Admission to the Program is highly selective. We accept a small fraction of the applications for a class of about 25 students per-year.

There are separate admission processes for perspective students in Economics and Finance, and perspective students in Management Studies (Behavioral Science, Business, Operations, Data Science or Statistics).

Contact: [email protected]

 

Perspective PhD students aiming to specialize in Economics and Finance should apply through the Barcelona School of Economics (BSE) Master’s Degree in Economics and Finance: PhD Track, which constiutes Year 1 of the PhD program.

Timeline:

  • Applications open: applications for the 2027-28 PhD Track Program open next fall.
  • Deadline: January 15th.
  • Admission decisions: mid March.
Apply

Application Requirements:

  • Undergraduate/bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) from an accredited college or university in Economics, Finance, Engineering, Mathematics, Statistics, or Business Administration, with the completion of at least four years of university study prior to starting this program. Typical successful applicants also hold a master's degree. 
  • Statement of purpose (1000 words maximum).
  • Two academic letters of recommendation.
  • Official Certificate of English Language Proficiency (this requirement can be waived if English was the language used in obtaining the undergraduate/master's degree).
  • GRE Test Score.

Perspective PhD students aiming to specialize in Management Studies (Behavioral Science, Business, Operations, Data Science or Statistics) may directly apply to the Master of Research through the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), which constitutes Year 2 of the PhD program.

Timeline:

  • Applications open: applications for the 2027-28 open next fall.
  • Deadline: January 15th.
  • Admission decisions: March-April.
Apply

Application Requirements:

  • At least 5 years of university education (300 ECTS) before joining the program, including at least 180 ECTS credits in the areas of Economics, Finance, Management, Physics, Mathematics, Political Sciences or Engineering. Typical successful applicants hold a four-year undergraduate degree plus a master's degree with at least 60 ECTS credits in the fields of Economics, Finance, Business or Statistics. Both the undergraduate/bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) and master's degree should be from an accredited college or university.
  • Research proposal (2 pages maximum).
  • Two academic letters of recommendation.
  • Official Certificate of English Language Proficiency (this requirement can be waived if English was the language used in obtaining the undergraduate/master's degree).

Only in very exceptional circumstances it is possible to directly access the Doctorate, which constitutes the dissertation phase of the PhD track (years 3-6). As a rule, applicants to the Doctorate must hold a research-oriented Master’s degree (MRes or MPhil) in Economics, Finance or Management awarded by a notable institution. Applications from former students of the MRes in Economics, Finance and Management at UPF are given priority in the admission process.

                                                                                                            Apply

Timeline:

  • Applications open: applications for the 2027-28 open next fall.
  • Deadline: January 15th.
  • Admission decisions: March-April.
  Tuition Fees Tuition Funding and Scholarships
PhD Track Master
(Year 1)		 €18,000

Partial or full tuition fee waivers, and scholarships to (partially) cover living expenses offered to selected students.
Master of Research
(Year 2)

EU: €1,162.20 
Non-EU: €5,610.00

Most MRes and Doctorate students are fully funded through a combination of scholarships, teaching assistantships or research assistantships, covering tuition fees and living expenses.

Additional funds are also available to cover research expenses and travel expenses to conferences.
Doctorate
(Years 3-6)		 €401,12