Depending on your discipline and research project, there are various different paths towards obtaining a doctoral degree at FAU. No matter which path you decide on, you can rely on a choice of seminars and events, administrative support, and help in networking!
1st step
Topic and supervision
First of all, you have to think about your research topic and find a suitable supervisor. To find a supervisor you should look carefully at the websites of the institutes and research groups and contact any potential supervisors directly.
Once you have found a supervisor, you can decide whether you would like to complete a structured doctoral program. If you are interested in participating in one of our doctoral programs, please apply directly to the program coordinator. Information on application deadlines and procedures can be found on the program website.
A doctoral degree that does not include participation in a structured doctoral program is often referred to as an “individual doctoral degree”.
Supervision Agreement
If you would like to complete a doctoral degree at a university of applied sciences, you can naturally do so in collaboration with FAU. In this case, you will be supervised by a university professor and a professor from the university of applied sciences. Please contact the relevant Office of Doctoral Affairs if you are interested.
Guide to cooperative doctoral degrees at FAU
External doctoral candidates cover their costs with paid employment outside the University. FAU provides supervision and is entitled to award the doctoral degree. It ought to be borne in mind that allocating theses of this nature raises many questions that affect all those involved (doctoral candidates, companies, supervisors).
2nd step
Registering your doctoral degree
Have you found a supervisor? You now need to enter your details and your doctoral research into the docDaten database.
It only takes 10 minutes to register in docDaten. You can register in docDaten here.
Once you have registered in docDaten you must apply for admission within 3 months, otherwise your registration is deleted!
Use your IdM account to register in docDaten. You will already have an IdM account if you are or were registered as a student or member of staff at FAU. If you are an FAU employee, you can find your user name and activation password in the letter you received providing information for users. If you are a student, this information is printed on your student ID card.
If you are new to FAU, please contact graduiertenzentrum@fau.de. You will then receive the information you need for your IdM account. Activate your user account using the IdM self-service section. Enter your user name and your activation password in the relevant boxes. The Graduate Center can give you the information you need.
After activating your account in the IdM self-service section (www.idm.fau.de), you can view the data you have entered at www.docdaten.fau.de.
If you have forgotten your IdM user name or if it no longer works, please contact the RRZE helpdesks. The FAU Graduate Center can only access your IdM account until you activate it. After activation, the RRZE is responsible for managing your IdM account.
You can make some changes to the data in docDaten yourself. If you would like to make more extensive changes, please inform us by email (graduiertenzentrum@fau.de).
If you end your doctoral research before graduation, you must inform all those involved accordingly (Section 6 (8) RPromO). Please use the following form.
- File Name
- Formular_Abbruch_Promotion_en
- File Size
- 501 KB
- File Type
3rd step
Admission to a doctoral degree
At the latest 3 months after registering in docDaten, you must apply for admission to a doctoral degree. All the documents you require are available for downloading in docDaten. To be admitted to a doctoral degree, you must normally have successfully completed a Master’s degree program that is equivalent to a Master’s degree program from a German university. You will find specific admission requirements in the relevant doctoral regulations at the faculties.
The Office of Doctoral Affairs that is responsible for you is responsible for admission.
Doctoral regulations for the faculties and schools
According to Section 8 RPromO, you must file an application for admission to a doctoral degree when starting your doctoral research. This entails several advantages:
- Whether or not you meet the requirements for completing a doctoral degree at FAU is checked at an early stage.
- After admission, you become a member of FAU, even if you are not employed at FAU.
- You benefit from central services.
- You will regularly receive important information on completing a doctoral degree.
You will find all the necessary forms after registering on the doctoral portal docDaten. Each of these forms includes a list of the documents you will need to supply. Please make sure that all required documents are available in full before you submit them to apply for admission or initiation of the doctoral procedure.
As a rule, certificates must be supplied in the original and in German (official language). However, the Offices of Doctoral Affairs will also accept certified copies of documents and certified translations of documents, or documents in English.
If you submit the original with a copy, we will check the copy with the original and confirm it so that you can take the original away with you again. Please make any copies yourself, we are unable to make copies for you.
As a rule, applicants are expected to have a Master’s or equivalent university degree (Diplom, M.A., State Examination) in the subject in which they hope to complete their doctoral degree. Some faculty doctoral regulations, such as those for the Dr. rer. nat.(Natural Sciences) and Dr. rer. pol. (Business and Economics) provide for the acceptance of particularly talented candidates with a Bachelor’s degree.
Applicants with a qualification in a different subject may be admitted under certain circumstances. Sometimes applicants may be required to pass a qualifying examination. Details are available in Section 6 of the relevant doctoral regulations. Master’s degrees from universities of applied sciences are considered equivalent to Master’s degrees from a university. Under certain circumstances, very good graduates from universities of applied sciences with a “Diplom” may be accepted provided they pass the qualifying examination for the doctoral degree program.
