From the 1^st of March 2022 the new doctoral regulations "Dr.sc.hum." came into force (Promotionsordnung der Universität Heidelbergfür die Medizinischen Fakultäten zur Promotionzum Doctor scientiarum humanarum (Dr. sc. hum.) (uni-heidelberg.de)).

Some important changes compared to the previous version are:

- Changes in admission requirements,

- Introduction of a compulsory study program of usually 240 hours including TACs,

- Possibility of a cumulative dissertation under certain conditions,

- University public oral examination.

Regulatory Statutes: Study Program (English)

Regulatory Statutes: Cumulative Dissertation (English)

Admission requirements

(1) To the doctoral procedure "Dr. sc. hum." may be admitted candidates who have successfully completed:

1. a relevant Master's degree program,

2. a relevant degree program at a university with a standard period of study of at least four years, or

3. a relevant degree program based on an undergraduate degree program at a university or other institution of higher education with the right to award doctoral degrees by passing an examination.

(2) Usually, admission is only possible for those who can provide evidence of a written thesis and a relevant, above-average degree in a course of study with, as a rule, 300 ECTS. In justified individual cases, in which the certificates alone do not provide sufficient information about the applicant's suitability for doctoral studies, the doctoral committee may impose conditions or conduct a knowledge examination.

(3) Graduates with only a medical or dental state examination or internationally equivalent degrees are generally excluded from admission to the doctoral procedure Dr. sc. hum.

On request, particularly qualified applicants with a degree in medicine and additionally a relevant, non-clinically oriented Master's degree (at least 120 ECTS) or with a four-year Bachelor's degree in medicine (at least 180 ECTS) and additionally a relevant, non-clinically oriented Master's degree (at least 120 ECTS) may be admitted.

In exceptional cases, applicants with a one-year non-clinically oriented Master's program (60 ECTS) may also be admitted under certain conditions. In these cases, the doctoral committee makes it a condition that, for further qualification, courses approved by the doctoral committee are completed with examination (together at least 60 ECTS). In these cases, admission is subject to the condition that the fulfillment of the requirements is proven within the period set by the doctoral committee. If the conditions are not fulfilled within the deadline, the conditional admission will be cancelled.

(4) In exceptional cases, particularly qualified graduates of a 3-year bachelor's degree program at a university or a 4-year bachelor's degree program at a university of applied sciences may be admitted if the knowledge of the graduates is comparable to that of diploma or master's degree graduates and a written thesis is available. In order to prove this, the applicant must submit at least two reports from independent university lecturers confirming that the thesis clearly demonstrates the applicant's scientific qualification and meets the requirements of a Master's thesis. On the basis of these reports, the committee decides on the admission to a colloquium, in which the special qualification is finally assessed. The doctoral committee appoints at least 3 professors to conduct the colloquium. Admission to the doctoral examination procedure requires the unanimous approval of all examiners. The colloquium can be repeated once. If the candidate fails the repeated colloquium in one of the subjects, the colloquium as a whole is failed.

(5) Particularly qualified graduates of a diploma program of a university of applied sciences or a university of cooperative education may also be admitted if an aptitude test procedure has been approved and successfully completed. The aptitude testing procedure is initiated by the responsible doctoral committee and serves as proof of the qualification required for the doctorate in the dissertation field. The doctoral committee determines the study and examination achievements required to prove the scientific aptitude. As a rule, the aptitude assessment procedure should be completed three semesters after the application is submitted. If one or more examinations in the aptitude assessment procedure are not passed, the first repeat examination is permitted after 14 days at the earliest. The examination(s) may be repeated a total of two times. In case of failure of the second repeat examination in one of the subjects, the aptitude assessment procedure as a whole is failed.

(6) The doctoral committee shall decide on the recognition of examinations and degrees taken by an applicant at a foreign scientific university after hearing the Central Office for Foreign Education of the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs (ZAB).

(7) Applicants who have already obtained a doctoral degree in a doctoral procedure or an equivalent academic degree (e.g. PhD) will not be admitted to the doctoral degree of Dr. sc. hum. unless they have completed a second undergraduate degree in accordance with paragraphs 1-6.

(8) Applicants for the doctorate must be able to demonstrate a connection with a clinic or an institute of the respective medical faculty or a co-opted research institution or an academic teaching hospital of the university or with the University of Heilbronn in the course of study "Medical Informatics". This affiliation is proven by a doctoral agreement according to § 6 para. 3, usually for at least 3 years. Deviations from the above-mentioned institutions require the prior approval of the doctoral committee.

(9) If the dissertation project is carried out at an institution that is not assigned to the faculty, the declaration of consent signed by the respective responsible person(s) must also be obtained, i.e. the head of department of this institution. This does not apply if it is the supervisor's department.

 

Proof of scientific writing for pharmacists

Due to the generally missing final thesis in the state examination studies (Staatsexamen) in pharmacy in Germany, proof of scientific writing must be provided in order to fulfill the admission requirements according to § 4 para. 2 of the Doctoral Regulations Dr. sc. hum.

As proof of scientific writing are considered:

• a master thesis
• a scientific publication (first authorship or shared first authorship)
• a detailed scientific protocol of the elective subject accepted by the doctoral committee
• a scientific manuscript / a scientific protocol of a research internship prepared according to the guidelines for writing a dissertation. Data from the research project may also be used in the dissertation.

A scientific manuscript / protocol must fulfill following conditions:

• at least 15 pages of text (without bibliography)
• systematic structure and outline like doctoral thesis or publication
• must be written in German or English
• must be written within ½ year after the start of the doctoral process.