There is the possibility to acquire the academic degree Dr rer. pole. or Dr iur. Traditionally, this can be done by working on your own research project with one of our research groups. In addition, the department offers the possibility of a structured doctorate as part of the Graduate School of Economics, Finance and Management. This is part of the Rhine-Main Universities alliance.
Extensive information on doctoral studies at the Technical University of Darmstadt can be found under Doctoral Studies at TU Darmstadt.
The basis of doctoral research in our department are the following regulations:
Doctoral degree regulations TU Darmstadt (German) (opens in new tab)
Statutes for the performance of electronic examinations (E-Examination Statute) (German) – Please note: Currently there is no English translation. The legally binding document is the German version.
Doctoral degree regulations special provisions of the Department of Law and Economics, 2020 (English) (opens in new tab) – Please note: The English translation is for informational purposes only. The legally binding document is the German version.
Within the department, the Doctoral Admissions Committee is responsible for the formal implementation of doctoral procedures. It is supported by the Departmental Management (Email: promotion@wi.tu-…), through which all further procedural steps described here are handled.
At a university-wide level, the umbrella organisation Ingenium – Young Researchers at TU Darmstadt promotes university-wide standards in the doctoral and postdoc phases and offers information with regard to further qualification and networking.
(see § 11 Abs. 3 of the special provisions)
A full-time professor in the department is responsible for supervision. The topic of the doctorate must be agreed upon with the professor. You can find information about the professors and their main research areas under Research Groups .
Following the coordination of the thesis topic, the professor's willingness to supervise your doctoral thesis is recorded informally in writing on the basis of the confirmation of supervision (see Downloads ).
For a doctorate, enrolment as a “PhD student” is optional; online registration is mandatory. Enrolment is recommended for scholarship holders.
If you would like to register or enrol for a doctorate, you first need the supervisor's written confirmation of supervision. Please read the information on enrolment/registration.
(see § 7 of the doctoral degree regulations)
The application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate (see Downloads ) must be submitted to the chairperson of the doctoral admissions committee and also consists of the following documents:
Mandatory Attachments:
- If you have a degree from TU Darmstadt: Copy of the certificates and certificates of previous university degrees (bachelor's and/or master's)
- For an external degree: Certified copy of the certificates and certificates of previous university degrees (bachelor's and/or master's)
- Confirmation of supervision from the supervising professor (see Downloads )
- Proof (printed) of registration or enrolment for a doctorate
Further attachments that may be required upon acceptance for the Dr rer. pole.:
If equivalent qualifications are recognised (see § 7 Abs. 3 (2) of the special provisions of the department):
- Expert statement of the supervisor with a proposal of the conditions to be fulfilled
If you graduate with the mark “satisfactory” (see § 7 Abs. 3 (2) of the special provisions of the department):
- Expert statement from the supervisor
In the case of aptitude assessment procedure (see § 7a of the special provisions of the department):
- Expert statement of the supervisor with a proposal for the modules to be taken
Further attachments that may be required upon acceptance for the Dr iur.:
In the event that either the first or second legal examination was passed with the mark “satisfactory” (see § 7 Abs. 3 special provisions of the department):
- Expert statement from the supervisor
- Proof of performance from a seminar (provided after the first legal examination)
Review of the application by the Doctoral Admissions Committee
The application will be processed by the Doctoral Admissions Committee and you will then be informed by post. As a rule, the Doctoral Admissions Committee meets three times per semester. Please note the announcement of the next date on the department's website . Your application should be received by the Departmental Office at least two weeks before the meeting.
! Please always provide us with your current mailing address. If you change your name, we ask you to send us proof !
