Most PhD students are employed at the Faculty of Arts simultaneously with their enrolment as PhD students, but there are also many PhD students who are employed by public or private employers during their PhD study.
Apart from working on the PhD project and taking part in PhD courses the PhD degree programme normally requires that the PhD student places a certain number of working hours at the department at which he or she is associated. The PhD student and the department agree on the tasks. This might for instance be teaching, instructor lessons or assistance to project applications, conferences or other research activities at the department.
The Guidelines on PhD students' paid work for the departments (840 hours total) is the Faculty regulations on work hours for PhD students: English version - Danish version
As a PhD student (5+3 programme or 4+4 programme, part B) you are salaried in accordance with the collective agreement between the state and the academic unions. This means that you will have a monthly income at approximately 28,900-35,000 Danish Kroner before tax (depending on seniority).
The majority of PhDs are employed within higher education and work within research and teaching. However, an increasing number of PhDs are also employed within other public institutions or private companies.
PhD students on part A of the 4+4 programme receive a payment corresponding to two SU vouchers per month (maximum 48 points). One SU vouchers corresponds to DKK 6,820.00 (2024). The PhD SU vouchers are funded by the graduate school or the grant for the scholarship.
Any remaining SU vouchers from your Master's degree programme will be paid according to article 1 of the law regarding the State Educational Grant and Loan Scheme (SU). These SU vouchers are funded by the Danish students' Grants and Loans Scheme (SU Styrelsen).
The SU vouchers from your Master's degree programme and the PhD SU vouchers are thus paid independently of each other.
Additionally, PhD students on part A are offered employment simultaneously with the SU PhD scholarship which takes place in accordance with the agreement regarding payment of PhD students for work carried out in connection with the PhD programme (enclosure 5b: Danish version - English version).
The salaried work is 280 working hours in total during part A of the PhD degree programme (two years), corresponding to one-third of the workload on a three-year PhD fellowship. If the 4+4 PhD student is enrolled for less than two years on part A, the departmental work will be reduced in accordance with the duration of the enrolment period (enrolment for 1½ year on part A = 210 working hours).
The hourly salary is DKK 230.95 (October 2023 level).
As of 1 January 2024 new PhD students are paid monthly in arrears at a rate of 2.68 hours per week.
PhD students employed before 1 January 2024: The salary is based on 17.5 hours per month, and is disbursed on the last weekday of each month during February-May and September-December.
After obtaining a Master's degree and the successful completion of the qualifying exam the PhD student will be employed on the 4+4 programme's part B under the same conditions as a PhD fellow on the 5+3 programme.
Please be aware that the SU PhD scholarship on part A of the 4+4 programme is paid monthly in advance while the monthly salary on part B will be at your disposal on the last weekday of the month. This means that there be a “gap” between your payments.
Example:
Part A ends on 31 August 2023 and part B starts on 1 September 2023.
The last SU payment on part A (payment for August) will be at your disposal at the beginning of August 2023 while your first salary on part B (payment for September) will be at your disposal on the last weekday of September 2023.
