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  1. Home
  2. Your goal
  3. PhD
  4. Find your PhD position

Find your PhD position in Germany

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Before you start your search ...

Before you start your search you should know that there are different PhD models:

  • Individual doctorate or
  • Structured PhD programmes

What's the difference? Check out our overview of the various ways to do your PhD in Germany 

Find your individual doctorate

Two young researchers are sitting on a lab desk listening to a standing professor and taking notes. The professor holds a molecular model in his hands.

©Thinkstock

The "traditional" or "individual" path to a PhD remains the most common in Germany. An individual doctorate involves a thesis or dissertation that is produced under the supervision of one professor. This form of PhD study offers a great deal of flexibility, but demands a high degree of personal initiative and responsibility.

How to find your PhD supervisor

In Germany there is no central admissions or selection office for doctoral students. Therefore, your first step is to find a suitable professor who is willing to be your supervisor.

One way to find a supervisor is to look for a university institute that matches your area of research. The following online search engines might help you find a suitable supervisor:

  • GERiT – German Research Institutions
    GERiT is a website containing information on approximately 25,000 research institutions in Germany. GERiT allows the user to search easily by location or subject. It provides all the information needed to choose an institution at which to research, study or do a doctorate.
    www.gerit.org
  • Finding a PhD position
    PhDGermany publishes PhD openings in Germany that specifically target international applicants. Accordingly, in most cases the working language is English. Fluent knowledge of German is only required for certain special positions. PhDGermany helps you find the right PhD opening or supervisor for your doctoral thesis and assists you with the online application process.
    www.phdgermany.de
  • Higher Education Compass 
    This database provides up-to-date information from universities about doctoral opportunities in Germany. The search engine enables you to carry out targeted searches on the basis of departments, admission requirements and form of doctoral thesis.
    www.hochschulkompass.de

Furthermore, your contacts with your professors or previous university could help direct you to a suitable department or potential supervisor in Germany.

It is also helpful to attend academic conferences in your own subject area. There you will be able to exchange information and make contacts ­– and perhaps even find a future PhD supervisor.

Find your structured PhD programme

Students are sitting in a modern study hall on red chairs at grey desks.

©Ausserhofer/Himsel/DAAD

Structured PhD programmes in Germany are frequently very similar to the PhD programmes in English-speaking countries, in which a team of supervisors look after a group of doctoral students. Around 10,000 international doctoral students – roughly one in four – do their PhDs in structured programmes. As a rule, it is possible to complete a doctorate in three to five years.

Where to find your PhD programme

There is no central database of all structured PhD programmes in Germany. You can usually find these programmes directly through the respective universities, graduate schools or non-university research institutions. The DAAD database is also a good place to look. Here you will find a large number of PhD programmes that are specially aimed at international doctoral students.

Are you interested in an international doctoral programme in Germany? This German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) database presents a selection of roughly 250 international doctoral programmes in Germany. The database can be searched according to different criteria. 
www.daad.de/international-programmes 

Many universities offer structured doctoral programmes, which they publicise on their websites. The Student Advisory Service or Graduate Centre at the respective university will also provide help here. You can find the relevant addresses using the Higher Education Compass provided by the German Rectors’ Conference.
www.higher-education-compass.de

Research training groups are also funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation, DFG) for a period of up to nine years. Their key emphasis is on the qualification of doctoral researchers within the framework of a focused research programme and a structured training strategy.
www.dfg.de > Current Research Training Groups

The Helmholtz Association is Germany’s largest scientific organisation. In collaboration with various institutions of higher education, Helmholtz Association research centres have established structured PhD programmes under the auspices of Helmholtz Graduate Schools, Helmholtz Research Schools and Colleges. 
www.helmholtz.de > PhD Candidates 

The Leibniz Association connects almost 100 research institutes that conduct problem-oriented research and provide scientific infrastructure of national and international importance. Together with universities they run structured PhD programmes in Leibniz Graduate Schools.
www.leibniz-association.eu > Leibniz Graduate Schools

 

The Max Planck Society specialises in innovative basic research and its institutes are able to offer up-and-coming researchers excellent infrastructure and support. The website lists the programmes available at International Max Planck Research Schools (IMPRS). 
www.mpg.de > International Max Planck Research Schools

 

In Germany, the best researchers in a specific field are often work at different universities and non-university research institutions spread throughout the country. The Max Planck Schools serve as hubs which gather this distributed knowledge. Here, the brightest minds in their fields have come together from within the scientific community to interconnect in faculties made up of active researchers. Students gain access to these unique networks, learn in close personal exchange from leaders in their fields and their peers, and enjoy access to outstanding infrastructure. Currently, three Schools are operating in the fields of Cognition, Matter to Life, and Photonics.
www.maxplanckschools.de

Application procedures differ from programme to programme. The precise requirements and deadlines can be found on the website of the respective university, research training group or graduate school. You should therefore first choose a PhD programme and/or graduate school.

How to apply for a PhD

You've found the position you want to apply for, but how does applying to a potential supervisor or structured PhD programme work in Germany? Find out more here.

Explore
A researcher is sitting at a desk in an office building and is taking notes in a small book. In front of him is a laptop.
© DAAD / Jan Zappner

Find a job

We help you navigate through the large number of job portals that specialise in openings for academics and scientists. These are some of the sites that may get you started.

Explore
A researcher using the Nano-Spintronic-Cluster-Tool in the Peter Gruenberg Institut (PGI) for the research of Electronic Properties (PGI-6) in the Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH (fz Juelich)
© DAAD / Volker Lannert
The cover of the brochure "Doing a PhD in Germany". It depicts a graduation cap and a diploma. On the bottom left there is the logo of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. On the bottom right is the logo of "Research in Germany"

Check out our brochure

Doing a PhD in Germany (2019, 40 pages)

This booklet for (prospective) international doctoral students presents the different options for doing a doctorate in Germany. It explains the formal requirements and gives some practical advice on finding the right supervisor or doctoral programme. It also outlines different sponsorship and funding options.

Download (PDF, 2 MB)
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Publisher BMBF Website
Editor DAAD Website
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