These are the EDCB Program specific application guidelines
Students are required to have strong quantitative background.
The program is designated to students with degrees in mathematics, physics, chemistry, and engineering and computer science. Biology students need to have a proven quantitative background.
Eligible candidates must have a Masters Degree or equivalent. Candidates with a four-year Bachelors Degree may be considered as well (depending on the undergraduate institution and performance there); these students may be admitted with special requirements, depending on their background.
You can indicate on your application form which labs and/or Professors you are interested in. Furthermore, please feel free to contact the Professor(s) of interest as well to see directly with them if they have any open positions, as it’s always good to have a personal contact and as new PhD opportunities become available throughout the year.
We recommend that EDCB candidates provide us with the results of their GRE test.
Much more than an English test, the general GRE test evaluates your general skills. This is helpful to the evaluators as without it, it is difficult to have a proper basis for comparison in the selection process. If you are NOT planning on taking the GRE, please mention this in your application, as well as the reason for this.
The TOEFL test is highly recommended for students who have not followed more than three years of study in English.
For details on the GRE as well as the TOEFL tests, please check their websites directly.
If you have questions: [email protected]
April 15th and November 1st each year
The application process includes an online candidature completed with 3 reference letters and academic records.
You can also view the Frequently Asked Questions
All required documents, including the referee evaluations, must be received before the application deadline (April 15th or November 1st). Therefore, please contact your 3 referees enough in advance before the application deadline and validate your application well before the deadline. In doing so, request letters are automatically sent to them via email.
STEP 1 – EDCB review commission
The applications will be reviewed by the EDCB Program Commission members on a competitive basis. Some applications will be rejected at this stage.
STEP 2 – Zoom interviews
Should your application get a first positive evaluation from the Admission Committee, you will receive an invitation to present your master project during a zoom interview. and should this interviews get a second positive feedback from the Admission Committee, you will receive an invitation to come to EPFL for the Hiring Days taking place approx. 10-12 weeks after the application deadline on the EPFL campus.
During hiring sessions where the EDCB Program participates in joint Hiring Days with other Life Sciences PhD programs, the applicants have the opportunity to visit the labs and meet with thesis directors. Our lab heads hiring PhD candidates will present their labs and the project for which they have an open position. A wonderful opportunity to meet other EPFL PhD students.
In order to facilitate the matching process, we STRONGLY recommend that you contact by email the head of the lab(s) you are interested in before or while you apply. You will find some keywords about the research areas of our affiliated thesis directors on the EDCB Program Members page.
The standard Hiring Days last 3 days.
Day 1 – half day of general information about EPFL, the School of Life Sciences and EDCB, as well as the presentations of the PhD positions offered
Day 2 & 3 – Individual interviews with Professors hiring & Lab visits – students usually visit several labs, based on their interests and on the availability of the Professors
The majority of housing, food and travel costs are covered by the program.