Doctoral candidates

Entry requirements for the doctorate programme

To enrol at a Doctoral Research Center, prospective doctoral candidates must demonstrate an above-average degree classification (usually 2.5 or higher) in a subject area relevant to their doctoral project. This is usually evidenced by a Master’s degree certificate awarded by a University of Applied Sciences or a university, a Diplom degree (university) or a State Examination. The subject-specific doctoral regulations (FPromO) of the respective Doctoral Research Center set out the minimum requirements and specify the eligible degree programmes.

Selection of carers

During the initial phase, doctoral candidates select a Supervisor who will support them in identifying a research topic and answering academic questions relating to their PhD project, and who is willing to take on the supervision. To this end, doctoral candidates usually contact professors at HM with a strong research background directly, or submit an application for a relevant advertised post. Job vacancies for research staff members are published here.

When undertaking a doctorate at one of the four doctoral centres in which Hochschule München is involved, a Professor from Hochschule München may act as the primary supervisor; a Professor from a university is not required to act as the primary supervisor. Supervision by a university Professor may take place in the context of appointing a secondary supervisor or reviewer. As a rule, it is possible to complete a doctorate at Hochschule München within the doctoral centres without university involvement.

Furthermore, the doctorate programme is based on a collaborative approach, with the Professor at Hochschule München generally acting as the second supervisor and examiner.

Together with their supervisor at the HM, doctoral candidates select the primary supervisor, who is affiliated to a university. The legal relationship governing the PhD programme is then governed by the rules of the school, department or university to which the primary supervisor belongs.

A mentor may be appointed for both types of programme. Doctoral candidates are free to shape the mentoring relationship as they see fit. Mentors can provide support, both professionally and personally, with the doctoral project, as well as with networking and career planning, in difficult situations, or in settling into academic life.

It is advisable to maintain good communication between supervisors and doctoral candidates throughout the entire doctoral process and to seek the academic support of all supervisors involved on a regular basis.

Further information:

• Consider your motivation for pursuing a doctorate:
  Why do you wish to pursue a doctorate, and what conditions do you need in order to produce a high-quality dissertation within a reasonable timeframe?
• When taking up a post (as a research staff member) with the opportunity to pursue a doctorate:
  Discuss with your line managers and potential Supervisors what is expected of you and to what extent you will be able to work on your doctorate whilst employed, or what scope you have to organise your time. When choosing a topic, your own ideas, interests and abilities play a key role, as do the assessments of your supervisors and subject experts. Particularly in the case of externally funded projects, the research questions are often already determined by the team’s preliminary work. Research the current state of the art in the field and clarify what (i.e. what innovative step) can be achieved in a doctoral thesis and by what means (academic, material).
• Finding a supervisor at the HM:
  Find out who might be a potential supervisor for you at the HM. Check whether the person is able to provide appropriate academic supervision for your doctoral project and whether there is a good personal fit between you and them. In most cases, this will be your Supervisor at the HM; however, for subject-specific reasons, it may in some cases make sense to choose another person at the HM as your Supervisor, or as an additional Supervisor or mentor.
• Agree on the framework:
  Discuss with your supervisor how much time you can realistically devote to your doctorate project, taking into account your work and family commitments. You should also discuss with your supervisors to what extent a doctorate might be beneficial or a hindrance to your career goals (whether within or outside academia).
• In the case of a cooperative doctorate, ensure you have university supervision:
  Discuss at an early stage with your HM supervisor who might be suitable as a collaborative supervisor at the university. Together with your supervisor, establish contact with a potential supervisor at a university to initiate doctorate supervision. Clarify the roles regarding primary supervision, secondary supervision and the final assessment. You are also welcome to contact the points of contact at the HM Graduate School or the coordination offices of the BayWISS joint doctoral programmes (see the glossary: BayWISS joint doctoral programme) for support with matching or finding supervisors at a university.
• Selection of a mentor, if applicable:
  A mentor may also be appointed. Doctoral candidates are free to shape the mentoring relationship as they see fit. Mentors can provide support, both professionally and personally, with the doctoral project, as well as with networking and career planning, in difficult situations, or when settling into academic life.
• Initial supervision meeting and drawing up a supervision agreement:
  At the start of your doctorate, arrange a joint meeting with your HM supervisor and your university supervisor, and use this meeting to clarify mutual expectations and the division of responsibilities. Set out the arrangements in writing in a supervision agreement. Templates for this are provided by the institution overseeing the PhD programme (Doctoral Research Center or university). The supervision agreement should include the following elements (see also Glossary: Supervision Agreement)
  
  
  • Details of supervisors and doctoral candidates
  • Working title of the dissertation
  • Work plan and timetable
  • Frequency, duration, procedure and method of documenting supervision meetings
  • How often and in what context the doctoral candidate presents their progress
  • Commitment to adhering to the rules of good academic practice
  • Participation in academic conferences
  • Details of publications
  
  As a general rule, supervision agreements can and should be revised from time to time. They serve as a common basis for regular meetings.

