How to PhD

An unofficial guide from PhD students for PhD students (Currently work in progress, for questions please reach out to dekanat∂physik.kit.edu)

Old version (can contain mistakes!):

This is just a list of tips and links. Neigther a legal document nor something else you should rely on. It is based on information provided by PhD students of the EKP, ITP, GPI, TKM/TFP, IFP, LAS, ...

The rules concerning the PhD are given in the Promotionsordnung which is available on the webpage of the department. It's current version is from 2006 with additions from 2012.

For general information concerning doing your PhD at KIT there is also a so called manual from the Karlsruhe House of Young Scientists (KHYS) which is unfortunately also just in German and called Handbuch für Promovierende. Luckily the basic information is also available in English on their website. You can help the working group on working conditions to create a handout about working conditions as a PhD at the department of physics which then can be linked and published here as well.

 

Starting your PhD

If you have not received your diploma's certificate yet you need to exmatriculate. But you can start your PhD anyways.

Fill in a Promotionsvereinbarung and have your supervisor sign it.

Register at the Karlsruhe House of Young Scientists KHYS as a doctoral student. Make sure that all data you enter matches the data in the Promotionsvereinbarung.

After you have received a confirmation of successful registration with KHYS, go to the "Dekanatssekretariat" (9th floor, Phone 608-42052) and get an "Antrag auf Aufnahme als Doktorand/in" (faculty application). This is the application to the physics faculty as a PhD student. Bring both the confirmation by KHYS and the Promotionsvereinbarung when you go there. The faculty application has to be signed by the doctoral thesis supervisor and, according to the doctorate regulations of 2006, by a mentor you may choose. The mentor has to be either a Professor or a Privatdozent who must not be a member of your institute. The idea of the mentor is to mediate in conflict situations. Return the application to the Dekanatssekretariat for the dean's signature.

If you don't have a contract with more than or equal to 50 per cent you can enroll as a PhD student. Therefore go to "Studierendenservice" (building 10.12), and hand in the fully-signed faculty application, your final degree's certificate and a copy of your A-levels. You will receive a remittance slip by mail. Pay and you will be enrolled. Note that you can officially enroll maximally for three years.

 

Ending your PhD

6 months before your exam: Start to write up your thesis.

3 months before your exam: Probably you have got 50 per cent of your writing and estimate when you're done.

  • Decide on final second supervisor If you still have got no second supervisor it's time to get one (most often at your institute)!
  • Organize your date of exam according to prior agreement with your supervisors with the Dekanatssekretariat. This date mustn't be more than three month in the future.
  • Go to a Bürgerbüro and ask for a “Polizeiliches Führungszeugnis”. It mustn't be older than three month at the date of exam. It doesn't matter if it's for your personal use (will be send to your private address) or for official (will be send to the Dekanat), but it's more convenient to choose the private one. Mind the fee (ca. 13 €). The same applies for foreign students (as noted in the BZRG §30).

External supervisors are not allowed in the questioning session, but are allowed to join the talk if requested. Therefore your first/local supervisor needs to write an e-mail to the Dekanat.

6 to 4 weeks before your exam: Apply for your PhD exam at the welcome desk/PhD desk of the Studiendenservice roughly six weeks before the date of the exam. You will need the following documents:

  • Zulassungsgesuch an den Dekan ({{CoverLetter.tex|example LaTex file}})
  • Lebenslauf
  • Publikationsliste
  • (Unqualified) Copy of your Abitur- and Diplomzeugnis
  • Polizeiliches Führungszeugnis
  • Erklärung über die selbständige Fertigung der Dissertation
  • Erklärung über etwaige frühere Promotionsverfahren

6 weeks before your exam: Hand your copy of your thesis to your supervisor. Maybe you get some suggestions/proof reading. (Start planing your PhD party.)

4 weeks before your exam: Give your thesis to your supervisor, second supervisor and the Dekanat (Version zur Begutachtung). Inform your supervisors of their time frame for their Gutachten/report.

Wednesday two weeks before your exam (16 days), 10:00 am: Gutachten/report of your supervisors need to be handed in at the Dekanat (remind them a few days before that day) Hand in your final hardback thesis (don't use Ringbindung/ spiral binding, but Kaltleimbindung/ cold glue binding or at least Heißleimbindung/ hot glue binding). Print at least 1 (Dekanat) + 2 (supervisors) + 3 (examiners) = 6 versions.

2 weeks before your exam: The names of the committee of your exam is send to you via post and via Hauspost to your institute address. Ask your three examiners and the head of the committee (most often the Dekan himself) for an appointment. Provide each of them a copy of your thesis. Kindly ask them for tips regarding the topics of the Q&A part of the exam. Probably ask their PhDs and post docs about the basics of the field they are working at.

Prepare your poster or slides. Since the exam usually is in held in German many Professors appreciate to see German slides and plots and not English ones. So in case you aren't a foreign speaker and have kindly asked for giving your talk in English you should prepare German slides and plots.

Plot your poster or kindly ask the dean's secretary for letting you into the room for testing your laptop with the LCD projector.

Learn physics.

Practice your talk together with post-docs, colleges, your supervisors. And try to focus on a free speech with the blackboard instead of your posters or slides.

Organize your equipment for the poster talk (poster slates, pins, ...; or laptop, presenter, ...).

 

Day of exam

Prepare your talk: serve yourself some water, make the sponge wet, clean the blackboard, find a pointer Hang up your posters (up to three) or prepare your presentation and leave the room while the committee discusses for which grade they try to examine you.

Welcome the Vorsitzenden/Dekan, rest of the committee.

PART 1: Talk

Your talk should be about 20+/-1 minutes, but you are not interrupted and the clock is in your back. The talk may be supported by a blackboard, up to three posters or a presentation, which shouldn't be like a talk on a conference, but more like the posters. Probably the most important part of the exam. Not by weight in the final grade, but this part is completely in your hands! It is impossible to refresh all your knowledge in a couple of weeks, but to prepare a good talk is doable. Be aware that changing from one poster to the next takes time and is unhandy. Thus, keep the number of posters low. Also remember that your talk is not for physicist of your field, but for the committee and thus should be general, but show the impact of your work for physics. Usually the rules are explained before by the Dekan.

PART 2: Questioning

At the moment the questions in the examination are not limited to your field of physics, but only to physics. So be prepared in all fields of physics and especially if you are a geo-physicist or a meteorologist, you should look into physics books, since the majority of the examiners probably are not familiar with your topic.

Four times 10 minutes questioning. Be relaxed and try to answer fast and show your confidence. Expect to get questions you can't answer, so keep smiling and try to show your way of thinking and drawing conclusions.

Distinction (Auszeichnung): Advisor suggests you

In case your second supervisor isn't from Karlsruhe get a signature for “Druckerlaubnis”/allowance to publish your thesis. You can get the form from the Dekanat.

 

After your exam

Within one year afterwards

  • Fill in the ”Formular für nur elektronische Version der Dissertation“
  • Change the cover page of your thesis from “eingereichte Arbeit” to “genehmigte Arbeit”. This is also the final chance to change your title of your thesis (without big difficulties)
  • Upload your thesis at the library's “Elektronisches Volltextarchiv EVA STAR”. The library informs the Dekanat and the Studierenenservice.
  • Hand in your hardback thesis at the Dekanat and your institute.

Wait for your certificate or ask for it when handing in your hardback at the Dekanat.