thesis defense translation german

Stack Exchange Network

Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow , the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.

Q&A for work

Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.

PhD thesis defense in German: Rigorosum, Disputation, Kolloquium, or Verteidigung?

In order to finish a PhD and obtain the title of doctor, the candidate must present their thesis and do a defense, that is, roughly speaking, to discuss the thesis and answer questions from the jury.

In English, we call it thesis defense , and in French it is called soutenance .

I would like to know how to say that in German. It seems (but of course, I am not sure) that one could say it as

• Verteidigung
• Disputation

Could someone tell me if all these four words are synonyms and if they are really equivalent to thesis defense in English? If they mean the same, are some of them more formal than others? And is there another way to say it?

• translation
• english-to-german

• Note that this is not restricted to a PhD, but Bachelor and Master theses as well. –  infinitezero Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 17:10
• A Google search for "Promotionsordnung" gives you many hits. It seems that Disputation occurs most frequently, but also Kolloqium and (öffentliche) Verteidigung occur. It depends on the university. See also hochschulkompass.de/promotion/promotionsphase/… . –  Paul Frost Commented Sep 29, 2020 at 22:45

2 Answers 2

First beware that this is a typical case of academia varies more than you think it does . There is no general rule on how doctoral exams are done; instead, this is decided by the faculty. As a consequence, doctoral exams vary widely between universities and faculties. I know of two universities which have a joint graduate school for one field and even there doctoral exams differs extremely between the two universities.

This also applies to the terminology. So, the same term may mean something considerably different at a different faculty, in particular when it comes to official procedure. Therefore, in the following I can only write about how these terms are generally understood:

Verteidigung is arguably the most general term and the most frequently used term. Every¹ doctoral examination has at least one component in which the candidate has to face questions from the examiners and Verteidigung covers it. Official rules that are not specific to universities usually use this term when necessary. E.g., the date of the doctoral exam is usually referred to as Datum der Verteidigung.

While Disputation is just a Latin word for Verteidigung, it is used much more rarely and usually refers to a specific format of the exam, where the defendant faces questions from the examiners in public, possibly in a strict format. It can also be used in a more general sense, synonymously to Verteidigung, but at least in my experience that is rather rare.

A Rigorosum is a specific kind of doctoral exam that is characterised by featuring questions on the entire field of the candidate. It is usually not public. Many faculties do not perform this kind of exam.

A Kolloquium is a general term for a public talk, usually with questions from the audience. In the context of a doctoral exam, the candidate gives a talk on their thesis, which is usually public but may be restricted to members of the university or similar in special cases.

For example, my own doctoral exam consisted of a Kolloquium, where I talked about my thesis on dynamical systems, and was followed by a Rigorosum, where I was asked questions on my thesis but also on particle physics and solid-state physics. The entire thing was referred to as Verteidigung.

In conclusion , I strongly recommend Verteidigung unless you want to specify the mode of exam.

Finally note that the above primarily reflects the situation in Germany and the usage of these terms is somewhat different in Austria. For example, Rigorosum has a broader scope .

¹ At least as far as I know. As I said academia varies more than I think it does.

• 2 Excellent answer. I would have considered Verteidigung and Disputation synonyms, with the latter perhaps becoming less common. I can be wrong, though. –  Carsten S Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 10:07
• @CarstenS: Disputation can be used synonymously with Verteidigung, but at least in my experience that’s very rare and reason enough not to use the term when you want to avoid confusion (also see my edit). –  Wrzlprmft ♦ Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 11:16
• 1 @Olafant: Please see my edit. –  Wrzlprmft ♦ Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 11:16
• Thank you very much for such a complete answer! Rigorosum was not clear to me probably because the PhD programs that I am used to do not have this evaluation step and the questions from the jury are, in general, only about the thesis. –  Hilder Vitor Lima Pereira Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 11:53
• Actually, "Vortrag"/"Abschlussvortrag" and "[mündliche] Prüfung" are two more terms in use, sometimes in combination. –  O. R. Mapper Commented Sep 23, 2020 at 17:38

I have heard this being refered to as Verteidigung, Disputation and Rigorosum. These are all in use. Which one is used depends on university and faculty tradition I'd say, but they're all understood.

I haven't heard Kolloquium being directly used for this kind of event, Kolloquium is a broader term that refers to all kinds of meetings and discussion events with an academic topic. A disputation can be seen as a special kind of Kolloquium.

Your Answer

Sign up or log in, post as a guest.

Required, but never shown

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy .

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged translation english-to-german or ask your own question .

• Featured on Meta
• Site maintenance - Mon, Sept 16 2024, 21:00 UTC to Tue, Sept 17 2024, 2:00...
• User activation: Learnings and opportunities
• Join Stack Overflow’s CEO and me for the first Stack IRL Community Event in...

Hot Network Questions

• What would a planet need for rain drops to trigger explosions upon making contact with the ground?
• Keyboard shortcuts for running last command with changes?
• What would be an appropriate translation of Solitude?
• Are there something like standard documents for 8.3 filename which explicitly mention about the folder names?
• Is there an essential distinction between experienced and observed consciousness?
• What is the rationale behind 32333 "Technic Pin Connector Block 1 x 5 x 3"?
• Non-existence of power divided structure on a maximal ideal of truncated polynomial rings (example from Koblitz)
• Is it possible to draw this picture without lifting the pen? (I actually want to hang string lights this way in a gazebo without doubling up)
• Doesn't nonlocality follow from nonrealism in the EPR thought experiment and Bell tests?
• Why is steaming food faster than boiling it?
• Fast leap year check
• ASCII 2D landscape
• Why is resonance such a widespread phenomenon?
• O(nloglogn) Sorting Algorithm?
• What “C’s” did Tugger borrow from the Pin?
• How to reply to a revise and resubmit review, saying is all good?
• Converge of a series
• Why was Panama Railroad in poor condition when US decided to build Panama Canal in 1904?
• Function with memories of its past life
• "There is a bra for every ket, but there is not a ket for every bra"
• Why do I often see bunches of medical helicopters hovering in clusters in various locations
• VBA: Efficiently Organise Data with Missing Values to Achieve Minimum Number of Tables
• How to expand argument in the Expl3 command \str_if_eq?
• Difference between 2 version numbers from `adb --version`

• Subscribe to Wie Geht's?

Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures

You are here, phd program in german, requirements for the phd program in german, 1. course work: .

Students take 4 courses per term for 2 years, with a total of 16 courses required; 3 of those courses may be audited; GMAN 501, Methods of Teaching German as a World Language, is required for all students; at least one course must include pre-nineteenth-century topics. Students should consult with the Director of Graduate Study (DGS) regarding their course selection. In addition, one or two of the courses taken for credit may be Directed Readings under the supervision of a faculty member, with the approval of the DGS. 

Up to 2 credits may be awarded for prior graduate-level work, provided the student’s first-year record at Yale is good and the total number of courses taken for credit at Yale are not fewer than 12.

The German Literature Track: 4 courses may be taken outside the department. The German Studies Track: 7 courses may be taken outside the department. Students are asked to define an area of concentration and to meet with appropriate advisors from within and outside the department.

2. Languages:

In the third semester of study, students are required to give evidence of a reading knowledge of one language (other than their native language) that is highly relevant to the study of German literature and culture. The department strongly recommends French, but other languages may possibly be approved on consultation with the DGS. It is possible to fulfill this requirement by taking a language exam in the relevant department, by taking a reading course with a resulting grade of A, or by way of other measures of experience such as studying in another country.  

3. Teaching:

The faculty considers teaching to be essential to the professional preparation of graduate stduents. Four terms are required, but six is the norm. Teaching usually takes place in years three and four, but students may seek teaching in any term. Students typically begin by teaching the Elementary and Intermediate sequence (GMAN 110-120-130), followed by a Teaching Fellow position with a faculty member in the German Department. Students in combined programs typically split their teaching equally between German and Film. Teaching assignments should always be made in close consultation with the DGS, DUS and, if applicable, the dissertation advisor and Language Program Director. Teaching assignments are typically made in the late Spring for the upcoming academic year, but may not be fully finalized until the preregistration period for a given semester.

4. The Qualifying Examination (5th term):

The Qualifying Examination assesses the students’ knowledge of German literature and their skills across a broad range of related topics. The examination is divided into two parts, to be taken during reading period of the fifth term of study.

Part I. Written examination. In this portion of the comprehensive exam, the student will write a closed-book exam (four essays in six hours). Students may write in English or German; there will be a choice of questions. Sample questions are available.

FOUR SECTIONS of examination in German literature and film are intended to give students an overview of the field:

The exam is based on a departmental list, which is updated regularly.

Preparation of readings should begin well in advance of the fifth term. Students are encouraged to form study groups and meet with faculty. The department also regularly offers a seminar devoted to exam preparation.

Part II. One-hour oral examination, a week after the written examination. In this portion of the comprehensive exam, the student will discuss the written exam with three examiners to elaborate on answers and hear comments. Students who fail the written or the oral exam can repeat the respective part once within a timeframe of eight weeks. 

5. Study Abroad:

Year-long or semester-long study abroad typically occurs in the fifth and sixth years, in the context of the dissertation research, frequently with the support of external fellowships. Students may also participate in German Sommersemester courses (May-July) in the context of the Baden-Württemberg exchange. The department offers Max Kade summer travel stipends in support of eligible travel to Germany.

6. The Prospectus and Prospectus Defense (6th term):

The prospectus for the dissertation must be submitted at the end of the sixth term of study, typically in May. It should be approximately 15-20 pages in length. It should: 

1. provide an overview of the dissertation project, 2. situate the project within the relevant secondary literature, 3. describe the scholarly contribution that the dissertation is expected to make, 4. give an overview of each chapter’s focus, and 5. it must include a bibliography of relevant primary and secondary texts.

The prospectus should be written in close consultation with the dissertation advisor, who must approve it before it is submitted to the faculty. 

Shortly after the student has submitted the prospectus, the faculty will convene to discuss the prospectus with the student. If serious concerns are raised, the student will be expected to revise the prospectus.

Students should also compile a reading list of 20-30 works relevant to their proposed project, which will also be discussed during the defense.

7. The Dissertation and the Dissertation Fellowship:

The culmination of the student’s work is the dissertation. Each student will choose a dissertation committee of three people, one (sometimes two) of whom will serve as the student’s primary advisor(s). Drafts of each chapter must be submitted in a timely fashion to all members of the student’s committee: the first chapter should be submitted to the committee by February 1 of the fourth year; the second chapter by January 1 of the fifth year. A formal chapter review will be held for the first chapter, during which the student will discuss his or her work with the members of the dissertation committee and the DGS. The first chapter of the dissertation should be presented in the departmental colloquium not later than the first semester of the fifth year. The dissertation is submitted in March of the sixth year, prior to the Graduate School’s announced deadline. Following the submission, the DGS will convene a dissertation defense. After a brief presentation on the theme, claims, and method of the dissertation, the committee, adviser(s) and DGS will ask questions. This may lead to broader discussions which typically include publication plans and postdoctoral goals. The defense is typically a public event, with invitation list to be decided in consultation with the DGS. The defense will be concluded by a vote of the committee, the adviser(s), and the DGS. Official approval of the dissertation takes place in the form of written evaluations; hence the defense is primarily meant as a capstone event and opportunity for conversation. The dissertation is ideally 200-250 double-spaced pages in length.

