APPLYING TO EDMH

How to find a director

  • There are 4 aspects to a thesis project: a doctoral student, one or more thesis supervisors, a research topic, and firm funding for 3 years. The first step for a student is to find a thesis supervisor, and a research topic, in a field that interests him or her.
  • Students wishing to undertake a PhD at EDMH must themselves contact a potential supervisor (researcher or teacher-researcher holding an HDR) whose research topics interest them, before putting together their application file. The supervisor may have already submitted a thesis topic on a dedicated website, or may be working on a thesis project in conjunction with a student.

 
Here are some tips for finding a thesis supervisor:

  • For foreign students, it is advisable to complete their Master's degree (M2) in one of the establishments of the Université Paris-Saclay or the Institut Polytechnique de Paris, which enables them to meet potential supervisors. Master's scholarships are offered, for example, by the Fondation Mathématique Jacques Hadamard (FMJH), the Université Paris Saclay or the Fondation l'Ecole Polytechnique.
  • Applicants can consult the list of EDMH supervisors, or the lists of members of EDMH host laboratories, often classified by thematic team. They can also contact an academic supervisor at their enrolment institution (M2 supervisor at Université Paris-Saclay and Institut Polytechnique de Paris, M2 course teacher, tutors, directors of studies, etc.), or the EDMH scientific representative at their institution.
  • Thesis supervisors can propose a thesis topic on the ADUM portal, preferably at least one month before the application deadline. Proposed topics will then be posted on a dedicated EDMH website. It is possible to direct a proposed subject to a candidate. See “For supervisors” below.
  • Students interested in a proposed topic must contact the thesis project supervisor before applying online (they must obtain a letter of support from the supervisor for their application file). For each thesis project, the supervisor may support only one candidate.
  • To apply for a grant from the Institut Polytechnique de Paris or one of its component establishments, the supervisor must submit the thesis subject on ADUM (“competition procedure”).

 
Applications that do not have the support of the thesis director will not be considered.

 


Several recruitment paths

EDMH recruits doctoral students in two way:

  • the competitive mode, which is the recruitment competition for doctoral contracts directly managed by EDMH (via partner establishments, or via foundations and other partner organizations), through one or more competitions.
  • the non-competitive mode, which concerns candidates who have already obtained, or hope to obtain, external funding, for which EDMH is not involved in the selection process; these applications can be made on an “ad hoc” basis.


The funding section provides examples of possible doctoral funding.
 


For these two procedures, there are two ways to finalize the thesis topic and submit the application:

  • Application on a proposed subject: the thesis director proposes a thesis subject before having found a candidate, and deposits the subject on the ADUM portal. Once the subject has been validated by EDMH, these thesis projects can be viewed by students on a dedicated website. If a student is interested in a project, he or she should contact the thesis director to ensure that the subject is still available, and to discuss the matter. Once an agreement has been reached with the thesis director, the candidate can submit his/her application on the ADUM application portal, by clicking on “candidature sur un sujet proposé”. This is the only way to apply for the grants managed by the IP Paris.
  • Spontaneous application: the doctoral student contacts a supervisor directly, depending on the supervisor's research area, to discuss a possible thesis. The thesis project is then worked out together, but not necessarily posted on the EDMH website. The candidate can then apply on the ADUM application portal by clicking on “Candidature spontanée”.


Non competitive recruitment EDMH


It concerns all doctoral projects not funded by a doctoral contract directly awarded by EDMH. The doctoral student or thesis director must contact the EDMH scientific representative at his/her institution, and the doctoral student must submit his/her application file on the ADUM application portal. The EDMH representative will examine the candidate's file. If the application is eligible, he or she will interview the candidate for around 15-20 minutes (possibly by videoconference), and will forward an opinion to the EDMH jury, made up of the EDMH Steering Committee, which will decide on acceptance.

Non-competitive applications can be submitted throughout the year.
Note: the EDMH only gives an opinion, based on the scientific evaluation of the project. Registration for a thesis will only be possible if the requested funding is obtained, the Master's degree or equivalent is obtained, the agreement of the defense security officer in the case of “sensitive” topics, the visa is obtained if necessary, and the final agreement of UP Saclay / IP Paris / Université PSL.


Competitive recruitment EDMH


This recruitment concerns candidates for thesis grants managed by EDMH on behalf of funding bodies: universities (Université Paris-Saclay, Institut Polytechnique de Paris or their component institutions) with a quota of ministerial grants, thematic doctoral programs, grants from foreign governments requiring the advice of doctoral schools (e.g. Chinese Scientific Council grants awarded to UPSaclay or IP-Paris institutions). ENS Paris-Saclay CDSN scholarships are awarded by an ENS jury, but the doctoral school is also involved in the ranking.