Clarification of the funding arrangements

The following options are available for financing:

• Appointment as a research assistant
• Employment under an external contract, e.g. with an industrial partner
• Scholarship

Here you will find our current job vacancies for research staff members and doctoral candidates.

For external employment opportunities, please contact the relevant companies directly.

Scholarships are awarded by foundations and support associations.

Steps required for admission to a Doctoral Research Center

Make sure you check which Doctoral Research Center is suitable for you in terms of your field of study. Enrolment at a Doctoral Research Center first requires you to be accepted as a doctoral candidate by the relevant Center, based on a written application (docDaten), which must include the following information and documents:

• A CV in German or English, which also provides details of your academic background. CVs in other languages may also be accepted in certain circumstances, subject to the provisions of the doctoral regulations (FPromO).
• Certificates, degree certificates and academic transcripts (Diploma Supplement, Transcript of Records) for all previous higher education qualifications, as well as proof of the higher education entrance qualification, in the form of certified copies. For foreign qualifications, a certified copy of the original document and a certified translation must be submitted.
• A supervision agreement (you can find the template for this on the website of the relevant Doctoral Research Center)
• A brief written proposal, in German or English, for the doctoral project to be carried out independently. The proposal should consist of the proposed topic, the current state of research, the objectives and the contribution of the thesis, together with a description of the approach and the methods to be used.
• A statement confirming that the doctoral examination for the intended doctoral degree has neither already been passed nor has it been definitively failed.
• A declaration that the German Research Foundation’s guidelines on ensuring good scientific practice, as well as the statutes or guidelines on compliance with good scientific practice of the host university, in their currently applicable versions, have been noted and will be complied with.

It is essential to check the specific requirements of the relevant Doctoral Research Center by referring to the corresponding FPromO. Please consult the Doctoral Research Centers’ websites thoroughly and, if necessary, contact the relevant points of contact to obtain detailed information on the necessary steps, such as admission to the doctorate. Here too, the supervision agreement is a key document that sets out the rights and obligations of doctoral candidates and their supervisors, and provides a framework for the planning and progression of the doctorate. Amendments to the agreement are possible and recommended during the course of the doctorate, in order to be able to respond flexibly to changes in the doctorate process.

Steps to be taken at the partner university

As a rule, the partner university requires you to sign a supervision agreement and to be affiliated with the university, which is usually achieved through enrolment or inclusion on the doctoral register. Please check the partner university’s website and consult the contact persons for doctoral candidates to find out about the requirements.

The HM also strongly recommends drawing up a supervision agreement. The supervision agreement supports doctoral candidates and their supervisors in planning and carrying out the doctorate programme. The document sets out mutual rights and obligations, as well as planned training activities, and establishes a timetable for the course of the doctorate programme. The agreements reached can and should be regularly adjusted as the doctorate project progresses.

For further information, see the Glossary: supervision agreement

Familiarise yourself with the doctoral regulations applicable to you in the subject area of the university where you wish to pursue your doctorate, and clarify how to become a member of the institution awarding the doctorate. As a rule, you can enrol at the university or be added to the doctoral register. You can find this information on the relevant websites or obtain it on request from the institution awarding the doctorate.

Acquiring membership of Hochschule München

In order to be eligible for HM’s support measures or the qualification programme, doctoral candidates must be members of the university. Members of the HM are all doctoral candidates who are supervised by a university lecturer or who have been accepted into a Doctoral Research Center. Membership ends upon completion of the doctorate, termination of the supervision agreement or withdrawal from the Doctoral Research Center.

enrolment

Information on enrolment as a doctoral candidate can be found at the bottom of the webpage.

If you have any questions regarding enrolment, please contact Dr Marcus Müller-Ostermaier .

Phase 2 begins once a student has been successfully included on the doctoral register. During this phase, doctoral candidates are researchers and prepare their dissertation (either a monograph or a publication-based dissertation). In addition, they complete a training programme and may take advantage of other opportunities offered by the Graduate School.

Further information on the training programme and the Graduate School’s courses can be found here .