Helpful Links:

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Programs & Policies webpage Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Programs & Policies handbook The Combined PhD Program in German Studies/Film and Media Studies

Let your curiosity lead the way:

Apply Today

• Arts & Sciences
• Graduate Studies in A&S

Dissertation Guidelines

Guide for Germanic Languages and Literatures Ph.D. dissertation, defense, and electronic submission.

Present completed Title, Scope, and Procedure (TSP) to the faculty advisor and RAC for approval and signatures for submission to the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS) before beginning the fifth year of full-time enrollment in the Graduate School.

Confer with your dissertation advisor about procedures for submission of chapters and revisions during the dissertation writing process.

Review the OGS  Dissertation and Thesis Template , and consult it for answers to all formatting questions.

Submit your complete dissertation manuscript upon approval by your advisor to your dissertation committee, approximately 4 weeks in advance of your scheduled defense.

Complete the defense, then submit the dissertation to the OGS electronically.

After the electronic dissertation has been accepted:

order copies from Thesis on Demand.

submit thesis to the Washington University Digital Research Materials Repository (DRMR)  http://libguides.wustl.edu/drmr .

The Student is responsible for punctually completing and providing all of the necessary materials(^) for submission to the OGS, and for formatting the dissertation in accordance with its guidelines. 

The Dissertation Director is responsible for assisting The Student in assembling the full five member Dissertation Defense Committee for the defense, for assisting in arranging a defense date and location, as well as submitting all required signed paperwork and forms(^) to the The Coordinator for submission to the OGS via Portal (*), inluding the Dissertation Defense Committee  and  Examination Approval forms . 

The OGS provides a comprehensive Doctoral Dissertation Guide for all Ph.D. candidates. 

Preliminary Paperwork

• Title, Scope, and Procedure (TSP)*^

Intent to Graduate (ITG)

^ REQUIRED form, * REQUIRED Portal submission

Dissertation Defense

• Dissertation Defense Committee*^
• Dissertation Defense Notification*^
• Distribution of the Dissertation
• Defense of the Dissertation

^ REQUIRED OGS form, * REQUIRED Portal submission

Submission of Dissertation

Creating proquest online account, checklist for electronic submission, electronic submission of dissertation, ordering bound copies and degree certification, commencement and hooding, reservation to ceremony, reserve regalia.

Graduate School Guide: Doctoral Dissertation 

Title, Scope, and Procedure (TSP) for Ph.D.

Completed by The Student, signed by the RAC, delivered to The Coordinator by RAC Chair, submitted by The Coordinator to OGS

By the time of completion of the Qualifying Exams, students should have formulated a dissertation topic and selected a Dissertation Director, as well as two additional readers, collectively known as the collectively known as the Research Advisory Committee (RAC). As a reminder, the third qualifying exam 750-word written prospectus will have been submitted to the Qualifying Exam committee chair for approval and circulation to the German faculty for approval before the prospectus oral defense. This approved prospectus will act as information required on the TSP. 

The Student will submit a Title, Scope and Procedure (TSP) form (Ph.D.)^ for approval; this form requires the signatures of the RAC, as well as the Program Director. The TSP form outlines the preliminary dissertation title, a brief abstract, and methodology. The Coordinator must receive a completed and signed TSP form from The Student to submit to OGS via the Portal on behalf of The Student. The TSP (Ph.D.) must be completed and submitted to OGS before beginning the fifth year of full-time enrollment in the Graduate School. 

The Student should work with The Dissertation Director to establish an effective and efficient calendar for submission of work, allowing time for revisions. Once The Dissertation Director has approved a chapter, The Student should submit it to the other two readers. It is expected that The Student respect the suggestions for revision from all three of their readers for each chapter as they go along. This process ensures that the dissertation is sound from these different perspectives before The Student submits the completed dissertation to the larger Dissertation Committee for the "defense."

Completed by the Student

The Student must file an Intent to Graduate form for the semester in which they intend to graduate. Deadlines for filing the Intent to Graduate form for each semester are listed on the Graduate School’s online calendar. The Student can access this form by logging onto WebSTAC  and clicking on “Intent to Graduate” from the menu. When you fill out the form, take note of the diploma pick-up and mailing dates that are included in the form as the diploma will be mailed to the address entered.

If the graduation semester changes, The Student must notify The Coordinator as soon as possible, and a new ITG must be filed.

Survey of Earned Doctorates

The Student should plan to complete their Survey of Earned Doctorates prior to the OGS Dissertation/Thesis Final Submission Deadline (check the deadline for the semester you will be graduating). The OGS will be notified automatically once The Student completes the survey. Electronic submission of the dissertation will not be processed until this email arrives. This should be completed as soon as possible so that the OGS has a record of its arrival in time for graduation requirements to be met.

The survey is conducted on behalf of the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics of the National Science Foundation; the National Institutes of Health; the U.S. Department of Education; and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

There will be the option to have a Certificate of Completion sent to The Student email address for their personal records.

Dissertation Defense Committee

Completed by The Student, signed by The Defense Committee members and The Department Chair, delivered to The Coordinator by The Defense Director, submitted by The Coordinator to OGS

The Defense Committee consists of at least five members, who normally meet two independent criteria:

• Four of the five must be tenured or tenure-track Washington University faculty; one of these four may be a member of the Emeritus faculty. The fifth member must have a doctoral degree and an active research program, whether at Washington University, at another university, in government, or in industry.
• Three of the five must come from the student's degree program; at least one of the five must not.

All Dissertation Committees must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate School or by their designee, regardless of whether they meet the normal criteria. Approval requires completion of the Dissertation Defense Committee form^ . The Coordinator must receive the completed and DGS signed Dissertation Defense Committeee form to submit to OGS on behalf of The Student via Portal.

