Guidance for Supervisors and Faculties

The structuring of the doctoral phase is of decisive importance for the qualification of the next generation of academics. During this phase, it is the task of doctoral supervisors to support Ph.D. candidates in their research and to accompany them on their way to academic independence. The Graduate Academy therefore set out to develop guidelines for a good supervision during doctoral studies and thus to make a further contribution to the quality of doctoral training at Leibniz University. Based on a proposal, which was worked out by the Council of the Graduate Academy and developed further in discussions with the Deacons and the Senate, the present „Guidelines for a good supervision of Ph.D. candidates at Leibniz Universität Hannover” were subsequently passed by the Senate and the Executive Committee.

Guidelines for a Good Supervision of Ph.D. candidates

The brochure of the guidelines can be requested from the Graduate Academy (in German or English).

It is the aim of supervisors to qualify young academics excellently and to advise them as best they can. In order to optimise doctoral supervision as far as possible, the „Qualitätszirkel Promotion” (Quality Circle for the Doctorate) has worked out guidelines for supervisors, which contain ideas and suggestions for good cooperation.

Guidelines for Supervisor - Shaping a Doctorate Together (Bottom of the page)

The Graduate Academy, together with the Research Department, the EU Liaison Office and Technology Transfer, advises and supports university staff who wishes to apply for, set up and develop doctoral programmes such as research training groups and graduate schools.

Within the framework of the start-up funding of the university’s internal programme “Ways into Research”, it is possible to apply for funds with which to prepare applications to German or international sponsors.

Ways into Research I - Start-up Funding to Prepare Research Applications

In its endeavour to advance the profile of its doctoral training, Leibniz University has critically reviewed all aspects of the same. To this end, the management of the university presented a paper on structured doctoral training in March 2007, in which aims and possible measures to improve the doctoral phase were formulated. At the same time, the faculties were requested to concretise the aims for the various disciplines and to take steps by the winter semester 2008/09 to ensure that these aims were reached. The concepts and measures to improve doctoral training and the results thereof have been compiled in a report, which is available at the following link:

Report on Structured Doctoral Training (GER)