PhD in Latin American Administrative Law

2025/2026

What you learn

The Programme is essential or strategic in order to respond to the training and scientific needs of the Galician University System, in which there is no initiative similar to the one proposed, and even on the Ibero-American university map, where the existence of a Programme of these characteristics is considered strategic.

In this regard, it should be noted that the Law on the Galician University System establishes among its objectives and purposes the strengthening of relations of exchange and collaboration with higher education centres and public and private institutions at the national and international level, particularly in Latin America.

Generic skills

CB11 - Systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of research skills and methods related to that field. ("field" is replaced by "scope" as of the application of R.D. 576/2023, of 4 July)

CB12 - Ability to conceive, design or create, implement and adopt a substantial process of research or creation.

CB13 - Ability to contribute to the expansion of the frontiers of knowledge through original research.

CB14 - Ability to carry out critical analysis and evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas.

CB15 - Ability to communicate with the academic and scientific community and with society in general about their fields of knowledge in the modes and languages commonly used in their international scientific community.

CB16 - Ability to promote, in academic and professional contexts, scientific, technological, social, artistic or cultural progress within a knowledge-based society.

CB17 - Ability to promote Open Science and Citizen Science, in accordance with Article 12 of Organic Law 2/2023, of 22 March, as a way of contributing to the consideration of scientific knowledge as a common good, through the evaluation of cross-cutting activities carried out by the doctoral student related to different dimensions of Open Science and Citizen Science, as well as the training acquired in both disciplines in micro-credential format or similar. (From the application of R.D. 576/2023, of 4 July)

Specific skills

CA01 - Function in contexts in which there is little specific information.

CA02 - Find the key questions that need to be answered to solve a complex problem.

CA03 - Design, create, develop and undertake novel and innovative projects in their field of knowledge.

CA04 - Work both in a team and autonomously in an international or multidisciplinary context.

CA05 - Integrate knowledge, deal with complexity and make judgments with limited information.

CA06 - The critique and intellectual defense of solutions.

CE01 - Ability to structure and write fluently prepared legal-public texts, using the technically appropriate terminology

CG04 - Ability to synthesize legal arguments precisely.

CG03 - Ability to analyse legal-administrative problems from a plurality of approaches and choose the most suitable one in a specific case

CG02 - Ability to identify and apply all relevant legal-public sources to a specific issue

CG01 - Ability to plan and carry out complex legal tasks autonomously

CE03 - Ability to work in interdisciplinary teams as an expert in public law and contribute effectively to their tasks

CE02 - Ability to structure arguments and transmit them orally with technical competence and oratorical skills within the framework of highly specialised scientific activities in administrative law

Transversal skills

CB11 - Systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of research skills and methods related to that field. ("field" is replaced by "scope" as of the application of R.D. 576/2023, of 4 July)

CB12 - Ability to conceive, design or create, implement and adopt a substantial process of research or creation.

CB13 - Ability to contribute to the expansion of the frontiers of knowledge through original research.

CB14 - Ability to carry out critical analysis and evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas.

CB15 - Ability to communicate with the academic and scientific community and with society in general about their fields of knowledge in the modes and languages commonly used in their international scientific community.

CB16 - Ability to promote, in academic and professional contexts, scientific, technological, social, artistic or cultural progress within a knowledge-based society.

CB17 - Ability to promote Open Science and Citizen Science, in accordance with Article 12 of Organic Law 2/2023, of 22 March, as a way of contributing to the consideration of scientific knowledge as a common good, through the evaluation of cross-cutting activities carried out by the doctoral student related to different dimensions of Open Science and Citizen Science, as well as the training acquired in both disciplines in micro-credential format or similar. (From the application of R.D. 576/2023, of 4 July)

Professional and academic career

Teaching and research career

Avogacía

Legal advice to companies and/or Public Administrations

I work in Public Administrations and national or transnational public law bodies

Professional and academic career

Teaching and research career

Avogacía

Legal advice to companies and/or Public Administrations

I work in Public Administrations and national or transnational public law bodies

Companies and institutions involved

Entities that have signed an agreement with the UDC:

  • Attorney General's Office. Republic of Panama
  • Provincial Council of A Coruña. Spain
  • City Council of A Coruña. Spain
  • Arteixo City Council. Spain
  • Narón City Council. Spain
  • Bar Association of A Coruña
  • Official Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Navigation of Ferrol. Spain
  • Latin American Center for Development Administration (CLAD). Venezuela
  • International Association of Administrative Law (Colombia)
  • Euro-Latin American Teaching Network of Administrative Law
  • Ibero-American Forum on Administrative Law
  • Civil Association Institute for the Study of Argentine Public Finance (Argentina)
  • Chilean Institute of Administrative Law (Chile)
  • Mexican Association of Administrative Law (Mexico)
  • São Paulo Administrative Law Institute (Brazil)

Research lines

This are the main research lines for current study.

