Entry requirements

Admission to a PhD programme requires that you hold a Master’s degree from a university with an overall mark of at least 5.0. Depending on your Master’s degree, certain conditions may apply. Furthermore, a commitment to supervise from a professor at the Faculty of Economics and Management is required, depending on your research interests. The start of a PhD programme is on an individual basis and does not take place in cohorts. See PhD models.

Legal basis

Doctoral Regulations, Guidelines

Registration

Enrolment for a PhD programme is carried out online via the UniPortal or through the Student Services department at the University of Lucerne. The Student Services department checks the admission requirements and processes enrolment.
Further information is also available from the Student Services department at the University of Lucerne.

Duration

A PhD programme usually lasts four to five years. The maximum duration is six years. The period begins with the semester in which the student first enrols and ends on the day they register for the PhD programme.

The supervision agreement, also known as the ‘AAA’ (Employment and Training Agreement), is drawn up between the research assistant and the supervisor. It covers, amongst other things, duties, working hours, training objectives, research objectives, supervision arrangements and support measures. This agreement is reviewed annually and amended where necessary. 

Further information can be found on UnetEntry under ‘Staff’ / ‘Appraisal and Development Meetings’.

Semester fees apply to doctoral studies at the University of Lucerne. You can find the exact amounts on the University of Lucerne’s Student Services website.

In addition, doctoral students will be charged an examination fee of CHF 340 at the end of their doctoral programme.

PhD students also have the opportunity to apply for scholarships or other forms of financial support. Information on the scholarships available and other funding options can be found on the University of Lucerne’s page on financial and budgeting advice. 

PhD students may take a leave of absence from their studies under certain conditions. The conditions and the application procedure are described on the University of Lucerne’s ‘Leave of Absence’ page. 

In addition to taking a leave of absence from their studies, students must apply for what is known as ‘unpaid leave’ from their employment using a specific form. The arrangements for taking unpaid leave are discussed between the employee and their line manager.

Mobility

The University of Lucerne supports PhD students in gaining international experience through research stays and in expanding their research networks.

The Graduate Academy supports doctoral students with an outstanding dissertation project in undertaking mobility stays; see the UniLu Doc.Mobility grant. Doctoral students employed on an SNF project may also apply for mobility grants.

Information on financial support opportunities can be found on the pages on career instruments and on funding opportunities for doctoral students at the University of Lucerne.

Networking

The PhD programme at the University of Lucerne offers various opportunities for professional and personal networking. Academic achievments may be undertaken externally in the field of economics, for example at the Gerzensee Study Centre or at other universities (see the list of the Swiss Network of PhD Courses in Economics and Finance). In the field of business administration, for example, at GSERM. Financial support from the Faculty of Economics and Management is available for courses taken externally; see Further Academic Education. The Graduate Academy supports PhD students with courses and events on interdisciplinary skills, as well as with advisory and funding opportunities. The University of Lucerne Mid-Level
Mid-level Organisation University of Lucerne (MOL) also provides a platform for cross-faculty networking and exchange.
In addition, the events organised by Campus Lucerne are open to all and are regularly publicised via its calendar. 
Within the faculty, there is an event called the Brownbag Seminar, which offers doctoral students the opportunity to present their dissertation proposals to their fellow students in an informal setting and receive direct feedback.

Financial support for academic continuing education may be applied for via the Faculty of Economics and Management's continuing education budget, or, where applicable, the relevant department, the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences (for travel grants) or other external institutions.

Professional Development Budget of the Faculty of Economics and Management

A request for funding may be submitted by Assistant Lecturers and Senior Assistant Lecturers at the Faculty of Economics and Management. Subject to available funds, funding will be provided for at least one continuing professional development course per calendar year for each eligible person. As a rule, a maximum of CHF 1,500 per person per year will be paid out.

Procedure:

• The application must be submitted well in advance of the start of the conference or seminar, must include a justification, and must be signed by the relevant professor. The Faculty Management is responsible for approving applications.
• Preference is given to funding for participation in conferences, meetings or workshops where the applicant plays an active role (e.g. giving a presentation) or for attendance at doctoral seminars. Please enclose the course programme (or an extract).
• After the event, a short report of at least half an A4 page must be submitted to the Dean’s Office and the relevant professorship.
• The estimated costs are generally paid by the participants. 
• Participation fees and expenses will be reimbursed in accordance with the expenses regulations. The expense claim form (not via e-Spesen!) can be found on Docugate.
• All original receipts and proof of payment must be enclosed; no lump-sum payments will be made. Only costs approved by the University of Lucerne will be reimbursed, up to the maximum amount authorised.

Request for financial support

Please submit your application here.

Entry requirements

Once the dissertation has been completed, the candidate submits an application to the Faculty Assembly to initiate the doctoral procedure. The doctoral procedure follows a process set out in the Doctoral Regulations (Art. 6: Doctoral Procedure) and the accompanying guidelines:

Publication of the dissertation

The dissertation must be published within two years of its successful defence. It may be published either by a publisher or as open access via the ZHB (LORY):  Open Access - University of Lucerne

Sample documents for the submission and publication of dissertations

On the regulations page, you will find the most important regulations, information sheets and forms.