Doctorate

What shall I do in order to obtain a doctorate?

The following documents must be submitted to the dean's office of the Faculty of Arts:    

• Application of the admission to the qualification phase
• Supervision agreement
• Copy of transcript of records and copy of degree (if available)

What shall I do, if my overall grade is lower than 2,5?

In this case, a personal statement of the grade, which is prepared by the PhD candidates, and a favourable statement from the supervisor must be first submitted. Afterwards the Doctoral Committee will take account of each individual case and decide whether the PhD candidate is permitted to do a PhD at the Faculty of Arts.

What is the qualification phase?

The qualification phase is the time period, in which the dissertaion is completed.

Which language certificates must be submitted by foreign students?

We accept the DSH-Zertifikat for the German language and the TOEFL-Test or IELTS-Test certificate for the English language.

As a foreign student, can my doctoral procedure directly be approved?

First of all, an application of the admission to the qualification phase must be submitted to the dean's office of the Faculty of Arts. Besides, a copy of your original transcript of records and a certified translation of this transcript of records must also be provided together with your application. Later, the deans's office will forwards these required documents to the central office of international education, which will examine whether all the preconditions for a doctorate have been fulfilled (qualified degrees and grades will also be taken into consideration). Provided that the examination goes well and the corresponding language certifiate (either German or English) is submitted, the doctoral procedure with the application of the admission to the qualification phase is permitted to begin.

Individual Cotutelle procedures are no longer possible at the Faculty of Arts.

Cotutelle doctorates carried out within the framework of existing agreements with partner universities remain possible and are expressly encouraged. If a project indicates the potential for a long-term collaboration with a partner institution — benefiting multiple doctoral candidates or even other faculties — the initiation of a broader Cotutelle agreement is recommended. The Doctoral Office is happy to provide advice and support in this process.

The program aims to enable doctoral candidates to independently shape their doctoral studies while developing structures that support their progress. They take responsibility for tasks such as planning events during the Dies Academicus and foster cross-disciplinary networking. Additionally, they strengthen their soft skills as well as their time and budget management. The Dean’s Office provides support with topic-specific events.

The current program will conclude in September 2027. At this time, there are no further calls planned for the admission of new cohorts.

For further information or questions, please feel free to contact us at any time.

• Guide to Progress Monitoring
• Guidelines for Financial Support
• Expense Reimbursement Form

Participants in the program are kindly asked to use the above-linked expense reimbursement form for claiming expenses incurred as part of the program. Please attach the original invoices and your bank account details to your submission. Also, please refer to the above-linked guidelines for financial support.

Additional helpful resources can be found on the information page of the Bonner Graduiertenzentrum.

Members of Program

Prof. Dr. Martin Aust
Prof. Dr. Elke Brendel
Prof. Dr. Sarah Dietrich-Grappin
Prof. Dr. Roland Kanz

Contact for current program participants

Dr. phil. Antje Gunsenheimer (antje.gunsenheimer@uni-bonn.de)