  • IP-Paris supervisors must first submit their proposed thesis topics to ADUM. Thesis candidates can consult the subjects on offer, and contact the supervisors whose subjects interest them.
  • UPSaclay supervisors can register their subject on ADUM, with the aim of finding a candidate. Applicants for UPSaclay ADI funding must also submit their topics on ADUM. After agreeing a topic with their future supervisor, doctoral candidates must submit their application file on the ADUM application portal before the deadline of the corresponding competition. The doctoral student must also submit his or her application to the EDMH representative at his or her institution, who will forward an opinion to the competition juries. The application must include a letter of support from the future supervisor. The juries for the grants managed by EDMH provide a ranking for the main list and an ordered ranking for the complementary list. These lists must then be validated by the funding organizations.
  • These juries are made up of the EDMH director and deputy director, with guests invited as required:
    • a representative of the Master's courses in Mathematics and Applications at UPSaclay and IP-Paris,
    • representatives of mathematics at interfaces, chosen from among the heads of the thematic axes of the Fondation Mathématique Jacques Hadamard
    • representatives from other institutions.


Laboratories or teams wishing to do so can send their pre-ranked candidates to the juries, via the EDMH administrative manager, the representative of their institution, or the EDMH director.

Note: doctoral scholarships are awarded subject to completion of the Master's degree, the agreement of the Defense Security Official if necessary, and the granting of a visa for non-European nationals.

 

 

How to apply: content of the application

All EDMH thesis applications must be submitted via the ADUM application portal. Applicants must create an application form in “Create my application space”.


Two options are available:

 

  • Thesis subject pre-deposited by the supervisor, validated by the laboratory directors and the ED, and posted online on the EDMH thesis offer website. The supervisor must click on “Online subject application: Yes” (at the very bottom of the subject submission page). The candidate can then select the thesis project on the EDMH thesis offer site, and click on the “Apply” button on the offer page. Candidates can also search for a thesis subject from their application page, by clicking on “Apply for a proposed subject”. Please note: theses in Université Paris-Saclay laboratories are grouped under the “Université Paris-Saclay GS Mathématiques” tab. The supervisor can direct the subject to a specific candidate, by entering the candidate's e-mail address. The candidate will then find the project in his ADUM application interface. Please note: the candidate's e-mail address entered by the supervisor must be identical to the one used by the candidate for his ADUM page.  This student will be the only one able to apply for this project.

Please note: subjects intended for candidates for IPP grants must first be submitted on ADUM.

 

  • Project submitted by the candidate him/herself: the candidate must open the ADUM application interface, and click on “Unsolicited application”. The thesis project will have been discussed with the supervisor(s) beforehand. When applying online, a certain amount of information must be entered. In the “Type of funding” section, indicate the funding you have already obtained, if any, or the list of all funding you plan to apply for. In the “Funding status” section, select “Acquired” or “In progress”. If the name of your future thesis director does not appear in the drop-down list, please write to the EDMH administrative manager to have it added to ADUM.

 
The main document to be attached (in the "motivation and supporting documents" section) is a sngle PDF file, including:

  • Cover page of the pdf file: indicate your name, the title of the thesis, and the list of all funding to which this file applies.
  • Description of doctoral project: title of project in French and English, project summary (15 lines) in French and English, type of funding requested (100% or co-financing), research unit(s) hosting the project, thesis supervisor(s) or co-supervisors, Doctoral School of affiliation and Institution of registration; then 5 pages maximum, with context, perspective and work plan.
  • Candidate's CV (including surname, first name, nationality, date of birth, address, email address, telephone number, and descriptions and names of supervisors of Master's thesis or research internships.
  • Master's grades (M1 and M2) available (send latest M2 grades as soon as possible).
  • Motivation letter from the candidate, summarizing his/her academic background and the reasons why he/she has decided to undertake this thesis project.
  • Recommendations and letters of support: the candidate's thesis supervisor(s) will provide a detailed letter of support, which the candidate will include in his or her application.  A briefly motivated opinion from the laboratory director(s) can be provided in the form of a letter to be inserted in the application, or by clicking on ADUM after the application has been submitted.
  • In the application module, candidates can designate 2 referees, by clicking on “Submit letters of recommendation by my referees” and entering the email addresses of these referees. These referees will then receive an invitation from EDMH to write a letter of support, and post it on a dedicated site. Their letters will then be readable by EDMH, but not by the candidate.

Topics at the interface with other sciences:

  • If you are applying for an interdisciplinary grant, e.g. if you are applying for a grant from the Fondation Mathématique Jacques Hadamard (FMJH) and your project fits in with one of the FMJH's 4 thematic axes, please add the FMJH interdisciplinary theme for which you are applying and a paragraph highlighting the interdisciplinary aspect of the project to the description of your doctoral project; ask your thesis supervisor to emphasize the interdisciplinary aspect in his or her letter of recommendation.

