How to apply for your PhD

Applying for your individual doctorate

What's next?

After you have found a professor willing to act as your supervisor, the responsible department or doctoral committee must then confirm your eligibility as a doctoral candidate. At some universities, candidates have to apply for admission to the doctoral examination at this stage.

Although it is not always necessary, it can be advantageous for international students to enrol as a doctoral student even when they have opted for a traditional individual doctorate. The prerequisite for this is admission to the doctoral studies programme.

You may need to present proof that you have passed the relevant German language examination. The International Office at the respective university can provide more details. The doctoral regulations on departmental websites also provide information about requirements.

Applying for a structured PhD programme

Multistage application procedure

For your application to be successful, your planned doctoral thesis must fit in with the main emphases of the programme and you will need a good or very good degree that is recognised in Germany. Initial contacts are usually made over the Internet.

The application procedure itself often involves a number of different stages, but differs from programme to programme.

• Generally, however, as a first step you will need to submit a curriculum vitae, a copy of your degree certificate, a brief description of your doctoral research proposal and a letter outlining the reasons for your application.
• The second step, usually on request, involves a detailed application with a comprehensive exposé of the research project. This includes details of your time schedule, references from previous professors, copies of all certificates and your thesis and, possibly, proof of language proficiency.
• If these documents win over the admissions committee, the applicant is usually invited to a personal interview, which can under certain circumstances also be held as a telephone conference.

When you have found a suitable programme, submit an application to one of the professors in the PhD programme or to the appropriate selection committee – depending on the programme or call for proposals. Here are some useful tips that may help you succeed in your application:

• Invest a lot of time and effort in your search for the right programme

• Choose your thesis topic in a way that fits in with the programme. Graduate schools are more broadly based in terms of subject matter and work in an interdisciplinary way. Nevertheless, your thesis must fit in with their specific fields of research
• Make your motives clear. It is important to show where your interest lies in your very first contact
• Demonstrate your interest: show that you know the doctoral programme and you know what to expect
• Give details of your own experience in this research field
• Show that you are well-informed: you know the requirements for a doctorate in Germany
• In your covering letter you should be brief and precise

In your application, you should provide information regarding your prior academic achievement, the topic of your master’s thesis and the subject area in which you wish to specialise. 

You should explain your reason for applying, describe your research project and possibly submit a position paper for your planned doctoral thesis. In some cases you will already be expected to know what you would like to do in your thesis and produce a research proposal on the subject.

• Be precise: say exactly why you are writing and what your research project is
• Give precise details of what your research involves – and what it doesn’t involve
• Explain what you want to discover in your research, what problem you would like to solve
• Focus on your research topic and do not get lost in sideshows
• Develop a coherent and convincing argument in favour of your research project
• Don’t get tied up in minor details
• Don’t forget to mention the most important works in your research area
• Make sure your grammar and spelling are correct