Doctoral School - Vienna BioCenter PhD Program

Nomination of reviewers

Please note that reviewers and examiners are two different roles. At this stage, you will suggest three reviewers for your thesis (from which two will be appointed). Once you submit your thesis, you will suggest three examiners (these may be the same individuals or different ones). For more information on examiners, please refer to Section “3. Submission of Your Thesis & Registration for Defense.”

How to nominate your reviewers?

To nominate your reviewers, please send the following documents/information to Theresa & Valpuri:

Ideally, you should submit forms SL/D3 and SL/D4 approximately five months before your planned final exam date. While this may seem excessive, it is necessary. Depending on circumstances, it may take up to a month for reviewers to be officially appointed. Additionally, reviewers are legally allowed four months from the date of written thesis submission to complete their review and provide their report.

We recommend ensuring, before submitting your nomination forms, that the individuals you suggest as reviewers are willing to provide their assessments within a specific time frame—preferably at least two weeks before your defense.

*Please Note: The abstract must be submitted in both English and German. For the German abstract, you may use the DeepL online translator, which works exceptionally well. The abstract you submit does not need to be final and can still be adjusted with small last-minute changes.

  • At least one reviewer must be external (not affiliated with the Vienna BioCenter PhD Program and not affiliated with the University of Vienna).
  • At least one reviewer must be a member of the Vienna BioCenter PhD Program from an institute other than your own.
  • All three suggested reviewers must hold a tenured position (e.g., professor, senior lectureres) or be group leaders at prominent research institutions (e.g., EMBL, FMI).
  • Aim to propose a diverse range of reviewers

When nominating a reviewer, conflict of interest (COI) must be avoided. Therefore, please do not suggest the following individuals:

  • supervisors
  • collaborators
  • co-authors
    • of the student
    • of the supervisor in the last 5 years
  • close family members of the supervisor
  • direct competitors
  • members of your thesis committee
  • individuals with financial interests in research conducted by the student or the supervisor

What happens after the nomination?

The Dean of Studies will select two out of the three proposed reviewers. This decision must then be confirmed by the Studienpräses. Please note that the order in which the names are listed on your forms does not influence the selection process.

You will be notified by email regarding which individuals were appointed as reviewers. In the same email, you will be instructed to inform the appointed reviewers of their selection and to notify the individual who was not appointed. Reviewers will not receive an official notification of their appointment from the university.