(see § 8 of the doctoral degree regulations)
After completing the doctoral thesis, you submit an application to initiate the doctoral procedure (see Downloads ) to the chairperson of the Doctoral Admissions Committee. It also consists of the following documents:
Mandatory Attachments:
- three bound written copies of the doctoral thesis (one copy each for the Departmental Office, first reviewer and second reviewer)
- an identical electronic version of the doctoral thesis as a PDF file by email to promotion@wi.tu-…
- Curriculum vitae (CV)
- Declaration on the doctoral thesis and transfer of rights (German version, English version)
- three research certificates with a statement from the supervisor (see information sheet on research contributions in Downloads )
- Proof of payment of the doctoral fee (100 EUR): The doctoral fee of 100 Euros is to be transferred to Sparkasse Darmstadt, IBAN: DE36 5085 0150 0000 7043 00, BIC: HELADEF1DAS, project no. 40100191 and the intended use “Promotionsgebühr FB 01”.
- The Doctoral Admissions Committee appoints the Examination Board at the suggestion of the doctoral candidate. Please submit suggestions for the composition of the Examination Board, taking into account the doctoral degree regulations.
- The Doctoral Admissions committee also decides whether the defence will take place in person or via electronic video and audio transmission.
Further attachments that may be required:
In case of an E-Defence of Thesis:
- In case of an E-Defence the consent of all members of the Examination Committee must be submitted when handing in the Application for Initiating the Doctoral Examination Procedure (see Downloads ).
In the case of an English-language thesis defence:
- Application for an English-language thesis defence (see Downloads ) to the Deputy Chairperson of the department. The Doctoral Admissions Committee approves a foreign language thesis defence, subject to the approval of the Examination Board. The approval of the committee members must be obtained from the doctoral candidate.
For a cumulative doctoral thesis:
- Declaration by the referees according to § 9 (4) of the doctoral degree regulations (see Downloads )
- Declaration on the delimitation of the independent work according to § 9 (5) PO/AT (see Downloads ) including original signature of all co-authors
- Declaration on publications submitted in the cumulative dissertation according to § 9 (4) of the PO/AT (see Downloads )
Review of the application by the Doctoral Admissions Committee
The application will be processed by the Doctoral Admissions Committee and you will then be informed by post. As a rule, the Doctoral Admissions Committee meets three times per semester. Please note the announcement of the next date on the department's website . Your application should be received by the Departmental Office at least two weeks before the meeting.
! Please always provide us with your current mailing address. If you change your name, we ask you to send us proof !
Prior to applying for Initiating the Doctoral Examination Procedure it is necessary to agree with the members of your Examination Committee whether your defence is going to take place in person or via electronic video and audio transmission.
Please inform the Departmental Office about the defence date as soon as you have agreed on it with your Examination Committee. Your first reviewer appoints a note-taker. If your defence takes place in person, the Departmental Office arranges for a room and invites to the defence in due time.
(see §§ 19 to 21 of the doctoral degree regulations)
The dissertation may be published electronically or by a publisher and must be done within one year.
Requirements for the title page of a doctoral thesis:
German version (opens in new tab)
English version (opens in new tab)
Electronic publication:
In this case, the additional declaration on the doctoral thesis and transfer of rights must be submitted with a second electronic copy. According to this declaration, the copy to be released for publication must be identical to this electronic copy:
The electronic version of the doctoral thesis to be published must be uploaded to the university publication server of TU Darmstadt and also sent by email to promotion@wi.tu-…. The certificate is then created and handed over.
Publication as print version:
The version of the doctoral thesis to be published must be checked by the first supervisor for compliance with any requirements and then approved for publication. In addition, the doctoral thesis must be accompanied by an abstract in German and in English, which must be approved by the first supervisor together with the release for publication. Furthermore, a minimum print run of 150 copies and publication in the directory of available books (VLB) must be proven. Nine deposit copies must be submitted to the Departmental Office (6 ULB, 1 first supervisor, 1 second supervisor, 1 Departmental Office). The TU Darmstadt is to be granted the right to electronic publication on the university publication server in the publishing contract. The certificate is then created and handed over.
The dissertation projects that have been completed in the department can be found here .
If you do not wish to pursue your doctoral research project any further and have already submitted an application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate, we ask you to revoke your doctoral relationship (see Downloads ).
