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🇦🇹 Austria /Health & Science

The dilemma of the doctorate: It gets increasingly crowded at the top

From Der Standard · () German

Translated from German, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Doctoral positions are highly sought after, with record applications received, including a significant number from international candidates.
  • The University of Vienna reported approximately 3,500 applications for 40 Social Sciences and Humanities positions, 90% from abroad.
  • The STEM field shows similar demand, with over 1,000 applications, 95% of which were international.

Doctoral studies are experiencing a surge in popularity, attracting a record number of applicants, many of whom are international.

Manuela Baccarini, Vice Rector for Research and Young Talent at the University of Vienna, presented figures highlighting this trend. For the Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) call, there were approximately 3,500 applications for just 40 available positions. Notably, 90 percent of these applications came from outside Austria.

For the SSH-call (Social Sciences and Humanities) there were around 3500 applications for 40 available positions – 90 percent of them came from abroad.

— Manuela BaccariniPresenting application statistics for doctoral positions in Social Sciences and Humanities at the University of Vienna.

The STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields exhibit a similar pattern of high demand. Over 1,000 applications were received for doctoral positions in these areas, with an even higher proportion, 95 percent, originating from international candidates.

These statistics underscore Vienna's attractiveness as a destination for young researchers worldwide. The high volume of applications, particularly from abroad, points to a competitive academic landscape for doctoral positions.

In the MINT field (STEM) it looks similar with over 1000 applications, 95 percent of them from abroad.

— Manuela BaccariniPresenting application statistics for doctoral positions in STEM fields at the University of Vienna.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Der Standard in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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