This form and Defense Committee must be approved by the Graduate School before the scheduling of the dissertation defense can occur; this MUST be completed and approved at least 3 weeks ahead of your desired defense date. 

Dissertation Defense Notification

Completed by The Student, deliverted by The Student to The Coordinator, submitted by The Coordinator to OGS

Once the Defense Committee is approved via an email from the OGS, The Coordinator can help The Student in securing a time and location for the defense if needed. After approval of the Defense Committee and at least 15 days before the defense, The Coordinator will submit a Defense Notification to the OGS via Portal stating the time, date, and location of the defense, as well as attach an updated CV of The Student^. The Student is required to provide the Coordinator with the Title of Dissertation and a copy of the Student CV in a .pdf format for submission.

Distribution of Dissertation

Completed by The Student

Once the Dissertation Director has approved the content and the style of the entire dissertation, The Student must distribute copies of the full document to all members of the Defense Committee, including external readers, in preparation for the oral defense. The Student should allow a minimum of three (3) weeks for the Defense Committee members to read the thesis. The Student is responsible for giving copies of the dissertation to the Defense Committee. According to the OGS, the Defense Committee members may request rescheduling of the defense if the dissertation is not made available at least 1 week in advance.

While certain critiques and suggestions from the larger Defense Committee during the defense are to be expected, indeed encouraged, The Dissertation Director, by signaling approval The Student's submission of the dissertation to the Defense Committee, is indicating the support of the Research Advisory Committee (RAC) members, i.e., that they stand by the work and are prepared to support its content and form at the defense.

OGS provides a Dissertation and Thesis Template for all Ph.D. candidates.

Defense of Dissertation

From Graduate School Information on Defense of the Dissertation :

"Attendance by a minimum of four members of the Dissertation Defense Committee, including the committee chair and an outside member, is required for the defense to take place. This provision is designed to permit your defense to proceed in case of a situation that unexpectedly prevents one of the five members from attending. Do not plan in advance to have only four members in attendance; if one of those four cannot attend, your defense must be rescheduled. Note that the absence of all outside members or of the committee chair would necessitate rescheduling the defense.

"Members of the Dissertation Defense Committee normally attend in person, but one of the five (or, in case of an emergency, one of the four) members may attend virtually instead.

“Faculty and graduate students who are interested in the subject of the dissertation are normally welcome to attend all or part of the defense but may ask questions only at the discretion of the committee members. Though there is some variation among degree programs, the defense ordinarily focuses on the dissertation itself and its relation to the student’s field of expertise.”

Examination Approval Form

Signed by The Defense Committee, delivered to The Coordinator by The Dissertation Director, submitted by The Coordinator to OGS

The Dissertation Director is responsible for gathering signatures of the committee on the Examination Approval Form ^*. The Coordinator will then submit it on behalf of The Student via Portal.

Visit the OGS calendar for the Dissertation/Thesis Final Submission Deadline. The following items must be completed by this deadline or Graduation and degree dates will need to be delayed.

After successful defense of the dissertation and completion of any committee requested changes, OGS requires that The Student create an online account at ProQuest ( http://www.etdadmin.com/wustl ) to submit the final approved text. ProQuest is this country’s most widely used commercial archiving service for dissertations and theses.

The Student must have completed all items below before the electronic submission of the dissertation to ProQuest.

The OGS is notified when you submit your dissertation to ProQuest. When reviewing submission, they ensure that the Examination Approval Form and Survey of Earned Doctorates have been completed and check the submitted PDF to ensure that all formatting requirements have been followed. The amount of time needed to review the manuscript, and the number and nature of any changes that may be required to make, are generally determined by how carefully the work has been prepared. Do not wait until the deadline day to submit the dissertation! Work must be formatted correctly and approved by the OGS in order for graduation. Once the OGS review is complete, they will send you an email through ProQuest saying one of the following:

• Submission has no revisions and is being accepted.
• Submission has no revisions, but there is missing required paperwork.
• Submission has a few revisions that must be made before accepting.

After the dissertation has been approved by the OGS, The Student should forward The Coordinator the OGS dissertation approval email for ordering of bound copies from Thesis On Demand.

The Student may need to present proof of completion of degree to a prospective employer before receiving a diploma. In that case, only after notification that submission has been approved, The Student may request a Degree Certification on the Graduate School website , on the Forms page.

Once the dissertation has been approved, The Student should contact The Dissertation Director for confirmation of the Hooding Ceremony for Commencement. Traditionally, The Dissertation Director will be present to present The Student with the Ph.D. hood during the Ph.D. Hooding Ceremony. 

Registration for the Commencement ceremony is required and is separate from the ITG and ordering of regalia. Please register by the deadline online via the Wash U Commencement site .

Please note that the deadline and process for ordering regalia will be announced on the Wash U Commencement regalia  site and is taken care of by the Wash U Bookstore and not the Comparative Literature program. 

Questions from students may be addressed to  The Coordinator  or  [email protected] .

Voice speed

Text translation, source text, translation results, document translation, drag and drop.

Website translation

Enter a URL

Image translation

• Study and Teaching
• Faculty Calendar

Doctoral Studies Thesis Submission

Thesis submission and defense..

All inquiries should be made by email, and all documents must be deposited in the blue mailbox outside building INF 234 or on the 2nd floor, where the Ph.D. office is housed. Similarly, we will email relevant documents to you. So make sure that we have your correct email address. 

-     Will there be an extension of your Ph.D. period?

Due to COVID-19 your doctoral period will be extended by six months without special application.

• Can the defense be via video conference?  

