The current rules and guidelines for the PhD programme are available on the Aarhus BSS Graduate School website. We encourage PhD students and their supervisors to familiarise themselves with the website, which contains updated information, guidelines and various templates, as well as answers to frequently asked questions about the PhD programme.
The following summarises some of the most important information, together with special conditions for PSY (including the Centre for Drug Research). In addition, our PhD students have prepared a 'survival guide' containing practical information and recommendations. This is given to all new PhD students when they start.
If you have any further questions, please contact the head of PhD programme.
Information meetings about the PhD programme are held biannually for interested students, typically at the beginning of December and June.
Aarhus BSS Graduate School has six PhD field programmes, one of which is for psychology. PhD students enrol here with the aim of obtaining a PhD in psychology, or in business and social sciences. The graduate school is led by René Chester Goduscheit, the faculty's vice-dean for research and talent development, assisted by Randi Groslier Bjælde, the PhD partner.
Dorthe Kirkegaard Thomsen is the head of PhD programme at PSY.
Department secretary Gitte Arildsen is the PhD Secretary, and research secretary Anette Christensen is responsible for advertising and administering PhD courses.
The PhD committee at PSY is responsible for the PhD programme and for assessing applicants for PhD scholarships. See the members of the committee.
Further, Aarhus BSS Graduate School has a PhD committee with the powers set out in the University Act. The committee comprises elected VIP and PhD representatives, with one representative from each PhD field programme. The VIP representatives act as representatives of their respective PhD programmes. The committee meets around four times a year to discuss the PhD programme.
According to the Ministerial Order on the PhD Programme, PhD students must attend PhD courses equivalent to 30 ECTS, which is equivalent to half a year of full-time work. One ECTS point corresponds to approx. 27 hours of work.
Aarhus BSS Graduate School distinguishes between internal and external PhD courses:
All other PhD courses, e.g. those offered by other faculties at AU, other Danish research institutions or universities abroad.
Note: Courses offered by PSY's sister departments count as internal.
External courses can only be included if they have been pre-approved by:
15 ECTS must be earned through internal courses. The remaining 15 ECTS can be earned through external courses or conferences.
PhD students can earn up to 5 of their final 15 ECTS by participating in conferences, either by giving an oral presentation or by contributing a poster.
Please note that conference participation must be approved in advance, just like external courses (see guidelines and application form for preapproval of external courses).
Example: For a three-day conference with a presentation on one day, the following is earned: 1 ECTS for the presentation + 2 × 0.5 ECTS for participation = 2 ECTS in total.
The guidelines state that PhD students must present their project and research results to a forum of senior researchers at least twice during their studies. The first presentation should be given within the first year and can be held in the relevant research unit, for instance in connection with the annual assessment by the board of supervisors (‘vejlederkollegiet’ in Danish), or at PSY's annual research conference.
The supervision framework is set at 15 hours per semester for the main supervisor and 5 hours for the co-supervisor. Supervisors are, of course, obliged to provide supervision that is both sufficiently extensive and of an appropriate standard. This can be achieved by students explicitly expressing their wishes and needs, and by supervisors and students jointly agreeing on the agenda for supervision meetings. According to the guidelines, the student's PhD plan must detail the requirements and expectations of the supervision process for both parties. This includes the form and frequency of supervision. The main supervisor and the PhD student must confirm via ongoing evaluations on the MyPhD platform that the supervision process has been satisfactory.
If problems with supervision arise that cannot be resolved through dialogue with the supervisor, they can be discussed in a confidential conversation with the head of programme or another member of the PhD committee (see below). If these problems cannot be resolved through dialogue, a change of supervisor may be necessary.
According to the PhD school guidelines, PhD students are required to undertake teaching duties as part of their studies. AU is obliged to offer teaching/knowledge dissemination courses. These are provided by the Centre for Educational Development (CED).
PSY has decided that PhD students must carry out 420 hours of teaching, calculated according to the norms for members of academic staff (VIP). This lower number of hours compared to the 840-hour upper limit for VIPs is justified by the fact that PhD students are expected to spend relatively more time preparing for their teaching duties.
According to the guidelines, PhD students must conduct at least one independent teaching course related to their PhD project in terms of method and/or subject. Typically, this takes the form of a one-semester course.
In addition to the required course, PhD students are requested to participate in various teaching activities, such as giving lectures and marking examination papers, as well as providing feedback.
PhD students commencing their four-year study programme must teach for 180 hours during the first two years (part A), which corresponds to an instructor course. In the final two years (part B), the teaching obligation increases to 240 hours. Students who teach for more than 180 hours in part A can ‘save up’ for part B; however, they must complete an independent course related to their own research project. PhD students are not eligible to independently be in charge of teaching courses or exams during the first two years of the programme.
Research fellows in the four-year programme commence their studies having completed between 60 and 90 ECTS credits of the master’s programme. If more than 60 ECTS credits have been earned, this time is deducted from part A of the fellowship. Part A consists of regular coursework equivalent to 60 ECTS credits within the master’s programme, including the master’s thesis, as well as PhD courses and research related to the PhD project, totalling the remaining 60 ECTS credits.
The thesis is specially designed to accommodate PhD study (see below). It is examined after two years, immediately before the end of part A (normally in August or January), to allow the salary conditions for part B to be finalised before this part begins. As with regular theses for the master’s degree, there is external examination and grading. The thesis requirements are also mentioned in the curriculum.
A 4+4 PhD student is enrolled for four years, i.e. two years as a student and two years as a staff member.
Before the final two years of the 4+4 PhD programme, students must submit their MA thesis (parts A and B, plus part C, which is a synopsis). This must be submitted electronically (WiseFlow).
