The PhD in International Studies is organized in an interdisciplinary perspective, focusing not only on the political and economic dimension of international phenomena, but also encompassing cross-cutting themes such as social activism and citizenship, development and sustainability.

In close connection with the ISCTE Center for International Studies (CEI-Iscte), the program is structured around three fundamental axes that correspond to the main lines of research at CEI-Iscte: International History, Security and Institutions; Activism, Citizenship and Human Rights; Sustainability and Development.

With a relatively light curricular component, this PhD is conceived as a program with a strong emphasis on the monitoring and tutoring activities, planned for the second and third year, on the integration of doctoral students in the research lines and activities of the CEI-Iscte and in constant interaction between students from the various years of the programme, with the aim of creating a true “learning community”.

In curricular terms, it is expected that throughout the first year, students will attend a seminar course entitled "Seminar in International Studies", in which the three major thematic areas of the program will be studies. There will also be an annual curricular unit for learning research methods and another for the preparation of the PhD project, which students will have to present and publicly defend at the end of the second semester. Doctoral students will also be strongly encouraged to participate in the numerous conferences, colloquia and seminars organized by the Research Unit that hosts the doctoral program.

Finally, it should be noted that the curricular units are taught in English, so that among its target audience are not only Portuguese students, but also students from other European countries and outside Europe, seeking to satisfy the growing demand for advanced training at Iscte by international students.