YES (examiners only):  The examiners can be connected online (via heiCONF or other secure platforms), except for at least one examiner, who must be present in person in a room with the candidate in Heidelberg.

NO (doctoral candidates): The candidate must be present in person at the examination in Heidelberg. The doctoral candidate and at least one examiner have to be personally present in one room in Heidelberg.

• Can the deadlines and processing times be shortened?

NO: Plan at least 8 weeks (+ closure times) from the time of thesis submission to the date of the doctoral defense examination. Please see below "time restrictions".

• Where can I defend?

The University Institutions are open for examinations. To find a suitable seminar room, please contact the chair of your defense committee.

• Are electronic signatures allowed on the "Zusatzblatt zur Prüfungskommission"?

YES, both your supervisors/referees may sign this form electronically. But the second page has to be signed originally by yourself.

• Doctoral Studies
• Contact & PhD Office
• Before You Start
• Registration
• Structured PhD Programs
• Thesis Submission
• Official PhD Celebration
• Information for supervisors

General Information about Thesis Submission and Defending

Writing the thesis.

•  A doctoral degree is awarded to candidates who have demonstrated the ability to undertake independent scientific research . The dissertation (thesis) must be of an adequate scientific standard, be a product of the candidate’s research and contribute new knowledge.
• Make sure that you clearly identify your individual research contributions to the reader of your thesis by writing in the first person singular form. Thereby you comply with Doctoral Degree Regulations §1 (2): “The doctorate serves to demonstrate the candidate's ability to undertake independent academic research.” and §7 (1) : The dissertation must be of an adequate scientific standard, be a product of the candidate’s own research , and contribute to the advancement of science.” Please see the Official Statement Concerning Plagiarism §3-§6.
• The dissertation counts as a single-author publication, in which independent contributions to science must be written in the first-person singular form. Everything new that you have developed and achieved in terms of scientific ideas, experiments, results, theories, methods etc. is written in the first person. This is exactly what you are being awarded the doctorate for. In the case of collaborative work, the “we” form may be used, naming the other participants and describing the contributions of the individual persons, see  the Official Statement Concerning Plagiarism §3-5 .
• Cumulative dissertations are not allowed due to possible risks of plagiarism and due to ambiguous assignments of experiments and results (Doctoral Degree Regulations, Anlage 2 Biowissenschaften zu § 7 (2)). Therefore the thesis must be written mandatorily in the first person singular form ( "I found out", "I concluded", “My results show” ...); see  the Official Statement Concerning Plagiarism, §6 .
• Official Statement Concerning Plagiarism
• Thesis first two pages (de)
• Thesis first two pages (en)
• Graduate program: GSP courses

Time restrictions

• Please make sure that you submit your thesis with the required documents to the Ph.D. Office no later than 8 weeks before your oral examination, together with the confirmed date of your defense . When the Ph.D. Office is closed (see “Contact & PhD Office” for closure times), you have to add these periods to the 8-week advance submission requirement; however, you can schedule your defense examination during these times.
• Calculation:        Defense in calendar week “X” --> thesis submission in calendar week “X” - 8.   If the Ph.D. office is closed e.g. 2 weeks, the submission has to take place 2 weeks earlier: “X” - 10.
• It is more relaxed if you don’t plan the thesis submission at the last possible date - you may also submit more than 8 weeks before the defense date.

Submitting the thesis

• Fill in and sign the form “Application Defense”.
• Please note the change in terminology for supervisors / reviewers: Your former “Erstgutachter” / “first supervisor” is now called “Fakultätsgutachter” (FGA) / “Faculty supervisor” and your former “Zweitgutachter” / “second supervisor” is now called “Gutachter” (GGA) / "supervisor".
• In addition to your registered reviewers (Faculty supervisor / Fakultätsgutachter and supervisor / Gutachter) find a third and fourth examiner from the List of Examiners.
• Let both your reviewers sign the Zusatzblatt zur Prüfungskommission (Examination Commission Form). Please note that only examiners mentioned on the list as 'Vorsitz' can be chairpersons of your examination committee. You have to sign the second page of the Zusatzblatt yourself.
• Arrange a date for the thesis defense by the Faculty's regulations.
• Carefully read “How to Defense” (PDF) to see which documents you have to submit to the Ph.D. Office. Use the checklist at the end to ensure you have all the required documents.
• Please send the following information with the email the day before submission: name of the chairperson, date of defense, and your personal email-address, PDF of the abstract of your thesis.
• Submit two copies of your thesis and all documents via the mailbox of the Ph.D. Office (main entrance INF 234 or second floor INF 234).
• The examination must take place in an institute of Heidelberg University or one of the affiliated research institutions in Heidelberg.
• Provide your reviewers and examiners with a copy of your thesis.
• When you have registered for your thesis defense, you will receive a confirmation letter in German. Our international Ph.D. students may find the English translation of this letter here: Admission to Defense (English translation). This translation is for information purposes only.
• Defense application
• List of examiners
• Zusatzblatt zur Prüfungskommission
• Defense Howto
• Admission to Defense

Defending the thesis

• The doctoral candidate must be present in person at the examination. The examination has to be held in a room at Heidelberg University or affiliated research institutions in Heidelberg.
• Usually, the defense format consists of 15 - 20 minutes presentation, about 20 minutes thesis related questions and approx. 20 minutes of discussion and general questioning. You can choose the media for your presentation. If you do a computer presentation (PowerPoint or presentation programs), you have to take care of the technical aspects such as the availability of a beamer, compatibility of programs, etc. Remember that technical equipment tends to break down at the least expected moment.
• You should present your work - do not give a review of the field. You should use your own figures from your thesis, scans from books or papers are not allowed, and the use of material from the Internet is equally discouraged.

