Department of Psychology

Doctoral study program
at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Palacky University Olomouc

  • Čeština
  • English

General Information

Why a Ph.D.?

  • Ph.D. is a prestigious and internationally acknowledged academic degree (achieved by less than 1 % of the population)
  • Greater job opportunities abroad and consequently a significantly higher salary
  • Opportunity to participate in attractive international scientific-research internships – we support foreign study stays and travels
  • Acquisition of new practical skills: e.g. procuring a grant, its financial management, elaboration of official texts, marketing, PR, etc.
  • Extension of the student status, more time for professional specialization
  • An opportunity for further activities in science
  • Development of high-expertise in the field
  • Establishment of professional contacts in the Czech Republic and abroad
  • Freedom in professional orientation
  • Option to actively contribute in defining the workload so that it is fulfilling and meaningful

When to consider a Ph.D.?

  • You cherish specializing in scientific-research and its application
  • You would like to deepen your expertise in a specific area of psychology
  • You consider the prospect of an academic career, work in a prominent institution or an innovative company
  • Would like to achieve a specialization within your present occupation (e.g. if you work in public administration, HR, education, healthcare, or the armed forces), In that case, you would like to achieve a better specialization (the part-time form is particularly suitable in such cases), and a Ph.D. degree would be valuable in your working position.

How does the Ph.D. study work?

  • Within the standard period of four years, students carry out a research project, work on their doctoral thesis and acquire credits on specialized courses.
  • In the beginning of the studies, students create individual study plans in cooperation with their supervisors. They do not attend lectures daily, but instead work on so-called modules, i.e. greater thematic units, according to the planned schedule and focus of their study. A major emphasis is placed on the doctoral research project: its preparation, continuous realization and the publication of its outputs.
  • International students are supposed to be present in Olomouc for a block of 3 weeks in one semester to attend selected classes and fulfil other study obligations which are not possible to handle on-line.

Fees and Scholarships for Ph.D. students

  • There are no fees for the Ph.D. studies.
  • Ph. D. students can also apply for internal grant projects (student grant competition of the UP Internal Grant Agency). The vast majority of the Ph.D. students participate in investigation of research projects supported with a grant.
  • All activities are appreciated. The department also grants other scholarships from the Ph.D. student scholarship fund for activities.
  • All Ph.D. students receive bonuses for teaching, supervision and serving as the opponent of theses, and for publication activities in accordance with the principles of remuneration policy applicable to all department staff.

Why study at UPOL?

  • The Department of Psychology has established and maintains friendly and collegial relationships.
  • Ph.D. students become an important part of the Department of Psychology. We appreciate your views concerning the operations of the department and your opinions are important when deciding about its future orientation.
  • We like engaging students in projects thus providing them with a chance to be remunerated and also acquire new knowledge and experience. Ph.D. students are provided with support and advice on an ongoing basis.
  • We support the further education of our students (with regard to both time and money).
  • We are forthcoming with respect to Ph.D. students’ engagement as practitioners while studying.
  • Our Faculty Team is supporting and cooperative.
olomouc - z praxe
HLI - laboratoř pro výzkum interakce člověka a světla
dopravní psychologie

Focus

The aim of the doctoral program is to provide a new type of specialist in the area of work and organizational psychology equipped to create advanced technical and non-technical innovation, e.g. in the form of certified methodologies, patents and software. Graduates will also acquire the knowledge and skills needed for development of technical and non-technical innovations affecting the human factor in the world of work.

Research-oriented graduates of the study program can work both in the application sector as well as the academic sector within multidisciplinary and international teams. Their non-technical innovations focused on the human factor will involve the development of end products (e.g. new systems for psychodiagnostics and procedures for identification of the potential and the general work performance and other indicators related to both individual applicants/employees or their groups; new tools for intervention and programs influencing work and organizational behaviour in order to increase competitiveness and long-term sustainability) and new approaches affecting the communication interface human-product/environment (i.e. adjustment of products/environment to needs arising from the human psyche with regard to handling ergonomics, user-friendliness, the ability of products to flexibly reflect the users’ needs, and efficient human-product/system communication).

