Visiting the Law Department

Who can apply?

Post-graduate students registered in a similar PhD programme at another university or institute may be appointed as visiting students. Please note that we do not accept applications from LLM students.

All requests must be approved by the Law Department. The Department does not appoint visiting students for less than a month or more than six months. In order to be fair to all applicants, repeat appointments as Visiting Student will not be made.

While mentors are available to meet and discuss with the selected visiting students, their commitments, unfortunately, prevent them from supervising their thesis during the visiting students' stay at the EUI.

How to apply

• Exchange Students registered at a university holding an active agreement with the EUI (Erasmus+, Bilateral, CIVICA, or other) should apply here. Interested students should contact their home university to ensure that an active agreement is in place between the EUI and their university and to receive instructions about the application process.

• All other students who want to apply as Visiting Student at the EUI must register here, if you already registered then you must login and fill out the relevant application form (Visiting Student LAW application).

When you insert the information and e-mail of your referee, he/she will receive an e-mail with a link to an online form where he/she will be able to submit a reference letter; this letter must be submitted before the deadline for the application.

Only applications that are submitted by the deadline are considered. For additional information, please contact LawAdmin@eui.eu

Applications must include the purpose and dates of the visit (max. 1 page), a curriculum vitae (max. 2 pages), an outline of the current PhD research (max. 4 pages) and a supporting reference letter from the supervisor of the research.

Visiting Students who apply to the PhD programme at the EUI must prepare their application independently and cannot ask EUI faculty for advice on their application.

Deadlines for applications

All applications for the appointment of Visiting and Exchange Students will be considered at departmental meetings twice a year according to the following deadlines:

• 1 May, in order to receive a decision in June for visits starting from September of the following academic year.

• 30 September, in order to receive a decision in October for visits starting from January of the following calendar year.

Important information for current visiting students

If a visiting student needs a certificate in order to obtain a subsidy or grant from any source, he/she will have to provide the exact address of the grant-awarding authority and a template of the relevant type of certificate by e-mail at least two weeks in advance.

Please note that the EUI is not an Italian university and should not be considered as such for the purpose of a research visit.

No degree will be delivered or papers marked for credit by the Law Department for visiting students. A certificate of attendance will be provided.

How to apply

Post-doctoral scholars or the equivalent may be appointed as Visiting Fellows. All requests must be approved first by the Law Department and then by the Executive Committee of the Academic Council.

The length of the visit must be of at least one month and no more than six months. Fellows cannot be appointed during July-August when there are no academic activities. In order to be fair to all applicants, repeat appointments as Visiting Fellow will not be made. Please note that the period of stay must be entirely self-funded.

To apply for Visiting Fellow, you must register here within the set deadlines listed below, if you already registered then you must login and fill out the relevant application form (Visiting Fellow LAW application form).

Only applications submitted by the deadlines will be considered. For additional information please contact LawAdmin@eui.eu

Applications must include purpose and dates of the visit (max. 1 page), a curriculum vitae (max. 2 pages), a summary of the research project (max. 100 words) and a 1 page research project plan.

The Department will only assess complete applications.

Deadlines

All applications for the appointment of Visiting Fellows will be considered at departmental meetings twice a year according to the following deadlines:

• 1 May, in order to receive a decision in June, for visits starting from September of the following academic year

• 30 September, in order to receive a decision in October, for visits starting from January of the following calendar year

The Law Department at the EUI hosts a number of fellows under internal EUI fellowship schemes or externally funded fellowships.

Self-financing scholars may also be appointed as Visiting Fellows in the Law Department.

EUI Fellowships

• Fernand Braudel Senior Fellowships
• Max Weber post-doctoral Fellowships

Other Fellowships

• Marie Curie Fellowships
• Canon Foundation Fellowships
• Academy of Finland Fellowships

Only for prospective visitors who are enrolled in a PhD programme in one of the targeted Widening Countries and hold nationality from a targeted Widening country 

In the framework of the EUI Widening Europe Programme that aims to build a bridge between the EUI and national higher education institutions in targeted Widening countries, the Law Department offers funded research visits for PhD students who hold the nationality of one of the targeted countries listed below and are affiliated with a higher education institution/public research centre in one of these countries, to spend the fall term of the academic year 2026-2027 at the Law Department.

 
Funding

The funding provided by the EUI for a 3-month research visit starting from September 2026 is a total grant of 3500 EUR to cover the living cost in Florence and up to 500 EUR to cover travel costs¹.

¹Details on the modalities for payments will be communicated to selected candidates only. In case the selected Visiting Student is willing to stay for less than 3 months, the amount allocated for the cost of living will be adjusted accordingly and will be managed on a case-by-case basis.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates must hold the nationality and be affiliated with a higher education institution/public research centre in any of the countries below: 

• Inside the European Union: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

• Outside the European Union: Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Georgia, Kosovo², Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Moldova, and Ukraine.

² This designation is without prejudice to positions on status and is in line with UNSCR 1244(1999) and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

Candidates must be enrolled in a PhD programme. Please note that we do not accept applications from LLM students. Precedence is given to those scholars whose research interests relate directly to the work being carried out within the law Department and are of particular interest to one or more of the Department’s teaching staff. All requests must be approved by the Law Department. While mentors are available to meet and discuss with the selected visiting students, their commitments, unfortunately, prevent them from supervising their thesis during the visiting students' stay at the EUI.

Application

To apply for the Visiting Student position at the Law Department in the context of the EUI Widening Europe Programme, you must register and apply within the set deadlines via the application portal here. If you have already registered, then you must log in and fill out the relevant application form (Visiting Student LAW application).

When you insert the information and e-mail of your referee, they will receive an e-mail with a link to an online form where to submit a reference letter. Please be aware that the letter must be sent before the application deadline.

Only applications that are submitted by the deadline are considered. For additional information, please contact LawAdmin@eui.eu.

Visiting Students who apply must prepare their application independently and cannot ask EUI faculty for advice on their application.

Deadline for submission of applications:

• 1 May 2026 for visits starting from September 2026 until December 2026

The online application must include:

• the purpose and dates of the visit (max. 1 page). Please indicate on the top of the research plan that you are applying as a visiting student in the context of the Widening Europe Programme;
• a curriculum vitae in PDF (max.1 page) ;
• an outline of the current PhD research (max. 4 pages);
• an enrolment certificate from your current PhD programme and proof of nationality (please provide a unique PDF with both documents in English).

Please note that candidates are requested to submit a proof of nationality (ID card or passport) and an official document confirming enrolment in the PhD programme at the higher education institution or public research centre (in English, if possible). This document should indicate the date of enrollment and the duration of the doctoral studies, and must be signed, stamped, and issued by the higher education institution where the doctoral studies are being undertaken.

No degree will be delivered or papers marked for credit by the Law Department for visiting students. A certificate of attendance can be provided upon request.

Selection Process

The Law Department will only assess complete applications, and the results will be communicated in June. For organisational reasons, no exceptions will be made to this rule.

 
Admission

Selected Visiting Students are assigned to a liaison professor from the current Law Department's faculty who has shown interest in their research proposal.

Visiting Students have access rights to the Library and the Institute’s facilities but are not entitled to a working space.