First edition of the Iberian Doctoral Theses on Multicriteria Decision Making Award

The Spanish Working Group on Multicriteria Decision Making (SWG-MCDM) and the Associação Portuguesa de Investigação Operacional (APDIO) announce the first edition of the Iberian Doctoral Theses on MCDM/MCDA Awards. There are two such awards for the best two doctoral theses in the field of multicriteria decision making/analysis, one defended at a Spanish university and another one defended at a Portuguese university. These awards aim to stimulate research and scientific innovation and disseminate high quality scientific work in this discipline.

The Best Iberian Doctoral Theses on MCDM/MCDA Award rules are as follows:

1. Submission of nominations:

The deadline for submission of nominations is March 1, 2025 (inclusive).

Doctoral theses defended at Spanish and Portuguese universities from July 2022 until the deadline for receipt of applications will be admitted. Theses written in Spanish, Portuguese or English will be accepted.

2. Documentation to be submitted by the candidates:

The candidate has to send the following documentation (in pdf format) by e-mail to SGW-MCDM coordinator Antonio Jiménez (antonio.jimenez@upm.es) by the established deadline:

- Doctoral dissertation
- A 4-page summary of the doctoral thesis in the pre-established format: font (Title: Times New Roman, 16pt; Text: Times New Roman, 12pt), single spacing, standard margins (top and bottom: 2.5 cm, left and right: 3 cm).
- Candidate's curriculum vitae
- Copy of the degree certificate, International Mention (if applicable) and Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award (if awarded)
- List of accepted/submitted publications resulting from the doctoral thesis, with their respective full references and associated impact factor
- Letter from the thesis supervisor(s) (appraising the thesis and endorsing that the specified contributions derive directly from the thesis)
- Letter of recommendation (optional)


3. Evaluation

The evaluation panel will consist of four high-ranking Spanish (two) and Portuguese (two) researchers in the field of Multicriteria Decision Making/Analysis, who will not have supervised theses by the candidates applying for the awards.

The theses will be assessed according to the following general criteria:
a) scientific quality
b) originality
c) appropriateness of the topics to the scope of the awards (MCDM/MCDA).

The panel’s decisions will be final and cannot be overturned.

The evaluation panel will decide on the awards by April 1, 2025, and may not make the awards (if no suitable applications are received). 

New (15/1/25): The members of the evaluation panel are Prof. Herminia I. Calvete Hernández (University of Zaragoza), Prof. Luís Dias (University of Coimbra), Prof. Miguel Ángel Hinojosa Ramos (Pablo Olavide University) and Prof. Mónica Oliveira (University of Lisbon).


4. Announcement of awards

As soon as the awards have been decided, the winning theses will be made public via the SWG-MCDM and APDIO web sites, distribution lists and other relevant media (ASEPUMA, ASEPELT, AEPIA, BEIO...).

The winning theses will be presented by their authors during a special session at the 1st Iberian Conference on Multicriteria Decision Making/Analysis in Coimbra (May 8-9, 2025), where the diplomas will also be awarded. The two award winners will be entitled to free registration and accommodation for the conference.

The two awards are endowed with 400 euros (each), funded by ASEPUMA (the Spanish Association of University Professors of Mathematics for Economics and Business).

5. Further information

Requests for additional information or clarifications should be addressed to SWG-MCDM coordinator Antonio Jiménez (antonio.jimenez@upm.es).

6. Resolution

The evaluation panel of the 1st Edition of the Iberian Awards for Doctoral Theses in Multi-Criteria Decision Making has resolved the granting of the awards. It has decided to leave the award for the best doctoral thesis defended at Portuguese universities vacant and to grant two awards to the following doctoral theses defended at Spanish universities:

Title: A re-examination of the menu planning problem from a multiobjective optimization perspective: The SHARP approach
Author: Dr. Francisco Martos Barrachina
Supervisor: Dr. Mónica Hernández Huelin
University: University of Málaga

Title: Multicriteria techniques for sustainable supply chain management
Author: Dr. Iván Felipe Barrera Jiménez
Supervisors: Dr. Concepción Maroto Álvarez and Dr. Marina Segura Maroto
University: Polytechnic University of Valencia

A special session was held at the 1st Iberian Conference on Multi-Criteria Decision Making/Analysis (May 7-10th in Coimbra, Portugal), where the two award-winning theses were presented, and the diplomas awarded.

Congratulations to the awardees and their supervisors!