Graduates will be aware of the role of personality and group dynamics at work, can understand the interactions a personality and the social environment. They will be able to describe and evaluate the influence of personality traits and processes on the emergence of negative phenomena (e.g. aggression and other forms of counter-productive behaviour) at a workplace. Graduates will have a knowledge of the general principles of psychological diagnostics and in-depth insight and advanced skills in the diagnostic procedures and methods used specifically in the area of work, organizational and management psychology. They will have a knowledge of the principles of design of diagnostic and research methods, as well as the principles of conducting research in general. They will be able to define and present a research design, conduct research and analyse data with qualitative methods as well as advanced linear and non-linear models. They will be able to present the outputs to the client and representatives of other specializations, defend them and implement them in practice.

The doctoral study program (DSP) can be studied in Czech or English.

Laboratories and equipment related to Work and Organizational Psychology – see here.
More detailed information related to the content of the study program – see here.
psychologie práce a organizace
  • psychologie práce a organizace
  • Zařízení pro měření aktivity očí (EOG)-2

Supervisors

Prof. Konstantinos Kafetsios, Ph.D.

My research group looks at emotion and relationship phenomena in dyadic/social interaction: in social relationships, in hierarchical relationships at work, and in interactions across cultural contexts. One line looks at how emotion is perceived and expressed in human communication, including cultural differences in that. Another line examines how the attachment behavioral system operates in working teams, in leader-follower interaction and across cultures.

Topics of Ph.D. theses to be developed over the next years:

  1. Accuracy and Bias in the Perception of Facial Emotion Expressions.
    In everyday life one rarely sees facial expressions devoid of context; rather, people are seen usually interacting with other persons.  The goal of this research line is to take emotion perception accuracy research out of the artificial, contextless realm favored in the past and into the social context in which emotion communication typically takes place by studying both members of a dyad and in hierarchical relationships (leader-follower) in social and organizational settings.
  2. The attachment behavioral system in working teams and across cultures
    Taking the seminal premise that self is relational in its basic structure and function forward, a stream of experimental and field studies in our group have examined how insecure attachment and cultural orientations intersect and the cognitive, emotional and social consequences of this intersection.  A number of recent studies point to the need to further examine attachment organization as a group-level phenomenon in itself in working teams, in leader-follower interaction and across cultures.

Prof. PhDr. Panajotis Cakirpaloglu, DrSc.

His long-term interest in psychology involves healthy and disturbed personality in individual and social contexts, the issue of complex development, organization, and changes in human values, social and political psychology, etc. With regard to the area of work and organizational psychology, his dominant interest is theory of and research into the phenomenon of workplace bullying (mobbing) in the context of individual, group, organizational and societal (cultural) changes.

Topics for doctoral theses:

  1. Victimization of high-ranking employees: occurrence, forms of mobbing, and coping strategies among managers.
  2. Psychosocial and psychosomatic profile of the victim, the aggressor, and the observer of mobbing.
  3. Organizational culture and anti-mobbing policies in work groups affected by mobbing.
  4. Mindfulness as a predictor of mobbing.
  5. Predispositions and consequences of long-term victimization at a workplace.

Doc. PhDr. Matúš Šucha, Ph.D.

is a Czech psychologist. His professional orientation involves traffic psychology, as well as work and organizational psychology – in particular managerial consultancy and economic psychology. In 2020, he was listed among prominent personalities of Central Moravia.
In 2012-2019 he worked as the Head of the Palacký University Olomouc Department of Psychology. Doc. Šucha is an active member of numerous prestigious international organizations.

Topics for doctoral theses:

  1. Managerial consultancy and leadership of people
  2. Economic psychology and consumer behaviour

PhDr. Martin Seitl, Ph.D.

His professional interest lies in work and organizational psychology; in particular, he focuses on the theory of attachment at work, assessment and selection of employees, psychodiagnostic methods in work and organizational psychology, organizational culture, and the issue of emotions at work. He has achieved professional accreditation for the model of organizational culture developed by G. Hofstede and B. Waisfisz, as well as for the model of organizational culture CTT. He has achieved certification for Hogan diagnostics, Rorschach’s method, TAT, and other projective and non-projective diagnostic methods. Dr. Seitl is a member of prestigious domestic and international professional organizations: Česká společnost pro Rorschacha a projektivní metody [Czech Society for Rorschach and Projective Methods] (ČSRaP), International Rorschach Society (ISR), Česká asociace psychologů práce a organizace [Czech Association of Work and Organization Psychologists] (ČAPPO), as well as European Association of Work and Organizational Psychology (EAWOP).