Qualifications from international universities must be checked by the body responsible for doctoral degrees. This happens as soon as you submit your application for admission to the doctoral degree after successfully registering in docDaten. Checking the equivalence of international qualifications can take several months.
You can contact either your Office of Doctoral Affairs, the chairperson of the corresponding doctoral committee or the person in your faculty administration responsible for doctoral matters.
In addition, staff at the FAU Graduate Center will be happy to help if you have any questions (graduiertenzentrum@fau.de, +49 9131 85 20724). Doctoral candidates from the School of Business, Economics and Society should contact the Graduate School at the Faculty of Business, Economics, and Law directly.
You can find all key information and the texts of the doctoral regulations on our website.
4th step
Enrollment as a doctoral candidate
Once you have been admitted to a doctoral degree, as a doctoral candidate you can also enroll at the university for a period of up to four years. Some scholarships require you to be enrolled.
Doctoral candidates can enroll at FAU following admission to a doctoral degree. Please refer to the information and requirements provided by the Student Records Office for subjects without admission restrictions. In order to enroll, you require confirmation that you are completing a doctoral degree at FAU, available in docDaten.
Enrollment offers numerous benefits, including a discounted travel pass, the possibility to take part in FAU’s language and sports courses, student prices for using all the services offered by Student Services, discounts on entry to leisure, cultural and sporting activities, and the use of software licenses or media subscriptions available to enrolled students.
Enrolled doctoral candidates no longer count as students for health insurance purposes. You may therefore have to pay higher rates.
If you enroll as a doctoral candidate for your doctoral degree, Section 49 (3) Bavarian Higher Education Act (Bayerisches Hochschulgesetz, BayHSchG) stipulates that you will be de-registered after four years at the latest.
Please do not confuse enrollment with registration in our database docDaten or with admission to the doctoral degree.
In exceptional circumstances, candidates may remain enrolled at the University for more than four years if a request for an extension is submitted by the doctoral candidate or their supervisor. Reasons for an extension may be:
- Funding for the doctoral research depends on the candidate being enrolled at the university.
- Enrollment at the university is an essential prerequisite for the residence permit of non-EU nationals
- Admission to the doctoral degree is linked to conditions which can only be met if the candidate is enrolled.
In addition, supervisors have to submit a document stating that the project is nearing completion and will be completed in one or two semesters.
5th step
Time for research
Once you are admitted to the doctoral degree, you can get down to business: Carry out research, analyze exciting results and write your doctoral thesis.
A monograph is a written doctoral thesis that must not be identical to any previous final theses or other published pieces of work. Parts of the doctoral thesis may be pre-published provided you state your intention to do so, but you must take care to ensure that contractual agreements with the publisher do not jeopardize publication during the doctoral procedure in any way.
For a cumulative doctoral thesis, a collection of articles which have already been published in recognized scientific journals or articles which have been accepted for publication are submitted as a doctoral thesis. The specific criteria vary from faculty to faculty. In most cases, a cumulative doctoral thesis is allowed after consulting with your supervisor.
Scholarships for research stays abroad are available from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation also offers options for doctoral candidates.
The Central Office for International Affairs at FAU has also compiled a list of other funding providers that fund stays abroad.
It is also worth looking at our website that lists various funding databases.
If you are already receiving basic funding for your research as a doctoral candidate at FAU, please check with your funding provider whether additional funds are available for an international stay abroad. Some talent promotion organizations provide funds for this.
6. step
Initiation of the Doctoral Procedure
Once you have completed your doctoral thesis, you must arrange for the initiation of the doctoral procedure. All the documents you require are available for downloading directly in docDaten.
Once your doctoral thesis has been officially accepted, you have to defend it in an oral examination.
Finally, you are obliged to publish your doctoral thesis. You will only receive your doctoral degree certificate once you have met your publication obligations.
The requirements and details for the doctoral procedure are stipulated in the General doctoral regulations and/or in the Doctoral regulations for your faculty.
The General Doctoral Regulations do not stipulate a limit on the duration of doctoral study for doctoral candidates who are not enrolled. This is different for those who do enroll as a student. Further information is found under the question ‘De-registered after four years – what happens now?’.
At the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Theology, an examiner from another subject must be involved. They are proposed by the doctoral candidate when the doctoral procedure is initiated. In the case of external reviewers or examiners, the doctoral candidate and their supervisor must submit an informal application to the Doctoral Affairs Committee.
At the Faculty of Sciences, the supervisor must submit a request to the Faculty Council for an examiner from another subject (at FAU) to be allowed. In the case of an examiner from another university, the supervisor must submit an informal application to the Doctoral Affairs Committee.
At the Faculty of Medicine, an examiner from another subject must be included for doctoral procedures leading to the degree Dr. rer. biol. hum. This examiner is proposed by the supervisor. Supervisors from other subjects are not permitted for doctoral degrees leading to the degree Dr. med./Dr. med. dent.
Examiners from other subjects must meet the criteria pursuant to Section 5 RPromO and FPromO.