Requirements for admission to the doctoral programme of study in the academic year 2024/2025

• The requirement for admission to the doctoral programme of study is the attainment of a degree of education (university education of the third degree) which would be acceptable for admission to the doctoral programme at a university in the country of origin of an applicant. However, the final decision regarding recognition of a respective qualification is issued by the Rectorate of Charles University, not by the Faculty.
• The full-time form of study includes the involvement of a doctoral student in projects and activities of a department whose scope of scholarship covers the topic of a respective dissertation thesis (civil law, international law, etc.). Applicants are strongly advised to contact in advance not only a potential supervisor of their doctoral study, but also the head of a respective department. Should there be no preliminary agreement between an applicant and a respective department it is advised to apply for a part-time (combined) form of study, which is less demanding as to the presence of a student at the faculty.

Electronic application

List of supervisors 2024/2025

Admissions office: (ground floor/room nr. 2, counter nr. 4)

Contact person:               Ludmila Páralová           

Tel.:                                   (+420) 221 005 205                                                           

E-mail:                               paralovl@prf.cuni.cz   

Dates and deadlines:

Deadline for submission of application:          30 April 2024 (inclusive)              

Date of entrance examination:                          4 June 2024       

Alternative date of entrance examination:      18 June 2024

Fees:

Fee for study in foreign language (English):   CZK 1 000 CZK / academic year

Fee for an electronic application:                     CZK 780

Fee for a paper application:                               CZK 830

The fee will be paid electronically via bank transfer or payment card. Details regarding the payment of the fee will be provided to the applicant via email upon the dispatch of their application.

Fee for recognition of foreign education:        CZK 930

These requirements were adopted by the Academic Senate of the Faculty of Law of Charles University under Article 8 (4) d) of the Constitution of the Faculty of Law of Charles University on 22 June 2023.

The application for admission is to be submitted not later than on 30 April 2024.

I. Information about the admissions procedure

In the academic year 2024-2025, the Faculty of Law of Charles University (“Faculty”) offers study in one doctoral programme conducted in the English language, entitled “Theoretical Legal Sciences – Law and Legal Theory in European Context”.

The doctoral programme of study focuses on scholarly research and independent creative activities in the respective research field. The admissions procedure to the doctoral programme of study at the Faculty in the academic year 2024-2025 will be carried out under section 47 and following of Act No. 111/1998 Sb., to regulate higher education institutions, as amended (“Higher Education Act”), and in compliance with the Code of Admissions Procedure of Charles University.

The application for admission is to be submitted not later than on 30 April 2024.

An applicant may apply for each form (full-time; part-time/combined) of the doctoral study in a separate application; however, it is possible to submit both applications at the same time. 

The Dean of the Faculty will appoint an examination board that will assess the extent of an applicant’s knowledge in the chosen programme of study, particularly in broader contexts.

Under Article 4 (5) of the Code of Admissions Procedure of Charles University, the Faculty will send an invitation to the entrance examination to an applicant through the electronic Student Information System not later than thirty days before the date of the examination. If the Faculty sends an invitation to an alternative entrance examination date, said time period may be shortened as necessary. An applicant will receive a password to sign into the electronic Student Information System after he/she has filed an application for study.

II. Organisation of, and requirements for the entrance examination

The entrance examination is held publicly in one round and taken orally. The examination is taken in English. The purpose of the entrance examination is to assess primarily the relevant academic knowledge of an applicant, as well as his or her initial capability of carrying out autonomous scientific activities and research within the selected programme of study.

The maximum total score to reach at the entrance examination is 60 points. The overall number of points achieved by an applicant is composed of the number of points reached within individual parts of the entrance examination.

The range of points in individual parts of the entrance examination is as follows:

• Debate over the presented project of a dissertation – at least 7 pages along with a list of references (0 - 30 points);
• Bonus points awarded for an applicant´s understanding of the content of study regarding (a) his or her  plan to be involved in scientific projects and research of the expected training unit (e.g. academic department), and in international research cooperation;  (b) linking his or her dissertation topic and outline with the research profile of his or her doctoral student training unit; (c) consent of a selected  supervisor to supervise the applicant´s project of the intended dissertation (0-10 points).
• Assessment of the recent academic and research activities of an applicant (0-10 points).
• Proving the knowledge resulting from studying relevant scientific literature within a wider context of the intended dissertation project (0-10 points).

The minimum overall number of points for an applicant to attain at the entrance examination in order to be admitted to study is 40 points.

The Dean will decide, as based on the recommendation of the Admission Commission, the maximum number of students admitted to the full-time form into the doctoral programme. The number of those admitted will be established with respect to:

• equal distribution of full-time doctoral students to different academic units,
• actual number of students in full-time form of study in the respective academic unit,
• the pursue for internationalisation in doctoral programme.

If a greater number of applicants than the maximum number of admissions achieves a score of at least 40 points in the admission examination for the full-time form of study, the order of the best applicants is decisive. Those applicants who have achieved the highest number of points are therefore admitted to the full-time form of study.

Not later than within 30 days from the entrance examination, the Dean will issue a decision regarding admission or non-admission of the applicant to the doctoral programme of study. The Faculty will deliver the decision by restricted delivery (to the applicant´s own hands) via a licensed operator of postal services. The decision to admit an applicant to the doctoral program of study may be sent to the applicant via the electronic Student Information System if the applicant had expressed consent with such delivery in the electronic application for admission.