Topics for doctoral theses:

  1. Attachment theory at work.
    Doctoral projects may be focused on new diagnostic procedures of attachment and attachment dimensions (related to personality, or to specific relational entities) except self-evaluative ones. The primary interest is in interviews or application of psychophysiology (e.g. FaceReader, thermal imaging). Other options involve team/group dynamics and organizational outputs in the context of attachment theory, or the development of support techniques for the guidance of followers with uncertain attachment.
  2. Faking in the selection process
    Preferably doctoral projects addressing the efficiency of advanced tools for identification of faking on the part of applicants (idiosyncratic items, thermal imaging, emotional expression), as well as projects investigating static and situational variables influencing distortion of information.
  3. Development of psychomotor skills tests for 3D print
    Doctoral projects oriented on development, verification, and standardization of psychomotor skills tests (see Fleishman´s taxonomy) that may be produced using 3D print. Such projects involve verification of reliability and validity of these tests. Implementation of such a project presupposes that the investigator is knowledgeable in 3D drawing in a suitable SW.
  4. Performance diagnostics in assessment and selection of employees
    Doctoral projects focused on verifying the validity of the performance diagnostic methods (especially Rorschach test, TAT, ZT, and HT) when predicting constructs (overall job performance and its factors) and individual criteria of success using present-day interpretation systems. In case the Zulliger test is employed, there is a presupposition of participation in an ongoing project on new standardization of the method with the evidence-based approach.   

Admission procedure

Applications for the doctoral study programme (DSP) may be submitted by applicants with successfully completed master’s degrees (the following degrees: Mgr., Ing., or other equivalent title acknowledged in the Czech Republic), or those who will fulfil this requirement at the latest on the day of enrolment in the doctoral study programme (this applies especially to graduates of the final year of master’s degree programmes who have not yet passed the final state examination at the time the admissions for the DSP is taking place).

The doctoral study programme is not only limited to graduates of single-major psychology, on the contrary, we encourage applicants from different specializations. There should be, however, a meaningful connection between the applicant’s primary academic education and the focus of the DSP, particularly in the context of the planned orientation of the doctoral research project. The reasoning supporting this connection should be part of the applicant’s portfolio and will be evaluated by a committee as part of the admission procedure.

Applications for the DSP admission procedure may be submitted electronically with a form available on the UP website. Look up the “Work & Organizational Psychology and Traffic Psychology” in the study catalogue and check whether you want to study full-time (FT) or part-time (PT). Also, check the language you want to study in (Czech or English). Applicants may apply from November 1st to April 30th of the particular academic year. We recommend sending the application no later than March 1st, so that there is enough time to consult your supervisor regarding the doctoral research project proposal, which has to be submitted on May 31st at the latest.

The admission procedure has two parts:

Part 1:

When sending the electronic application, the applicant should include all required documents complementing the application that serve for evaluation of the applicant in the first part of the admission procedure (see below). Also, these documents must be sent by the applicant to the e-mail address of the secretary of the subject-area board (martin.seitl@upol.cz):

  • 1) Professional curriculum vitae.
  • 2) Proof of completed education – Master’s diploma (or study confirmation in the case of applicants who have not yet completed the last year of their master’s degree studies).
  • 3) An overview of the marks and exams from the previous study – either in the form of the so-called diploma supplement (in the case of completed study) or in any other equivalent form providing an overview of the exams and marks for the entire bachelor’s as well as master ‘s study up to the last finished academic year (if the applicant has not yet completed the study).
  • 4)  Previous publication activities with valid citation style (preferably APA). For freely accessible full texts, the applicant should provide working hyperlinks. Full texts of publications not freely accessible on the Internet should be sent as attachments to the e-mail.
  • 5) Proof of participation in scholarly conferences or congresses (scans) supplemented with a list stating the name of the event, venue, date, and organizer; in case of active participation, the name and form of the contribution (a poster, a lecture, etc.) should be listed as well.
  • 6) Certificates or other proof of specialized education, extracurricular seminars, courses and trainings (scans) supplemented with a list including the name, place and date, organizer of the activity, and the time frame.
  • 7) Proof of English language skills at least at the level B1 – TOEFL, FCE, or even a graduation exam certificate or a university diploma supplement (here, however, at least the level B1 must be clearly confirmed). If the applicant cannot provide such documents, he/she has to take such an exam before the second part of the admission procedure takes place and submit a document demonstrating its successful completion or prove the B1-level English language skills within the interview in part 2 of the admission exam.
  • 8) Recommendation from an academic worker or a supervisor (see the recommended form).

