The main discussion points of the General Assembly of the Doctoral School of Automatic Control and Computers (SD-AC) of June 4, 2026 are: ARACIS accreditation and scientific activity, 2026 admission and evaluation of doctoral scholarships, regulations, support and qualifications, miscellaneous.
1. ARACIS Accreditation and Scientific Activity
- The accreditation process for the Computer and Information Technology (CTI) and Systems Engineering (IS) fields includes the submission of internal evaluation reports (June 2026) and the evaluation visit scheduled for September-October 2026.
- SD-AC registers 63 doctoral supervisors and 421 doctoral students.
- Research results exceed 2,200 published articles (over 1,400 WoS) and 37 patents.
- A new strategic approach includes updating the website, expanding digital platforms and introducing transversal skills modules (e.g. AI and Cybersecurity).
2. 2026 Admission and Scholarship Evaluation
- The 2026 admission competition introduces a ranking methodology where the average of years of study represents 80%, and the grade awarded by the committee represents 20% (publications, conference participation, doctoral proposal). The deadline for registration is September 15, 2026, followed by evaluation on September 16.
- The evaluation for the continuation or reallocation of scholarships (doctoral students admitted in 2025) is based on individual forms submitted between September 8 and 11, 2026, with thresholds of 20, 40 and 60 points at the end of years I, II and III.
3. Regulations, Support and Qualifications
- Doctoral student limit: From October 2026, a standard limit of a maximum of 8 doctoral students/supervisor is imposed (or a maximum of 12 for a maximum of 20% of supervisors, with the approval of the Senate).
- Thesis defenses: The start of internal procedures for the 2021 promotion takes place on August 24-25, 2026, the defenses in committees running until September 18, and the submission of final theses for public consultation on October 2, 2026.
- New qualifications: 7 new qualifications were announced for the period 2025-2026 (4 at CTI and 3 at IS).
4. Miscellaneous (proposed by the meeting participants).
