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Pursue a Doctorate
The doctorate is your first independent research project which contributes significantly to science and research. A doctoral degree is the highest academic degree that a higher education institution can award. The Association for Doctoral Studies at the Universities of Applied Sciences in Baden-Württemberg offers you the opportunity to conduct innovative and practice-oriented research and to pursue a doctorate in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, economics and law, life sciences, biotechnology, medical engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, and engineering.
The general doctoral regulations and the doctoral regulations of the respective departments apply to your doctoral program. The regulations can be found in our bulletin.
If you would like to submit an application for admission, please follow the steps below.​​
Why pursue a doctorate with the Association for Doctoral Studies Baden-Württemberg?
The Land of Baden-Württemberg is well-known for its creative and inventive minds, and it is one of the world’s most successful regions in promoting ingenuity.
The intellect and competence of Germany’s third-largest federal state are reflected in brilliant ideas, clever solutions and innovative applications.
Universities of applied sciences have a particularly important role in advancing these aspects. They offer professional and practice-oriented education to all students and doctoral candidates. Application-oriented research and consistent quality assurance through quality management are key to universities of applied sciences. In addition, the research conducted has innovative potential and is often directly relevant to businesses.
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Conclude a supervision agreement
You have decided to pursue a doctorate? The first step is to find a main supervisor who suits you and your research topic and who is able to supervise your dissertation project. All professors who are members of the Association for Doctoral Studies at the Universities of Applied Sciences in Baden-Württemberg are eligible to be supervisors. You may contact potential supervisors, discuss relevant questions, and conclude a supervision agreement with them.
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Register with PROMAS BW
You have found a suitable main supervisor and possibly already a second supervisor, concluded the supervision agreement, and would now like to apply to be a doctoral candidate?
To get started, please register in the PROMAS BW portal:
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Once your registration is complete, you will receive a confirmation email.
3. Submit an application for admission to the Association for Doctoral Studies Baden-Wuerttemberg
Next, log in to the PROMAS BW portal using your credentials and select the option “Annahme als Doktorand*in beantragen”.
To complete your application, please follow the instructions provided in the portal. The portal is currently available in German only.
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In order to fully process your application, a notarized copy of your degree certificate entitling you to pursue a doctorate (generally a Master’s degree) must be submitted by post to the following address:
Promotionsverband der Hochschulen für angewandte Wissenschaften Baden-Württemberg
Hospitalstr. 8
70174 Stuttgart
Germany
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4. Processing your application
Once you have submitted your application in the system, it will first be reviewed by the administrative office and then forwarded to the responsible doctoral committee. The committee will make the final decision on your application.
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You can check the current status of your application at any time in the PROMAS BW portal.
If we need any additional information from you, or once a decision has been made, you will be notified by email.
If your application is approved by the doctoral committee, you will be able to download your official letter of admission directly from the PROMAS BW portal.
5. Enroll at the higher education institution of the main supervisor
Provided the doctoral committee has approved your application, you will receive a letter of admission. This letter must be submitted to the higher education institution of your main supervisor upon enrollment. According to section 38 subsection 5 sentence 1 of the act on the higher education institutions in the Land of Baden-Württemberg (Landeshochschulgesetz, LHG), you are required to enroll at a higher education institution. According to section 38 subsection 5 sentence 1 second clause LHG, doctoral candidates may request to be exempt from mandatory enrollment if their main profession is at the higher education institution of the main supervisor and the working time equals at least 50 percent of the regular working time of a full-time position.
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Are there any questions left?
Further information on the application
In order to fully process your application, a notarized copy of your degree certificate entitling you to pursue a doctorate (generally a Master’s degree) must be submitted by post to the following address:
Promotionsverband der Hochschulen für angewandte Wissenschaften Baden-Württemberg
Hospitalstr. 8
70174 Stuttgart
Germany
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Applications can only be processed once all required documents have been received.
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​If you need help using PROMAS BW, we provide a short manual for you (currently available in German only).
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Please mind the guidelines for preparing your research propsal:
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You can find a guide to the cumulative dissertation for FE I and FE III on the webpage of the respective research unit, under the section Forschung und Profil (currently available in German only).
If you have any further questions
please contact the administrative office
E-Mail: promadmin(at)promotionsverband-bw.de
Tel:
Ramona Bromm (FE I, III & V): +49 (0)711 995281-70
Uwe Kastner (FE II & IV): +49 (0)711 995281-78
Jasmin Sambira (FE I, III, V): +49 (0)711 995281-66