All materials must be provided either in Czech, Slovak or English. Not submitting all the required documents can be a reason for not receiving an invitation for the 2nd part of the admission process.

Based on the submitted documents, the admission committee will assess whether the applicant meets the basic prerequisites for DSP. Applicants meeting all the fundamental requirements will be invited for the second part of the admission procedure.

Part 2:

The aim of the second part of the admission procedure is for the applicant to choose a supervisor and agree with him/her on supervision of a particular doctoral research design. At this point, the applicant should contact a chosen potential supervisor from the list provided, or alternatively a renowned external professional in the field. On May 31st at the latest, the applicant should send the following documents required for the second part of the admission procedure to the e-mail address of the secretary of the subject-area board (martin.seitl@upol.cz) and also submit them within the electronic application: 

  • 1) Outline of the doctoral research project (see the recommended form). 
  • 2) Statement from the supervisor (see the recommended form) – to be sent directly by the supervisor to the e-mail address of the secretary of the subject-area board (martin.seitl@upol.cz), i.e. not forwarded by the applicant.
  • 3) Supervisor’s CV – to be sent by the applicant if the supervisor is an external professional not listed in the provided list of supervisors.

The key element of the second part of the admission procedure is an oral interview including a presentation of the applicant’s motivation for study in the DSP, a discussion on the presented doctoral research project outline, and a more detailed explanation of the presented materials based on the committee’s questions. Applicants, who have succeeded in the first part, receive an invitation for an oral interview, taking place on a particular specified date. The interviews take place in June.

The selected best candidates will be proposed for admission to the Dean of the FA UP. They will be informed about the results of their admission procedure without undue delay and in accordance with the norms of FA UP via their electronic application. Successful candidates will also be invited to enrolment in the programme in order to confirm their interest in studying in the DSP.

Practical Issues

Timeline before studies

Here is simple timeline summary of what should be done in which part. For some applicants, some steps are optional.

  1. Decide if this Ph.D. degree is the right fit!
  2. Gather all documents
  3. Submit application
  4. Choose a mentor and a research topic
  5. Create the research proposal
  6. Acquire written consent of acceptance from selected supervisor
  7. Get a visa for interview/schedule online interview
  8. Go through interview/Admissions
  9. Wait for acceptance letter
  10. Find the right accommodation
  11. Go through visa process (if necessary)
  12. Arrive to Olomouc and
  13. Enjoy your studies!

Most notable websites

& where to get more information:

Jsem absolvent – Olomouc

Funding

We know the financial part of PhD studies can be stressful and difficult. We will try our best to help you with the situation and to smooth the process.

There are ways to make some side money during your studies. We will describe them in next few paragraphs. Please note that all following options are highly individual and do not have to apply to all our students. At the same time, there will be different opportunities for our students that are not mentioned here. Neither of which is guaranteed from our department or university.

Research funding

Palacky University runs multiple programs aimed to fund your research. This funding can be crucial for your research and for your studies. Those programs are running independently on the study timetable, so you will be best to check them on your own. To mention a few, you should investigate IGA – Internal Grant Agency; GAČR – Grant Agency of Czech Republic; AIA – Academic Information Agency.

The downside of most mentioned agencies is that the application usually needs to be in Czech language. In this case, we recommend talking to your supervisor.

Accommodation stipend

On top of those programs, our university supports students with accommodation stipend. If you are a foreigner, you should be eligible to receive a small but nice financial support for living (ranging from 2000 CZK to 3000 CZK). Once you are accepted, you simply submit an application via the student portal.

