GoKawiilEurodoc report finds wide PhD stipend gaps across 26 European countries
Eurodoc, a Brussels-based federation of early-career researchers, published the first comparative overview of first-year PhD income across 26 European countries for 2024-25. The report found large disparities in pay structures, with some doctoral candidates on taxed salaries and others on tax-exempt scholarships, and highlighted Scandinavian and Benelux nations as offering comparatively higher remuneration.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Co-author Pil Maria Saugmann suggests these pay gaps are driving a brain drain toward Scandinavia and the Benelux region, pulling talent away from other parts of Europe. Estonia's 2022 reform, which replaced a stipend with a guaranteed salary roughly 2.5 times higher, is cited as one example of how policy changes could reverse that pattern and boost both applications and industry ties. The findings could pressure national governments and universities to reassess how doctoral researchers are compensated.
- Eurodoc's report is the first comprehensive comparison of first-year PhD pay across 26 European countries.
- Scandinavian and Benelux countries are identified as relatively high-paying destinations, prompting concerns about brain drain elsewhere.
- Estonia's 2022 reform replacing stipends with salaries roughly 2.5 times higher is offered as a case study in reversing that trend.
Source: nature.com — Simms, 2026-10-12
Published there as: “What does a PhD pay? Data reveal huge gaps across Europe”
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