  • Actividad de fomento
  • Actuación administrativa y procedimiento administrativo
  • Administración pública y libertad religiosa
  • Bases constitucionales del Derecho Administrativo
  • Bienes de dominio público y patrimoniales
  • Buen Gobierno y Buena Administración. Gobernanza
  • Contratación pública
  • Cultura. Patrimonio cultural
  • Deportes. Derecho deportivo
  • Derecho administrativo económico
  • Derecho administrativo global
  • Derecho sancionador
  • Derechos fundamentales y libertades públicas. Derechos humanos.
  • Educación
  • El administrado y sus relaciones con la Administración
  • Energía
  • Extranjería
  • Finanzas y Hacienda Pública
  • Fuentes del ordenamiento jurídico administrativo
  • Historia del Derecho Administrativo
  • Justicia administrativa
  • Medio Ambiente
  • Nuevas tecnologías y Administración Pública
  • Ordenación administrativa del litoral
  • Ordenación del territorio y urbanismo
  • Organización territorial y administrativa
  • Personal al servicio de la Administración Pública
  • Policía administrativa
  • Principio de legalidad y potestades administrativas
  • Propiedad privada y derecho administrativo. Expropiación forzosa
  • Protección civil
  • Responsabilidad patrimonial de la Administración Pública
  • Sanidad
  • Seguridad marítima
  • Seguridad social
  • Seguridad. Defensa
  • Servicios públicos
  • Sujetos jurídico-públicos

Planning for teaching

Additional subject teaching

Candidates who do not meet all the necessary prior learning conditions for the programme may be required to complete additional courses in the form of subjects and modules from UDC Master’s and undergraduate programmes. The number of credits from additional subject teaching will not exceed 15 ECTS credits, which students may choose to complete before or after enrolment in the PhD programme.

Students who do not opt to complete additional coursework prior to enrolment should register for their extra subjects or modules at the same time as the PhD. Failure to complete additional coursework within a period of three consecutive terms will result in the termination of the student’s registration.

See also UDC PhD Policies and Regulations, Article 5: Applications.

EIDUDC teaching and training activities

EIDUDC teaching and training activities

Programme-specific teaching and training activities

Contiene cuatro tipos de actividades:

  • a) Cursos y actividades de formación instrumental y metodológica: tienen por objetivo formar a los alumnos en metodologías y herramientas de carácter transversal fundamentales para el desarrollo del Proyecto de Tesis: Jornada de introducción al doctorado; Taller de seguimiento metodológico individualizado; Cursos de capacitación lingüística para la investigación; Curso sobre manejo de las fuentes on-line y bases de datos para la investigación jurídica.
  • b) Cursos y actividades de formación complementaria, orientadas a dos objetivos: en primer lugar, suplir las carencias de formación de los estudiantes del Programa de Doctorado (se podrá encargar a los estudiantes realizar un curso puente, por ejemplo); en segundo lugar, forjar o reforzar la formación jurídico-administrativa del doctorando (a través de un Plan de Lecturas individualizado para cada doctorando).
  • c) Curso de formación avanzada en Derecho administrativo iberoamericano, que pretende proporcionar al alumno una formación de alto nivel (se celebrará anualmente en el Pazo de Mariñán, A Coruña, España, sin perjuicio de que la CAPD pueda reconocer el carácter de curso de formación avanzada a alguna otra oferta formativa de alto nivel).
  • d) Actividades de investigación: además de las actividades de investigación propias de la tesis doctoral, el doctorando deberá realizar estancias de investigación, presentación de comunicaciones en congresos científicos especializados, elaboración de artículos de investigación, etc.

Supervision agreement

The PhD supervision agreement defines the academic relationship between the candidate and the University, the rights and responsibilities of each (including any intellectual and/or industrial property rights resulting from the candidate’s research), the procedures in place in relation to conflict resolution, and the duration of the agreement. It also specifies the duties of the PhD tutor and supervisor.

The supervision agreement must be signed by the candidate, tutor and designated university representative (or representatives) within a maximum period of one month as from the date of registration. The supervisor’s signature may be added subsequently, once a supervisor has been appointed.

When the document has been signed by all the relevant parties, the agreement is then added to the candidate’s record of activities.

See also UDC PhD Policies and Regulations, Article 13: Supervision agreement.

Research plan

The candidate must prepare a research plan within six months of registration, with information regarding methodology, objectives, resources and milestones. The research plan is submitted together with the report of the supervisor and/or tutor for approval by the Academic Committee for PhD Programmes (CAPD). Improvements to the plan may be introduced with the approval of the supervisor and/or tutor based on the annual review of the student’s research progress.

Research plans are subject to annual review by the CAPD, including the report(s) of the supervisor and/or tutor and the candidate’s record of activities. Students will be permitted to continue with their studies if the outcome of the review is satisfactory. If the outcome is negative, the student will be required to submit a new plan within a period of six months. If the committee is still not satisfied, the candidate will be removed from the programme.

See also UDC PhD Policies and Regulations, Article 15: Research plan.

Student mobility

UDC holds student mobility agreements with universities and other third-level institutions across four continents. Students are offered several opportunities each year to apply to study abroad in one of these centres (for a single term or for a whole year), with the guarantee that all credits obtained will be duly recognised in their academic record upon their return.

For each round of applications, the University publishes the list of exchange options available to students and, where relevant, the specific conditions associated with each. Students may also apply to the University for funding for international work experience placements and internships.

Work experience placements are accredited in the student's academic record and the European diploma supplement. Students are free to decide in which host company or academic institution within the EHEA they wish to carry out their placement. To assist them in their search, the University has created an online noticeboard with jobs postings and other news.

Work-study placements in A Coruña are arranged by the International Relations Office (ORI) of the UDC in collaboration with the international relations coordinators in the student’s home university. The general entry criteria, rights and obligations of students, and admission and acceptance procedures for the programme, are regulated by the UDC Mobility Policy.