Doctoral Programme in Law, Politics and Economics
Presentation
This doctoral programme aims to train professionals and researchers with a global, interdisciplinary and critical perspective to address and work on problems arising in the fields of law, criminology, economics and political science. The Doctoral School and its doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics are part of the UOC's strategic objectives aimed at training global citizens and professionals, promoting transdisciplinarity and open knowledge with and for all, and creating environments that foster the co-creation of knowledge with other agents in society in order to increase its impact. The programme's teaching staff also share the transformation goals that are expressed in the sustainable development strategy.
The doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics is aimed at students with a university degree in any of the disciplines included in the programme, and who wish to study these fields of knowledge in depth and to make new and relevant contributions based on a rigorous approach to study. Candidates must meet the access requirements and admission criteria set out in section 3.2 of this document.
An objective of the UOC Doctoral School, and of the doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics in particular, is for doctoral students to benefit from interaction with the University's research groups and projects. Working in contact with a research group provides an overview of the various fields related to the subject of the doctoral research, and collaboration with research staff in the collection and analysing of data and the dissemination of results helps develop the know-how required for professional research.
Advanced training in the fields of law, political science and economics, and in related fields such as criminology, is of obvious general interest both for training teaching staff with strong skills in research and analysis of their specialist fields and for training highly qualified professionals in each of those fields.
Our increasingly urgent social, political and economic challenges require new ways to tackle problems in both the legal-economic and political science fields. There are many challenges which take many different forms, ranging from the relentless digital transformation and the expansion of disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, to the emergence of an unexpected pandemic with its consequences for labour relations, the slowdown of growth, and the reshaping of social welfare and participation systems. These are just some specific examples that highlight the need for people with advanced training and research skills who can contribute to a thorough understanding of these phenomena, to formulating proposals and searching for solutions, and to their practical application. Catalan industry is not indifferent to this need, and the UOC aims to contribute by providing people who are highly qualified in their respective professional spheres ¿ not only in the academic field, but also among legal, political and economic specialists.
Competencies:
The doctoral programme develops the following basic competencies (as per Spain's Royal Decrees RD 99/2011 and RD 576/2023):
C1. Systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of the research skills and methods related to this field.
C2. Conceiving, designing or creating, putting into practice and adopting a substantial research or creation process.
C3. Contributing to expanding the frontiers of knowledge through original research.
C4. Developing a critical analysis and assessment and synthesizing new and complex ideas.
C5. Communicating with the academic and scientific community and with society in general regarding the student's areas of knowledge, employing the formats and languages habitually used in their international scientific community.
C6. Fostering scientific, technological, social, artistic or cultural progress in a knowledge-based society, in academic and professional settings.
C7. Fostering open science and citizen science (in accordance with Article 12 of Spain's Organic Law 2/2023, of 22 March) so as to contribute to the status of scientific knowledge as a common good, with assessment of the doctoral student's performance of interdisciplinary activities relating to the different aspects of open science and citizen science, and the development of skills in both disciplines through microcredentials or similar.
Admission profiles:
The PhD programme in Law, Politics and Economics is for students who have a university degree in any of the programme's disciplines and are seeking a deeper understanding of these fields of knowledge and to make innovative and significant contributions to them through a rigorous approach to their object of study.
Career opportunities:
Doctoral studies in law, criminology, political science, and economics are clearly useful both for training teaching staff with strong competencies for research into and analysis of their fields of specialization and for training highly qualified professionals in each of these areas.
An objective of the UOC Doctoral School, and of the doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics in particular, is for doctoral students to benefit from interaction with the University's research groups and projects. Working in contact with a research group provides an overview of the various fields related to the subject of the doctoral research, and collaboration with research staff in the collection and analysing of data and the dissemination of results helps develop the know-how required for professional research.
Advanced training in the fields of law, political science and economics, and in related fields such as criminology, is of obvious general interest both for training teaching staff with strong skills in research and analysis of their specialist fields and for training highly qualified professionals in each of those fields.
Our increasingly urgent social, political and economic challenges require new ways to tackle problems in both the legal-economic and political science fields. There are many challenges which take many different forms, ranging from the relentless digital transformation and the expansion of disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, to the emergence of an unexpected pandemic with its consequences for labour relations, the slowdown of growth, and the reshaping of social welfare and participation systems. These are just some specific examples that highlight the need for people with advanced training and research skills who can contribute to a thorough understanding of these phenomena, to formulating proposals and searching for solutions, and to their practical application. Catalan industry is not indifferent to this need, and the UOC aims to contribute by providing people who are highly qualified in their respective professional spheres ¿ not only in the academic field, but also among legal, political and economic specialists.
Official qualification
The doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics is a programme that has been verified by Spain's Universities Council, and its implementation has been authorized by the Government of Catalonia in accordance with current legislation.
The UOC's official university programmes are valid throughout Spain. They are fully recognized academically and, in cases where it is intended, qualify the holders to exercise regulated professions, in accordance with the regulations in place in each case.
The certificates are issued with a European Diploma Supplement (DS), which provides information on the courses studied by the student, the results obtained, the professional skills acquired and the qualification's level in terms of the Spanish higher education system. The DS helps students to obtain recognition for their qualifications, and aids mobility throughout the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).
Outside the EHEA, the validity of the official university qualifications awarded by the UOC will be determined by each country's own education laws in each case.
Outside the EHEA, the validity of the official university qualifications awarded by the UOC will be determined by each country's own education laws in each case.
Official qualification
The doctoral programme in Law, Politics and Economics is a programme that has been verified by Spain's Universities Council, and its implementation has been authorized by the Government of Catalonia in accordance with current legislation.
The UOC's official university programmes are valid throughout Spain. They are fully recognized academically and, in cases where it is intended, qualify the holders to exercise regulated professions, in accordance with the regulations in place in each case.
The certificates are issued with a European Diploma Supplement (DS), which provides information on the courses studied by the student, the results obtained, the professional skills acquired and the qualification's level in terms of the Spanish higher education system. The DS helps students to obtain recognition for their qualifications, and aids mobility throughout the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).
Outside the EHEA, the validity of the official university qualifications awarded by the UOC will be determined by each country's own education laws in each case.
Find out more on:
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Start
18 Sep 2025
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Online
100%
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Admission: March 5, 2024
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Languages: English, Spanish, Catalan
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Official qualification
Fully online method
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Personalized guidance and support
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Among the top universities
According to the World University Rankings 2024, the UOC is in the top 7% of the world's leading universities.
Programme quality
The quality of this degree programme is endorsed by the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency (AQU), which ensures that rigorous standards, including those demanded by the EHEA, are met.