How long: doctoral programmes at public universities take at least 3 years. Only universities and accredited private universities award doctorates – universities of applied sciences do not.
Your status: you enrol as a student. In structured programmes (doctoral schools, Doktoratskollegs) candidates are usually employed by the university on fixed-term contracts and work on research topics set in advance.
How to get in: a relevant master's or diploma degree; a foreign degree must be recognised as equivalent. Doctoral schools select candidates in a competitive procedure.
Where to look: doctoral positions and calls are published on the websites of universities and their doctoral schools and on EURAXESS. Programmes in Austria in our database: Austria – 171 doctoral programmes (as of September 2026) »
Sources: Eurydice – national description of third-cycle (PhD) programmes (updated 22 August 2026). As of October 2026.
Sources: European Commission – Study in Europe (education.ec.europa.eu/study-in-europe), Eurostat, official national study and residence portals and authorities, Eurodesk, enic-naric.net, studentnews.eu. As of September 2026.
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