Ph.D. Program in Mathematics for International Students

Program Overview

Beijing International Center for Mathematical Research (BICMR) welcomes motivated and talented international students to engage in mathematical research and join our Ph.D. program. Our Ph.D. program aims to offer high-quality, comprehensive research training and to prepare the students for their future research careers. We provide a friendly and stimulating research environment to students with competitive scholarship. All courses in this program will be taught in English. All students are required to undergo training through courses, seminars and workshops in order to gain mathematical knowledge and enhance their research skills. Students are required to complete a thesis on original research work which could be written in English or Chinese. Students who have already obtained Master Degrees in mathematics should complete their thesis within four years. Otherwise, they are expected to finish the program in five years. 

Qualification of Applicants

1. The applicant must be non-Chinese citizen holding a valid foreign passport;

2. The applicant should have held a Master Degree or a Bachelor Degree, or will get the degree before admission;

3. The applicant should be healthy, both physically and psychologically, with no criminal record, and must abide by the laws and decrees of China and the regulations of Peking University.

Research Directions

The program will admit students in the following research directions:

1. Pure Mathematics.

2. Computational Mathematics.

3. Probability and Statistics.

For detailed research areas, please visit our website of Ph.D. adivisors and their research interests.

Application Period (Beijing time)

The applicant should apply during the period from October 20, 2025 to December 23, 2025 for admission commencing in the fall semester of the following academic year.

Application Documents

Visit the International Student Service System (http://www.studyatpku.com ), fill in the application and upload the following documents:

1. Graduation and degree certificates and degree authentication in Chinese or English. For degree certificates in other languages, applicants are required to upload both the original copy and a notarized copy in Chinese or English. Degree diplomas awarded by overseas universities must be authenticated by the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange, Ministry of Education, P. R. China (CSCSE). Degree diplomas awarded by universities on the Chinese mainland must be authenticated by the Center for Student Services and Development, Ministry of Education, P. R. China (CSSD).

Note: Applicants who graduated before 2026 must upload their degree authentication report during the application period. Applicants expected to graduate in 2026 must provide an official letter from their current university stating their expected graduation date and submit their certificate of graduation upon being pre-admitted.

2. Official transcripts of applicant’s academic achievement up to the present, including courses taken and standards achieved, must be original documents or certified copies either in Chinese or English.

3. A research statement (around 3000 words in English). Please click the link to download the template: https://isd.pku.edu.cn/en/downloads.php?cate=13

4. Résumé and a copy of the Application Commitment letter. Please click the link to download the template for the Commitment letter: https://isd.pku.edu.cn/en/downloads.php?cate=13

5. Two recommendation letters from professors or associate professors well acquainted with applicant's academic work (or equivalent professionals with relevant academic title), either in Chinese or English.  Once applicants submit a request, the application system will send a link to the recommenders, and the recommenders should click the link and complete the recommendation either by filling out the form online or by uploading a scanned copy of the signed letter. Click the link to download the template: https://isd.pku.edu.cn/en/downloads.php?cate=13

6. For this English-taught program, applicants whose mother tongue is not English are required to submit TOEFL, iBT (100 points or above) or GRE (315 points or above) scores or other certificates to prove their English language proficiency.

7. Passport front page. Applicants must upload the front page of all ordinary passport(s) they have used continuously since April 30, 2020, and the current passport must be valid for at least three months beyond the date of enrollment.

8. Table of contents and abstracts of the applicant's academic publications and any other original achievement in their field.

Application Fee

The application fee is 800 RMB.

Note: Each applicant may apply for only one major. Applicants are required to pay the application fee online before the application deadline. Other currencies or traveler's checks will not be accepted. Applications with incomplete documents or without payment of the application fee will not be processed. The application fee is NOT refundable.

Examination

1. The International Student Division will review the applicant’s basic qualifications. After passing the review, the application materials will be forwarded to the admissions office of BICMR for the academic review.

2. BICMR’s admissions team will organize professional expert panels to review the applicants’ academic dossiers. All the submitted application materials will be reviewed to assess the applicant’s overall ability. A shortlist of applicants will be drawn up for the next step of examination.

3. The second examination round will be held in March 2026. The specific date and time will be posted on BICMR’s website. Applicants should check regularly for relevant online information to be posted.

4. The BICMR’s admissions expert committee will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the candidates’ research capacity, language proficiency, innovation capacity and comprehensive quality in the second examination round and evaluate the candidates’ ranking.

Admission

1. On the basis of BICMR’s examination results, the Admission Office will review and make the preliminary admission list.

2. The preliminary admission list will be posted by BICMR before the end of May. Applicants should pay close attention to the latest related notice of BICMR.

3. The pre-admitted candidates should download and print the application form and, together with other required original application documents (except for degree diploma and recommendation letters), deliver or mail the materials to the International Student Division of Peking University.

Deadline: May 31, 2026

Address: Room 330, International Student Division, New Sun Student Center, Peking University. Please note on the envelope: “Graduate student application materials”.

4. In late June 2026, the International Student Division will issue an admission notice, a “Confirmation Form for Study in China” (JW201/JW202) and other documents to the admitted students.

Enrollment

Admitted students will complete the registration procedures and enroll at Peking University in early September 2026. The specific time will be announced in the admission notice. Admitted students must register at Peking University with their valid passport, valid visa and admission letter at the designated time. All students should present their original degree diplomas as required upon registration for the enrollment qualification review. Students with degree diplomas awarded by overseas universities should, in addition, submit the authentication report issued by the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange. Students who do not pass the enrollment qualification review will be disqualified from enrollment at Peking University.

Tuition

Tuition Fee: Approximately 40,000 RMB per year.

Scholarships

We provide a competitive scholarship package for BICMR international Ph.D. students. We also encourage foreign students to apply for scholarships from the China Scholarship Council (referred to as CSC), which cover tuition fees, on-campus accommodation, medical insurance and living expenses.

Total amount of scholarship (including support from CSC) for each student may range from 120,000 to 200,000 RMB per year.

For more information, please refer to the International Student Division.

Visa, Medical Insurance and Accommodation

1. Visa: Students admitted to PKU should apply for a student visa at the Chinese Embassy/Consulate in their country with the letter of admission and the JW201/202 form. International students who will study in China for over 6 months are required to obtain an “X1” visa, which will only be valid for 30 days upon arrival in China; upon arriving in China, they must come to the International Student Division and apply for a Residence Permit within 30 days in order to obtain a legal status in China.

2. Medical Insurance: The Ministry of Education of China stipulates that all international students must be medically insured throughout their entire planned period of study. Students are required to purchase the ‘Comprehensive Insurance Plan for Foreign Students’ on the day of registration. Students who do not have valid medical insurance will not be allowed to register.

3. Accommodation: On-campus dorm room will be provided to holders of Chinese Government Scholarships with a discounted rate as 130 RMB per day. Self-funded students should find their own living accommodation on campus or off campus. Please note that students who live off campus must register with the local police station within 24 hours of arrival.

Graduation and Degree Awarding

Students who have completed all the requirements stipulated in the academic plan and passed their thesis defense upon completion of their study are permitted to graduate. After being examined and approved by the Academic Degree Assessment Committee of the university, the corresponding academic degree will be conferred.

Other Information 

For details of application document preparation, scholarship application, medical insurance and visa information, please refer to the notice of International Students Division of Peking University.