Are you interested in research and a scientific career? The ELTE Doctoral School of Informatics provides high professional standards for PhD students. We welcome not only graduates of the ELTE Faculty of Informatics but also those who have obtained a degree from other higher education institutions.  

Today, doctoral training does not only mean the supply of instructors and researchers for higher education, but many graduates achieve success in the field of research and development, either after completing their studies or in the competitive sector, since employers value colleagues with a PhD degree. PhD training develops many skills that are particularly important in the world of work. 

Doctoral trainings can be completed in full-time programs, and the scheduling is much more flexible compared to Bachelor's and Master's programs. Thus, doctoral students working full-time can coordinate the tasks related to the PhD program and their workplace obligations, provided their work tasks fit the doctoral research topic. In this way, young professionals with a Master’s degree who feel that their research topic has become their passion and want to pursue it at the highest level, but also seek steady income, don’t have to give up either.

ELTE was among the first to provide an opportunity to obtain a postgraduate title in the new structure. The most recent change in the training system took place in 2016, expanding the previous three-year program to a two plus two structure, that is, four years.

Doctoral students develop their research topics under the supervision of a designated adviser. They become familiar with the latest national and international literature and the newest research developments of the computer science field. University and external grant opportunities also help doctoral candidates realize their research goals.

Doctoral training is divided into two main phases: structured coursework and degree acquisition. During the structured training, doctoral candidates learn theoretical and methodological knowledge of scientific research, gain extensive professional expertise in their chosen field, and conduct independent research under their supervisors' guidance. After successfully completing this phase and obtaining the absolutorium, candidates move to the degree acquisition phase, where they summarize their research results in a doctoral dissertation.

IT’S WORTH INVESTING IN THE FUTURE BECAUSE

• A diverse range of programs await you, you can choose from many options.

• You will encounter the latest technological trends.

• As a researcher, you can take part in cutting-edge research.

• You can work together with leading Hungarian and international companies.

• As a PhD student, you can actively participate in the professional life of the university, both as a teacher and as a young researcher.

• You can receive business development support for commercializing your research results.

• Conference participation support is available.

• The possibility of a career in higher education and research-development institutes opens up for you.

The ELTE Doctoral School of Informatics  launches its programs in a full-time format, both state-funded and self-funded. An important change is that since 2016, the amount of the state scholarship has significantly increased, making application accessible to even more people. Citizens of Hungary and the states belonging to the European Economic Area can apply for state-funded positions. The scholarship amount for the first two years is HUF 140,680/month. The scholarship in the research and dissertation phase: HUF 180,680/month.

The researcher life also provides earning opportunities within the university, such as with the Cooperative Doctoral Program or the Doctoral Excellence Scholarship Program.

In the 2023 call of the Ministry of Culture and Innovation's Cooperative Doctoral Program, ELTE was the university that hosted the second largest number of successful scholarship holders among Hungarian higher education institutions; in the entire KDP program, about one third of the scholarship holders are ELTE students, among them 7 doctoral students are from our Faculty. The Cooperative Doctoral Program targets research that meets the needs of the economy and primarily supports young researchers, allowing them to apply their knowledge in practice through R&D and innovation activities at partner companies. Students can receive a monthly scholarship of HUF 400,000, which our best students regularly win, making it possible to obtain up to a monthly scholarship of HUF 540,000 in total.

The Doctoral Excellence Scholarship Program (DKÖP) supports the careers of young researchers and aims to deepen cooperation between industry and science. Thanks to the scholarship, students can claim HUF 150,000/month support.

The ELTE Doctoral School of Informatics  offers preparation and supervision opportunities for those aiming for a scientific career across the entire professional spectrum of informatics. Six doctoral programs are currently operating in the school:

Doctoral Program of Software and Computer Science

The aim of the doctoral program is to provide doctoral students with deep and wide-ranging knowledge that will enable them to cultivate the theoretical foundations of computing and software science in an effective and active way, furthermore, to apply the methodological principles in an innovative manner, and adopt new procedures.

The program offers the following research topics:

software design and software engineering, algorithms, programming paradigms, programming languages and type theory, software reliability, analysis, correctness, and testing, software architectures, computational models and unconventional computing, quantum computing,  artificial intelligence models and their application in the production of intelligent software, application domain-specific programming languages and software-intensive systems, cyber-physical and autonomous systems, human-machine interaction and natural language processing, and human and social aspects of information technology.

