Application form for the PhD programme - guidelines

Enter information about the education that forms the basis for admission to the PhD programme

Master's thesis or equivalent

Title of the master's thesis etc.: Title of the master's thesis (or equivalent independent scientific work) which forms the basis for the degree obtained.

Scope of master's, research line or main thesis: Enter ECTS credits or number of semesters.

For admission to the PhD program at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, it is a requirement that the master's thesis has a scope of work of at least 30 credits corresponding to one semester's work. Enter the scope of the master's thesis in the number of credits or the number of semesters (possibly the number of working hours) which is regulated in the degree regulations for the master's degree at the educational institution.

Upload summary of master's, research line or main thesis: Upload a copy (pdf) of the summary / abstract of the submitted master's thesis

Education

State all higher education after upper secondary school. Complete a partial form ("Add education") for each individual higher education after completing upper secondary school.

For admission to the PhD program at the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, the applicant is required to have a five-year master's degree or an equivalent degree, in accordance with the descriptions in the second cycle of the qualification framework. This could be, for example, a

• 3-year bachelor's degree + 2-year master's degree
• 5-year integrated master's degree
• 5-year civil engineering degree
• Older 5-year degrees, e.g. cand mag. + cand.scient.
• Foreign degrees that are equivalent to Norwegian 5-year master's degrees
• The faculty may, after special assessment, approve other equivalent education as a basis for admission. Cf. Regulations for the degree philosophiae doctor (PhD) at the University of Bergen §5-1.
• Exemption from the requirement for a five-year master's degree: After an overall assessment, the faculty can exceptionally approve the admission of candidates with master's degrees that are shorter than 5 years, but at least 4 years. This applies, for example, to foreign master's degree programs which, after validation, are equivalent to a 4-year standard higher education in Norway. Such a degree must in any case fulfill the following requirements: (1) It must be a higher degree at master's level (corresponding to the 2nd cycle in the National Qualifications Framework), (2) The degree must contain an independent scientific work that has a scope of at least 30 credits corresponding to one semester's work, (3) The applicant must also document scientific activities (for example publications or participation in research projects) or grade averages beyond normal requirements.

Degree: Enter the official name of the degree, as it appears on the diploma/Diploma supplement

• Bachelor, Bachelor of Science, Cand.mag., Engineer, or equivalent
• Master, Master of Science, Cand.scient., Civil engineer, or equivalent

Enter subject: Select the subject or subject area in which the master's degree is awarded from the attached list (code and name) "List of subject areas within mathematics and natural sciences". If you cannot find the right subject or subject area in the attached list, use the closest one.

Educational institution: State the name of the college, university or other higher education institution where the master's degree was awarded. If the degree was obtained at a foreign educational institution, you must also state the country.

Semester and year for completed final exam/degree obtained: State when the degree was completed/obtained with semester (spring/summer/autumn) and year.

Upload documentation:

• Documents in original language. Both certificates, diploma supplements and transcripts. If a diploma is not available, the diploma supplement or transcript must show that the degree was obtained and when it was obtained.
• Any NOKUT approval: If you have a higher education from abroad, please attach a NOKUT approval letter, if you have one. This is not mandatory, but is helpful in the application process.

Attachments

See which attachments are relevant for you.

CV - Curriculum vitae: it is mandatory to upload a CV

Translation of educational documentation from languages ​​other than English or Scandinavian: Upload official translations of educational documents either from the educational institution itself or from authorized translators. If there is a Diploma supplement in English, the diploma can still be in the original language.

Documentation on the scope of the master's thesis: If the scope (credits) of the master's thesis is not shown in the transcript, an extract from the degree regulations describing the scope of the master's thesis or a confirmation from the educational institution of the scope of the master's thesis measured in credits or number of semesters.

Documentation of English skills: Upload a valid English certificate/English exam if this is a requirement for you.

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has the following requirements for documentation of English skills:

International applicants must document good English skills before being appointed as a research fellow by taking one of the following tests with specified results or better:

• TOEFL – Test of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based Test (IBT). Minimum score: 90
• IELTS academic – International English Language Testing System. Minimum result: 6.5
• Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) and Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) from the University of Cambridge
• PTE Academic – Pearson Test of English Academic. Minimum result: 62
• NB! We do not accept a confirmation for "English is the medium of instruction" as a substitute for an approved language test

Exemption from requirements for proof of English: The following applicants are exempt from the above requirements:

• Applicants who have their upper secondary school education from the Nordic countries, EU/EEA countries or Switzerland
• Applicants with at least one year of completed university studies in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Great Britain, USA
• Applicants with an International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma
• Applicants with a completed bachelor's and/or master's degree with English as the language of instruction in one of the Nordic countries or the Netherlands*
• Applicants with a completed master's degree with English as the language of instruction in an EU/EEA country or Switzerland.*
• In addition, applicants from certain countries are exempt from the requirement for an English test: See Country list

NB! Applicants with upper secondary education from EU/EEA countries or Switzerland do not need to document English requirements, even if this is stated in the country list.