Further information:

• 
  Registering as a doctoral candidate: Please inform the HM that you have started your doctorate (by sending a change notification to personalverwaltung@hm.edu and gs@hm.edu). This is particularly important so that you can be officially registered as a doctoral candidate and receive direct information about all relevant events and support services.
• Communication with supervisors:
  Maintain regular contact with your supervisors, both at HM and, in the case of a cooperative doctorate, at the partner university. Take the initiative to approach your supervisors when you need their advice. If necessary, agree on a regular schedule for supervision meetings with your supervisors. Weekly discussions offer the advantage of enabling new insights to be gained through interaction and mutual support. You should also present interim results of your dissertation to your Supervisors at regular intervals (approximately every 6–12 months) and agree on a suitable setting for this (e.g. at the doctoral colloquium or PhD seminar).
• Dealing constructively with feedback:
  Do not let criticism from your supervisors discourage you; instead, try to incorporate their feedback constructively into your work. If any aspects of the feedback are unclear to you or seem contradictory, seek a further discussion to clarify matters so that you can continue working in a focused manner.
• Counselling and coaching:
  Seek support for issues that you cannot or do not wish to discuss directly with your Supervisors (e.g. crises, conflicts, etc.). Your contact at the HM Graduate School will provide you with confidential support. You can arrange a counselling or coaching session with us at any time.
• Seminars, publications and academic conferences:
  Keep track of which courses/seminars you are required to complete during your doctorate in accordance with your doctoral regulations, supervision agreement and your employment contract at HM. The same applies to publications you are required to produce and conference participation. Financial support is available for conference travel and publications. The contact persons at the HM Graduate School will be happy to advise you. You can find more detailed information on the website.
  The following requirements are set out in the doctoral regulations (PromO) of the doctoral centres:
  
  
  • presenting the progress of your doctorate/research at research colloquia (at least 3*)
  • In addition, you will complete a training programme; the current range of courses is available at www.hm.edu/promotionsprogramm
  • Present your doctoral project to the academic community for discussion; see also the FPromOs.
  • Hold regular feedback meetings (link to template for minutes); depending on the Doctoral Research Center, this is 1* per semester
  
  The requirements vary in accordance with the FPromO of the respective Doctoral Research Center

• Dissertation work plan and timetable:
  Try to stick to the work plan and timetable agreed (ideally in the supervision agreement) and update your Supervisors at least every six months on your current progress. If certain work packages take longer than anticipated, or if specific circumstances or developments have led to a delay in your work, discuss this with your Supervisors and work together to find solutions. You should then adjust your work and timetable accordingly.
• Networking:
  Network with other doctoral candidates, particularly those working in your field of research. Courses on interdisciplinary skills at the HM and other higher education institutions, BayWISS networking events and annual colloquia (see Glossary: BayWISS Joint PhD Programme), as well as mentoring programmes such as the HM’s meant4science, provide an ideal forum for this. Integration into the working environment at your university’s chair also presents a good opportunity for networking.
• Good scientific practice:
  Please adhere to the rules of good scientific practice. If you have any questions or in the event of a dispute concerning good scientific practice, please contact the Graduate School or the HM ombudspersons (see www.hm.edu/gwp).
• Personal responsibility:
  Please use the resources and materials made available to you (e.g. via BayWISS) for your PhD project responsibly.

As soon as the doctoral candidates and their supervisor at Hochschule München consider the dissertation to be ready for completion, the submission process can begin. It is advisable to obtain the consent of the primary supervisor in advance; in the case of a cooperative doctorate, this should also be obtained from the partner university. The entire dissertation submission process is governed by the rules set out in the RPrmoO/FPromO or by the PromO of the partner university. Please consult the relevant websites for further information and contact the relevant staff at the doctoral centres or the universities, schools or departments of your primary supervisor.

Further recommendations:

• Discuss the process for completing your doctorate with your Supervisors in good time and check your doctoral regulations for relevant information on this.
• Formal requirements & revision cycles:
  Check your doctoral regulations to see which formal requirements you must comply with (e.g. title page, font, how many copies must be submitted and in what format, etc.). Also clarify with your supervisors in good time whether they have any specific requirements regarding the formal aspects of the dissertation (e.g. page count, appendices, figures, citation styles, etc.) and to what extent you should allow for rounds of revisions.
• Oral defence:
  Please check your doctoral regulations, paying particular attention to the requirements regarding the oral examination. You should also discuss the procedure and ways of preparing for the oral examination (e.g. the defence) with your Supervisors. If possible, attend the oral defences of other doctoral candidates who are due to complete their degrees before you. Furthermore, there is the option of dissertation defence training or coaching. Please feel free to contact your point of contact at the HM’s Early-Career Researcher Support programme.

In order to be officially entitled to use the title of Doctor, you must also have published your dissertation. Please check your doctoral regulations (RPromO and FPromOs) in good time for further details and discuss the requirements regarding publications to be submitted for submission with your Supervisors.