How to find your PhD, step 1

When my research took me to Mayo Clinic, we looked into transferring my PhD to the US. It would not have fit my timeline. And the closer I looked at how American PhD programmes work, the clearer it became that the system would not have fit me either.

I'm a seventh-year MD/PhD student at Charité in Berlin, and most of my research has happened at Mayo. So I know two very different PhD systems from the inside, and I learned that the choice between them matters more than most applicants think.

Most people start their PhD search with a university name. I would start with the country. The degree has the same name everywhere, but the job behind it does not. And three to six years in a new country is also one of the best chances you will get to build a life somewhere completely different, so look beyond the usual US and UK shortlist.

The word "PhD" covers very different jobs. In one country you are an employee with a salary, a pension and paid leave. In another you are a student on a stipend without a contract. In a third you spend your first years in courses and exams before your thesis really begins.

So before you compare universities, find the countries whose system fits you. Ask four questions:

1. 1Can I get in?Degree, recognition, visa
2. 2How does the money work?Salary, stipend or tuition
3. 3How structured is the PhD?Courses and exams, or research from day one
4. 4Would I want to live there?Rent, language, winters, distance

This guide covers 12 common PhD destinations: Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia and Singapore. It is a starting point, not a database. Every figure links to an official source, so you can check it yourself.

This is Part 1 of 3. Part 1 gets you to a shortlist of countries. Parts 2 and 3 cover universities, programmes and the people you would actually work with, and they go to my newsletter first.

Get Parts 2 and 3 by email

Question 1

Can I get in?

Do you need a master's?

This is the biggest divide.

• A master's is normally required in Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, France and, in most programmes, Canada.
• A strong bachelor's is often enough in the United States, the United Kingdom (in many fields) and Singapore (with a four-year honours degree).
• Australia usually expects an honours year or a research master's.

There are exceptions, such as Denmark's 4+4 scheme, ETH Zurich's direct doctorate and aptitude assessments for exceptional bachelor's graduates at some German universities. In some places, a medical degree is its own route in.

Will your degree be recognised?

Start at the country level: does your degree fit the system at all? Is a three-year bachelor's enough, or does the country expect four years or a master's? Most countries have an official recognition service or database that shows how your degree compares with theirs. Use it as your first check:

• Germany: anabin
• Netherlands: Nuffic
• United Kingdom: UK ENIC

If your degree clearly falls short of a country's normal entry level, that country is probably not the right fit yet.

Once a country passes, individual universities can still set their own conditions. The final admission decision usually lies with the university or programme. They may look at how long your degree took, how the awarding institution is accredited or rated, and how much research or subject content it included.

Three-year bachelor's degrees from India show how much this varies within one country:

• MIT says they are accepted in most cases, and that departments may add requirements.
• Cornell asks doctoral applicants for a four-year degree, or a three-year degree plus a postgraduate diploma.
• UBC (in Canada) generally expects a master's and accepts three-year degrees only in specific cases.

So a country on your shortlist does not mean every university there will accept you. That check comes in Part 2.

Can you actually move there?

Before a country goes on your list, find out whether you can get a visa, how long it takes, what it costs, and whether you need to prove savings before you are allowed to move.

Question 2

How does the money work?

The same PhD can leave you in debt in one country and on a salary with a pension in another. Countries differ enormously here.

I'm funded by scholarships, from the Studienstiftung and the Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung, not by a job contract. And my finances abroad depend a lot on the situation. American universities sometimes award stipends to visiting researchers, but most of the time they do not.

Four ways a PhD gets paid

• Employee. You get a work contract and a gross salary. You pay tax and social insurance, and you get a pension and paid leave. This is typical in Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and France, and for most funded PhDs in Germany.
• Stipend-funded student. You receive a scholarship with no employment contract, and it is often tax-free. This is typical in the UK, Australia and Singapore, and a common route in Germany too.
• Funding package. You are admitted as a student, your tuition is waived and you receive a stipend, often tied to teaching or research work. This is typical in the US and Canada.
• Self-funded. You pay your own tuition and living costs. This happens especially to international students in the UK, Australia, the US and Canada.

