How to Find a Doctoral Supervisor

In order to be admitted to doctoral studies, you need a topic and a doctoral supervisor. This may sound simple, but it can be a true challenge. You may have many questions: What makes a good doctoral topic? How do I convince a potential supervisor of my project? Where do I start?

There are no one-fits-all answers to these questions, but we may have some tips for you, which we have collected here on this page. 

Topic or supervisor: what do I need first?

Of course, the topic and the supervisor of your doctoral project are closely connected: not every professor can supervise every project. Apart from that, what you take care of first depends on which kind of doctorate you choose.

If you apply for a PhD position, e.g. at a graduate school, the doctoral topic and supervisor may already be predetermined. If you do an external doctorate, i.e. without being employed at the university, you will look for a doctoral supervisor before you start working on it. 

• Further information on doctorate models at HSBI

What does a doctoral supervisor do?

The person who supervises your doctorate plays an important role during your entire doctoral project. They are the first contact point if you have any questions regarding your doctorate.

Your doctoral supervisor will support you on different levels: in structuring your doctorate’s process, in content-related questions – but also in building up an academic network. Together you will discuss your current research activities and the progress of your doctoral project. In order to do so, you will regularly get together for supervisory meetings. Your doctoral supervisor will also be available for advice outside these appointments. You will thus not only benefit from the specialist and methodological expertise of your supervisor, but also from their contacts within academia, research, industry and society.

Who can supervise your doctorate?

Usually, universities determine who may supervise doctorates in their respective doctoral guidelines. At HSBI, all professors can generally supervise doctorates. However, you should approach the person you would like to supervise your doctorate in order to find out whether they can take on new doctoral candidates.

How do I find “my” doctoral supervisor?

As described, how to find a doctoral supervisor depends on whether you do an external doctorate or as part of your employment as a research associate or in a graduate school. It may even be determined in your job description who can supervise your project.

As a rule, in order to find someone to supervise your doctorate, you should first do some research on which professors may be eligible for it due to their subject area. You can also attend conferences or consult past and current conference agendas to find out who is active in your research area. Aside from subject correlation, interpersonal factors are important, too. You should keep in mind that you will have to work together closely for several years. For a trusting relationship, it is necessary that the chemistry is right between you and your supervisor. In fact, the relationship is so close that in German your doctoral supervisor is called “Doktorvater” (doctorate father) or “Doktormutter” (doctorate mother).

How do I convince a potential supervisor of my project?

Once you have found one or more professors who could supervise your doctorate, you should ask them whether they agree to do so. If you muster your courage and believe in your project, you can also convince others of it!

For a first enquiry, you can send an e-mail to the professor, attaching a short proposal in which you sketch the topic of your doctoral project with the research question and objective as well as first approaches. You can also attach a letter of recommendation, e.g. from past employers or professors.