mail to her/his advisor and the Program Management at Erasmus University. Other communications may also include telephone, Skype communication, and face-to-face meetings in the candidate's home research facilities or at Erasmus University.

Supervision

After approval and support of the Board of Deans of Erasmus University each Ph.D.
candidate can consider an advisor for her/his Ph.D. research during the PhD Intensive. Donald Huisingh, Wim Hafkamp, and JanJaap Bouma can be the advisor of the candidate (in Dutch promotor). Their scientific disciplines and environmental fields of interest and specialisation are:

Donald Huisingh:

Bio-Chemistry & Pathology; Cleaner Production, Cleaner Products, Industrial Ecology, Sustainability, Sustainable Agriculture, Sustainability Education;

Wim Hafkamp:

Environmental Economics; Environmental Management in Industry, Total Cost Accounting, Industrial Environmental Chain Management, Government - Industry Interface; Sustainability Management;

JanJaap Bouma:

Business Economy; Integrated Water Management Policy, Environmental Management Systems & Environmental Total Cost/Benefit Accounting;

Leo Baas:

Industrial Sociology & Business Management; Cleaner Production, Industrial Ecology, Organisational Learning processes for Sustainability, Multi-Actor Sustainability Policy, Sustainable Communities;

Frank Boons:

Organisational Sociology, Industrial Ecology, Organisational Theory, Networks, Product Policy

 

Relation with other disciplines and regional universities

The Ph.D. Program reflects and builds upon the synergy among different scientific
disciplines with regard to Cleaner Production, Cleaner Products, Industrial Ecology and Sustainability. In the Ph.D. research guidance team, a combination of a professor with the holistic approach and a professor with specific scientific expertise is considered optimal. Three constructions can be involved during the research:

  • An advisor of the Erasmus Ph.D. Program is supervisor;
  • An advisor and a co-advisor of the Erasmus Ph.D. Program are supervisors;
  • An advisor of the Erasmus Ph.D. Program and a University professor in the candidate's region are supervisors.

In the last option the University professor in the candidate's region will function in the position of co-advisor at an individual level. During the first year, an official bilateral agreement with Erasmus University will be established after reciprocal approval. The defence of the Ph.D. dissertation is organised at Erasmus University in all constructions.

Communication

As pointed out earlier, several means of communication can be used for regular information exchange between candidates and the Erasmus University co-ordinators. Official documents such as, letters of acceptance of a person as a Ph.D. candidate will be sent to the person via Airmail.

We use an E-mail list-service both for information exchange bilateral as well as for the whole group. Each participant will receive a Participants list. The number of Ph.D. participants that use Skype for discussions, is growing.

We strive to publish newsletters four times a year.

Invoice

An invoice for € 6500, first installment of the total yearly tuition fee (€ 10500 for the academic year 2009/2010), is sent to each candidate in September and an invoice for € 4000 in May. After the payment of the first invoice an official Ph.D. student card is provided. Requests for alternative payment schedules should be made in contacting the Erasmus Centre for Sustainable Development and Management. The participation is in force without further specification for the whole Ph.D. academic year that starts in October/November with the Ph.D. Intensive.

Specific items

Questions pertaining to items not addressed in this overview should be directed to the Coordinator of the International Off-Campus Ph.D. Program on Cleaner Production, Cleaner Products, Industrial Ecology & Sustainability at:

Erasmus University Rotterdam
Faculty of Social Sciences
P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam
The Netherlands

Phone: +31.10.4082064
Fax: +31.10.4089103
E-mail: Mrs. Trude de Groot: degroot@remove-this.fsw.eur.nl or Dr. Frank Boons: boons@remove-this.fsw.eur.nl


Rotterdam, September 2009