Studying in northern Europe for PhD

Post system

In northern Europe, even the whole of Europe (Britain and Ireland are not discussed in continental Europe), most countries (such as Germany) have a "post system", which means that schools treat doctoral students as researchers rather than students in the traditional sense. Because you are an employee, you will receive a notice like an employment contract or employment confirmation when you are admitted, instead of the traditional offer. Doctoral students in Nordic postal system do not charge tuition fees, but are paid every month (provided there is a position).

Since it is a "post system", you should start your research work when you are admitted. The specific work content should be based on the research plan you discussed with your tutor or the project direction of your tutor. Usually, the educational system is 3-4 years.

Unlike North America, which recruits doctors every year, the doctoral position in Northern Europe depends entirely on the project at hand. In other words, tutors enroll students if they have projects, and they don't enroll students if they don't have projects. And the number of students enrolled may only be 1-2 at a time. This also leads to another problem. Due to the limitation of the project, the release of enrollment information has no rules to follow, and there is no fixed time, only through your continuous online attention. At the same time, the starting time is not fixed, but it can be discussed with the tutor.

Self-funded project

The second case is at one's own expense. The concept of self-financing here includes self-financing and external sources of funds. If a student is willing to pay for a project, whether the tutor has a project or not, he will accept you in most cases. In other words, if you decide to study at your own expense, you can try to seduce any tutor you are interested in, whether he has a project or not.

Or you have an external scholarship source, which is also necessary. The source of this scholarship is provided by the government or sponsored by a company, such as CSC.

Basic requirements of Nordic P h D application

Degree requirements

It must be noted that you must have a master's degree to apply for Nordic PhD. The implication is that you must graduate with a master's degree certificate when applying. Since PhD is regarded as a position, it is necessary for employees to hold the required degree.

Language requirements

You can't speak Danish, Swedish, Norwegian or Finnish, but you must know some English. Although English is not the official language of the Nordic countries, the English level of the people in the Nordic countries is still quite good, and it is no problem to deal with daily life and study and research in English. However, learning the local language can help you adapt and integrate into local life quickly.

As far as the language proficiency test is concerned, both TOEFL and IELTS are accepted. The minimum requirements for TOEFL or IELTS can be found in the specific job description. If you mainly apply for a doctorate in northern Europe or Europe, IELTS can cover the applications of most schools in Europe.

A cover letter?

Doctor is a job in northern Europe, so it is one of the necessities for you to find a job. The cover letter is one of the things you need to pay attention to, and its function is similar to the personal statement or purpose statement required by the British and Australian applications in North America. But the form is similar to a magnetic letter, which needs to reflect personal information, research interest in job matching, research ability and desire for jobs in relatively short words.

research project

Each post will have a corresponding project or topic introduction, and what kind of ideas and implementation plan you have for a given topic is also the focus of tutor recruitment. Then specific ideas and plans should be reflected through research proposals. However, because the duration of each job information release is not necessarily (the explanation will say that the application is closed), you need to make a qualified research proposal within a given time.

Other requirements

Academic degree certificates, transcripts, resumes, letters of recommendation (or referees) and other materials are classified as other materials here because these materials are similar in all degree applications around the world, so I won't repeat them here.