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In principle, it is possible to earn a doctorate in all of the areas of study offered at the TU Dresden.  For acceptance into a doctoral programme, an outstanding record and completed degree in an appropriate area of study is usually required. The degree must be equivalent to a German academic degree.

In Germany, doctoral studies are generally seen as an individual research project. You must find a professor who is interested in your research topic, and who will serve as your advisor.  You should already have some ideas about a topic in order to decide at which school/faculty and institute  you would like to do your research and to find an appropriate advisor there. 

The completion of doctoral studies will require 3 to 5 years, depending on the subject area. You may apply for doctoral studies if you declare that you will work at least half-time on your doctoral project. 

So-called “graduate colleges” are a special form of support offered to doctoral students. These colleges are temporary institutions at universities to benefit young scientists. They are sponsored and financed by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft or DFG). They are each oriented around one interdisciplinary topic and are meant to supplement the traditional system of individual guidance for doctoral candidates. In the colleges, doctoral students can write their disserations with a group of scientists. Selection of scholarship recipients is carried out by each college.  You can find an overview of the colleges here.

You will find more information about doctoral studies at the TU Dresden in our brochure, which summarises the important information about P.h.D. programmes, as well as organisational information regarding study and research stays in Dresden (download brochure ).

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