How to apply and admission

PhD Design

How to apply and admission

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

  • 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.

The master's degree must normally be within a subject area that falls under the PhD program in design. If you have a different professional background, you can be admitted after an overall assessment of the project, theme and project description.

Financing

Financing is an absolute requirement. Most PhD candidates at NTNU are employed as research fellows. Available positions are announced at NTNU's web pages and through jobbnorge.no

You can also organize funding directly with another employer or via the Research Council in the form of a business PhD or public sector PhD.

Supervisor

Before you apply for admission to a PhD programme, you should already have a main supervisor prepared. So make early contact with the relevant academic environment to find a possible main supervisor.

Read more about PhD candidate supervision.

See section 8 about supervision in the Faculty of Architecture and Design's complementary guidelines to the PhD regulations (in Norwegian). 

Project description

You must submit a complete project description together with your application. The project description should be 5–10 pages.

Please use the form Project description - Proposal for content under the heading “Getting started”.

Apply for admission

Application form

Please use the application form Application for admission under the heading “Alternative forms”.

Application content

The application for admission must contain:

  1. Certificate for completed master's degree or equivalent education including transcript
  2. Diplomas from other relevant schools/studies
  3. Complete project description
  4. If applicable, a form listing your individual reading syllabus
  5. Publication list
  6. Confirmation of any completed courses that are to be included in the theoretical syllabus
  7. Other relevant information, for example relevant work experience

Please send your application to the Faculty of Architecture and Design via the Department of Design. 

More information about the application process

  • The application must be recommended by your main supervisor.
  • Applications are processed continuously and the start date will correspond to the start of your funding.
  • If the application is in order and all documentation is attached, you will receive an answer within a few weeks.

See also NTNU's central web pages about admission to PhD programs

Find everything about the doctoral degree at NTNU on the Doctoral degree page PhD 1-2-3 For NTNU's PhD Candidates.