Financing your Ph.D.
You can finance your doctorate either by finding employment at a university chair or at one of the cooperating extramural research institutions, by means of a doctoral scholarship or by working outside the university.
Working as a research assistant at the University of Potsdam or the cooperating extramural research institutions
Doctoral candidates can be hired as research assistants at the University of Potsdam or one of the cooperating extramural research institutions. These positions will be advertised as usual and require a normal application.
Most of these doctoral positions are subject to fixed-term and part-time employment contracts (about 50% of regular working hours). During the specified working hours, you will, for example, be required to do lab work, assist the research work of the Chair or perform other miscellaneous duties for the research project. You are supposed to spend the remainder of your time writing your dissertation. Tasks and working hours depend on the respective supervisor and subject-specific practices and are defined in writing.
You can find suitable job announcements here, for example:
- Job advertisements for academic staff at the University of Postdam
- Job advertisements from other research institutions in the Berlin-Brandenburg area
- EURAXESS – job offers in academics and research (worldwide)
- Academics – job offers in academics and research (worldwide)
Before starting a new job, non-EU citizens will sometimes have to provide a permit issued by the Foreigners’ Registration Office and/or the employment agency. The Welcome Center of the University of Potsdam will gladly advise you in this matter.
Scholarships
A large number of external foundations and organizations offers a wide variety of scholarships:
- German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
- Euraxess – scholarships and job offers
- My Stipendium – scholarship database with more than 3,000 scholarship programs
- StipendiumPlus – Promotion of gifted students in higher education
- E-fellows – scholarship database with more than 1,000 entries
The University of Potsdam offers many seminars, advisory services and interdisciplinary exchange through the Potsdam Graduate School (PoGS).
Bridging and completion scholarships
There are specific bridging or completion scholarships for doctoral candidates who have almost completed their degree. You can look for these scholarships in the databases mentioned above. You can find the bridging or completion scholarships offered by the University of Potsdam here:
- Gertrud Feiertag Scholarship program from the Equal Opportunity Coordination Office at the University of Potsdam – Funding period of max. six months; applications can be sent at any time
- Support for young researchers at the Faculty of Science – funding period from January to June; application in March for the following year
Printing or publication cost
Printing or publication cost for the finalized dissertation can also be subsidized through scholarships:
- Potsdam Graduate School (PoGS) – Publication cost subsidies – application no later than 3 months after oral defense of the dissertation (not applicable for printing cost of the obligatory copies)
- My Stipendium – Printing cost scholarships
Travel expenses
If you incur travel expenses in the context of your doctoral project – for example, for traveling to conventions and conferences or research stays abroad – there are several funding options available. Some of the options are listed here:
- International Office of the University of Potsdam – Advising on funding for research stays abroad
- Potsdam Graduate School (PoGS) – Application for a travel cost subsidies is possible at any time
- DAAD – travel cost scholarships for congresses or presentations as well as for research stays abroad
Employment outside of academia
You can also finance your doctoral studies by working outside of academia. You can find many job advertisements in Potsdam, Berlin and the surrounding area that offer part-time jobs or employment contracts on an hourly basis on the University’s Go Practice platform, for example (only for students that are enrolled at the University of Potsdam).
Here is a selection of other job platforms:
- Studis-Online – job offers for university graduates
- Employment Agency – job offers for anyone
- LinkedIn – job and networking platform