After Defending

• After successfully defending your thesis, you must publish your thesis (§13) to conclude the Ph.D. process. If you don't publish within two years of your exam, you will forfeit your Ph.D. degree altogether.
• Fill in, sign, and let your Faculty supervisor (FGA) and, if differing, also your direct supervisor sign the Veröffentlichungsnachweis (Proof of Publication Form). You need to pick up your thesis's “Original” issue at the Ph.D. Office, submit it to the university library and get the “Veröffentlichungsnachweis” signed and stamped there. Finally, you return the “Veröffentlichungsnachweis” to the Ph.D. Office.
• You may publish your thesis in print or online through the university library's document service (information about online publishing provided by heiDOK ) or by first-author publication in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
• An application for an embargo on the publication can be directed to the library. This is possible when the dissertation is connected to a patent application or a journal publication. More details and the relevant forms can be found on the page FAQ of the university library (Volltextserver). If you apply for an embargo, you must upload the electronic version of your dissertation onto the heiDOK repository and follow the FAQ instructions.
• Information about opting in/out from the PhD Celebration can be found in the list to the right. 
• Promotionsordnung
• Veröffentlichungsnachweis
• Library document service
• Volltextserver
• Volltextserver Howto
• Volltextserver FAQ

Forms and Information for PhD Thesis and Defense Examination and Publication

Note and check:

Only complete documents for thesis submission will be considered.

Please use the letter box of the Faculty of Biosciences at the main entrance or on the 2nd floor of building INF 234 or contact us via email.

Address of the Ph.D. Office and closure times: See “Contact & PhD Office”

• First page (en)
• First page (de)
• Application for defense
• Examination Commission Form
• Eidesstattliche Versicherung
• Proof of publication

Guidelines for Master’s Theses

There are very few formal requirements when writing your master’s thesis. We have put together the most important of these as well as additional helpful information in our guidelines for master’s theses .

You can also download a style sheet . This is a pre-formatted Word document you can directly use to write your thesis.

Information about academic writing and how to avoid plagiarizing can be found here .

We have also provided a list of past master’s theses to help you brainstorm ideas for your own thesis.

By using the Google™ Search you agree to Google's privacy policy

Thesis Submission and Defense

• Checklist: Countdown to doctoral degree
• How to write a PhD thesis (by Prof. Reinhard Jahn)
• Thesis Format (acc. to RerNat-O)
• Thesis Format: Sample Title Page of a Dissertation (English)
• Thesis Format: Sample Backside Titlepage of a Dissertation (English)
• Consent for alumni webpage/alumni portal
• Restricted Online Publication: Handout/Application
• Verkündungen/Convocation ceremonies: dates
• Suggested Procedure for Disputations via Zoom
• How to activate your Zoom/BBB Account
• Handout: Use of GZMB seminar rooms (during Covid-19)

Department of Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy

Service navigation.

• Legal Notice
• Privacy Policy
• Accessibility Statement
• DE: Deutsch
• EN: English
• Graduate Center / Doctorate

Path Navigation

• Doctoral Researchers
• Doctorate Procedure

Defense of the Thesis

Disputation / Defense Image Credit: Marion Kuka

If the dissertation is recommended for acceptance, the doctoral candidate will be requested to make an appointment with the doctoral committee members. The doctoral candidate organises the defense in consultation with the chairperson of the doctoral committee.

Information on the different formats of the disputation (pure presence, hybrid, pure video format) and the requirements to be fulfilled in each case can be obtained from the doctoral office. Disputations generally take place in public, but the doctoral candidate also has the option to exclude the public so that only the doctoral candidate and the doctoral committee may attend the disputation.

Please first clarify possible appointments with the two reviewers because the two reviewers must participate at the disputation in any case. Individual members of the doctoral committee can be exchanged if no date can be found with the appointed members. Please note that the date should also be coordinated with the alternate members, as the disputation will only be valid if the doctoral committee (consisting of four university lecturers and one postdoctoral academic employee) is complete. The alternate members should also keep the date free, so that they can stand in at short notice if one of the main members should spontaneously drop out. It is advisable for each doctoral candidate to contact each member of the doctoral committee in order to enquire whether they would be interested in a copy or an PDF of the thesis.

As soon as the date, time and format of the disputation are fixed, please send an e-mail to the doctoral office to book a suitable room.

The doctoral office sends out the official invitation for defense to the doctoral candidate and to all doctoral committee members approx. 14 days before the date of the disputation and also announces the disputation on the FU's website (so far as the disputation takes place open to the public). The doctoral candidate confirms the date bindingly to all doctoral committee members in advance.

The doctoral committee meets 15 minutes before the defense to jointly evaluate the dissertation and sets the written grade. The defense begins with a lecture of approx. 30 minutes, in which the doctoral candidate presents and discusses the results of his/her thesis in the context of the field as a whole. The doctoral candidate then defends the dissertation by responding to the doctoral committee members' criticism and questions. The discussion must take at least 30 minutes but no longer than 60 minutes. The use of additionally prepared slides during the defense (following the presentation) is not permitted. Only slides that have already been used in the presentation may be used. The recording of the disputation is expressly prohibited.

When determining the grade to be awarded, the outcome of the discussion is in principal more important than priority against the presentation. But the dissertation is also taken primarily in principal into account for determining the overall grade.

You can find an overview of current defenses here .

Answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ) can be found here.

Read on for the next topic ' Publication of the Thesis '.

• disputation

Stack Exchange Network

Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow , the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.

Q&A for work

Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search.

PhD defense in Germany: How do they decide for the final grade?

I am a PhD student in Germany (physics) and I will have my PhD defense in some months. I am not German. My thesis is mainly based on two Physical Review Letters and a paper not yet published (submitted to Physical Review B ). The reviews (Gutachten) on my thesis are positive: I've got 1.3 and 1.7 (1 is very good, 4 is sufficient). The defense will consist of an oral presentation of my thesis and of an oral exam (Rigorosum) in the presence of two professors (two main topics, one of which is completely unrelated to my thesis).

