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Doing your PhD at LINC

Do you have a passion for criminological research? Then a PhD may be your thing!

Doing a PhD at the Leuven Institute of Criminology gives one the chance to carry out research in an international environment under the supervision of experienced professors. Students will tackle important topics with the intention of making original contributions. We strongly encourage motivated students to start a PhD at our institute.

Where to start?

1. Two ways to start a PhD at Leuven Institute of Criminology

1.1. You can apply for an already existing project

These are research funds given for specific research topics which are aimed explicitly at non-Belgian students. Please have a look at vacant PhD positions in LINC and vacant PhD positions in the Doctoral School for the Humanities and Social Sciences.

1.2. Proposing your own project. How to get started?
  1. First, candidates should explore the LINC-website and have a close look at the research interests most important to the Leuven Institute of Criminology. The research interests of the institute are structured in 10 research lines. Candidates should consider this path if their research topic fits one of these ten research lines.
  2. If a professor is currently working in a research area fitting well your topic, you should try to establish a first contact. If possible you should meet or at least corresponded with the professor. Although this talk will be quite informal, please prepare this first contact well.
    1. Students proposing their own project should have already a clear view on the topic their PhD-research will be about.
    2. Know why you are applying with that specific professor. He or she will be able to help you get started on your research.
  3. The reason why you should first find a suited PhD-supervisor is that you need his or her support to apply for funding. Your future PhD-supervisor should also help you in finding funds for carrying out your PhD-project. But, those with pre-researched funding possibilities will have an advantage. There are two possibilities to finance a PhD project:
      1. You conduct your PhD-research using your own resources.
      2. After approval of your supervisor, you can apply for a PhD-scholarship. For example:
        1. The IRO webpage http://www.kuleuven.be/iro/index.html at Personal Research Proposal.
        2. The webpage about "scholarship and funding".
        3. The webpage about "doctoral studies: financing resources".
  4. After funds are secured, the supervisor will help you with living up to all required formalities of the K.U.Leuven and the faculty of Law.

2. Doing a PhD at LINC also includes Doctoral Training

As a PhD-student in Criminology, one will have to complete the training of the Doctoral School for the Humanities and Social Sciences. This offers a high-quality PhD Programme in all research areas of Humanities, including Law and Criminology.  Doctoral students play an active role in the programme and are required to complete a number of courses and seminars, and participate in conferences, etc. related to their chosen area of academic research.

 

3. International Admission

Everyone working, studying, researching, or teaching at K.U.Leuven must be admitted beforehand by the university and consequently must fulfil specific admission requirements. These requirements may vary greatly depending on the candidate’s nationality and status within the university. Please read carefully the information about the International admission.

4. Travelling to Leuven

  • To study Criminology in Leuven, students can find here a lot of information on the following topics:
      • How to prepare their trip to and stay in Leuven
    • How to come to Leuven
    • An estimation of one year living expenses in Leuven
    • What academic life in Leuven looks like
  • Or one can download the brochure below