Replacement of doctoral scholarship with doctoral study income

Since the 2025/2026 academic year, all students enrolled in doctoral study programmes at Charles University in the full-time form of study have been entitled to receive a doctoral study income.

From the 2026/2027 academic year onwards, the minimum doctoral study income for all doctoral students, regardless of the date of their enrolment, has been standardised at 1.2 times the statutory minimum wage. The binding minimum doctoral study income for the entire 2026/2027 academic year has been set at CZK 26,880 per month.

The doctoral study income may consist of:

• a doctoral scholarship;

• a salary or a wage for creative activities directly related to the preparation of the dissertation;

• a combination of the two above (doctoral scholarship and salary or wage for creative activities related to the preparation of the dissertation).

The new amount of doctoral study income will not result in increased study obligations.

Please note that, since the introduction of the doctoral scholarship in the 2025/2026 academic year, students are required to apply for this scholarship using SIS. An application for the award of a doctoral scholarship must be submitted to the faculty at the beginning of each academic year for which the scholarship is to be granted.

No changes apply to students studying in the combined form of study, as the doctoral study income is available only to students enrolled in the full-time form of study.

For students in the combined form of study, there will be no changes; the doctoral study income is tied to the full-time form.

It is permissible for doctoral scholarships to include funding sources that are also used to finance other scholarships in the field of research and development (for example, scholarships awarded for research, development and innovation activities under other regulations), provided that the internal rules governing the use of those funds allow, or at least do not preclude, such use. These sources primarily include institutional funding for the long-term conceptual Development of research organisations (DKRVO), namely Cooperatio, PRIMUS, DUC and UNCE, as well as the Specific University Research programme (SVV), including university SVV funding and the GA UK scheme.

• Such funding sources may be used to support a doctoral scholarship only where they serve to support creative activities contributing to the successful completion of doctoral studies. Funding awarded under the GA UK scheme may currently still be partially incorporated into the doctoral scholarship; however, from the 2027 calendar year onwards, the doctoral scholarship awarded to an individual doctoral student may amount to no more than 25% of the scholarship funds allocated to that student from a given project. For the 2026 calendar year, this limit remains 50%.

• From 2027 onwards, the current SVV scheme will be succeeded by the Programme for the Development of the Quality of Doctoral Studies at Charles University. Under this programme, a proportion of the available funding may also be used to support doctoral study income, subject to the faculty's decision.

Extension of the Assessment Scale for the Individual Study Plan

The assessment of Individual Study Plans (ISPs), which is conducted exclusively through the Student Information System (SIS), remains unchanged in terms of both its organisation and content. The only change, effective from 1 October 2026, is the extension of the assessment scale from the current A-C grading system to an A-D grading system.

The Subject Area Board of the doctoral study programme will therefore have four possible outcomes when assessing the fulfilment of the obligations set out in your Individual Study Plan:

Completion of Doctoral Studies – State Doctoral Examination

The State Doctoral Examination has been abolished for all students who enrol in doctoral studies after this amendment took effect, i.e. from 1 March 2025 onwards. For these students, this requirement is replaced by a new obligation: a Dissertation pre-defence, the general nature of which is defined in the Code of Study and Examination. The intention is to move away from subject-based examinations in favour of a constructive colloquium focused on the dissertation topic, which is intended to support students in the successful implementation of their research project.

Students who enrolled before 1 March 2025 remain subject to the requirement to take the State Doctoral Examination. Faculties will continue to schedule State Doctoral Examination dates for current students in accordance with their Individual Study Plans.

For students enrolled on or after 1 March 2025, the State Final Examination consists solely of the dissertation defence. As with all study requirements, students are entitled to two attempts to fulfil this obligation. A new provision, effective from 1 October 2026, stipulates that where a resit of the examination is undertaken, the composition of the examination board should not be identical to that of the first attempt. In addition, the resit examination will be attended by a Vice-Dean, or another person authorised by the Dean, acting in the capacity of an independent observer.

Additional Changes Affecting Your Studies

1. Transfer Between Study Programmes: Please note that the transfer between study programmes will not apply to doctoral studies.

2. Change in Appeal Period: For submitting appeals (e.g., against termination, interruption of studies, or disciplinary offences), the original 30-day period has been reduced to a 15-day period.

3. Public Access to Final Theses: The university may postpone the public access to bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and rigorous theses or parts thereof for the duration of the obstacle to access, but for no longer than five years (previously three years). The specific duration is at the discretion of the relevant faculty.

In summary, there are relatively few real changes to your studies, and many are, in fact, positive. If you have any questions or uncertainties, please do not hesitate to contact the relevant department at your faculty.