The salary of PhD candidates supported by companies in the framework of Cifre agreements rises from €1,684 to €1,957 gross per month for all new contracts from September 1st 2007.
A Cifre agreement makes a company, a PhD candidate and a laboratory partners in a project leading to the defence of a doctoral thesis.
The company signs a open-ended or a 3 years fixed term contract the "young Cifre" and gives him a an annual salary which, from now on, must be superior or equal to €23,484 (gross).
During the 3 years of the agreement duration, the company receives a fixed grant from the Association Nationale de la Recherche Technique (ANRT) which is in charge of managing Cifre agreements on behalf of the Ministry of Higher Education and Research. This grant has also been increased from €14,635 to €17,000 per year.
Last but not least, the number of agreements should rise by 10% in 2007, compared to 2006.