How long: 3–4 years, at least 180 credit points full-time. Only universities may run doctoral programmes; you receive the Doktors degree after a public defence.
Your status: mostly a student – either on a state-funded place with a monthly stipend or paying a study fee. Some universities employ doctoral candidates as research staff. Most programmes are in Latvian, but some are taught in English.
How to get in: a master's degree; applications usually in July–August, followed by an entrance test or interview.
Where to look: doctoral positions and calls are published on the websites of universities and their doctoral schools and on EURAXESS. Programmes in Latvia in our database: Latvia – 88 doctoral programmes (as of September 2026) »
Sources: Eurydice – national description of third-cycle (PhD) programmes (updated 14 January 2024). 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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