Do European PhD programs offer the opportunity to take on teaching assistantship duties?

But, in European PhD contracts/programs, are there countries, or universities even, that set conditions under which you have to TA? Or can you even TA in the first place?

The European universities I am well aware of generally don't distinguish that strongly between TAs and RAs. In reality, in my current university in Switzerland, the "formal" job title of each employed PhD student (which is to say, practically all of them) is German for "Teaching And Research Assistant". Everybody is expected to teach a little, and (clearly) everybody needs to conduct research, so this job title seems appropriate.

What courses each student is responsible for, and what they are expected to do, is typically assigned by the professor / lab head (sometimes after extensive negotiations / arguments within the group leading up to the start of the semester).

Typically, PhD students are expected to only "assist" in the running of a course done primarily by a designated lecturer ("Dozent") or professor. However, in practice, often a large part of the actual work is done by TAs. in my old university, it was also possible to essentially become a lecturer already during your PhD, and from then on do courses officially on your own, without involvement of a professor.

It is not possible to "take on" additional TA jobs to improve one's monetary situation (but then again, standard salary is already around 60.000 Swiss francs for a first-year student - other universities outside of Switzerland pay less, but still substantially more than the stipends that are common in other places of the world).

In France, the possibility to teach during a PhD is pretty much ruled by the nature of your contract (and not the nature of your funding).

For a regular contrat doctoral, you are not allowed to teach unless you sign an additional clause. This clause stipulates that you are now authorized to dedicate some time (with a maximum of 64 hours* a year) to teaching. Now if your goal is to pursue an academic career, you should also know that by the end of your PhD, you need to pass a qualification: your profile is examined by the Conseil National des Universités. I guess there is no need to say that without teaching experience, your chances at passing the qualification are lower.

Note: In France universities, one hour doesn't weight the same depending on the nature of the class:

• 1h of lecturing = 4/3 hour
• 1h of tutoring = 1h
• 1h of practical work = 2/3 hour

Now when I say 64 hours a year, it's 64 hours of tutoring.

In Austria, the Netherlands and Germany at least some amount of teaching is quite often expected from a PhD student, as in the USA it may be required for the stipend. In the UK, this varies by departments and universities, and is normally capped e.g. at 10 hours a week, since your PhD (if funded) is meant to be a full time job.