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How to apply

1. Choosing a laboratory, a director and a thesis subject

To begin preparing your dossier, you must first contact laboratories partnered with the doctoral school to find a thesis director who agrees to monitor and assist you throughout your doctoral studies. Your director will also help you define your thesis subject. In most cases, theses subjects are proposed by the laboratories. However, you may propose your own subject as long as this is in line with the study field of the research unit.
A publication of the thesis offer on the website of the ED is required before any application.

More information on the doctoral school's research teams

2. Locating financial aid

In order to be admitted into the PhD program, you must justify a minimum funding equivalent to the amount of the academic doctoral contract. This funding must cover the entire duration of your thesis. In most cases, your research team will assist you in locating financial assistance.

More information on financial assistance

Doctoral contract

3. Preparing an application form

Once you have decided upon your thesis subject and found a thesis director you may submit your application to the doctoral school who will then examine the admissibility of your candidacy on both academic (your motivation, the excellence of your academic achievements, your geographic and/or thematic mobility, etc.) and administrative criteria (required degrees, adequacy of your experience to the proposed research project, etc.).
Your completed application must be sent to the school secretary and contain all the required documents.

Download the application form

4. Enrolling as a PhD student

After examination and acceptance of the student’s dossier by the admissions board, the student will receive an email from the Doctoral School, with the necessary details to log into the ADUM site to complete the registration process.
Once logged into the website you will be required to provide a host of information pertaining to you (address, thesis project, thesis director, funding …) and it is important that all the sections are filled in. Once completed, your registration will be completed in just a few clicks and validated by your thesis director, the head of your research laboratory and the ED school.

After printing out the document, validated by all concerned, you will need to go to the ‘Direction des études doctorales’ of your establishment (Lyon 1 or Lyon 2) to enroll. This is also where you will pay your registration dues: the first payment of these fees marks the start of your time as a PhD student and that you now have, in principal, 3 years in which to complete your doctorate.

More information on registering for the PhD program