Track I – Application procedure following the Life Science Zurich Graduate School (LSZGS) online application system
Track II – Applying directly and bilaterally to a research group leader

Must I note the names of the second and third thesis committee member on the “ZNZ Registration Form” before I submit it?
No. You must however send an email with this information to the ZNZ coordinator within six months after your start date (the day you started working on your thesis).

I do not know my thesis title yet. Do I have to write this on the ZNZ Registration Form before I submit it? No. The same rule as above applies.

Parallal matriculation to UZH or ETH, where can I find the information?
VERY IMPORTANT: Please note that your supervisor’s group will deal with your employment contract and the necessary HR and visa formalities but it is your responsibility to register in parallel as a PhD student at either UZH or ETH. Permits for foreign PhD students are linked to the registration at a Swiss University, students should therefore start the registration process early on:
http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/application/Matriculation-University-of-Zurich.html

http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/application/Matriculation-ETH-Zurich.html

Thesis committee Members

I am confused about which rules apply regarding the thesis committee members. The ZNZ requires at least one ZNZ PI, my faculty/department seem to have other additional rules. Which rules apply? You need to make sure that the guidelines of the corresponding UZH faculties and ETH departments are respected in addition to the ZNZ regulations.

For example, the Faculty of Science (UZH) requires that two members must have the right to promote in their faculty. Rules from various other faculties/departments are listed here:
https://www.lifescience-graduateschool.uzh.ch/en/PI/requirements_start_PhD.html

Course registration

How do I register for the Introductory Courses in Neuroscience?
There is no registration needed for the ZNZ Introductory Courses in Neuroscience. The same applies for the exams of these two courses. All you need to do is simply be there.

How do I register for the other ZNZ courses and the ZNZ PhD Retreat?
For the three ZNZ courses mentioned below and for the ZNZ PhD retreat we will send official registration emails in the springtime. We only register students that are replying directly to these emails. It is not possible to register to these courses before the invitation email has been sent out. Please bear in mind that we register on a "first-come, first serve basis":
- Course in Science Ethics for Cancer Biologists and Neuroscientists (1 ECTS credit)
- Crash Couse in Statistics (2 ECTS credits)
- Writing for Neuroscientists (1.5 ECTS credits)

Links:
https://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/courses/elective/transferable-skills.html
https://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/courses/elective/elective_research.html

How do I register for other courses that are not organized by the ZNZ?
Please look in the course description for the course coordinator and contact him/her directly for further details.

ECTS credit points

General rules ZNZ:
http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/courses.html

I need an official ZNZ confirmation of my credits in order to set a date for my defense. Can you give me this document?
Sure. ETH and UZH Psychology students need to upload all course certificates and ECTS credit documentation into their personal ZNZ OneDrive folder. After all your certificates are uploaded: please write an email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch - and ask for a ZNZ confirmation of all your credits. MNF students, please see below:

Important note for Students in the Faculty of Science (MNF): You need to upload all your course certificates under the milestone "Coursework" in Student Admin. After you have uploaded ALL your course certificates you need to send an email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch to let us know that this is done: Now we can approve the milestone "Course work" in the MNF database. You need to have this done in order to start the graduation process in the MNF system.

How do I know if the external course I just attended will be credited with ECTS credits?
External courses with confirmed ECTS credit points signed by the lecturer or the organizer will be considered case by case. If you do not have any written confirmation of the ECTS credits you need to acquire this yourself from the lecturer and send it to us. We cannot approve any credits without this confirmation.

My UZH/ETH transcript includes the note "not an official document" just under the title. I do not have any other proof of my ECTS credits for this course/these courses. What can I do?

You have three choices:

Have this "transcript of records" document signed and dated by your supervisor, with his/her name added in block letters. Upload to Student Admin (MNFstudents) or your personal ZNZ OneDrive folder (other students) and send an email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch when you need the ZNZ confirmation of your ECTS credit points.
Organize specific course certificates for each course you want to have recognized by ZNZ (with written confirmation of the ECTS points), upload to Student Admin (MNF Students) or your OneDrive folder (other students) and send an email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch when you need the ZNZ confirmation of your ECTS credit points.
Wait for the final official UZH/ETH transcript (normally available at the end of the semester), upload to Student Admin or your ZNZ Onedrive folder and send an email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch when you need the ZNZ confirmation of your ECTS credit points.

I am also a member of an additional PhD program. How do I get my ZNZ credit point confirmation?

Important note for members of additional PhD programs such as psychology students (Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences) and MD PhD students:

One course can only be credited once, either to the ZNZ PhD program or to your other PhD program. It is not allowed to use one course to obtain credits twice (in two PhD programs).

