FAQ on Doctorates at HSBI

The doctorate is a decisive step in your academic career, conferring you the title “Doctor” and – deriving from Latin licentia docendi (licence to teach) – qualifying you to teach at university level. In order to receive your doctoral degree, you must prove that you are capable of doing in-depth, independent scientific work. This proof is provided when you write your dissertation, or doctoral thesis, and pass other examinations that may be required for the doctoral degree.

What is the difference between doctorate, dissertation and doctoral thesis?

A doctorate is the conferral of the doctoral degree after completion of doctoral studies. The dissertation is a doctoral thesis, i.e. the scientific treatise that you write in order to achieve your doctorate.

Which degree do I need for a doctorate?

You can do a doctorate at HSBI and other universities or universities of applied sciences with a master’s degree, irrespective of whether you have obtained your degree at a university of applied sciences (e.g. Fachhochschule, FH) or university (e.g. Universität). The degrees Diplom (Universität), Magister and Staatsexamen also qualify you for doing a doctorate at a university. However, it is usually not possible to do a doctorate with a bachelor’s degree, or a Diplom from a university of applied sciences (FH or HAW).

Does it matter in which subject I have obtained my master’s degree?

As a rule, your doctorate should build on your studies and the research you may have done as part of your master thesis. Nevertheless, it depends on the respective doctoral guidelines whether any requirements apart from a qualifying university degree must be fulfilled. If you do a cooperative doctorate, your partner university’s doctoral guidelines will apply. For a doctorate in accordance with the Promotionskolleg NRW’s (PK NRW – Graduate School NRW) doctoral guidelines, the respective guidelines of the department in which the doctoral programme is conducted shall apply.

Can I do a doctorate with a degree I have obtained abroad?

If you have completed your studies at a university or university of applied sciences abroad, you may also be admitted to doctoral studies. For this, your university degree, e.g. a master’s degree, must first be recognised. A bachelor’s degree obtained abroad usually doesn’t suffice for a doctorate at a German university or university of applied sciences. After your degree has been recognised, you can do your doctorate at a German university. Please contact the F.I.TT. team for any further questions you may have. You can find our contact information below.

Can I do a doctorate at HSBI without knowing German?

You can do a doctorate in Germany, and also at our university, without knowledge of the German language. It is important, however, that the university degree (e.g. master’s degree) qualifying you for a doctorate has been recognised. You will then write your dissertation in English or in another language that you master, provided that your doctoral supervisor also masters that language.

At HSBI, there are different paths to a doctorate. In addition to the proven method of cooperative doctorates, you will have the opportunity to do a doctorate within a structured programme with the PK NRW as of the winter semester 2023/2024. During your cooperative doctorate, you can also be employed at HSBI. 

Cooperative doctorate

During a cooperative doctorate, your doctoral project is accompanied by two professors – one of them at HSBI, one of them at a university with the right to award doctorates (Universität). Universities of applied sciences (Hochschulen) do not have the right to award doctorates in Germany. In addition to choosing an Universität as a partner institution, you may also consider other types of universities in Germany or abroad that have the right to award doctorates.

Structured doctorate at PK NRW

A doctorate without a partner university is possible as a cooperation between HSBI and PK NRW. In November 2022, it obtained the right to award doctorates independently. HSBI is part of this network of universities of applied sciences in North Rhine-Westphalia.

In a doctorate in accordance with the Graduate School NRW’s doctoral guidelines, doctoral candidates are accompanied on the path to their doctoral degree in a structured programme of a department within a limited period. The doctoral candidates will receive close supervision and support by a team of university teachers. As of the winter semester 2023/2024, it will be possible to do a doctorate at HSBI in cooperation with PK NRW. Registration as a doctoral candidate has been possible since 1 September 2023.

• Information on doctorates with PK NRW and on registration at HSBI
• To Graduate School NRW
• FAQ on doctorates at PK NRW 

External doctorate

A free or external doctorate is a project that you do not realise as part of an employment at the university, in a PhD position at a graduate school or in a doctoral programme of PK NRW. In this case, you are doing an external doctorate. This, too, is a cooperative doctorate, i.e. in collaboration with a supervisor from a university that has the right to award doctorates. If you are employed outside the university, it can make sense to choose a topic with relevance to your professional activities in order to take advantage of synergy effects. If you decide to finance your doctorate through a scholarship, you will have to pay attention to the focus and criteria of the scholarship provider, as they may have consequences for the choice of topic. 

Yes. HSBI regularly advertises PhD/qualification positions as well as research associate positions in its research projects.

• Current job advertisements