My question is, how important are the presentation, the rigorosum, and the reviews, respectively, for the decision of the final grade? Is it possible to fail the PhD defense, having good reviews? Actually, I am mainly concerned about nasty questions after the thesis presentation and during the Rigorosum...

• 7 What does your advisor say? –  Bill Barth Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 17:45
• my advisor is one of the reviewer. –  sintetico Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 17:51
• 9 So? You can still ask them what the standards are. They must be able to point you to the requirements and tell you about the standards or rubric for scoring. This is precisely their job. –  Bill Barth Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 17:57
• 3 As already hinted at in the comments, a lot of this depends on your faculty’s PhD regulations (Promotionsordnung), which vary a lot between universities. Anything that is not regulated there falls into the discretion of the referees (who may have some unwritten rules amongst them). Thus the only thing, we can give any useful answer to here is your last question, which was mainly addressed in this question . For everything else, look into the regulations or ask your supervisor. –  Wrzlprmft ♦ Commented Aug 5, 2015 at 8:53
• 3 Have you had a look at the Prüfungsordnung/Promotionsordnung? It should all be nicely explained in those documents. –  henning no longer feeds AI Commented Jul 11, 2021 at 19:08

To me it seems that your defense will decide whether you will get the grade 1.3 or 1.7. You will certainly not fail.

During my PhD it was roughly 2/3 the written thesis and 1/3 the defense, which is divided equally in your presentation and the rigorosum. However, for you I think this is not relevant since your Gutachten gave different grades and your performance will decide whether Gutachten 1 or 2 is "right".

If I were you I would take the defense seriously and be prepared for the topic the professors are going to ask you. Often professors give some hint on the topic or might even tell you in advance.

You should know that 1.7 will be rounded to 2, so I think it will be a "cum laude" vs. "magna cum laude". So it makes a difference.

To my knowledge virtually all grades are summa cum laude (1+) (approx 20%-30%), magna cum laude (1) and cum laude (2). So cum laude is practically the lowest grade, although it is a 2.

BTW: For the summa cum laude (the distinction) you need 1.0 in both Gutachten and also make an excellent presentation, where professors test you for your limits. Professors often use it to indicate that they think you are ready for the academic career. Also during selection of some programs of the DFG it is expected to have such a grade.

I hope this does answer your question.

• does it make a difference if I tell you that the reviewer who gave me 1.7 is my supervisor? –  sintetico Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 18:05
• Hmm, I don't think so.I would have assumed that it is other way round. It is certainly not a disadvantage (perhaps a small advantage since some external person rated your work higher than the person who knows you better). –  Andreas H. Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 18:10
• 6 The exact requirements for a summa cum laude vary between universities (although they are pretty similar), so the BTW may or may not be correct. Consult your local Promotionsordnung . –  Stephan Kolassa Commented Aug 4, 2015 at 18:23
• 1 @sintetico: That depends whether the postdoc is in Germany or elsewhere, the U.S. for example. In the US nobody will care since PhD theses are usually not graded and people typically do not understand the German system. In Germany this is most likely different. Also you cannot completely hide the grade, e.g. if you have to supply the PhD certificate or also people might just ask. –  Andreas H. Commented Aug 6, 2015 at 17:17
• 1 I would say so. However, since there is a grade in Germany it is never a disadvantage to have a good one. For the US is totally does not matter. But maybe in Germany things are also changing. In my home university there are no longer the grades written on the PhD certificate, it is either summa cum laude ("with distinction") or nothing, i.e. just pass. –  Andreas H. Commented Aug 6, 2015 at 19:22

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for browse other questions tagged phd grades physics germany defense ..

• Featured on Meta
• Site maintenance - Mon, Sept 16 2024, 21:00 UTC to Tue, Sept 17 2024, 2:00...
• User activation: Learnings and opportunities
• Join Stack Overflow’s CEO and me for the first Stack IRL Community Event in...

Hot Network Questions

• In Photoshop, when saving as PNG, why is the size of my output file bigger when I have more invisible layers in the original file?
• O(nloglogn) Sorting Algorithm?
• Why was Esther included in the canon?
• Drill perpendicular hole through thick lumber using handheld drill
• How can I analyze the anatomy of a humanoid species to create sounds for their language?
• Proper use of voices in more complicated melodies
• Does SpaceX Starship have significant methane emissions?
• What “C’s” did Tugger borrow from the Pin?
• Is there an essential distinction between experienced and observed consciousness?
• Concerns with newly installed floor tile
• Why is steaming food faster than boiling it?
• How to expand argument in the Expl3 command \str_if_eq?
• Is it feasible to create an online platform to effectively teach college-level math (abstract algebra, real analysis, etc.)?
• Place with signs in Chinese & Arabic
• Navigating career options after a disastrous PhD performance and a disappointed advisor?
• Creating good tabularx
• Was Willy Wonka correct when he accused Charlie of stealing Fizzy Lifting Drinks?
• How can I support a closet rod where there's no shelf?
• How to deal with coauthors who just do a lot of unnecessary work and exploration to be seen as hard-working and grab authorship?
• Subject verb agreement - I as well as he is/am the culprit
• "There is a bra for every ket, but there is not a ket for every bra"
• How can I send instance attributes from Geometry Nodes to Shading Editor?
• Is downsampling a valid approach to compare regression results across groups with different sample sizes? If so, how?
• Custom PCB with Esp32-S3 isn't recognised by Device Manager for every board ordered

Advertising - LEO without ads? LEO Pur

It looks like you’re using an ad blocker.