III. Dates of examination

Regular date:                    4 June 2024

Alternative date:             18 June 2024

The Dean may grant an opportunity to sit for an examination on the alternative date to an applicant who has so applied no later than three days after the regular date of examination, provided that the applicant was not able to take part in the regular examination for serious and substantiated reasons, mainly health reasons. Regular study abroad as preparation for study at a higher education institution is considered a justified reason for granting an alternative date. No further alternative date is permissible. The applications for the alternative date are filed and disposed of through the electronic Student Information System of the University (Article 14 (6) of the Code of Admissions Procedure of Charles University.

Application form requisites:      

IV. Application

Deadline for submission of application:

In compliance with Article 4 (2) of the Code of Admissions Procedure of Charles University, the Rector of Charles University has determined in his measure No. 13/2023 a period within which the applications are to be filed. Under section 4 (c) thereof, the period for submitting applications for study in the doctoral programmes of study runs from the date of the publication of admission requirements until 30 April 2024.

Elements of application – electronic format

An electronic application form will be available as of 1 December 2023 at the following address: is.cuni.cz/studium/prijimacky. An applicant must indicate in the application the form of study (full-time or combined) and the programme of study. The application including all required documents to be attached to it must be sent through the electronic Student Information System not later than at 23:59:59 o’clock on 30 April 2024.

After the application has been electronically filled out, it is necessary to send it out by clicking the “send” (“odeslat”) button, otherwise the application is not submitted and as such becomes invalid.

The requisite documents which constitute a component part of an electronic application as appendices are as follows:

• an outline of the dissertation project in the extent of 5-7 text pages; bonus points can be attained for (a) the applicant´s concrete plan to be involved in scientific projects and research of the expected training unit (e.g. academic department), and in international research cooperation;  (b) linking his or her dissertation topic and outline with the research profile of his or her doctoral student training unit; (c) consent of a selected supervisor to supervise the applicant´s project of the intended dissertation.
• structured CV;
• an overview of past professional and/or academic activities (e.g. works published, practical trainings and internships, etc.).

The header on each page must contain the name of an applicant, the name of a selected programme of study and the title of the applicant´s project.

The applicant is obliged to choose from a list of supervisors for a given field and programme a potential supervisor and indicate the choice in the application. The list of supervisors for individual programmes and fields of study is available in the publicly accessible part of the website of the Faculty.

Each appendix to the application must in the pdf format uploaded separately along with the application for admission. Neither the application nor the attachments are to be printed out and sent by mail, with the exception of an authenticated copy of the higher education diploma and supplement to the diploma (or the Certificate of State Examination, in the case of former graduates of CU).

This obligation does not apply to students who have graduated from the Faculty of Law of Charles University since 1 January 2008 (the Faculty will verify this fact against the database of graduates of the Faculty). The applicant must send the authenticated copy of the master’s diploma and the supplement via regular mail to the address of the Faculty no later than on 30 September 2023.

If an applicant graduated from a university or similar higher education institution abroad one of the following documents must be delivered to the Faculty by surface postal services:

• a document certifying the general recognition in the Czech Republic of the foreign university education; such document should have been obtained under ss. 89 and 90 of the Higher Education Act (so-called "recognition");
• a document proving the study at, and graduation from a foreign university where such study  and graduation is regarded in the Czech Republic as equal without any further administrative procedure in compliance with international obligations of the Czech Republic (a university diploma and supplement issued in the Slovak Republic, Poland, Hungary, or Slovenia); or
• a foreign document proving the study at, and graduation from a foreign university, which will be considered and recognized by the Faculty itself (for the recognition fee of CZK 930).
• Detail information regarding the proving of the regular completion of study in the master´s programme for graduates of foreign universities are available at the webpage of the Faculty, section “Prospective Applicants”, subsection “Recognition of Foreign Education”.

Elements of application – paper format

In the case of a paper format of an application, the above listed appendices along with the authenticated copy of a university diploma and its supplement are to be submitted in the paper format along with the paper application.

Forms of application

Applications are submitted:

•  electronically through the Student Information System of the University at the following address: is.cuni.cz/studium/prijimacky; or
• in a paper form to the following address:

Univerzita Karlova
Právnická fakulta
Referát doktorského studia
nám. Curieových 7
116 40 Praha 1

V. Period for verifying the fulfilment of the requirements for admission

The deadline for verifying the fulfilment of the requirements for admission for applicants who are to pass their final state examination and complete their master´s programme of study at the Faculty in Autumn 2023, as well as for applicants whose submitted application for recognition of foreign education will not have been decided by 30 September 2024, is 22 October 2024. The same deadline is set for applicants who will have completed their master´s programme of study between 1 and 30 September 2024, including cases where the required education is to be substantiated under section 48 (3) of the Higher Education Act.

VI. Application Fee

The submission fee is CZK 780 in the case of an electronic application and acts related to the admissions procedure, and CZK 830 for the paper format of an application and acts related to the admissions procedure.

The fee is paid electronically either by bank transfer or by payment card to the account of the Faculty at KB Praha 2, account number 0000868986130237/0100. The variable symbol (i.e. payment ID number) and the specific symbol for the bank transfer payment will be sent to the applicant by e-mail to his/her email address provided in the application form. The fee is payable immediately after the application for study has been submitted, and the email providing the variable and specific symbols received, however not later than on 30 April 2024. The fee is non-recoverable.