For an international co-supervised thesis, indicate in the description of the doctoral project the specific arrangements envisaged (schedule of stays in each establishment).
 

  • There is no need to fill in the ADUM headings “Letter of motivation” or “Additional information”, as their contents are included in the pdf file above. If you have any questions or problems, please contact the EDMH administrative manager.

 

 

Candidate selection criteria

The folowing criteria are used to evaluate applications, wether in competition or non-competition mode:

  • quality of the candidate's academic background (Master's results or equivalent qualifications, research skills based on internships or dissertations, recommendations from supervisors)
  • quality of the proposed subject (e.g. originality, openness, feasibility), suitability of the thesis supervisor to the subject
  • suitability of the candidate's training to the proposed thesis topic
  • quality of the presentation at the audition (competitive process) or interview (non-competitive process); in particular, the candidate's understanding of the thesis project will be assessed.
  • suitability of the thesis funding envisaged (for the “non-competitive” mode)
  • during interviews, whether in competitive (auditions) or non-competitive mode, students must briefly introduce themselves (to justify their ability to solve the thesis topic), briefly present their topic, its originality and the scientific approach to be implemented, as well as the funding they are applying for, and briefly outline their professional project for the post-thesis period.

 


Application deadline

The deadline for submitting applications to most EDMH-managed scholarships is 22 April 2025. Most applications are made through the ADUM application portal. Some calls for applications will take place on other dates. These are listed below. Please note that eligibility requirements may differ from one call to another.

 

 

FUNDINGS FOR ALL

FMJH (Fondation Mathématique Jacques Hadamard)

  • Apply plateform: ADUM
  • Thesis subject submissions (optional): early April, recommended date
  • Closing of applications, with notice from the Thesis Directors: 22 April 2025
  • Jury EDMH eligibility: 6 May 2025
  • EDMH hearings and jury: 21 and 22 May 2025

(As an indication, in 2024 FMJH as financed 5 full doctoral contracts and 2 FMJH PhD Track)

CoFund MathPhDInFrance (link)

  • Plateforme de candidature : https://mathphdinfrance.fr/
  • First call for 25 scholarships opens: 17 December 2024
  • Deadline for submission of applications 14 February 2025
  • Final results for Stage 1: March 7, 2025 (a list of selected fellows is available. They move to Stage 2).
  • Stage 2: due 25 April 2025

Paris Region PhD 2025 (link)

CDSN ENS Paris-Saclay (link)

 

 

UNIVERSITE PARIS-SACLAY FUNDINGS

Programme blanc GS Maths Université Paris-Saclay

  • Apply plateform: ADUM
  • Thesis subject submissions (optional): early April, recommended date
  • Closing of applications, with notice from the Thesis Directors: 22 April 2025
  • Jury EDMH eligibility: 6 May 2025
  • EDMH hearings and jury: 21 and 22 May 2025

As an indication, the numbers of doctoral contracts allocated in 2024 were as follows:

  • CentraleSupelec : 1
  • Faculté des Sciences d'Orsay : 8
  • ENS Paris Saclay : 1
  • UEVE : 3

CoFund DeMythify.AI (thesis in AI at UPSay, link)

  • Apply plateform: ADUM
  • Subject matter filing: closed
  • Application deadline: 15 January 2025
  • Date & procedure

ADI UPSaclay Fellowships (partial funding of co-trustee theses)

  • Apply plateform: ADUM
  • Subject submission portal opens: 15 January 2025
  • Subject filing portal closed: 23 February 2025
  • Open: 28 February 2025
  • Application deadline: 31 March 2025

 

 

INSTITUT POLYTECHNIQUE DE PARIS FUNDINGS

Early call of IPParis (link)

Final call for IPParis (same scholarships as the early call, link)

Fundings for early and final calls of IPParis

  • MESR IP Paris
  • MESR X-ENSTA
  • Telecom-Paris
  • Telecom SudParis
  • Eole Polytechnique
  • ENSTA Paris
  • Hi!Paris
  • E4C
  • EUR Plasmas
  • Quantum
  • STEP2 

Application process for early and final calls of IPParis

 


Sources of financing

A non-exhaustive list of funding sources is given below. For most of these sources of funding, the selection is not made by EDMH, but by the funding organization. As this list changes regularly, candidates and thesis supervisors are advised to keep an eye on the various application deadlines.


When submitting an application on ADUM, the supervisor must indicate the possible funding envisaged (if the envisaged funding does not appear in the drop-down menu, indicate “Other funding”).