Compare net pay, not the headline number

One example shows why. A German PhD salary of ~€38.6k (~USD 43.6k) a year sounds far higher than a UK stipend of ~£21.8k (~USD 28.7k). But in Germany you pay tax, health insurance and pension contributions, so a PhD on a typical part-time contract takes home ~€2k (~USD 2.3k) a month. The UK stipend is tax-free and pays ~£1.8k (~USD 2.4k). What arrives each month is almost the same.

The difference is in what comes with it. A salary usually buys pension rights, paid leave and parental leave. A stipend usually does not.

Why the headline number is only the start

• Pay varies within a country. Many German PhD contracts are part-time, and the share depends on your field and funder. In Sweden and Norway, each university sets its own salaries. In the US and Canada, each programme sets its own stipend.
• Tuition can outweigh everything else. Without funding, international students in the UK, the US, Australia and Singapore can pay more in tuition than a PhD salary elsewhere. Funded positions usually cover it, and most of continental Europe only charges small semester or registration fees.
• Where you live changes the picture. Tax, health insurance and rent differ by city and personal situation. The maps below and section 4 help you compare.

The maps

Switch between views. Tap or hover a country for its numbers.

Net pay: estimated after tax and employee contributions, single person, first year, in USD at 2025 exchange rates. Cost of living: World Bank price level for household consumption, 2025, United States = 100. Purchasing power: net pay adjusted for local prices.

Read the maps with care:

• Pay figures are representative, not what every PhD candidate gets.
• Net pay is estimated for a single person in their first year. Your tax depends on your residence status, tax treaties, city and household. International students in the US, for example, are taxed differently.
• In Switzerland and the Netherlands, health insurance is paid on top of the net pay shown.
• Price levels are national averages. The city you live in can change the picture completely (see section 4).
• Purchasing power is for orientation, not a budget calculator.

Question 4

Would I want to live there?

A PhD is not a semester abroad. You will pay rent, get through winters, and build a social life there for years.

I love researching at Mayo. I recently went to a symposium in Copenhagen just to catch up with the amazing faculty. But Rochester, Minnesota doesn't offer much amusement-wise, with -30 °C winters, and it's in the middle of nowhere. Flights are also expensive or long. On the other hand, housing is affordable and the city centre is walkable.

In comparison, living in Berlin offers more public life, good connections all over Europe and good nightlife. You don't need a car, which is quite useful when you know the Midwest, and it's also a cost factor.

In Denmark I stayed with students, and a different topic came up. The city is beautiful but very expensive. Summers might be nice, but like in Berlin, winters are rainy. Rochester is cold but sunny, and it's as far south as Monaco, so the days are longer. As a master's student, the city may be unaffordable. But when you're employed as a PhD student, this looks totally different.

The city matters as much as the country

National averages hide the biggest cost you'll face: rent. Pick a country to see typical rent as a share of net PhD pay.

About these rent figures:

• Each city uses its own country's official statistics, and definitions differ (existing contracts vs new lets, one-bedroom vs all sizes). So compare cities within a country, and treat gaps between countries as rough.
• Newcomers usually pay more than these figures.
• Many PhD students share a flat and pay less.

Also think about

• Research stays abroad. Some systems require them (Denmark expects time in another research environment), some allow them with approval, and in some they are rarely practical. My setup at Mayo only works because my home institution allows parts of the doctorate to be done elsewhere.
• Language. In Germany and France you will usually need the local language outside the lab. In the Nordic countries and the Netherlands, English goes a long way.
• Benefits. Employee PhDs usually get a pension, paid leave and parental leave. Stipends often don't.
• Getting around. Do you need a car, and how easy is it to get home?

The shortlist in one picture

Start with all 12 countries. Each question filters out the ones that don't work for you.

Your shortlist checklist

Go through these questions for each country. Keep the ones where the answer works for you.

• Is my previous degree likely to qualify? Have I checked the recognition service and at least one programme's admissions page?
• Do I need a master's first, and do I have one?
• Is the position funded, or would I pay tuition and living costs?
• Would I be an employee or a student, and what does that mean for my pension, leave and insurance?
• Is tuition charged, and who covers it?
• What is the pay after tax, and can I live on it in the city, not just the country?
• Do I want a structured PhD with courses and exams, or an independent one where my supervisor matters most?
• Are research stays abroad expected, possible or impractical, and would they be funded?
• Would I be willing to live there for three to six years, including the language, the climate and the distance from home?
• Have I checked the official immigration rules for my citizenship?

Your result: a shortlist of two to four countries.