Funding Program: PhD Programs of the University of Bern 2025–2028

Within the scope of its multi-year planning, the Executive Board of the University of Bern has provided funds for the continuation of the internal funding program “PhD Programs of the University of Bern” for the period 2025–2028.  

The purpose of the “PhD Programs of the University of Bern 2025–2028” is to offer high-quality, research-supporting educational programs that are conducive to developing and expanding research and interdisciplinary skills, thus equipping PhD students with excellent qualifications for a research-centered career in both academia and industry.

The following PhD programs are supported within the scope of the “PhD Programs of the University of Bern 2025–2028”: 

PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The Interdisciplinary PhD Program Classical Studies supports doctoral students in developing interdisciplinary skills and affords them the opportunity to participate in shaping the program.  
Leitung Dr. Seraina Ruprecht (Institute of History)
Kontakt seraina.ruprecht@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Faculty of Humanities: Institute of History, Institute of Archaeological Sciences, Institute of Classical Philology, Department of Linguistics, Institute of Philosophy
  • Faculty of Medicine: Institute of Forensic Medicine
  • Faculty of Law: Institute of Roman Law
  • Faculty of Theology: Institute of Historical Theology, Institute of Jewish Studies, Institute of Old Testament Studies, Institute for New Testament Studies
Partnerhochschule University of Münster, Münster School of Ancient Cultures
Mehr Informationen Interdisciplinary PhD Program Classical Studies
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The BENEFRI Neuroscience PhD Program is a specialized program of the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences that provides doctoral students with additional training in neuroscience. The basic part of the program is divided into structural and functional neuroscience modules, delivered through a series of neuroscience lectures and exams. The program gives insight into various areas of neuroscience in annually held workshops.  
Leitung Prof. Antoine Adamantidis (Department for Biomedical Research) und Prof. Stephane Ciocchi (Department of Physiology)
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Inselspital Bern
  • Faculty of Science
Partnerhochschule University of Fribourg
Mehr Informationen BENEFRI Neuroscience PhD Program
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The Doctoral Program for Brain and Behavioral Sciences offers a semi-structured, research-centered curriculum with subject-focused courses and annual summer courses for doctoral students, with participation of experienced researchers and doctoral students who explore questions of brain and behavioral science, scientific writing, research methodology and statistics. 
Leitung Dr. Nicole Ruffieux (Institute of Psychology)
Kontakt madeleine.haenggli@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Human Sciences: Institute of Psychology
Mehr Informationen Doctoral Program for Brain and Behavioral Sciences
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The Cardiovascular Research PhD Program is a specialized program of the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences that offers doctoral students the opportunity to acquire in-depth training in cardiovascular research. The program includes various teaching formats, some of which are offered by partner universities. The program also supports research stays abroad, networking opportunities and workshops for further professional development.  
Leitung Prof. Sarah Longnus (Department for BioMedical Research), Prof. Katja Odening (University Clinic for Cardiology, Inselspital Bern)
Kontakt maria.arnold2@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences
  • Faculty of Medicine
Partnerhochschulen
  • Università della Svizzera italiana
  • University of Lausanne
  • Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Mehr Informationen Cardiovascular Research PhD Program
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The PhD Program Cell Migration is a specialization program of the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences and is organized by various Swiss research groups in the field of cell migration in morphogenesis, immunosurveillance, inflammation and cancer. The course program consists of, inter alia, lectures, practical courses, journal clubs and annual retreats. It is directed at doctoral students in the fields of biology, biochemistry, (molecular) human and veterinary medicine, immunology, pharmaceutical sciences, chemistry, physics, bioinformatics and mathematics with a focus on life sciences.  
Leitung Prof. Britta Engelhardt (Theodor Kocher Institut)
Kontakt britta.engelhardt@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences
  • Faculty of Medicine: Theodor Kocher Institute
  • Vetsuisse Faculty: Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health
  • Inselspital Bern: University Clinic for Visceral Surgery and Medicine
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Fribourg
  • University of Genevva
  • Institute of Cell Biology and Immunology Thurgau
  • Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Università della Svizzera italiana
Mehr Informationen PhD Program Cell Migration
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb Doctoral students of the PhD Program in Chemistry and Molecular Sciences benefit from high-quality seminars held by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and nearby institutes. This includes participation in the “First Year Graduate Student Symposium" at the end of the first year, with the chance of winning the “Best Presentation Award”. Every year, it is customary for students to attend a summer school or an international conference to present their work. 
Leitung Prof. Jean-Louis Reymond (Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences)
Kontakt stefan.lisiecki@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Science: Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Partnerhochschule Universität Zürich: Graduate School of Chemical and Molecular Sciences Zurich
Mehr Informationen PhD Program in Chemistry and Molecular Sciences
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The Cutting Edge Microscopy PhD Program is an interdisciplinary specialization program of the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences. The program trains life science students to become researchers with in-depth knowledge of advanced microscopy and image analysis, and with the necessary expertise to develop automated image analysis protocols. 
Leitung Prof. Benoît Zuber (Institute of Anatomy) und PD Dr. Steven Proulx (Theodor Kocher Institute)
Kontakt ruth.lyck@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Microsocopy Imaging Center
  • Faculty of Science
  • Vetsuisse Faculty
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Fribourg
  • Università della Svizzera italiana
  • Dubochet Center for Imaging 
  • University of Göttingen
Mehr Informationen Cutting Edge Microscopy PhD Program
