For PhD students

• Dr. agr. – doctoral subjects agricultural, nutritional and environmental sciences
• Dr. rer. pol. – doctoral subjects agricultural, nutritional und environmental sciences  with a focus on economics and social sciences
• Dr. rer. nat. - doctoral subjects agricultural, nutritional and environmental sciences with a focus on chemistry, biology or physics

If the main subject degree of your scientific studies originates from one of the above-mentioned subjects or from a related subject and if the topic of your doctoral thesis falls within the doctoral subject, then you can pursue the corresponding doctoral degree. If you have a different major subject degree, then you must successfully pass an additional examination before completing your doctorate in order to be eligible for the "non-subject" doctoral degree. The doctoral committee decides both on the scope of a possible additional examination and in cases of doubt. Since Agricultural, Nutritional and Environmental Sciences are strongly interdisciplinary, the PhD Committee of FB11 explicitly welcomes PhD students from related disciplines. Accordingly, the FBR had decided on 21.12.2005 that with regard to the decision on a possible additional examination according to § 3 para. 2 ... the topic and the subject discipline of the doctoral project [shall] be used as an essential criterion. For example, if the topic of the doctoral project is appropriate, economics, chemistry or biology are also to be regarded as related subjects.

As a rule, you will have a degree in science with a minimum grade of "good" (up to grade 2.5).

You can still (provisionally) be accepted as a doctoral student (provided that the other requirements are met), but before final acceptance you must prove your suitability by graded study and examination achievements at Master's level amounting to at least 60 credits. Creditable for this purpose are studies and examinations already completed beyond the bachelor's level (180 credits). However, not only the credits are decisive, but also the study content. For example, the doctoral committee does not consider a semester of practical training to be equivalent to a Master's degree. On the other hand, a practical activity on a scientific level can be credited with up to 12 credits. Likewise, scientific publications according to the scientific level and author status (first or co-author) with up to 6 credits each and teaching activities at universities can be taken into account accordingly. A preliminary acceptance decision is limited to 2 years.

In exceptional cases with special justification, you can also be accepted as a doctoral candidate on the recommendation of the Dean's Office. For this, you must provide evidence of at least three years of teaching or research activity at universities or recognized research institutions or have special scientifically relevant pedagogical practice. Two reviewers with a qualification according to § 7 para. 2 AB_PromO, who are not the supervisor of the dissertation, must confirm that you meet requirements and perform in your activity according to a qualification with a scientific degree. The teaching or research activity or relevant pedagogical practice must be closely related to the doctoral subject and should not date back more than five years. Thus, your basic doctoral ability must be demonstrated by the two reviews. In an expert discussion with the supervisor, it must then be clarified whether you have sufficient professional qualifications for the planned doctoral project, i.e. whether and to what extent additional work is still required according to the respective examination regulations. The supervisor will inform the doctoral committee in writing about the outcome of the discussion and, if applicable, about recommendations regarding necessary requirements.

In this case, you can only be admitted subject to conditions. As a rule, this means that in addition to your work on the doctorate, you must also take and pass Master's modules corresponding to 18 ETCs. If you have completed ETCs after graduation (see question 5), the requirements may be reduced or waived altogether.

Download the application form. Here are listed all the documents you need. The written statement of the problem of the proposed work should include the following: - The state of research must be presented with reference to scientific literature. - The objectives of the paper must state as specifically as possible the scientific questions or hypotheses to be investigated. The target variables of the investigation, which should allow answering the questions or rejecting or accepting the hypotheses, must be stated. - As far as applicable, the methods of data collection and analysis must be presented in a comprehensible manner and meet scientific standards. - The scope of the work must be made clear and meet scientific standards. - The time schedule must represent the concrete course of the work and be feasible.

The name of a second supervisor can, but does not have to, be mentioned in the PhD application form. This line is optional. In this context, the distinction between supervisor and reviewer is important. A supervisor does not necessarily have to become a reviewer. The reviewers (and other members of the doctoral committee) are nominated by the department, represented by the dean's office, and appointed by the doctoral committee.

The doctoral regulations of the University of Kassel do not currently provide for a cumulative doctorate. However, the doctoral regulations do not make any specifications regarding the formal design of the dissertation. Furthermore, it allows that parts of the dissertation are published in advance; a declaration has to be made about this (§ 5 para. 3 AB-PromO). It should also be noted that in the case that the dissertation resulted from collaborative research work, according to sentence 3 of § 5 para. 1 "the individual achievements of the doctoral candidate must be clearly distinguishable and assessable". There are no formal requirements in this regard. According to the understanding of the doctoral committee, however, this means that a declaration must be submitted that sets out the doctoral candidate's own share of joint work, if necessary also quantitatively. In addition, in cases where parts of the dissertation have already been published and these publications have been made by several authors, the doctoral candidate must be the first author, so that one can still speak of a clearly distinguishable and assessable individual achievement. A thesis with chapters in different languages is to be avoided. According to the doctoral regulations, the thesis should be written either in German or in another language that has been agreed upon. In the latter case, a detailed German summary must also be given.

More information here.

Relax and be happy that you have made it this far. Next, you will receive written confirmation that your thesis has been received and you will be informed about your reviewers - and then you wait for the reviews. Once the reviews have been received (you will receive copies), you will help to set the date for the defense and prepare for the defense.

The doctoral committee is determined by the Faculty. The first supervisor can make suggestions for this, which the department can but does not have to follow. The proposal can be submitted before the dissertation is submitted, but the doctoral committee is usually only appointed after the dissertation has been submitted. The doctoral candidate only has a say with regard to the first reviewer. Unless otherwise stated in writing by the doctoral candidate, it is assumed that the first supervisor is desired as the reviewer.

If the supervisor makes a proposal for the composition of the doctoral committee at the latest at the same time as the dissertation is submitted, it usually takes about a week for this to be determined. The two reviewers then receive a request to prepare their reviews. According to the doctoral regulations, they should submit their reviews within a maximum of 10 weeks, but can also do so more quickly. The doctoral candidate then receives a copy of the reviews. At the same time, they will be made available to the public at the doctoral office in Kassel and the Dean's Office in Witzenhausen together with the thesis. Normally, about one week should be expected between receipt of the reviews and the display. The thesis is displayed for 14 calendar days or 30 calendar days during the lecture-free period. Only then can the disputation take place if there have been no objections. It is therefore recommended that the date of the disputation is not set until the reports are available. As a rule, it should take place within 8 weeks after all assessments have been submitted. In total, a period of around 16 weeks after submission of the dissertation should be expected before the defense can take place.

At FB11, the date is agreed between the doctoral candidate, the doctoral committee and the Dean's Office. Either the supervisor or the doctoral candidate takes the initiative here. The Dean's Office invites to the disputation.

Disputations are open to the public. The participation of relatives or acquaintances is not desired. Only the doctoral candidate and the members of the doctoral committee have the right to speak.

The dissertation will be defended, so you will first present your dissertation and then answer questions from the doctoral committee. The defense also covers selected problems of the subject and related areas (§ 9 para. 2 AB-PromO). As a rule, it lasts one and a half hours and may not exceed two hours (§ 9 para. 4).

If you have complied with your publication obligation and the submission of the necessary summaries in accordance with §§ 11 and 12 AB-PromO.

Yes, you can also receive your doctoral certificates during the end-of-semester ceremonies, when the certificates for Bachelor's and Master's degrees are presented. Alternatively, you can have your doctoral certificate handed out or delivered by the Dean or the Doctoral Office in Kassel.

Unfortunately, this option is not currently available. A legalization or apostille may be required for international use. For more information, please contact the doctoral office.