About doctoral studies in Germany
Please note that we advise exclusively on doctorates under the auspices of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain. If this is not what you want, you will find information on doctoral studies in general or on specific doctorates outside the framework of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain below.
What you should know about doctoral studies
Information on how doctorates work in Germany
In Germany, we have individually-conducted doctorates (you on your own with a supervisor, registered at a university) or structured doctorates (you as a member of a structured doctoral program offered by a graduate school, with an obligatory education and training program attached, as part of a doctoral cohort, and with two supervisors or more assigned to you, registered at a university).
Read more: https://www.daad.de/deutschland/promotion/doktoranden/en/
Required years of education / credits
Usually, German universities or doctoral programs expect a total of at least 5 years of previous full-time education at BA/BSc and MA/MSc level, e.g., 4 years BA/BSc + at least 1 year MA/MSc or: 3 years BA/BSc + at least 2 years MA/MSc. The exact rules and regulations (and required number of credits) need to be checked / confirmed with THE respective universities/programs directly.
Sometimes, a so-called fast-track program is avaliable which will allow BA/BSc students to apply to doctoral programs.
Information on structured doctoral studies at the Berlin School of Mind and Brain
If you want to conduct your doctoral research as a member of the structured doctoral program of the graduate school Berlin School of Mind and Brain:
Read more on how to apply and other topics around the application and admission process on our webpages.
Doctorates in structured doctoral programs at Berlin universities
https://www.doctoral-programs.de/welcome/
https://www.berlin-university-alliance.de/en/commonalities/junior-researchers/programs/index.html
Individually-conducted doctoral studies at Humboldt-Universität
At Humboldt-Universität, the most solid information on individually-conducted doctorates will be supplied by the responsible faculty or by Humboldt Graduate School, an umbrella organization for doctoral studies.
Doctoral candidates' portal: https://www.hu-berlin.de/en/promovierende-en/standardseite-en?set_language=en
Humboldt Graduate School: https://www.humboldt-graduate-school.de/en/homepage-collage-en?set_language=en
Some of the responsible faculties at Humboldt-Universitaet are:
Doctorate in Biology or Psychology: Faculty of Life Sciences
Doctorate in Linguistics: Faculty of Language, Literature and Humanities
Doctorate in Philosophy: Faculty of Philosophy
These and further faculties: https://www.hu-berlin.de/de/promovierende/betreuung/Ansprechpartner%20Fakultaeten
Freie Universität Berlin
Dahlem Reseach School, gateway for doctoral candidates: https://www.humboldt-graduate-school.de/en/homepage-collage-en?set_language=en
Technische Universität Berlin
Junior scholars: https://www.tu.berlin/en/research/advancement-of-junior-scholars/
Charité Berlin - Medical University
Doctoral Studies: https://promotion.charite.de/en/
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD - Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst)
https://www.daad.de/deutschland/promotion/doktoranden/en/
Website of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), listing information and publications on studies and research in Germany, including weblinks
The DAAD database “International Programs in Germany 2023/2024” is online in August 2023. It can be found at www.daad.de/international-programmes.
In 2023, about 230 institutions participated in the survey and reported more than 1,900 international bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs, 220 language and specialized courses, and 26 study-preparatory programs. The database is thus one of the most important sources of information on international study programs in Germany.
In addition, www.summerschools.de integrates a separate database for 2023/2024 language and specialized courses in German and English.
In addition, programs that can be studied online will also be available separately this year at www.daad.de/online-programmes.
Doctoral studies in Germany and Your To-Do lists
How to obtain a doctorate in Germany, what you need to prepare for your stay, and what you have to do once you are here:
https://www.research-in-germany.org/en/infoservice/publications.html
https://www.research-in-germany.org/en/jobs-and-careers/info-for-postdocs-and-junior-researchers.html
Website of the Federal Ministry for Education and Research
http://www.research-explorer.de/redirect_rex_en.html
Comprehensive website of GERiT (German Research Institutions) for universities, research and studies in Germany, run be the German Research Foundation (DFG)
https://www.hochschulkompass.de/en/study-in-germany.html
Website of German universities listing all universities, degrees and courses offered
Neuroschools in Germany (pdf brochure 2023)
About Germany
Located in the heart of Europe, Germany with its more than 80 million inhabitants has a long-standing tradition of excellence in science and research. Today, there are 427 state-accredited universities in Germany with more than 18,000 degree programs in 180 cities, including neuroscience programs. Germany’s higher educational system is state-funded and decentralized. The universities and research organizations are largely independent. Regarding the terms of study there are no standard answers to study regulation questions – these will have to be answered by the program chosen.
