Doctoral Program of the Faculty of Law

The doctoral program of the Faculty of Law generally takes three years and includes the composition of a doctoral thesis and modules totaling at least 30 ECTS credits.

The doctoral thesis should be in the form of a monograph and should make an independent contribution to current research. Students have the option of having academic achievements and ECTS credits completed before the beginning of the doctorate program recognized. The responsible Doctoral Committee will decide whether to grant recognition.

The Admissions Office is responsible for admission to doctoral studies at the University of Zurich. Please observe the general admission requirements of the University of Zurich and the special admission requirements for Doctoral Studies.

Anybody who has successfully completed the selection process at the Faculty of Law will be admitted to the Faculty of Law’s Doctoral program.

Prerequisites

Admission to the doctoral program is subject to the approval of the Admissions Committee and the admission requirements of the ordinance for obtaining a doctoral degree.

Procedure

1. Appointment of a head instructor (completion of the doctoral candidate confirmation)
2. Selection of additional members of the Doctoral Committee together with the head instructor (application for appointment of the Doctoral Committee)
3. Submission of application documents to the Admissions Committee (please note the application deadline)
4. (possible personal interview )
5. The Admissions Committee decides who is to be accepted into the doctoral program
6. Enrolment or change of degree program at the Admissions Office

Application Documents:

• Letter of application
• Curriculum vitae with photograph
• Copies of prior degrees and educational certificates
• Doctoral candidate confirmation
• Enrolment record as PhD student and/or proof that the prerequisites for enrolment have been met (Master of Law Degree or equivalent and faculty member as supervisor)
• Application for appointment of the Doctoral Committee, which can be downloaded from the Forms page
• Two letters of recommendation
• Synopsis, to be no more than five pages in length (will give some piece of information regarding your research project and ambitions, the questions, preliminary work and the current status quo of your appropriate and relevant literature and research). 

Application period

• Fall semester: 1 April - 31 May
• Spring semester: 1 September - 31 October

In its curriculum, in addition to the two compulsory modules, there are further modules that can be chosen individually. In addition, there is a wide range of continuing education programmes both within and outside the university. Proof of achievement must be provided for each module.

The curriculum is divided into:

• compulsory modules totaling 12 ECTS credits
• modules from the core elective pool totaling 18 ECTS credits

The PhD candidate will provide the Doctoral Committee with a suggested module selection at the beginning of the doctorate program. This suggestion will be discussed and the outcome documented in the doctoral agreement.

Compulsory Modules (12 ECTS credits)

Core Elective Pool (18 ECTS credits)

* The Doctoral Committee will determine the requirements regarding the official assessments and number of ECTS credits awarded for successfully completed official assessments. They will be documented in the doctoral agreement.

The modules must be booked during the booking period in accordance with the general module booking instructions. Booking includes registration for the official assessment. This excludes the doctoral colloquia, registration for which must be lodged with the relevant professorship.

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