Admission Requirements for Doctoral Studies
- First, as a formal requirement, international graduates must hold a first study degree equivalent to a German university degree in order to be admitted to doctoral studies at RWTH (Master's or equivalent). The International Office of RWTH Aachen University will evaluate your degree and decide whether it can be considered equivalent to a German university degree. If the degree is not fully recognized, students have the opportunity to take additional classes and pass exams related to their field of research in order to be admitted to doctoral studies at a later stage.
- Secondly, an RWTH professor must issue a written confirmation that he or she is willing to accept the candidate in his or her research team. A candidate may only apply for doctoral studies at RWTH Aachen University upon finding a supervising professor.
- Third, the faculty decides whether the candidate has sufficient technical, subject-specific qualification to be accepted as a PhD student at the faculty. Therefore, prospective doctoral students have to apply for admission to the faculty in which they wish to undertake their PhD project. This application is called "Application for Recognition of your Qualification for Doctoral Study"; in German, "Antrag auf Zuerkennung der Promotionsvoraussetzungen". Concerning your application and the necessary requirements, please contact the PhD study advisor of the faculty.