Doctorate at the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics
Are you interested in doing a doctorate at Paderborn University? We are delighted that you would like to continue on the academic path! We are one of the few faculties in Germany to offer a highly structured doctoral programme. You will have the opportunity to deepen your specialist knowledge to the extent of 30 ECTS credits in order to be able to carry out ideal research work afterwards. Supporting researchers in the early stages of their academic career is extremely important to us. We look forward to working with you in the future!
The fast track to information
Start of the promotion
Find a topic for your doctorate
The topic of your doctorate should be in a field of research that is exciting for you and inspires you. The dissertation topic will be developed in close dialogue with your supervisor. You are also welcome to consult with other academics to ensure that the topic is suitable for a doctoral dissertation. Female students can also use peer mentoring insights to find out whether a doctorate is the right career path for them.
Find a carer
Doctoral candidates are expected to find a supervisor from the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics at Paderborn University independently and on their own initiative. Please take a look at our departments and professorships . This university lecturer should have expert knowledge in the field of the research question in order to be able to provide you with sufficient support during your doctorate. A supervision agreement is drawn up together, which includes mutual expectations and the topic. This is a guideline for supervisory discussions and the joint development of visions.
The mid-level representative will be happy to advise you on completing the agreement. The required documents are available for download.
Find financing
There are various ways to finance a doctorate.
- through employment at the university or in a research project
- via a scholarship
- via free financing (e.g. other employment, savings)
Enrolment and admission as a doctoral candidate
An application must be submitted in order to be admitted to doctoral studies. In addition, the necessary proof of the admission requirements should be provided. You can find more detailed information on this in the next section.
Information on enrolment
- Applicants need a degree from a business studies programme (including industrial engineering, business informatics and business education) lasting at least eight semesters with a Master's degree with an overall grade of at least "good" or a degree from a programme in which a degree other than a Bachelor's degree is awarded. In the case of a relevant university degree or another academic degree programme, the overall performance must be very good.
- Students who have already failed a doctoral examination once are not eligible for admission.
- On the basis of the equivalence agreements approved by the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs, foreign degrees must be checked for equivalence. We therefore ask international students to contact the International Office.
- Further regulations can be found in the doctoral degree regulations of the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics.
The first step of enrolment can be completed online. In the second step, please send the above-mentioned documents to the Registrar's Office.
Step 1: Enrolment for doctoral studies (online via PAUL)
- Log in with your own Paul account (you do not need to create an applicant account if you already have one)
- Fill in"My details" under Application - My applications. Click on Search for doctorate and select Doctorate in Economics (the semester specified here may differ, continue anyway)
- Complete the application form (you can now select the correct semester here)
- Submit the form
- Print out the online enrolment application for doctoral studies and send it by post including all documents to the Registrar's Office:
Mr Daniel Langguth
Daniel.Langguth@zv.uni-paderborn.de
Tel: 05251 60-5065 Room B0.324
Step 2: Necessary documents for the Registrar's Office
- Enrolment application (from PAUL), signed
- Proof of payment of the semester fees
- Copy of identity card or passport (ID number and access number (to the right of the expiry date) should be made unrecognisable)
- News proof of health insurance or exemption certificate (for private insurance) from a statutory health insurance company (certificate to be presented to the university!) A copy of the insurance card or a certificate of existing family insurance is not sufficient). - Please note: If you are a member or family member of a private health insurance company, proof of exemption from the statutory insurance obligation must be submitted. The health insurance company with which you were last covered by statutory health insurance is responsible for the exemption and issuing the corresponding certificate. If you have never had statutory health insurance (e.g. if you have private health insurance), any statutory health insurance fund will issue you with the necessary exemption certificate. See also here. Exception: Applicants with insurance cover from other EU countries should enclose a copy of their European Insurance Card (EC Regulation 883/04 and treaty law).
- Degree certificate of the degree programme entitling you to a doctorate (not required if you completed your studies at Paderborn University)
- Certificate of exmatriculation from the last university attended (not required if it is Paderborn University)
- Franked and addressed envelope (DIN A 4 - without window) for returning the enrolment documents
- Certificate from the faculty confirming admission to a doctoral programme of the faculty(form "Certificate of admission to a doctoral programme")
If you have any questions or problems regarding enrolment, please contact Mr Daniel Langgut
„In unserem Fachbereich herrscht eine sehr familiäre Atmosphäre. Spätestens ab dem Master kennen die Professor*innen fast jeden Studierenden persönlich. Die Identifikation mit dem Studienfach wird von Anfang an gefördert und ist daher unter Lehrenden wie Kommiliton*innen sehr ausgeprägt.”
During the doctorate
After the doctorate
After completing their doctorate, early career researchers have the option of continuing their academic career at university or pursuing a career in the private sector. If you decide in favour of a university career, the two- to six-year postdoc phase follows the doctorate, during which you develop your profile.
