The doctoral programme is designed to foster advanced skills in both theoretical and empirical research. All courses are specifically designed for the PhD programme, with the training needs of PhD students at the core of their conception.
During the first year, all PhD students take part in a shared set of mandatory courses, which provide a common foundation across different disciplines, hence enhancing the development of an interdisciplinary gaze on matters usually covered in political and social sciences. Through these courses, PhD students engage with both qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as with the classics of political and social theory and the epistemology of the social sciences. Furthermore, during the first year, PhD students take courses in two out of three multidisciplinary tracks structured around core disciplines: Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Sociology.
In the second year, the focus shifts toward the development of transferable skills. Dedicated sessions on Ethics and Safety in Fieldwork and a series of Academic Skills Seminars—covering writing, publishing, and professional development—equip PhD students for the next stages of their academic careers.
Across all years, the PhD programme gives PhD students the opportunity and economic support to develop their competencies further, thanks to participation in summer and winter schools, workshops, and seminars at the international level.
This is a detailed lists of courses and their corresponding syllabi for the Ph.D. Program in Political and Social Sciences, organized by academic year. This overview is intended to help current and prospective students familiarize themselves with the program's structure, content, and teaching expectations.
While several core courses remain consistent to ensure continuity and foundational training, the course offerings may vary over time. Each year, the program may be enriched with new modules, guest lectures, and seminars reflecting emerging research trends, faculty expertise, and current global challenges, ensuring that the training remains dynamic, relevant, and responsive to the evolving landscape of the political and social sciences.
In the PhD Programme in Political and Social Sciences, formal assessment of graduate work is based on a pass/fail system.
However, to provide more detailed feedback on coursework performance, students also receive indicative letter grades. These range from A (90–100%), reflecting excellent performance, to F (0–59%), indicating unsatisfactory work. Intermediate grades include B (80–89%) for above-average performance, C (70–79%) for satisfactory results, and D (60–69%) for work that meets minimum requirements but remains below average.
This grading system is designed to help students better assess their progress and identify areas for improvement.
Throughout the PhD programme, each student is required to acquire a total of 240 doctoral credits (DC), which are distributed between research and training activities. The majority of these credits (186 DC) must be earned through research activities, while the remaining 54 DC must be obtained through training. This means that doctoral students must dedicate 77.5% of their overall workload to research and 22.5% to educational development.
The 54 training credits must be distributed according to specific guidelines. In particular, at least 38 DC must be obtained through disciplinary and multidisciplinary courses, 10 DC through activities related to transversal skills, 1 DC through extracurricular training activities such as seminars, conferences or workshops, and 1 DC through scientific dissemination activities. Although not mandatory, integrative teaching and tutoring activities can also contribute to the overall workload and thus to the credits earned.
Training credits must be acquired according to the following timeline: by the end of the first year, students must have earned at least 38 DC; by the end of the second year, they must have earned 48 DC; and by the end of the third year, they must have earned between 50 and 52 DC. By the end of the fourth year, all 54 training credits must have been completed.
Each credit corresponds to a total workload of 25 hours, divided between classroom activities and independent study. For instance, a frontal course comprising 5 hours of instruction and 20 hours of personal study is worth 1 DC. Even shorter activities, such as attending a seminar or a one-day workshop, can contribute to the accumulation of credits, albeit to a lesser extent (from 0.2 to 0.4 DC).
In summary, the PhD programme provides a balanced combination of research and training, guided by clearly defined quantitative and qualitative criteria throughout the four-year course.