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Requirements & Preparation
Before you can begin your doctoral studies in Germany, there are some preliminary steps you must take, for instance, getting your post-graduate degree recognised and applying for a residence permit. The following is an overview of the most important requirements and some practical advice to prepare for your doctoral visit.
FAQs- Preparing your research stay in Germany
Short FAQ brochure with 14 key questions and answers on preparing research stays in Germany: The answers provide you with some practical tips and information to help prepare your research stay in Germany. Additionally, the booklet contains helpful links to websites where you can find the latest information on visa regulations, health insurance questions, the funding organisations, and much more.
Download brochure here!
- 1. Finding a doctoral position
- 2. Recognition of your post-graduate degree / academic requirements
- 3. Acceptance as a doctoral candidate in a university department
- 4. Admission to a doctoral programme
- 5. Enrolment
- 6. Visa/residence permit
1. Finding a doctoral position
As you begin your search for a doctoral position, you must decide whether you wish to pursue a doctorate on your own with professorial supervision (individual doctoral study) or participate in a structured PhD programme at a graduate school.
Individual doctoral studies – The search for a doctoral supervisor
When pursuing an individual doctorate, the candidate is supervised by a professor, called a "Doktorvater” or "Doktormutter”, who meets with the candidate from time to time to discuss his or her progress.
Therefore, the first step is to find a suitable supervisor.
Structured doctoral studies – The search for the right programme
There are about 700 structured PhD programmes in Germany at present. These programmes vary greatly in terms of their thematic focus. Some are tailored to closely correspond to a certain research project, while others are more interdisciplinary and involve numerous subject areas.
2. Recognition of your post-graduate degree / academic requirements
Those who wish to pursue a doctorate in Germany must have completed a university-level degree programme which is also recognised in Germany. In most cases, doctoral programmes require that candidates have a master’s degree, Magister, Diplom or state examination certificate. In exceptional cases, candidates may be allowed to commence their doctoral studies with only a bachelor’s degree. Policies vary from university to university and are specifically outlined in the doctoral regulations in the corresponding departments. We recommend studying these regulations carefully. Doctoral regulations are usually posted on university faculty websites.
More information
3. Acceptance as a doctoral candidate in a university department
Once you have found a supervisor, you have taken the most important step. Now the responsible department or doctoral committee must confirm your eligibility as a doctoral candidate. This usually involves completing an application that includes a statement by your doctoral supervisor, certified copies of certificates and the university degree that entitles you to engage in doctoral study.
4. Admission to a doctoral programme
Permission to commence doctoral studies is usually issued by the Student Office after it has reviewed all the required certificates, diploma and – if applicable – proof of language proficiency. If the doctoral programme requires that the dissertation be written in German, the candidate must submit proof of adequate knowledge of German (by passing the DSH or TestDaF examination). But in most cases, it’s not necessary to write one’s dissertation in German. Conditions pertaining to the language of the dissertation are outlined in the doctoral regulations of the corresponding department, normally posted on the faculty’s website.
5. Enrolment
Your next step is to enrol. There are several advantages to enrolling as a doctoral candidate, for instance, securing better legal status as a foreign resident. To be eligible for enrolment, the university must first accept your application for admission to doctoral studies (see no. 4 "Admission to doctoral studies”). However, not all departments require doctoral candidates to officially enrol at university. Provisions pertaining to enrolment are stipulated in the doctoral regulations issued by the faculty, which are usually posted on the faculty’s website.
6. Visa/residence permit
Regardless of whether one pursues a doctorate independently or through a structured PhD programme, candidates from outside the European Union require an entry visa when they come to Germany. Do not enter the country on a tourist visa, as it cannot be converted to a long-term residence visa. Holders of tourist visas are required to return to their home country and reapply for the correct visa.
After you’ve arrived in Germany, you must register with the Resident Registration Office (or Citizen Service). If you are not a citizen of the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway, you must also register with the Alien Registration Office and apply for a residence permit. There, you will need to provide confirmation of health insurance coverage (which is also required for enrolment). We recommend looking for accommodation in advance. To be eligible for a room in a student hall of residence, applicants are usually asked to provide confirmation of enrolment. If you need help looking for a flat or room, the Studentenwerk at your university will be happy to help you. Like all students, doctoral candidates also require a current account. You can open one at any bank in Germany – and usually at no charge.
More information:
· Practical tips for living in Germany
· Information on employment conditions
Was erwarten Professoren von internationalen Doktoranden?
What do professors expect of international doctoral candidates? An interview with Professor Marion Gymnich, University of Bonn
What do professors expect of international doctoral candidates?
An interview with Professor Marion Gymnich, University of Bonn Professor Gymnich, as one of the authors of Handbuch Promotion, a guide for doctoral students, you focused on "The Internationalization of Doctoral Training”. Over the past years, the percentage of international doctoral students in Germany has risen significantly. How did that come about?
Overall there is growing interest in studying in Germany. In recent years, German universities have also begun to compete more for doctoral students at the international level, and this is now bearing fruit. A German doctorate still has a good reputation – and this applies both to the traditional doctorate and structured programmes.
What role do new structures play such as graduate schools or talent factories like the International Max Planck Research Schools?
Establishing internationally compatible structures for doctoral studies at German higher education institutions is the fundamental requirement for internationalization. Efforts in this direction can now be observed everywhere. In Bonn we have a trinational research training group. At the same time, the university is attempting to establish structured programmes using its own funds. That is also the goal: international doctoral projects should have model character.
Are international doctoral programmes and research training groups comparable with PhD programmes in other countries?
There are considerable differences. In the USA, for example, the doctoral dissertation does not have the same status as it has in Germany – it is often not even printed. Correspondingly less time is spent on it. It would therefore be a mistake to simply copy international standards. The status of the dissertation as a scholarly monograph should be preserved.
What are the advantages of structured doctoral programmes?
One major advantage is that they enable doctoral students to form very different networks. Students who take the traditional route to a doctorate also have the opportunity to enage is specialist interchange in advanced seminars and colloquia. However, structured programmes offer far more concentrated support and encouragement.
As a professor, what do you expect of international doctoral students?
If you want to do a doctorate in Germany, you should be open-minded and willing to adapt to a new academic system. This starts with the very way research texts are written. They are much more formalized in Germany than in France, for example.
What should future doctoral students pay attention to when selecting a university?
One point is whether there are multilingual opportunities – and how the final examination is structured. At some universities you can be examined in English, French or Spanish, which can be helpful. In terms of content, too, there are great differences between the examinations. In Giessen, the main points in the doctoral dissertation are presented and discussed; in Heidelberg, this is followed by general questions;
in Bonn, four theses have to be submitted that have nothing at all to do with the doctoral dissertation. It is important to study the examination regulations in good time.
Societäts-Verlag, Frankfurt
© 2012 Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst e.V. (DAAD), Kennedyallee 50, D-53175 Bonn
Source: http://www.daad.de/deutschland/forschung/ueberblick/11075.en.html
Date: 2012-02-12