Applications for Graduate Studies
PhD Programme

Welcome to the web site of Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics at University of Zurich. We seek to attract the most promising students in theoretical physics and astrophysics from all over the world to come and pursue their doctoral degree in Zurich. The graduate studies are fully conducted in English and students can attend graduate courses both at the University of Zurich and at ETH Zurich. Students accepted to our program will benefit from a comprehensive and challenging training program, a productive and stimulating working atmosphere, as well as from being given the opportunity to pursue a challening research project in a leading research group.

Do it like Einstein: get a physics PhD from University of Zurich.

The PhD applicants are required to have a 4-5 year Masters or Diploma Degree in physics, astronomy, or related fields. The graduate student stipends are in the range of 46,000-52,000 CHF (36,000-41,000 USD). Approximate costs of living in Zürich can be found here.
Length of study is 3 years.

Applications for PhD positions can be submitted at any time.
Application form, CV, statement of research interests and previous research experience, course grade transcripts and 3 letters of reference and should be sent to phd@physik.uzh.ch, or to

Institute for Theoretical Physics
Graduate and Postgraduate Studies
University of Zurich
Winterthurerstr. 190
CH-8057 Zurich Switzerland

Application forms can be downloaded here:

Application Form:
Word Document / PDF

Recommendation Form:
Word Document / PDF

GRE and TOEFL scores are useful if available, but not required. A photocopy of official score notification is acceptable. Shortlisted applicants may be invited for an interview (with expenses covered) before the final decision is made.

Potential candidates are encouraged to contact the faculty for further information.
The particle physics faculty are Thomas Gehrmann and Daniel Wyler. Research interests include collider physics, heavy flavours, physics beyond the standard model, astroparticle physics, effective field theories, precision calculations and computer algebra.
The astrophysics faculty at the University of Zurich are George Lake, Ben Moore, and Uros Seljak. Research interests include galaxy formation and dynamics, planet formation, gravitational lensing, gravitational waves, dark matter, early universe, cosmic microwave background and large scale structure of the universe. Theoretical research at the University of Zurich is complemented by the experimental groups at ETH. Scientific computing infrastructure is very strong with a cluster of 700 state-of-art CPUs with an advanced network.