Ph.D. students’ status

There are 3 main categories of status for doctoral students:

Employee under public law

Created by decree (23 April 2009), the doctoral contract is offered to doctoral students, for a period of three years. It provides all the social guarantees of an employment contract in accordance with public law. It has a two-month trial period. This contract is unique and identical for higher education or research institutions.

Terms of access to the doctoral contract

The doctoral contract is open to any doctoral student enrolled in the first year of the thesis for less than six months, regardless of age. Applications are examined exclusively at the local level in each institution after dissemination of wide information by the various doctoral schools.

• Learn more : the role of PhD students (in French)

PhD students with a doctoral contract from Ministry, region or ENS can claim complementary teaching activities.

Employee under private law

In link with a company, with a research contract that binds the company and the laboratory where the thesis takes place. The remuneration of the PhD student may be provided for in this contract and/or be the subject of a CIFRE agreement.

Student with a scholarship

To prepare a Ph.D. (scholarship from a foreign government for example), all doctoral students enrolled at INSA Lyon must justify funding for the pursuit of their thesis or provide proof of their resources if they have a professional activity outside the thesis, in accordance with the Doctoral Charter.