More options

Our department periodically looks for new talents to broaden the academic team. There might be suitable openings that you will be able to apply and get a stable income. Those positions are not always open and may not be available for English speaking students, but from time to time, you can get a good opportunity.

Your state agency. Sometimes, the country of origin may offer some scholarships. As the applicants for our programs are diverse, we cannot cover the opportunities here. Google is your friend in this case.

Accommodation

Olomouc is beautiful student city with one huge advantage, distance – everything is in the vicinity. UPOL university is a city campus, which creates an amazing environment for studies and living.

There are two accommodation options: University dormitories or renting your own/shared apartment. Our university provides variety of options for short-term and long-term accommodation, which is always near the city center and can be utilized by students and visitors. This option can be more costly, but you have assurance of easy communication even from abroad.

A second option is renting your own/shared room or apartment, which can be significantly cheaper than university-maintained accommodation. There are a lot of options for renting, but the setup is slightly harder and can be exhausting when doing from abroad and our university cannot help you with that. Students usually rent single rooms in shared apartment with other students, or even their own apartment. All depends on financial resources of students.

The most used option is combining those two options together. Starting in university-maintained accommodation for first few months to a year, until you get well accommodated in our city and you are comfortable to look for your own apartment.

One option that our university offers is accommodation stipend – more in Fees and Funding chapter.

Health insurance (non-EU citizen)

For studies and mainly for your residence permit, you will need a proof of health insurance. Our university unfortunately does not provide any insurance for our students, so you will have to acquire it by your own. We have some major insurance companies that offer insurance, but to cover it here wouldn’t be sufficient or efficient. One of the most known is state run insurance company VZP (Všeobecná zdravotní pojišťovna), which should meet all your needs, but there are others that might suite your needs better.

You will need the basic insurance coverage to fulfill your visa requirements. It usually does not include more advanced procedures and dental but should be enough for most common tasks. The insurance cost depends highly on your person, but usually ranges from 500 to 700 EUR.

Visa and Residence permit (non-EU citizen)

As a foreign student living in Czech Republic, you will need proper visa for long term stay.

First, you will need a visa for short visit for the initial interview (as mentioned above, the interview may be conducted online – please contact your supervisor for that opportunity). If you are accepted, you will need to start a process of acquiring long term visa with the purpose of study. During the process, you will need to be in contact with Czech embassy in your country as well as with our department and university. As the embassy will process all required documents, they will need confirmations from our side that you are accepted, and we expect you here.

When you got your visa, you are finally ready to arrive. Beware that the visa usually is time limited with validity of one year, after which you must apply for extension. That process is much shorter and usually without a hustle, but nothing you should underestimate.

For more information about visa process, take a look at https://www.mvcr.cz/mvcren/article/third-country-nationals-long-term-residence.aspx. On mvcr.cz should be all information you need.

Important contacts and links

PhDr. Martin Seitl, Ph.D.
Secretary of the DSP Subject-Area Board of Work and Organizational Psychology and Traffic Psychology

Tel.: +420 585 633 510
E-mail: martin.seitl@upol.cz

Correspondence address: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Palacký University Olomouc, Křížkovského 10, 779 00 Olomouc
Office: Tř. Svobody 26, 779 00 Olomouc, office no. 3.08

Is responsible for the following:
– administrative agenda of the subject-area board,
– communication with study applicants and internal organization of the admission procedure,
– communication with supervisors,
– communication with DSP students,
– archiving of DSP students’ documents,
– timetable of DSP lectures and communication with course guarantors,
– administration of timetables in STAG,
– preparation of documents for DSP (informative texts for the website, Faculty materials, etc.),
– defences of doctoral theses and final examinations including reviews, etc.

Mgr. Lucie Kovaříková, Ph.D.
UP Faculty of Arts
DSP Science and Research Officer

Tel.: 585 633 013
E-mail: lucie.kovarikova@upol.cz
Office: Křížkovského 10, 779 00 Olomouc

Agenda:
– admission procedure
– enrolment in studies
– archiving of original study documents
– other matters related to studies governed by the Dean’s office of the UP Faculty of Arts

The central source of information related to DSP is the faculty website (click-through)