To be accepted to a PhD programme at NTNU, you must have:

• a funding plan
• completed at least five years of higher education that includes a master's degree or other equivalent degree.
• a strong academic record and a weighted average for the last two years of your master's degree equivalent to a B or higher in NTNU's grading scale.

If your previous education is from outside of Norway, you may contact HK-dir (the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills) to have your education assessed and recognized, another option is that the Faculty completes a similar assessment while considering your application.

Financing

Financing is an absolute requirement for acceptance to a PhD-programme at NTNU. Unlike in most other countries, PhD candidates in Norway are not considered students and PhD candidates are usually employees of the institution from which they receive their funding.

Most PhD candidates at NTNU are employed as PhD research fellows (stipendiat) at NTNU or a university college.

Available positions are announced at NTNU's web pages and through jobbnorge.

Other sources of funding:

• by agreement with your regular employer
• the Research Council of Norway under the Industrial PhD scheme or the Public sector PhD scheme
• other national or international scholarships

Working in Norway has its own benefits and challenges. NTNU International Researcher Support (NIRS) offers counselling services for administrative staff and researchers working at or visiting NTNU. They also have information for people considering NTNU as a work place and on what to expect with a move to Norway.

Supervision

It is important that you get in touch with the research group and find a potential supervisor as early in the process as possible. The main supervisor should be ready when you apply for the programme, and you should have at least two academic supervisors. By contacting the department or browsing their web pages you should be able to find information on the academic staff, their field of research and who might be of interest to you and your project. If you are employed as part of a larger research project, your main supervisor will usually be part of the project group. At least one of your supervisors, usually your main supervisor, must be employed at NTNU. This also applies for externally funded PhD candidates.

Application process

Applications for admission to the PhD programme are to be submitted through the Department of your subject area.

Your application is written up in cooperation with your main supervisor. Acceptance to a PhD-programme is done continuously throughout the academic year and is not restricted to the beginning of term. In addition to the fixed application form, your application must contain:

• Documentation of former education qualifying you for a PhD, along with any diploma supplement and/or NOKUT assessment if available
• Documentation of education obtained outside of Norway
• Documentation of funding for the entire PhD-period
• Project description, either complete or preliminary. If you are allowed to hand in a preliminary project description, a complete version must be made available within six months of admission.

You should also detail any legal or ethical issues related to the project. If the project is dependent on approval by ethical committees or other government entities or private individuals, such approval should be enclosed with the application if possible. The individual faculty or programme may have their own application form or procedures.