Institute of Mathematics and Informatics at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
announces a competition for admission of full-time doctoral students
under Art. 21, para. 7 of the Higher Education Act,
with an application deadline of 06.06.2026

In implementation of Project BGRFPR002-1.016-0002 “European Chair for the Promotion of Digital Cultural Heritage through Open Innovation and Open Science” (FOCUS), competitions are announced for the admission of full-time doctoral students under Art. 21, para. 7 of the Higher Education Act, in the field of higher education 4. Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Informatics, professional field 4.6. Informatics and Computer Science, doctoral programme “Informatics”, on the topics listed in the table below.

The competition is open to candidates from the country and abroad.

Only candidates who meet the requirements listed below are eligible to participate. They must be enrolled in full-time doctoral studies and, at the time of the announcement of the procedure, must not be registered as doctoral students at any higher education institution or scientific organization. Candidates who have already obtained the educational and scientific degree “Doctor,” as well as those who have been dismissed from a doctoral programme with or without the right to defend, are not eligible.

The admission examinations consist of two parts – one in the specialty and one in a foreign language. The exam syllabus for the specialty examination is available for download at the following links:

Candidates who successfully pass the specialty examination (at least “Very Good” 4.50) and the foreign language examination (at least “Good” 4.00) will be invited to an interview conducted by the Project Management Team.

Approved doctoral candidates will be employed under a labour contract for up to 3 years (for the duration of the doctoral programme) at IMI-BAS, with a full-time workload of 8 hours per day and a salary of €1650. For international doctoral students, an additional €350 is provided. Additional funding is available for travel for conference participation and scientific exchanges up to €2000 per year.

For all other matters related to the admission of doctoral students under this competition, the Regulations for Doctoral Admissions at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and national legislation shall apply.

Doctoral Topic Proposed by
Infrastructures and open solutions for collections as data in Bulgarian cultural heritage institutions Assoc. Prof. Dr. Milena Dobreva
Methods and technologies for integration, semantic enrichment and mapping of open data for public art Assoc. Prof. Dr. Milena Dobreva
3D modelling of cultural heritage objects: methods for creation, semantic enrichment and valorisation as digital twins Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vesela Statkova

From 07.05.2026 to 06.06.2026, candidates shall submit an application form accompanied by the following documents:

  • Curriculum Vitae (European format, in Bulgarian)
  • Declaration under §5 of the Additional Provisions of Council of Ministers Decree No. 90/26.05.2000 for lack of prior/current full-time doctoral studies
  • Master’s degree diploma with its annex. If the diploma has not yet been issued, the candidate must submit an academic transcript showing the average grade from semester examinations with the course workload and the grade from the thesis defence or state examination. A minimum overall grade of “Very Good” (4.50) is required.
  • Certificate of recognition of higher education in Bulgaria (issued by a Bulgarian higher education institution or by the National Centre for Information and Documentation – NACID) for persons who obtained their Master’s degree abroad.

Documents are to be submitted to the Human Resources Department (Room 205) of IMI or sent to the email address a.avramova@math.bas.bg.

Contact phone: +359 2 979 3846 – Dr. Aneta Avramova, HR inspector, responsible for academic development.