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Baden-Württemberg. The German Southwest.
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Independent Research under supervision of a "Doktorvater" or "Doktormutter"

The traditional and still prevalent system of reaching a PhD degree in Germany is through Independent Research. The individual research work of the doctoral student is usually accomplished under the supervision of one or more professors (“Doktorvater”). Attending courses at a university, fulfilling a structured curriculum or completing the thesis in a fixed period of time is not mandatory. The research work is presented in a thesis or dissertation which is the core element of the doctorate.

Step-By-Step Guide: Independent Research under Supervision

Step One: Finding a supervisor

It is important to know that there is no central admissions or selection office for doctoral students. The decision is made solely by the accepting university, with the academic supervisor playing the key role.

  • You may already know the professor’s name from a publication relevant to your field. You can then look up his/her contact details in an external search engine or on the website of the tertiary education institution in Baden-Württemberg. Go onto the homepage of the relevant institution, look up your field of interest and contact the head of department listed.
  • In some cases the Dean’s office (Dekanat) can help as can the office of international affairs or even the counselling office.

Step Two: Contact your future supervisor

Contact your future supervisor by E-Mail or formal letter and provide him/her with the following information:

  • A brief description of your field and topic of interest
  • A short review of the relevant experience you have in this field
  • Your curriculum vitae (résumé or profile)
  • letters of recommendation better your chances

Important notes for PhD-candidates

  • You can write your thesis in English, provided your Supervisor agrees. If you decide to write in German you will need to have passed the DSH (German language test) or TestDaF (German language test).
  • Your university degree has to be recognised as being equivalent to a German degree. You can do this by simply sending a copy of your degree certificate to the dean of the relevant faculty. He/she will then send you a written assessment of its equivelant in Germany.
  • Before admittance you will be asked to prepare a piece of scientific research which could vary between 50 – 100 pages (depending on the subject),as sometimes you may also be required to take a written or oral test.
  • You will need a student visa (not a tourist visa)

At present, practically all doctoral programmes in Germany are tuition-free.

Consult the Quick links in the grey column to find out more about Independent Research under Supervision.
   

 

 

URL: http://www.study-guide-bw.com/home/research/step/independant_research/page.html
Date: 10.03.2010 08:03