Doctoral Program of Data Science, Networks, Information Systems

The program deals with the theoretical research of computer technologies that run the digital data world, as well as scientific and practical questions about its construction, operation, and use. Its three pillars—data science, computer networks, and original information systems—provide versatile research opportunities supporting each other. The growing abundance of data and processing capacities have expanded traditional data mining and big data technologies with new deep learning possibilities from Artificial Intelligence, leading to the emergence of the data science field. In summary, the area dealing with handling, analyzing, and utilizing large datasets is called data science. This includes data collection, cleaning, storage, related algorithms, and technologies like data mining and deep learning used for analysis. Besides data management, research into digital data networks that ensure data collection, flow, accessibility, and communication forms the program’s second component. Networks connect cloud centers to service centers, end users on individual mobile devices, and extend to the internet of communicating smart objects, expanding the interconnectedness of our world broadly. In the information systems area, the program focuses on new directions of classic system models and operational database management technologies. Research into new data models, knowledge representations, and new database management technologies also belongs here. One main feature of digitization is that building and developing information systems happens with ever-growing automation and the integration of AI technologies. Organizational processes and related information system processes feature what are now collectively called artificial intelligence methods, algorithms, and technologies, the latest analytic solutions. Creating formal and practical models and methods for the irreversibility, transparency, traceability, and explainability of decisions and activities arising from these processes, as well as examining alternative approaches and solutions, provides a fruitful research area.

Doctoral Program of Scientific Computing and Models, Numerical and Symbolic Methods

In the field of Scientific Computating and Models, the doctoral program deals with the construction of mathematical models using the tools of harmonic analysis, differential equations, number theory, and computer graphics, with the aim of solving problems in computer science, medicine, engineering, and other fields. In the area of numerical and symbolic methods, the doctoral program is structured around the theory and practice of numerical methods, approximation theory and optimization, and the mathematical background, methods, and applications of symbolic computation. Research in various related disciplines applying scientific computing, numerical or symbolic methods can also be included in the doctoral program. A wide range of topics such as signal and image processing, medical applications, engineering, shape recognition, computer vision, computer algebra applications, cryptography, and information security are being addressed.

Doctoral Program of Informatics Teaching Methodology

The aim of the doctoral program is to train research teachers with a broad knowledge of computer science, who are able to combine the discipline, its new findings, and pedagogical knowledge in a creative way, and who are able to perform demanding tasks in teaching, talent management, curriculum design and development, subject advising and subject management, as well as to provide a supply of new talent in the field of subject methodology in higher education. Research in educational methodologies needs to respond rapidly to a constantly changing knowledge base and to the impact of information technologies that are increasingly embedded in everyday life. The subject of informatics is changing very rapidly, with an increasing emphasis on programming alongside general informatics, as evidenced by the intensity of curricular debate at the international level. It is therefore essential for researchers to keep pace with the emergence of modern technologies and tools, not only at the user level but also with a broad, professional knowledge of programming. This complex task cannot be achieved without specific research skills.

Doctoral Program in Spatial Information and Spatial Data Science

Spatial data plays a critical role in the digitalization of social and industrial domains and is a fundamental input parameter for various economic and research concepts. The successful utilization of location-based content, which includes spatial, temporal, and thematic data, is an indicator of significance from both scientific and economic perspectives. In addition, a substantial amount of human culture information is spatial data. The doctoral program Spatial Informatics and Spatial Data Science is designed to analyze, interpret, and model spatial relationships of attribute data. It aims to develop a theoretical and practical understanding of spatial data technologies and their application, as well as research development to address the challenges in this field. The program's thematic areas include remote sensing methods, web-GIS, navigation and mobile mapping technologies, spatial data visualization, spatial data mining, and other relevant topics in computer science.

Doctoral Program of IT Solutions in Engineering Sciences

Modern production technologies are inconceivable without IT research and development nowadays. The comprehensive, complex understanding and management of it is the driving force of modern societies. The educational perspective within the framework of the doctoral program enables the acquisition of comprehensive proficiency at the interface points of the IT and engineering fields. Based on this knowledge, the students enable to conduct independent research, develop IT solutions and solve problems arising in engineering sciences. The doctoral program provides theoretical and practical knowledge in the fields of informatics, which are essential for high-quality engineering solutions, including Industry 4.0 manufacturing technology, engineering materials science, mechanics and dynamic flow simulations. IT research and development focuses on tasks whose solution supports the characteristics and multipurpose, applied use of metallic, polymeric and composite materials. Materials science issues range from molecular systems through an array of material properties to informatics and engineering design, finite element modeling and optimization procedures with IT systems. The background of these and similar engineering solutions is based on engineering mechanics. The infrastructural conditions of the doctoral program are based on the modern and well-equipped laboratories of the Savaria Institute of Technology within the Faculty of Informatics. 

Questions about the procedure can be sent to phd@inf.elte.hu.

Research topics can be viewed at the following website  (Eötvös Loránd University, Doctoral School of Informatics, only currently available topics)

Application requirements:

• Master’s degree (or equivalent)

• at least a B2 level complex state-accredited language exam

Admission information (elte.hu)