Graduation

Please note

A renewal of your student`s registration for the next semester is not necessary if the following condition applies:
The PhD defence must take place in any given year at the latest by January 31^st (fall semester) or July 31^st (spring semester). Please note: Doctoral candidates must remain registered at the university including the semester in which the doctoral examination takes place.

Procedure

Please consult the  Guidelines for the design of the dissertation (DOCX, 28KB).

Application for PhD graduation

1. Set a date, time and location for your doctoral examination with your supervisor (including the reservation of a lecture hall). Fill out the "Registration for the PhD - Defence (PDF, 510KB)" with your supervisor and the responsible directorate of studies.

2. Register for your doctoral examination at the secretariat of the Dean's Office of the Faculty of Science (check the registration dates as shown in the table below)  by submitting the following documents to us in person, by post or by e-mail to nadja.susedka@unibe.ch:

• Registration for the PhD - Defence (PDF, 510KB)
• Declaration of consent (PDF, 572KB) in accordance with Article 18 of the PromR Phil.-nat 19
• Confirmation of publication doctoral thesis.pdf (PDF, 58KB)
• A receipt confirming payment of CHF 400 for the PhD fee. Payment should be made into the account held by the Faculty of Science (see the bank information below)
• Confirmation of fulfilled supplementary courses (only if you were admitted to the doctorate on condition of additional courses).

Submission of the dissertation

The definitive and (if needed) corrected dissertation (1 copy), along with the supervisor's evaluation and the evaluation of the external co-referee, must be submitted to the secretariat of the Dean's Office of the Faculty of Science (check the submission dates as shown in the table below).
After successful completion of the doctoral examination, you are required to publish your dissertation via BORIS Theses on the server of the University Library.

The dissertation can be published on the server of the University Library

Detailed instructions can be found here.

Issuing of the degree documents

After the successful completion of the doctoral examination, the graduation record and the degree certificate will be issued. You will receive an invitation via e-mail from the secretariat of the Dean's Office of the Faculty of Science to pick up your documents.

Please consider the secretariat's hours of operation.

Bank account information for paying the examination fee

Payment for:
Berner Kantonalbank
3001 Bern

On the account of:
BEKB Bern
CH87 0079 0016 7091 7104 6 (Konto 30-106-9)
SWIFT number: KBBECH22XXX (for payments from abroad)
Universität Bern
Dekanat der Phil.-nat. Fakultät
Sidlerstrasse 5
CH-3012 Bern

Graduation ceremony for PhD students

The next graduation ceremony for the Faculty of Science will be held on February 19, 2025.

All students who have completed their PhD in 2024 (incl. all students whose degree is set in KSL by 31.01.2025 at the latest) can participate in the ceremony.

Important notes and codes of practice:

• Code of practice doctoral degree programm
• Information leaflet for evaluations
• Application (authorization to serve as an supervisor/co-supervisor for the dissertation; examiner, external evaluator)
• Evaluation in English

Registration and submission deadlines for PhD degrees

New: PhD examinations can now be conducted during the semester breaks.

* Please consider the secretariat's hours of operation.

Lecture-free period: Examination weeks 52-7 and 23-37

Issuing of degree documents during the lecture-free period: Within a month after the examination date.

FAQ for Completion of a PhD