About the Program
The Systems Biology PhD program is a joint program of the ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) and the University of Zurich (UZH), two highly prestigious Swiss Universities with excellent research facilities. The program offers research and education opportunities in a stimulating international environment for ambitious students who wish to work towards a PhD.
Accepted students perform their research project in one of the participating research groups of their choice, according to their scientific interest. Advanced teaching and training courses are offered throughout the curriculum. Students will obtain their PhD from either ETH Zurich or the University of Zurich and receive a certificate from the program.
Program Structure
The PhD program “Systems Biology” is a 3-4 year PhD program. It is part of the Life Science Zurich Graduate School and collaborates with the program “Biomedicine” in the teaching of graduate courses. Participating students can choose from a broad selection of research topics and participate in cutting edge research. Enrollment into the program is decided by an admission committee. To graduate from the Systems Biology program, students need to fulfill the following requirements:
- All requirements imposed by their host institution (ETH Zurich or University of Zurich) and home departments.
- Completion of the compulsory introduction course: “Systems Approaches in Biology” in the first year, in any case not later than 18 months after starting the thesis.
- At least 6 ECTS in total must be acquired from courses offered by the Systems Biology and/or Biomedicine programs.
- Deposition and defense of a PhD thesis describing the student’s original research work.
Students will receive a graduation certificate from the Systems Biology program.
The final doctoral degree is conferred by either ETH Zurich or the University of Zurich, depending on the academic affiliation of the host laboratory. In order to finish their doctoral studies, students must acquire 12 ECTS. This requirement complies with the regulations of ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich.
Students must fulfill all PhD requirements from their home institution (ETHZ or UZH) and department. These can be found on the corresponding websites: