PhD Position Interview in Europe: What to Expect

PhD Position Interview in Europe: What to Expect

An interview for an advertised PhD position in the Netherlands, Denmark, at ETH Zurich or at a Max Planck school is a job interview for one funded project. In the five 2026 Utrecht University vacancies we found with a dated first round, that round came 8 to 19 days after the closing date (our arithmetic), and four of the five ads mention a second round, an assessment or a presentation.

Generic PhD interview advice assumes a programme interview, where you sell your own research direction. A European position already has a project and a budget, and it sits with a named supervisor or group. Our view: prepare by reading the vacancy text line by line and finding one piece of evidence for each line, not by polishing a speech about your dream topic. The method is below, with a cover letter for a PhD position as the document the panel will have open in front of them.

Every university and Max Planck page quoted below was checked on 31 October 2026. Most of the vacancies are closed; they are quoted as published examples of procedure, not as open positions.

Why a position interview is not a programme interview

Three published rules explain the difference.

• You are hired, not admitted. Utrecht's vacancies offer "a position for 1 year, with an extension to a total of four years upon a successful assessment in the first year". KTH says its doctoral students "are normally employed by the university and receive a monthly salary" (KTH). At DTU Sustain, "As a part of the employment procedure, an interview at DTU Sustain with the Head of the Department and the Head of the PhD Programme is compulsory" (DTU Sustain).
• The professor recruits. ETH Zurich says "Each potential doctoral thesis supervisor recruits their doctoral students themselves" and "a professor at ETH must be willing to supervise your dissertation" (ETH Zurich).
• A Max Planck school may select in a group event. IMPRS-µLife in Marburg ran a "3-day symposium" (20 to 22 April 2026) where candidates "present a research project that they conducted as part of their academic training" and then "interview with selected IMPRS faculty members" (IMPRS-µLife).

So the question behind every question is the same: can you start on this project in month one? If you are still choosing between a structured school and a single position, how to find a PhD supervisor covers that earlier decision.

The rounds, as the vacancies publish them

What the table tells you to do (our reading):

• Block the two weeks after the deadline. In the five Utrecht ads with a dated first round, the gap was 8, 9, 11, 15 and 19 days (our arithmetic). You will not get a month to prepare.
• Expect the second round to be smaller and harder. Two Utrecht ads say the second round is for "the final two selected candidates".
• Have referees ready before the call. TU Delft asks for them at the interview stage, and one Utrecht geosciences ad says the "Recommendation letter will be asked only for candidate shortlisted for interview". Our guide to references for PhD positions in Europe covers who to ask.
• Treat screening as continuous where the ad says so. At TU Delft a strong early application can be interviewed before the closing date.

Questions tied to the vacancy text

The clearest published hint is in the Utrecht democracy vacancy: applicants send "a research proposal of max. two pages that serves as a starting point for the interview", in which they "indicate relevant potential questions, case studies and source material based on the project description above". The panel interviews you on their project, read through your plan.

The prep method:

1. Copy every requirement and task line from the vacancy into a table.
2. Next to each line, write one piece of evidence: a thesis chapter, a dataset, a method, a result with a number.
3. Under each line, write the question a panel would ask to test it.
4. Mark any line where you have no evidence. Prepare a one-sentence honest answer and a plan for the gap.
5. Read the project's own description again and write two questions you would ask the supervisor about it. Questions to ask a professor in a PhD interview gives a starting list.

Constructed example: a vacancy-to-evidence table

Constructed example, written by us, not a real vacancy or applicant.

Context (invented): Parisa, an MSc graduate in civil engineering from Iran, is shortlisted for an invented four-year position, "Machine learning for flood-risk maps in delta cities", at a Dutch university.

The third row is the weak spot. Parisa should not invent partner experience. She prepares a true answer about the internship and one question back about how the project shares data with the cities. That is what a project panel can use.

The presentation and the assignment

The published procedures above use three formats. Prepare for the one your invitation names.

• A presentation of your past research. IMPRS-µLife asks for "a research project that they conducted as part of their academic training". Give a plain account of question, method, result and limits. Close with one slide linking it to the institute's work.
• A presentation of your plan for their project. Utrecht's two-page proposal "serves as a starting point for the interview". Spend most of the time on the first year: data, first study, risks.
• An assessment. Two Utrecht ads say "An assessment is part of the procedure" and do not say what it is. Ask the contact person named in the ad what format it takes and how long it lasts. That is a normal question, and the answer changes how you prepare.

Two more checks belong in your prep. Utrecht ads state that "Knowledge security screening can be part of the selection procedures of academic staff", and TU Delft says its knowledge-security assessment "is based on information provided by the candidates themselves, such as their motivation letter and CV, and takes place at the final stages of the selection process." Make sure your CV and letter state affiliations and funders exactly. If your degree is from a sanctioned country, our page on the sanctions question in a PhD application letter covers what to write. Travel is the second check: one Max Planck institute says it reimburses interview travel and that "this has no influence on the decision in the application process" (MPI for Molecular Biomedicine). Ask before you book.

The countercase: a structured programme with rotations, or a US-style PhD with no fixed project, does not interview this way. For those, PhD interview questions for international students covers the programme-style call.

Questions about European PhD position interviews

Will they ask about salary in the interview?

The ad already answers it: Dutch PhD salaries follow a fixed scale that the vacancy prints. TU Delft's job 3871, for example, states "€3204 - €4051 gross per month". What you can discuss once you hold an offer is covered in the Dutch PhD offer: salary, contract and start date.

Is the interview in person or online?

It depends on the round. The Utrecht ads above mix an online first round with an in-person second round, or the reverse. IMPRS-KIR's 2026 interviews were "via Zoom". Read the invitation; if it is in person and you need a visa, say so at once.

How many candidates reach the second round?

Two Utrecht ads say the second round is for "the final two selected candidates". Other ads do not say.

Should I send a thank-you email after a position interview?

A short one to the contact person is fine. Keep it to a fact you forgot to mention or an answer you want to correct; our thank-you email after a PhD interview has templates. For a UK proposal-based application rather than an advertised post, see UK PhD interview questions.

Get a free review of your PhD cover letter

Get a free Quick Review of your PhD cover letter against GradPilot's PhD position cover and motivation letter rubric. It reads whether your letter explains why the specific research work interests you, shows preparation through your own actions and connects it to the work ahead, which is the same evidence the panel will test in the interview. If the position also asks for a statement of purpose, the general PhD statement of purpose rubric covers that document. More PhD guides are on the PhD essays hub.

Sources

Retrieved 31 October 2026, except where noted.

• Utrecht University, vacancy 5241 PhD Institutional Change in the Organization of Care in the Netherlands (closed 1 April 2026): two rounds, presentation, contract wording.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5240 PhD Climate Change and Cooperation in Asia (closed 1 April 2026): round dates, invitation date, knowledge-security line.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5587 PhD Improving Carer Support in Eating Disorders (closed 16 August 2026): first round, assessment.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5598 PhD Candidate on Neurodiversity and Inclusion in Higher Education (closed 16 August 2026): assessment.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5576 PhD: Contextual (dis)advantage and educational inequality (closed 12 August 2026): first round date.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5692 PhD in the History of Democracy in the 1970s (closed 22 October 2026): proposal as the interview starting point, round dates, start date.
• Utrecht University, vacancy 5629 PhD in Global Talent Mobility and Europe's Strategic Autonomy (closed 14 September 2026): recommendation letters only for shortlisted candidates.
• TU Delft, PhD Position Sustainable Generative AI for Digital Sovereignty (job 3871): screening, referees at interview stage, knowledge-security assessment, salary.
• DTU Sustain, The PhD Programme: compulsory interview.
• KTH, Become a PhD student: employment model.
• ETH Zurich, Finding a doctoral position: supervisor recruits.
• IMPRS-µLife, IMPRS Selection Symposium (20 to 22 April 2026): format and travel.
• IMPRS-KIR, How to apply (2026 call): interview with the PTF via Zoom.
• Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, Travel expense reimbursement for interview trips: reimbursement rule.