Requirements

Every year a small group of 10-20 highly qualified applicants from many countries are admitted to the PhD programme. The NHH PhD programme is designed for candidates with proven academic capabilities, motivation, and the potential for advanced analytical research.

Requirements

Applicants who have at least a Master of Science or comparable academic degree will be considered for admission. An additional requirement is that the academic education has to include at least one-and-a-half years of studies in business administration or economics.

Previous academic work, standardised graduate examination performance (GMAT or GRE), and the personal assessment of instructors and professional supervisors are taken into consideration in assessing each applicant's qualifications. Candidates apply for admission to one of the specialisation fields.

Application procedure

1. Application form
An online application process is used for the PhD programme at NHH. A link to the online applications form will appear on the NHH-website approximately one month before the deadline.
The application is not considered complete until all the relevant fields have been completed and all required information has been attached and received by NHH. Incomplete applications forms will not be considered.
2. Statement of purpose
Applicants must provide a statement of purpose, outlining their reasons for applying, choice of field of study (see list of departments), background relevant for the chosen field of study, future career plans, and other information which may aid in the evaluation of their aptitude and motivation for PhD work.
3. Research proposal
Applicants are required to submit a tentative research proposal with the application. The purpose of this is is to see in which direction the applicant is aiming to take his/her research, and it does not need to be too detailed. The research proposal should include the following:

1. A description of the proposed research topic or issue to be examined
2. A suggested formulation for the research question(s) to be addressed
3. A tentative project description
4. A provisional training plan for the taught element of the programme
5. A statement of motivation for pursuing the proposed research topic

In total the research proposal should be in the region of five to ten pages in length.

Applicants who are students in a master program can submit their research proposal within June.

Applicants should acquaint themselves with the courses offered at PhD level to enable them to put together a provisional training plan for the taught element of the programme:

Course information

4. Certified copies of relevant transcripts and diplomas
Admission is based on a Master of Science degree or its equivalent with good grades. Applicants should have at least one and a half years of previous study in business administration and economics (this includes subjects like statistics, mathematics, accounting, finance, computing, management, and marketing).
Official transcripts from each college, university, or other institution of higher learning attended, should be submitted in the application. Students with academic records from schools outside of Norway must provide a thorough explanation of the programmes' degree requirements and grading system.
Students who are completing their master degree during the current semester, with the intention of starting the PhD programme in the autumn semester, are also invited to apply. The qualifying education must be completed before enrolment in the PhD programme.
5. GMAT or GRE
Applicants with a qualifying master degree from a Nordic (Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish or Icelandic) institution are not required to take the GMAT or GRE. All other applicants must take the tests. The minimum test scores to be considered for admission are:

GMAT - a total score of 600 points
GRE - 152 points on the Quantative reasoning section and 153 points on the Verbal reasoning section (660 points on the Quantative reasoning section and 500 points on the Verbal reasoning section on the old scale)

GMAT and GRE scores must be from within the last five years.
Applicants must request an official copy of their GMAT/GRE scores to be sent directly to NHH. Student records will be treated confidentially.
The NHH PhD programme school code numbers are:

for GMAT: 7KZ-ZK-29
for GRE: 0686

More information on GMAT
More information on GRE

6. TOEFL or IELTS
Students are required to have a good command of the English language. The following applicants will be considered to fit with this profile:

Applicants whose native language is English
Applicants with a qualifying master degree from a Nordic (Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish ore Icelandic) insitution
Applicants with a qualifying master degree where the language of tuition was English

All other applicants must take either TOEFL or IELTS. The minimum standard for test scores that NHH accepts are:

TOEFL - a total score of 575 points for the written test or 233 for the computer-based version or 90 points on the internet based test
IELTS- a score of 6.5

TOEFL / IETLS scores must be from within the last two years.

Applicants must request an official copy of their TOEFL/ IELTS scores to be sent directly to NHH. Student records will be treated confidentially.
The NHH code number for TOEFL is 0686.

More information on the TOEFL
More information on the IELTS

7. Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Applicants must submit an up-to-date academic CV, complete with a list of published and unpublished papers if relevant.
8. Letters of recommendation
Two or three letters of recommendation evaluating the applicant's academic potential are required. These should be from professors that know the applicant well.
Letters of recommendation must be sent directly to NHH in sealed envelopes, with the recommender signing the envelope across the seal.
9. Documentation of funding
Applicants who don’t apply for a research scholar position must be able to document funding for the three year duration of the PhD programme.

Address
Official copies of GMAT/GRE and/or TOEFL/ IELTS scores and the letters of recommendation should be sent to:

PhD Coordinator
Office of Student and Academic Affairs
NHH
Helleveien 30
5045 Bergen
Norway