The doctorate is the highest diploma in higher education. Thanks to its demanding academic training and excellence, it provides a Bac+8 level of education.
A large part of the university’s research activity revolves around theses, which are written by doctoral students over an average period of three to four years.
To enable them to carry out their research, there are several ways of financing their thesis.
Doctoral contract
Created by the decree of April 23, 2009 and amended by the decree of August 29, 2016 on contract doctoral students in public higher education or research establishments, the three-year doctoral contract is offered to doctoral students recruited by public higher education establishments, research organizations and the Normandy Region.
The doctoral contract provides legal and financial stability for doctoral students, enabling them to invest more in their research and achieve a higher success rate at doctoral level.
- This is a 3-year fixed-term employment contract (CDD) which enables a university, public research organization or other public institution to recruit a doctoral researcher to carry out research work (thesis).
- Sources of funding may include: ESR institutions (e.g. grants), local authorities, ANR-type calls for projects, Europe, etc.
- Contract doctoral students are subject to the public law governing non-tenured government employees.
The “handicap” doctoral contract
The specific “handicap” doctoral contract is open to students with RQTH recognition, as part of an annual award campaign run by the Ministry or Universities.
It aims to encourage students with disabilities to continue their studies up to the highest level, create a pool of PhD graduates to meet recruitment needs in both academia and business, encourage and support higher education establishments to implement the provisions arising from the laws of February 11, 2005 for equal rights and opportunities, participation and citizenship for people with disabilities and of July 22, 2013 relating to higher education and research.
CIFRE thesis
The French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI) has entrusted ANRT with the implementation of the Cifre program. Its aim is to encourage the development of public-private research partnerships, and to place doctoral students in conditions of employment. It is based on the association of four players.
The company recruits a Master’s-level graduate on a permanent or fixed-term contract (articles D. 1242-3 & 6 of the French Labor Code), to carry out a research assignment. The starting salary is at least €23,484 gross per year. The work will be the subject of the employee-doctorant’s thesis.
The academic research laboratory supervises the employee-doctoral student’s work, and as such, the latter is registered with the laboratory’s doctoral school.
Doctoral students devote 100% of their time, shared between the company and the academic laboratory, to their research work. They benefit from both academic and professional training.
ANRT enters into a Cifre (Convention Industrielle de Formation par la Recherche) agreement with the company, on the basis of which a grant is paid to the company. The annual grant is up to €14,000 (not subject to VAT). This grant may be supplemented by a research tax credit (CIR) Research tax credit
No later than six months after the start of the Cifre, the company and the laboratory draw up a research collaboration contract setting out the terms and conditions of the partnership, including research methodology, the doctoral student’s place of work, confidentiality, intellectual property, etc. An annual activity report, signed by the company, the laboratory and the doctoral student, is submitted to the ANRT.
Research contracts
Research units can finance theses from their own resources, obtained under research contracts with one or more public or private partners.
Government scholarships
The French government or foreign governments award scholarships to students wishing to pursue all or part of their doctorate in France. (scholarships from French embassies abroad, Eiffel Excellence Scholarships, scholarships from the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie, scholarships from foreign governments)
Other financing
Foundations, associations and private or public institutions fund the research work of doctoral students on issues that concern them.
You can also consult the websites of doctoral schools, the research units of the doctoral school concerned, CAMPUS France, EURAXESS .