Admission to the doctoral project

An application for admission to the doctoral procedure must be submitted to the doctoral committee before work on the dissertation commences, but no later than 3 months after the start of the relevant work (see § 3 para. 1 of the doctoral regulations).
Your doctoral project is not officially registered with the Faculty of Medicine until it has been approved by the Doctoral Committee.

Prerequisite for admission to a doctoral program at the Faculty of Medicine:
The program is open to graduates of the following degree programs or subjects in accordance with Annex 1 of the doctoral regulations for the PhD program for non-medical students: ·

• Biosciences: Biology, Human Biology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Life Science, Molecular Sciences, Pharmacy or thematically related degree programs
• Psychology or thematically related degree programs
• Public health or health services research or thematically related degree courses

Further requirements:

• a master’s degree program encompassing a total of at least 300 ECTS credits including the previously completed undergraduate program
• Confirmation of a supervisor (supervision agreement), who must generally be a university lecturer (Prof.) or habilitated member (PD) of the Faculty of Medicine in accordance with Section 6 of the doctoral degree regulations
• Two proposals for the members of the thesis committee
• Project outline (research proposal for the dissertation) which was developed together with the supervisor

Application for admission to the doctoral program at the Faculty of Medicine

The application for admission is made online via Docata - the online tool for doctoral procedures at Universität Hamburg (UHH) .
In the Docata instructions | Electronic application with Docata | Application for admission to the doctoral procedure PhD program for non-medical students you will find detailed information on registration and application in Docata.
You can apply for admission on an ongoing basis. Please note the deadlines for submitting applications to the doctoral committee on the website.

To prepare your application for admission, you must prepare documents in digital form and clarify specific questions with your supervisor. You can find detailed information in the Docata instructions.

Please read the instructions carefully before submitting your application. It contains important instructions and information that are relevant for the application.

Please note: For the online application, you must prepare the following documents in digital form (PDF) so that you can upload them during the process and provide the required information:

• Supervision agreement (PDF form) - completed and signed in full with original signatures
• Project outline (exposé) (PDF form) - completed and signed in full with original signatures Head of the institution (clinic director or institute director), supervisor (former doctoral supervisor/doctoral supervisor) and members of the thesis committee
• Curriculum vitae in tabular form with list of publications, if applicable
• Proof of studies: Bachelor's degree (certificate and transcript of records) and Master's degree (certificate and transcript of records). For degrees from non-EU countries, the documents must be submitted in the original language and in English translation.

It is no longer necessary to submit your application documents (supervision agreement, proof of studies, project outline, etc.) in paper form.

Doctoral candidates at Universität Hamburg are required to enroll as members of the university in accordance with the Hamburg Higher Education Act (§§ 35, 36, 70, in particular paragraph 5) and the Enrollment Regulations (§ 3, paragraph 5).

Enrollment must be completed through the Student Services team at the Campus Center. Further information and application forms are available on the Campus Center's website .

To enroll, you must submit/upload the admission letter to the doctoral program.

Important: Enrollment must be completed within three months of receiving the admission letter. Failure to do so will result in the revocation of your admission to the doctoral program.

Structured Curriculum of the PhD Program
The structured curriculum is designed to support the subject-specific and interdisciplinary training of PhD students, complementing their individual research projects. Over the course of the three-year program, students are required to earn a total of 180 credit points (CP):

• 150 CP for the doctoral thesis
• 30 CP for coursework

The 30 CP allocated for coursework follow the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS), with credit assigned based on the workload associated with each course.

Coursework Structure
The coursework is divided into three main categories, each contributing to the comprehensive development of research, professional, and transferable skills:

Key Skills Courses
These courses aim to build essential competencies for academic and scientific careers:

• Good Scientific Practice
• Advanced Writing Skills for Science and Research
• Presentation Skills for Science and Research
• Project Management

Interdisciplinary Courses
Fostering cross-disciplinary dialogue and academic exchange:

• Seminar: Statistics
• Seminar: Publication Process
• Doctoral Colloquium
• Conference Participation

Research Methods
Courses Providing advanced training in scientific methods and analytical tools relevant to the students' individual research areas.

Flexible Course Selection and Personalization
PhD students are encouraged to tailor their coursework based on their dissertation focus and academic interests, in consultation with their Thesis Committee. The program is designed to be flexible and responsive to individual learning paths.
A wide range of relevant courses—particularly in the area of key qualifications—is offered by:

• Hamburg Research Academy (HRA)
• HR development
• PIASTA
• Graduate schools and research colleges at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE)

These external courses are open to PhD students and can be officially recognized within the curriculum upon request.

Recognition of External Activities
Participation in workshops, courses, and conferences outside the formal program may also be eligible for credit. Applications for recognition can be submitted to phd-info@uke.de.

If you are unable to submit your dissertation by the official deadline, an extension of your admission to the PhD program is possible in accordance with § 4 (5) of the doctoral regulations. The application must be submitted at least two months before the deadline via Docata (Start box: Request for Extension of the Doctoral Procedure).

In addition, please upload the completed Application for Extension of Admission to the PhD Program (including a justification, updated work and time schedule, and your supervisor’s signature) as a PDF file in Docata.

Submission of the Dissertation /
Application to Initiate the Doctoral Examination Procedure

5.1 Formal Approval of the Dissertation

Before printing and officially submitting your dissertation, please send a PDF version via email to the Doctoral Office for a formal check.
Use the subject line: “Formal Approval Dissertation PhD Program” in your email.
The file should be clearly named using your last name, first name, and date (e.g., Mustermann Max 20240801).
Please allow 3–4 working days for the formal review. You will receive a brief confirmation by email once the review has been completed.

5.2 Application to Initiate the Doctoral Examination Procedure

The application to initiate the doctoral examination process is submitted online via D ocata - the online tool for doctoral procedures at University of Hamburg .
A detailed Docata Guide is available to support you with each step of the process: Docata Guide | Application to Initiate the Doctoral Examination Procedure

Before starting your application, please read the guide carefully, especially the sections on reviewers and the examination committee.

Required documents (PDF format):
Please have the following documents ready to upload during the online application process:

Important: Only complete applications can be processed.
Once you have submitted your application in Docata, you will no longer be able to upload additional documents.

5.3 Submission of the Printed Dissertation
Dissertations can be submitted on the 15th of each month.
After submitting your online application (see deadlines under Dates & Deadlines), please submit 4 printed copies of your dissertation.
You may choose one of the following submission methods:

• Personal submission at the doctoral studies office:
  Please schedule an appointment via the booking calendar on the Doctoral Office website or directly with Ms. Schäfer.
• Drop-off at the doctoral studies office mailbox
  (Location: Campus Lehre, Building N55, 4th floor, Room 04.02.1
• By postal mail (registered mail with tracking is recommended):
  University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE)
  Dean’s Office for Academic Affairs – doctoral studies office
  Campus Lehre (N55), Martinistraße 52
  20246 Hamburg, Germany