Admission requirements

The prerequisite for admission to the Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations is a qualified dissertation project at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Basel, which is supervised by a faculty member of the Department of Ancient Civilizations as first or second supervisor.

Admission is possible at any time and is granted upon application (letter of motivation) and a short project outline (2-3 pages) for the consideration of the executive board, which reviews and evaluates the documents.

For further information, see the Regulations and Procedures of the Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations.

Study program

The study program of the Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations offers a wide variety of courses and combination options in relation to the spectrum of subjects. Event types encompass research colloquia, workshops, summer schools, junior scholar conferences, lecture series, research seminars, and more.

The doctoral program is designed for a minimum duration of 6 semesters, during which 18 credits must be earned. It consists of two compulsory modules and one elective module.

Module "Disciplinary Course Offers" (9 - 12 credits).

These courses are usually provided by each subject area and serve to deepen the doctoral students' specialized knowledge as well as to integrate them into current subject-specific research. They aim to provide excellent expert training for doctoral students.

Module "Interdisciplinary Course Offers" (6 - 9 credits).

These events are provided jointly by all subject areas of the Department of Ancient Civilizations. The courses offered in this module can be designed interdisciplinarily or within the narrower framework of specific disciplines. The courses aim to sensitize doctoral students to current questions in related research areas and to integrate their own research or subject area into broader theory-focused scholarly discourses in the domain of cultural studies of antiquity.

Module "Transferable Skills" (0 - 3 credits).

Credits may be awarded for the acquisition of transferable skills (e.g., writing workshops, Scientific English Writing).

Grants in the Doctoral Program

The Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations awards travel grants upon application, of a maximum amount of CHF 500 per year.

The following prerequisites apply:

1. Funding is only available to doctoral students who hold full membership of the Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations.
2. A grant will be approved if there are no other possibilities for funding.
3. The travel must be directly related to the dissertation project.
4. The application must be accompanied by the confirmation of the supervisor.
5. The application can only be submitted after completion of the trip. Advance payments are excluded.
6. A grant will only be awarded to doctoral students who have not yet completed the fifth year of their dissertation project.
7. The application must demonstrate the connection between the dissertation project and the travel. Original receipts must be attached to the application.
8. The doctoral student has no claims to funding.

The Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations awards grants for workshops upon application, of a maximum amount of CHF 1500.- per year. For doctoral students applying for funding jointly, the maximum request amount is CHF 3000.- per year.

1. Only doctoral students who hold full membership of the Basel Doctoral Program in Ancient Civilizations are eligible for funding.
2. A grant will be approved if there are no other possibilities for funding.
3. The workshop must be directly related to the dissertation project.
4. The application must be accompanied by the confirmation of the supervisor.
5. A grant will only be awarded to doctoral students who have not yet completed the fifth year of their dissertation project.
6. The application must demonstrate the connection between the dissertation project and the workshop.
7. No cumulative grant will be awarded.
8. The proposal must outline the connection between the dissertation project and the workshop. The application must be accompanied by a budget estimate. In special cases, the money can be paid in advance.
9. The doctoral student has no claims to funding.

Applications are to be sent directly to the coordinator of the Doctoral Program (Dr. H.-H. Münch; .

The Transferable Skills programme is aimed at all doctoral students and postdocs at the University of Basel. The programme provides support during the doctoral and postdoctoral phase and prepares researchers for new and further research and professional activities within and outside the university. The courses offer doctoral students and postdocs at the University of Basel a free programme for creative and interdisciplinary exchange. The faculty's programme can be found at the bottom of the page.

Fall semester 2025

Online registration for the autumn semester 2025 will open on Wednesday, 6 August 2025, at 9 am. After the registration window opens, course registrations will be collected for 24 hours and places will then be allocated by lot. All registrations received after the first 24 hours will be placed on a waiting list according to the time of receipt of the registration.

https://www.unibas.ch/de/Universitaet/Administration-Services/Vizerektorat-Lehre/Bildungsangebote/Graduate-Center/Transferable-Skills.html

This page contains useful links on the subject of promotion.

This page is updated on regularly.

Guide:

https://www.zeit.de/campus/ratgeber-promotion/index

https://www.unibe.ch/unibe/portal/content/e1133/e9816/e550983/e1533169/e41500/e50549/section99530/files99539/IASH_RatgeberFeb2013-2_ger.pdf

https://pphs.unibas.ch/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Leitfaden_Erfolgreich-promovieren_2015_WEB.pdf