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The administrative procedure for a doctoral program

Below you will find an overview of important documents and formalities that will be relevant over the course of a doctoral program:

Acceptance as a doctoral candidate

The doctoral degree program rules (Promotionsordnungen) of the departments and academic units govern the details and requirements for acceptance as a doctoral candidate. If possible, your application for acceptance should be submitted when you start working on your dissertation because acceptance as a doctoral candidate is the formal and binding framework for the doctoral relationship for all parties involved. In addition to the advantages offered by Philipps-Universität Marburg’s targeted support for doctoral students, acceptance as a doctoral candidate guarantees that you will be able to complete your doctorate even in special cases, e.g. if your adviser takes an appointment at another university. The committee responsible for all applications in the course of a doctoral program is the doctoral committee of the department. The committee decides on your acceptance as a doctoral candidate, extensions or interruptions, if necessary, and also the revocation of your acceptance if you decide to take a different path and would like to “cancel” the doctoral project. The committee also appoints the members of your individual examination committee. The contact persons and members of the doctoral committees are listed on the respective department pages under the keyword “Committees” (Gremien).
Please note that you must also register as a doctoral candidate via the MARVIN online portal.

Self-registration via the MARVIN online portal

Would you like to apply for acceptance of your doctoral project at a department of Philipps-Universität Marburg? Would you like to enroll as a doctoral candidate (doctoral student)? In either case, please register first via the MARVIN online portal. Self-registration is mandatory in all cases and serves as proof of your status. It will give you access to the e-mail account (staff) and e-mail distribution list, which your doctoral student representatives also use. You will also automatically become a member of the graduate institution MArburg University Research Academy (MARA), allowing you to take advantage of the many different events and offerings available to you. Please also pay attention to the annual reminder to confirm your data, which is automated via MARVIN. If you have any technical problems, please contact marvin@uni-marburg.de.

Enrollment

Doctoral students have the option of enrolling as students. This means that you can continue to take advantage of the semester ticket or other discounts, e.g. in the cafeteria or for university sports.

Regulations

The doctoral degree program rules (Promotionsordnungen) of the departments or academic units govern the details of the doctoral process, from acceptance to taking the examination. Please ask your department whether there are any other regulations or instructions in connection with the doctorate (e.g. regulations on cumulative doctoral programs).

Supervision agreement

The supervision agreement extends far beyond your formal supervision commitment. In principle, we recommend that all possible options for doctoral students under the supervision agreement be fully exploited, as the agreement represents an important cornerstone to the transparency of your personal doctoral situation and regular scholarly exchanges with your adviser. In a doctoral supervision agreement, which the doctoral candidate and the adviser sign at the outset of the doctorate, both the doctoral candidate’s and adviser’s rights and obligations are set forth in writing for both parties. In addition to the topic of the dissertation, agreements of all kinds (e.g. schedules, regular progress reports, conference attendance, etc.) can be recorded. To this end, Philipps-Universität Marburg provides a document to be filled out by both parties, a so-called supervision agreement (downloads German/English), which in some cases departments or academic units have further expanded and tailored specifically to the culture of their discipline. So please ask for the form that applies to you. In addition, there is a guide to preparing for supervision meetings and progress reports.

Doctoral degree, revocation of acceptance, change of location

It often goes unnoticed that every doctoral relationship that has a formal start will also have a formal end. Ideally, a doctoral process will end with the oral defense and ultimately the presentation of the doctoral degree certificate, at which point you may then use the “doctor” title. However, if you leave the university because your employment contract or fellowship ends, this doe snot automatically terminate the doctoral relationship; it remains in place until your defense.
You can also “move” your doctorate to another location, e.g. if you adviser takes an appointment at another university. The new university will reaccept you according to the doctoral degree program rules in effect there, continuing your procedure as soon as the previous university responsible for your project confirms the formal end of your doctorate there. To do this, simply contact your department or academic unit.
A separate administrative step will also be necessary if you decide to take a different path in life and no longer want to complete your doctoral project. If you want to initiate a kind of “cancellation”, you can apply to your doctoral committee to revoke your acceptance as a doctoral candidate without incurring any disadvantages later on.

Temporary employment

Philipps-Universität Marburg promotes the structural improvement of the framework conditions by means of employment contracts that place your earning the target qualification in the foreground. Here, you will find information from the Human Resources Department and Human Resources Development Office, including the rules in effect in each case regarding deadlines.

Office for Young Researchers

This office is the point of contact for central issues relating to the promotion of young researchers, e.g. when structured programs for doctoral students are set up via research training groups, or when general standards are discussed, e.g. in connection with doctoral degree program rules.
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