FAQ’s
The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences does not charge any fees for a PhD track.
There are no extra costs for taking a PhD track. The cost you will encounter will be for housing and living expenses in Utrecht.
In the Netherlands a PhD track is considered to be a research track. Therefore, a PhD track is not limited to a academic (college) year. A PhD can start a track at any time, provided it is in accordance with the supervisors.
Yes, you can take courses (within reason) that will help you with your research and/or career. The faculty offers a large range of courses specifically in your research field but also generic that are paid for respectively by the section or by the PhD Office. Furthermore, it is possible for you to occasionally attend a conference or workshop in your research field.
If you are employed as a PhD candidate, you are required to take the ‘Start to teach course’. Alle PhD candidates, employed and non-employed (guest PhD’s) have to take the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) course, 4 modules, 1 module each year of the PhD track. PhD candidates will become a member of the research school of their field of research. It may be that the research school you belong to (not all) has mandatory courses.
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Please note that Utrecht University does not provide PhD scholarships.
| Doing a PhD on a scholarship with a low allowance is debated at the UU at this moment, as living expenses and costs for housing in the Netherlands are very high. Moreover, the current stipend for a few scholarships (for instance the CSC scholarship) is currently not enough to get a visa. Therefore at the moment we do not process applications for PhD tracks on a scholarship with a (too) small budget. |
There are several scholarship providers, often offered by the Ministry of Education (or a liaised organisation) of a country. Requirements for a scholarship may vary, so if you want to apply for a scholarship, make sure you read all the information given by the Ministry, so you know how, what and when to prepare.
More information: https://www.studyinholland.nl/finances.
The Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC) is one of the scholarships than can be applied for. Utrecht University provides information on CSC, such as information on the Utrecht University programme procedure. However Utrecht University is not a preferred partner of CSC, and therefore applications are not always successful. Or the (Chinese) university you are taking your master at is therefore not prepared to support your application. Be sure to check this before you apply.
When applying for a scholarship, first and foremost you will need to find a supervisor. At the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences you can contact the PhD Office, who will help you find a supervisor. In order to do so, the PhD Office will need to receive the following information from you (PhDOfficeSBS@uu.nl):
- A research proposal
- A c.v.
- A publication list and/or alternatively your master thesis.
For an insight in the research the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences is doing, please read the information here.
The PhD Office will contact researchers working in the field of the research you described in your proposal. You may also mention names of researchers or departments in the proposal you feel are of interest to you. Please be aware: a researcher is free to choose if he/she wants to take on a PhD, so we cannot promise to be successful in finding a supervisor for you. Also note, that this process may take some considerable time, so plan well ahead in order to give yourself sufficient time to send in the application before the required deadline.
If we find a supervisor prepared to work with you, you will meet (online) to discuss and fine tune the research proposal. In the meantime the PhD Office will want to receive the following documents:
- Your master diploma – or if you are still working on your master – a proof of enrollment.
- A list of marks/courses.
Both documents will be vetted by the Admissions Office. The general admission requirement to a PhD track is that the PhD candidate has completed his/her master’s degree at a level which is comparable to a Dutch (accredited) University master’s degree. - A document no older than two years to prove that your English language has the required level (at least IELTS: 6.5 (overall band) minimum of 6.0 for writing, or Cambridge Certificate:
- Cambridge English C1 Advanced (CAE). Minimum score: 176 total, 169 writing
- Cambridge English C2 Proficiency (CPE). Minimum score: 180 total, 169 writing or
- TOEFL: minimum score 93 (for the internet-based test).
If you are in agreement with your intended supervisor on the final text of the research proposal, the diploma is accepted by the Admissions Office, and your English language level meets with the requirements, the PhD Office will write an acceptance letter in accordance with the requirements by the scholarship organization to stipulate you will be accepted as a PhD candidate, provided you will receive the scholarship funding.
Once the scholarship has been allocated to you, the PhD Office will arrange with the section manager you will receive a Hospitality agreement, which will enable you to work in the faculty buildings on the Utrecht Science Park campus, access the UU intranet, the UU-library, and the PhD registration system MyPhD.
The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences collaborates with many (research) institutions. Researchers of the faculty often also work parttime for those institutions. A collaboration of an employee of the institution with a researcher may therefore lead to the possibility of a PhD track if the institution is prepared to cooperate.
When applying for a PhD track whilst working for an institution, first and foremost you will need to find a supervisor. At the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences you can contact the PhD Office, who will help you find a supervisor. In order to do so, the PhD Office will need to receive the following information from you (PhDOfficeSBS@uu.nl):
- A research proposal.
- A c.v.
- A publication list or alternatively your master thesis.
For an insight in the research the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences is doing, please read the information here.
The PhD Office will contact researchers working in the field of the research you described in your proposal. You may also mention names of researchers or departments in the proposal you feel are of interest to you or if you already collaborate with them in the institution you work at. Please be aware: a researcher is free to choose if he/she wants to take on a PhD, so we cannot promise to be successful in finding a supervisor for you.
If we find a supervisor prepared to work with you, you will meet (online) to discuss and fine tune the research proposal. In the meantime the PhD Office will want to receive the following documents:
- Your master diploma.
- A list of marks/courses.
Both documents will be vetted by the Admissions Office. The general admission requirement to a PhD track is that the PhD candidate has completed his/her master’s degree at a level which is comparable to a Dutch (accredited) University master’s degree. - A document no older than two years to prove that your English language has the required level (at least IELTS: 6.5 (overall band) minimum of 6.0 for writing, or Cambridge Certificate:
- Cambridge English C1 Advanced (CAE). Minimum score: 176 total, 169 writing
- Cambridge English C2 Proficiency (CPE). Minimum score: 180 total, 169 writing or
- TOEFL: minimum score 93 (for the internet-based test).
If you are in agreement with your intended supervisor on the final text of the research proposal, the diploma is accepted by the Admissions Office, and your English language level meets with the requirements, the PhD Office will arrange with the section manager you will receive an ICT agreement, which will enable you to access the UU intranet, the UU-library, and the PhD registration system MyPhD.