At the end of your studies, in order for ZNZ to issue an official credit point confirmation, ZNZ needs the official ECTS credit point confirmation from your "other" PhD program in order to cross-check that no course will be credited twice. Please send this confirmation by email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch.

Exams of the Introductory Courses

How do I register for the Exam of the Introductory Courses in Neuroscience?
There is no registration needed for the ZNZ Introductory Courses in Neuroscience.

When are the exams of the introductory courses in neuroscience scheduled?
The exams usually take place on Monday afternoon of the last lecture-free week, i.e the part I (fall) exam in February in the week before lectures start and part II (spring) correspondingly in September in the week before lectures start. Link for more details about the exams:

https://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/courses/exam_introcourse.html

The student databases (Student Admin is ONLY for MNF students, all other students must use their personal ZNZ OneDrive Folder):

Who do I contact if I have questions regarding StudentAdmin?

Please note that all questions regarding the database “StudentAdmin” must be sent to the Faculty of Science: promotion@mnf.uzh.ch
Studiendekanat MNF
Y10 G23
Winterthurerstrasse 190
8057 Zürich

The student Admin milestones of my thesis proposal and annual reports have not been approved yet, even though I submitted them a long time ago. Why?

ZNZ only approves these milestones at the end of your studies after you have finished and uploaded all your reports and credit information/confirmations, and sent us an email requesting us to confirm these Student Admin Milestones. We do this to save time, due to the fact that we need to work with two parallel databanks.

Thesis proposal and yearly meetings

Where do I upload my Thesis Proposal and yearly reports?

For MNF students:
Within six months after your start date you need to organize your committee meeting and upload your thesis proposal under "Doctoral Agreement" in Student Admin.
The report requirements are described on our website:
http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/documents/Thesis_proposal.html
Important: All of your reports must be dated and signed by all thesis committee members. Electronic signatures are also approved.

For UZH Psychology students:
Within six months after your start date you need to organize your committee meeting and upload your thesis proposal into your personal ZNZ OneDrive folder. It is your responsibility to upload your reports on time. Incomplete, not dated or not signed reports will be considered invalid/incomplete.
The report requirements are described on our website:
http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/documents/Thesis_proposal.html
Important: All of your reports must be dated and signed by all thesis committee members. Electronic signatures are also approved.

For ETH students:
Within one year you must upload your thesis proposal into your personal ZNZ OneDrive folder. The same research project that you defended in your aptitude colloquium (one year after your started working on your ETH PhD project) can be used as your thesis proposal. It is your responsibility to upload your reports on time. Incomplete, not dated or un-signed reports will be considered invalid/incomplete.
Important: All of your reports must be dated and signed by all thesis committee members. Electronic signatures are also approved.:https://ethz.ch/students/en/doctorate/doktoratsplan.html )

Yearly reports:

You must organize meetings on a yearly basis until you are ready for the thesis defense. Within one year after the date on your thesis proposal, you must have met again with your thesis committee (discussion about the progress of your PhD project) and you must have submitted the signed and dated Thesis Meeting Report Form (more details below).

Based on this meeting, it will be decided whether the project should be continued, redirected or terminated.

For ETH students: You need to upload the protocol of this meeting; the "Thesis Meeting Report Form" into your personal ZNZ OneDrive folder: https://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/documents.html

For MNF students: Upload the the "Thesis Meeting Report Form" (https://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/documents.html) into the corresponding "Committee meeting" tab in Student Admin:

The deadlines for the following "Thesis Meeting Report Forms" are a year after the previous ones. These meeting protocols must also be signed (electronic signatures are ok) and dated by all your thesis Steering Committee Members.

Is it possible to postpone the deadline for my thesis proposal or yearly report?
If you have a good reason to apply for an extension of your deadline, we need you to write the request with the reason for the delay before the deadline per email to hgauss@neuroscience.uzh.ch.

Who do I contact with any questions regarding the context/format of my thesis and about organizing my defense?

For any questions regarding your thesis context/format or organization of your defense, we kindly ask you to check directly with your supervisor and the Faculty (UZH) or Department (ETH) that you are registered in, since this varies depending on your affiliation.

ZNZ International Certificate in Neuroscience

What kind of information/documents do I need to submit in order to get my ZNZ International Certificate in Neuroscience?

We need to have the following information:

All your course certificates must be uploaded into your personal ZNZ OneDrive folder (ETH and Psychology students) or Student Admin, "course work" milestone (MNF students).
The date of your defense
The final (corrected and official) version of your thesis as a PDF or a link to the document.
Your current address
For MD PhD students and students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of UZH: An official document stating which courses are credited to your other program.

Travel Grants

Where can I find information about travel grants?

All information can be found here:

http://www.neuroscience.uzh.ch/en/education/grants/reimbursement.html

Neuroscience Center Zurich

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