* Level of study and language of instruction must be documented. Attach a confirmation from the educational institution if it does not appear from the Diploma Supplement or an official transcript that the language of instruction was English.

Publication list: Attach a list of scientific articles that have been accepted or published. This is not mandatory. If you have a master's degree that is shorter than 5 years, a publication list can cover the additional requirement.

Relevant publications: This is not mandatory

Enter type of employment: If you receive a salary from UiB, select "UiB as employer". For all other conditions, select "Employer outside UiB".

UiB as an employer

Main source of funding: Choose from the drop-down menu where you will get most of your funding from.

Other sources of funding: Any other sources of funding.

Workplace: State where you work on a daily basis.

PhD period from and to: The dates must be the same as the dates of your employment contract.

Is the position part of a larger research project?: Select yes if it is part of e.g. an NFR project. Select No if you are unsure or if it is not part of a project.

Upload employment agreement: It is mandatory to upload an employment agreement from UiB.

Employer outside UiB

Main funding source: State where you get most of the funding from, it can be NFR, the EU or other sources.

Other sources of funding: Any other sources of funding.

Workplace: State where you work on a daily basis.

PhD period from and to: Must be the same as the dates of your employment contract if you are employed in a research position. If you are a permanent employee, business PhD etc. you must state the period it has been agreed that you will work on the PhD project, including any compulsory work.

Is the position part of a larger research project?: Select yes if it is part of e.g. an NFR project. Select No if you are unsure or if it is not part of a project.

Upload proof of funding or declaration: It is mandatory to upload documents showing funding, e.g. employment agreement, agreement on industrial PhD. etc. You must have clarified with the department you will be affilieted with that you have approved funding for a PhD project if you do not have funding via an external PhD position, or as a business PhD. In the case of other types of funding sources, it must be clarified how living expenses, expenses for the research project, including operating costs, stays abroad etc. are to be covered before the application is sent. If this is not agreed, it may lead to the department/faculty rejecting your application for admission.

The project description must be prepared in collaboration with the main supervisor. The research education committee will assess the project description when processing the applicantion.

Requirements for content in the project description

When applying for admission, a project description must be attached. Everyone who applies for admission to the PhD program must have established contact with a supervisor employed at UiB.

The project description must be prepared by the candidate in collaboration with the proposed supervisory committee and must form the framework for the PhD project.

The project description must be short and concise, normally 4-10 pages, including a list of references. The project description can have a limited number of figures.

The project description must contain the following elements:

• Academic background ("state-of-the-art"). This includes the candidate's knowledge status, as well as how the planned project will add new knowledge to the specified field of research.
• Academic issue, methodology and project objectives. Division into sub-works with associated schedule. Explanation of what is expected to be achieved. Preferably verifiable hypotheses.
• Data bases, methods and statistics.
• Responsibilities and roles shall be specified for each of the members of the supervisory committee.
• Overview of partners, stays abroad, co-participation, etc.
• Key references
• Progress plan for the work with verifiable milestones. The progress plan must include a publication plan. The progress plan must be able to be used in connection with mid-term evaluation and progress reporting.

Supervisor(s)

Provide information about who will be in your supervisor committee. You must add one main supervisor and at least one co-supervisor.

Affiliation: External is anyone who is not employed at UiB. Those employed in Adjunct Professor positions at UiB are internal.

Position category: If the supervisor is not a Professor or Associate Professor etc., use the position the supervisor is employed as, for example researcher, project manager etc.

Confirmation from supervisor

Upload a signed confirmation from the main supervisor ("The project description has been approved", date and signature)

Plan for the coursework component

Add the courses and research courses that should be included in your coursework componenet/education plan. If you have taken courses previously that are to be included (maximum 10 credits), these must also be entered. Requirements for the training part:

The training part must comprise 30 credits and consists of the following elements:

• Courses, research courses, special syllabus, 20-22 credits (Formal part).
• Philosophy of science and ethics, 5 credits (Ethics).
• Dissemination, 3-5 credits. Including presentation at an international conference (Dissemination).

Additional information about the requirements can be found in the programme description.

Category: Select Formal part, Ethics or Dissemination.

Semester and year: Which year will you take the subject or course.

Planned stays abroad

If you have planned stays abroad, you can register it here.