  • ministerial grants (MESRI or MINEFI) allocated to institutions for “white projects” (not thematically focused). At UPSaclay, these grants make up the GS Maths doctoral program.
  • doctoral grants from the Fondation Mathématiques Jacques Hadamard (FMJH).
  • MathPhdinFrance program. The FMJH is a partner in the MathPhDInFrance program, co-financed by the European “Marie Sklodowska-Curie Co-funding of Regional, National and International Programme”. This program offers doctoral grants for co-tutored theses between a laboratory in the Paris region and one in another.
  • grants from institutions focusing on specific themes: ANR-IA program at IP-Paris; ADI program at UPSaclay for cotutelle theses.
  • grants financed by the Ile-de-France Region.
  • grants offered by a research project of which one of the supervisors is a member: National Research Agency, ERC, Marie Curie networks, etc.
  • CIFRE scholarships for in-company thesis work, financed by ANRT. Please note that the ANRT application procedure takes a long time.
  • other industrial grants, e.g. associated with Chaires industrielles of major groups.
  • grants from national research organizations (CEA, DGA, INSERM, INRAe, INRIA (CORDI-S grants), CIRAD, IRD, IRSTEA, ADEME, CNRS, ONERA, IFPEN)
  • integrated Master + PhD grants from the Institut Polytechnique de Paris (PhD Track)
  • IDEX Paris-Saclay scholarships, such as those offered by the Data Science Center (CDS)
  • scholarships reserved for students at certain grandes écoles: Allocations spécifiques polytechniciens (AMX), Allocations spécifiques normaliens (ENS PSL (Ulm) , ENS Lyon, ENS Paris-Saclay, ENS Rennes)
  • grants from foundations : Allocations internationales de thèse Gaspard Monge de l'Ecole Polytechnique ; Thèses de doctorat Futur & Rupture de l'Institut Mines-Télécom, Fondation Télécom et Institut Carnot ; bourses doctorales de la fondaction CFM.
  • foreign scholarships, including those from the CSC (China Scholarship Council), which has signed agreements with Université Paris-Saclay and Institut Polytechnique de Paris to fund doctoral studies. These scholarships are reserved for Chinese students.
  • etc...

 

                         

What is a CIFRE thesis ?

 

 

 

For Supervisors: how to submit a topic on ADUM

  • You are an HDR, or have obtained a dispensation to supervise without an HDR, and would like to propose a thesis topic. If you are working in an IP-Paris laboratory and would like to benefit from a ministerial grant managed by EDMH, you need to submit your subject on . If you work in a laboratory affiliated to UPSaclay, you only need to submit your subject if you wish to apply for a CSC or ADI grant.
  • To be able to submit a subject, you must be registered on the EDMH supervisor database, which will give you an ADUM account. If you are not yet registered, please contact the EDMH administrative manager. You will then receive a code enabling you to create your ADUM access. Your ADUM account will be used not only to propose a subject, but also to manage the theses you supervise (registrations, various validations).
  • To submit the subject, open your ADUM space, click on “Propositions de thèse > Gestion des propositions de thèses > Ajouter une proposition de projet doctoral”, then fill in at least the boxes marked with an *. You will need to include a PDF file containing the thesis proposal.
  • In the “Funding” section, click on the box to bring up the drop-down menu. You are encouraged to indicate all funding sources to which the student may apply. Specify whether the funding is already secured, or whether it is a competition. Non-directed MESRI grants from UP Saclay are entitled “Programme blanc de la GS”. Non-directed MESRI grants from IP Paris are entitled “IPP or member school competition”.
  • Leave “Online subject application” set to “yes” to allow PhD students to apply online for your subject.
  • If you want to attract foreign candidates, you can choose to publish the subject on the Campus France website.
  • If you already have a designated candidate, indicate him/her and enter his/her email address. The candidate will then see your thesis topic on their ADUM application page, and can apply for it.
  • Once all the information has been entered, click on “Save and submit your project”. The project will be validated by the laboratory management and EDMH will put it online. Please note: for a student to apply, your topic must be published online on the EDMH website.
  • It is possible to submit a rather vague subject online, describing your field of research rather than a precise line of research, leaving the possibility of refining the project by discussing it with your future doctoral student.

 

Application for a spontaneous thesis

  • The alternative to this subject submission (excluding IPP grant applications): discuss with the student the thesis project, and let the candidate apply as a “spontaneous application”. The thesis project will then be included in his application. Once the student’s application has been submitted on , the thesis supervisor must validate the application, from his ADUM interface: to do this, click in the upper left corner on «Thesis proposals > Spontaneous thesis applications for which you are the thesis supervisor», then clicking on the “Student candidate card”.
  • In both types of application, the candidate will be required to provide a reasoned letter of support to the candidate, which will be included in his application. Without such a letter, the application will not be considered.