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The PhD Program in Digital Humanities supports doctoral students by way of offering workshops, summer schools and a range of networking opportunities. The program is aimed at doctoral students in the domains of humanities, social sciences, applied mathematics and computer science. 
Leitung Prof. Tobias Hodel (Walter Benjamin Kolleg/Digital Humanities)
Kontakt dh@wbkolleg.unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Faculty of Humanities: Digital Humanities, Walter Benjamin Kolleg, Graduate School of the Arts and the Humanities
  • Interdisciplinary Centre for Gender Studies 
  • Faculty of Science: Institute of Computer Science
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Basel
  • University of Geneva
  • University of Lausanne
  • Extended ENLIGHT Group (Universities of Groningen, Uppsala, Durham, Tübingen)
Mehr Informationen PhD Program in Digital Humanities
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The PhD Program in Macro-Finance equips participating doctoral students with comprehensive knowledge of theoretical and empirical macroeconomics and enables them to analyze and address the intricate feedback loops between financial markets and the real economy. The most important elements of the program include workshops and courses with renowned international researchers.
Leitung Prof. Pierpaolo Benigno (Department of Economics) and Prof. Julien Cujean (Institute of Financial Management)
Kontakt pierpaolo.benigno@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences: Department of Economics, Institute of Financial Management
Mehr Informationen PhD Program in Macro-Finance
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The PhD Program in Accounting Research focuses on relevant topics and research methods applied in accounting research. The program gives doctoral students the opportunity to meet with leading researchers and benefit from their expertise, experience and support.  
Leitung Prof. Alexis H. Kunz (Institute for Accounting and Controlling)
Kontakt alexis.kunz@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences, Institute for Accounting and Controlling
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Zurich
  • University of Basel
  • University of Neuchâtel
  • University of Graz
  • University of Vienna
  • Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Mehr Informationen Swiss Doctoral Program Network in Accounting Research
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The inter-university PhD Program in Problem-Oriented Sports Science aims to consolidate supervision through tutors from various sports science sub-disciplines and to promote problem-oriented and interdisciplinary thinking and collaborations. The program also gives participants the opportunity to network with other doctoral students and create international peer groups. 
Leitung Prof. Mirko Schmidt (Institute of Sport Science)
Kontakt moritz.engel@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Human Sciences: Institute of Sport Science
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Stirling
  • University of Augsburg
  • Chemnitz University of Technology
  • University of Limerick
  • University of Tübingen
Mehr Informationen PhD Program in Problem-Oriented Sports Science
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The interdisciplinary and inter-university program “Doctoral Training in Public Administration” delivers PhD students of public administration the knowledge required to implement their respective projects in the broad field of public administration. The program focuses on both theoretical and methodological questions and brings participating students together with leading academics in the domain of public administration. This is a joint program of the University of Lausanne, the University of Bern and the Università della Svizzera Italiana (USI). 
Leitung Prof. Fritz Sager (KPM Center for Public Management)
Kontakt fritz.sager@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • KPM Center for Public Management
  • Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences
Partnerhochschulen
  • University of Lausanne, Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (Leading House)
  • Università della Svizzera italiana
Mehr Informationen SPAN Doctoral Training in Public Administration (University of Lausanne)
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The interdisciplinary Public Health Sciences Course Program is an optional program complementary to the offerings of the Graduate School for Health Sciences and the Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences. The program offers a broad variety of subject-specific and methodological courses. It is recommended for PhD students focused on public health topics and who want to prepare for a post-doc position in the world of academia or within a science-related organization. 
Leitung Prof. Matthias Egger (Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine)
Kontakt phs-info.ispm@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE
  • Graduate School for Health Sciences
  • Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences
  • Graduate School of Climate Sciences
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Vetsuisse Faculty
  • Faculty of Human Sciences: Institute of Psychology, Institute of Sport Science
  • Faculty of Business, Economics ​and Social Sciences, Department of Economics
  • Faculty of ​Humanities, Institute of Philosophy
  • Faculty of Law, KPM Center for Public Management
Partnerhochschulen
  • Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol
  • University of Duisburg-Essen
  • ENLIGHT partner universities: Victor Segalen University Bordeaux, universities in Ghent, Galway, Uppsala, and Groningen
  • London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
  • Harvard University
  • Bern University of Appliced Sciences
Mehr Informationen Public Health Sciences Course Program
PhD Program
Kurzbeschrieb The PhD Program in Criminal Law offers wide-ranging, internationally competitive education and individual supervision of doctoral theses by a team of mentors. It also promotes subject-specific and methodological cooperation and understanding between related disciplines.  
Leitung Prof. Martino Mona (Institute for Penal Law and Criminology)
Kontakt filip.vojta@unibe.ch
Beteiligte Einheiten UniBE Faculty of Law: Institute for Penal Law and Criminology
Partnerhochschulen
  • Universität Białystok
  • University of Göttingen
  • Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony (KFN)
  • Charles University, Prague
Mehr Informationen PhD Program in Criminal Law
PhD Program
Brief description The inter-university and interdisciplinary PhD Program in Theology encompasses various courses with a particular focus on acquiring in-depth knowledge of subject-specific, interdisciplinary, methodological-technical and other skills. The program also promotes research studies abroad and offers initiation opportunities for special events. 
Lead Prof. Andreas Wagner (Institute of Old Testament Studies)
Contact andreas.wagner2@unibe.ch
Participating UniBE units Faculty of Theology
Partner universities
  • University of Basel
  • University of Zurich
Further information PhD Program of the Faculties of Theology of the Universities of Basel, Bern and Zurich