Executive Summary

On 19 June 2026, the Federal Council adopted a postulate report evaluating doctoral cooperations between universities of applied sciences, teacher education institutions, and research universities. The evaluation shows that these cooperations function well overall and strengthen scientific junior researchers with dual competence profiles (theory and practice). At the same time, different structures among higher education institutions create various challenges. The Swiss Rectors' Conference (SHK) has supported such projects since 2017 with project-based funding and will continue to monitor developments.

Persons

  • No individuals named

Topics

  • Higher education policy
  • Doctoral education
  • Higher education cooperations
  • Research funding
  • Education policy

Clarus Lead

The evaluation comes at a time when the Swiss higher education landscape continues to pursue profile differentiation between different types of institutions as an educational policy objective. The question of how to meet the demand for scientific junior researchers with dual competence profiles remains central to a high-performing and differentiated higher education landscape. Until the end of 2026, doctoral cooperations will continue to be supported with project-based funding – after that, new financing models must be clarified.

Detailed Summary

The evaluation is based on postulate 23.3960 from the National Council's Commission for Science, Education and Culture (WBK) and examines the development of doctoral cooperations since their systematic promotion by the Swiss Rectors' Conference from 2017 onwards. The cooperations typically emerge from existing research partnerships and strengthen scientific competence building and research integration at universities of applied sciences and teacher education institutions.

Particularly in fields such as the arts, social work, and subject didactics, cooperations with foreign higher education institutions prove valuable for qualifying in dual competence profiles. The different institutional structures between universities of applied sciences (application-oriented) and research universities (research-oriented) create synergies, but also lead to coordination challenges. The legally defined division of tasks remains the basis for this collaboration and is intended to ensure clear profile formation.

Key Statements

  • Doctoral cooperations between universities of applied sciences and research universities function well overall and offer important opportunities for scientific junior researchers
  • The dual competence profile (theory and practice) is deliberately strengthened through these cooperations
  • Different higher education structures bring both synergies and challenges
  • Financing question remains open: project-based support expires at the end of 2026

Critical Questions

  1. Evidence: What specific indicators were used to assess cooperation quality, and how was the success of the "dual competence profile" made measurable?

  2. Data Quality: How representative is the evaluation for all universities of applied sciences and teacher education institutions, and were regional or subject-specific differences systematically recorded?

  3. Conflicts of Interest: To what extent might universities of applied sciences have an interest in presenting cooperations more positively to secure further funding?

  4. Causality: Can it be demonstrated that the cooperations themselves (and not other factors) lead to improved scientific junior researchers?

  5. Financing: What alternatives to project-based financing are being seriously considered after 2026, and who bears the costs?

  6. Feasibility: How concrete are the identified challenges, and are there already proposed solutions for the structural problems?

  7. Long-term Sustainability: Is there a risk that cooperations will collapse after funding expires?

Sources

Primary Source: Federal Council Postulate Report on the Evaluation of Doctoral Cooperations – Adopted 19.06.2026 https://www.news.admin.ch/de/newnsb/DEi4Vqj1J29iqYsSfxrAa

Supplementary Sources:

  1. Evaluation of the "Doctoral Education" Program (Barbara Hearing GmbH and econcept, 2025) – https://shk.ch/images/dokumentation/publikationen/evaluation_programm_p-1_doktoratsausbildung.pdf
  2. Postulate 23.3960 of the Commission for Science, Education and Culture – https://www.parlament.ch/de/ratsbetrieb/suche-curia-vista/geschaeft?AffairId=20233960

Verification Status: ✓ 19.06.2026

This text was created with the support of an AI model. Editorial responsibility: clarus.news | Fact-checking: 19.06.2026