Would you like to support LEO?

Disable your ad blocker for LEO or make a donation.

Donate via bank transfer

Donate via paypal.

Suchrichtung

Preferred vocabulary, in multi-word searches ­.

Popular search terms

Bitte aktualisieren Sie Ihren Browser. Ihr Browser ist veraltet, daher kann es zu Einschränkungen in der Funktionalität kommen.

Die reine Wörterbuchsuche wird im InternetExplorer in Version 8 und 9 noch unterstützt (ohne Gewähr auf funktionierende Zusatzdienste wie Aussprache, Flexionstabellen etc.). Siehe dazu auch die offizielle Ankündigung durch ­ Microsoft zum Support-Ende der verschiedenen InternetExplorer-Versionen.

Other actions

• Special characters  
• Type Chinese Pinyin syllables to get a list of corresponding Chinese characters.  
•   Transliteration aktiv Tastaturlayout Phonetisch

What you’re looking for is not yet in our dictionary? Ask the LEO community.

•   App für Android / iPhone
•   Tools for browsers
•   About us / LEO’s history
•   Advertising with LEO
•   My account
•   Change password
•   Unread forum posts
•   unread private messages
•   Learn today’s words
•   Continue the language course

• Look up in Linguee
• Suggest as a translation of "thesis"

Linguee Apps

• Translate as you type
• World-leading quality
• Drag and drop documents

▾ Dictionary English-German

Thesis noun —, dissertation f, doktorarbeit f, diplomarbeit f, abschlussarbeit f, master thesis n —, bachelor thesis n —, phd thesis n —, master's thesis n —, thesis supervisor n —, thesis topic n —, thesis paper n —, thesis committee n —, write a thesis v —, my thesis n —, thesis submitted n —, further thesis n —, doctoral thesis n —, empirical thesis n —, postdoctoral thesis n —, practical diploma thesis n —, his thesis n —, best thesis n —, doctor's thesis n —, present thesis n —, daring thesis n —, experimental doctoral thesis n —, written thesis n —, thesis statement n —, unpublished thesis n —, practice-oriented thesis n —, ▸ external sources (german), ▾ external sources (english).

• This is not a good example for the translation above.
• The wrong words are highlighted.
• It does not match my search.
• It should not be summed up with the orange entries
• The translation is wrong or of bad quality.

Navigation and service

• DNB for users
• DNB Professional

20, 21 and 22 September 2024

On Friday, 20 September, the exhibitions of the German Museum of Books and Writing in Leipzig will be closed due to an event. On Saturday, 21 September, the German National Library in Leipzig and the exhibitions of the German Museum of Books and Writing will be closed due to an event. On Sunday, 22 September, the temporary exhibition of the German Museum of Books and Writing will be closed due to an event.

Search website

Search. Find. Discover

Enter search term

Do you want to search our collections?

Catalogue search

About DissOnline

The German National Library houses the largest national collection of online dissertations in Europe. We have been collecting online dissertations and theses since 1998. Since then, the collection has grown to more than 284,000 documents (as of November 2020).

Since these activities began under the aegis of DissOnline more than 20 years ago, electronic publishing has become a part of everyday university life. This is due to the close cooperation between universities, their libraries and computer centres, and representatives of academia as well as the long-standing support provided through projects funded by the German Research Foundation ( DFG ).

The DissOnline project was brought to a successful, sustainable conclusion. Stakeholders whose initiative had supported DissOnline then became free to transfer their commitment to other areas. In June 2012, the DissOnline advisory committee therefore decided to integrate the functions and information on the website www.dissonline.de into the German National Library’s services. This is particularly relevant in terms of the deposit of works with the German National Library. The extended metadata format XMetaDissPlus enables all types of publications and documents available in subject-specific and institutional repositories and on university servers to be deposited in just one fully automated transaction.

Deposit information

The DissOnline portal is also integrated into the German National Library's catalogue as a search option. This means that online dissertations are listed as a component of the German National Library’s collection alongside traditional printed dissertations, other online university publications and academic literature. Our catalogue offers a wide variety of search options that are constantly being developed and optimised further. You will find an explanation of all the available search options here:

Guide to searching dissertations and theses in the German National Library’s catalogue (only available in German)

In order to enhance the international visibility of the collection, the metadata for all German online dissertations is continually delivered to DART , the European portal for online dissertations. NDLTD : Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations is committed to the promotion of electronic publishing in the academic sector beyond Europe. The International Symposium on Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD) takes place every year.

Statistical information

Online university publications have been collected, catalogued and archived at the German National Library since 1998. The illustration shows how the percentage of online publications has developed over the years since this work began. Here it must be considered that although dissertations are subject to a mandatory publication obligation and an obligation to be placed on deposit with the German National Library, only an approximate impression of doctoral and publication activities in Germany can be given.

As the statistics refer to the year in which the publication was released rather than the year in which it was deposited, it is quite possible that figures may rise in succeeding years. This applies in particular to the most recent full year.

The DissOnline projects

• 1998–2000 Dissertations Online
• 2003–2004 Establishment of a coordinating body for online university publications
• 2005–2007 DissOnline Tutor
• 2005–2008 Establishment of a portal for online university publications

The intensive cooperation between all partners and sponsors also made it possible to start collecting dissertations and theses on a voluntary basis in 1998, eight years before the amendment to the Law Regarding the German National Library and the provision stipulating the mandatory deposit of online publications.

Last changes: 08.03.2021 Short-URL: https://www.dnb.de/dissonline

Our newsletters

Informative and up-to-date – sent to you by our newsletter editorial offices

Use of cookies

Cookies help us to provide our services. By using our website you agree that we can use cookies. Read more about our Privacy Policy and visit the following link: Privacy Policy