The exam must be completed within the month prior to the final part of the programme, i.e. after the part C synopsis has been submitted. Failure to meet this deadline may result in consequences relating to salary payment, the duration of the PhD programme and other factors.
The A part of the MA thesis must be submitted at the end of the 1st semester (see PhD plan), and the B part must be submitted in the 2nd or 3rd semester (see PhD plan).
Part C (the synopsis) must be submitted together with parts A and B via WiseFlow no later than one month before transitioning to the final two years of the programme.
No later than two months before the final part of the programme begins, you and your supervisor must forward the completed co-examiner form to department secretary Britta Drachmann Agerskov (bdagerskov@psy.au.dk).
Once you have completed your oral exam and received your grade, please email your result to the PhD secretary. The PhD secretary will then confirm your employment for the next two years.
On account of salary payment, the duration of the PhD study programme and other factors, the oral exam (can be conducted online) must be completed exactly within the month before the final part of the 4+4 PhD programme begins. Accordingly, the exam should not take place either before or after this month.
No later than two months before the final part of the 4+4 PhD programme begins, you must forward the completed co-examiner form to department secretary Britta Drachmann Agerskov (bdagerskov@psy.au.dk), who will take care of the appointment.
The co-examiner form must state that the thesis is part of a 4+4 PhD programme for which expert knowledge is required (specific topics and methods must be clearly specified). The form must also state that an oral examination is included (can be conducted online).
In addition, the form must provide a clear description of the thesis topic.
See also the below 'Appendix'.
The MSc thesis for 4-year dual MSc/PhD students (4+4) at the Department of Psychology and Behavioural Sciences (approved on 1 April 2008)
Thesis part and TIME schedule | DESCRIPTION | Scope | Assessment |
A-Part: A review 9th semester | A review of relevant literature is prepared (cf. guidelines in APA Publication Manual). Note! The review must undergo substantial alteration in order to form part of the dissertation (the paper has already been given merit as part of the Master degree). It is recommended that the review is written in English, but this is not a requirement. | 20-30 standard pages | At first, the review has to pass the assessment of the principal supervisor; however, it will be regarded as background material to the oral examination (C-Part of MSc thesis) in its unedited form. The result appears from the biannual assessment. |
B-Part: Project description 10th semester | A thoroughly prepared project description. | 5-10 standard pages
| As in the A-Part. |
C-Part: Oral synopsis examination 12th semester | Oral examination, 12th semester. A synopsis of 5 pages must be submitted no later than 5 weeks before the examination. The background material (A+B Parts) forms part of the assessment. | 1 hour: 20 minutes of introductory presentation followed by 40 minutes of examination | External examiner present. The assessment is primarily based on the oral synopsis examination (C-Part). An audience may be present at the examination. |
A welcome meeting is arranged for new PhD students, and an established mentoring scheme assigns new students an older student to provide support and guidance. Students also arrange monthly lunch meetings, called SMASK meetings (which is an acronym without a direct meaning in Danish). Various ongoing interest groups have also been set up, such as writing and statistics groups.
Regular meetings are arranged between students, the head of department and the head of programme to discuss PhD student conditions. In addition, various workshops are organised, including those for career development.
PhD students are entitled to participate in 'LIM' (management information meetings) at PSY. These take place on the first Tuesday of February, April, September and November.
According to the Aarhus BSS Graduate School guidelines, PhD study involves a long-term stay at a high-standard, internationally renowned research institution, ideally abroad, for a minimum of three months. For four-year scholarships, this placement must take place in the second half of the programme, after the master's degree has been obtained (to avoid delaying it). Any alternatives to a three-month stay at a research institution abroad must be discussed and approved by the main supervisor, the head of programme and the head of the graduate school.
Upon application, PSY may grant DKK 35,000 for studies abroad, provided the stay lasts at least three months. Smaller amounts may be granted for shorter stays abroad (upon application). Please note that funding from other sources must be used first.
It has been decided that Staff Development Dialogues (SDDs) with PhD students will be held once a year. SDDs are delegated by the head of department to the head of programme at PSY or the relevant centre manager.
You can contact the head of programme or another member of the PhD committee at any time for a confidential discussion about any concerns or issues.
For matters relating to employment terms and working conditions, please contact the local union representative, Jacob Klitmøller, or the deputy.
The following applies to all external grants, including those from the Danish Council for Independent Research Humanities [FKK] and scholarships:
In addition to the grants for stays abroad mentioned above, PSY makes a discretionary amount of DKK 30,000 available for use in connection with travel, books, and other materials relevant to the PhD project. The use of these funds must be approved by the PhD secretary.
Furthermore, a special bonus of DKK 25,000 is awarded to PhD graduates who submit their thesis on time (without needing to make any changes to its content). This bonus is granted automatically, without application. A publication bonus of DKK 10,000 is granted for an article that has been published or approved for publication in a recognised, peer-reviewed scientific journal. Applications for the publication bonus must be submitted to the head of the graduate school via the chair of the PhD committee at PSY no later than 12 months after the defence.
Contact the PhD secretary a few months before submission to receive practical information.
The thesis must be submitted electronically to the PhD secretary. PSY will print 40 copies for use at the public PhD defence.
For three-year PhD students and four-year dual MA/PhD students on the B-Part, holiday allocation is in accordance with the collective agreement (Holidays with Pay Act). Holiday periods must be reported to the PhD secretary, who is responsible for holiday registration.
If you are absent due to illness, please inform your supervisor and the PhD secretary via email. If you are going to be absent for a prolonged period, you should also inform the graduate school.
If you are going on parental leave, please contact the PhD secretary, who will provide you with the relevant forms to complete. Further information about parental leave regulations can be found on the graduate school website.