Doctoral Project

Because each doctoral candidate has a variety of administrative needs, the TUM provides specialized administrative support depending on the nature of the inquiry. For administrative purposes, each graduate student is seen as having multiple statuses:

• From a legal perspective, each doctoral candidate officially belongs to the Department of Mathematics during his/her dissertation project. All inquiries relating to legally important administrative matters, such as registration as a doctoral candidate, dissertation submission, and doctoral examinations, should be directed to the Dean's Office.
• As a doctoral candidate in mathematics, each graduate student is a member either of the departmental Graduate Center ISAM or the Graduate Center most relevant to his/her dissertation topic. The individual Graduate Centers, all of which belong to the Graduate School, are responsible for general administration, student records, and special events. Further information can be found in the comprehensive list of graduate centers and staff.
• As a doctoral candidate at the TUM, each graduate student has various rights, obligations, and possibilities. For all general matters concerning promotion, study and degree regulations, professional development opportunities, etc., please visit the TUM Graduate School.
• Each doctoral candidate registered at the TUM can enroll as a doctoral student for a maximum of six semesters. Please apply via TUMonline.
• For support as scholars, doctoral candidates should look to their academic advisors within the department. Mentors and colleagues from the respective research group are also here to lend support in all matters of scholarly development.
• Doctoral candidates who are also employees at the TUM should consult the personnel office with all inquiries regarding matters of public sector employment law such as contracts, leave due to illness, vacation, etc.
• Doctoral students who are grant recipients should address any questions about related financial and legal matters to the provider of the grant.
• The doctoral examination office will be relevant for submitting your dissertation.

Here is an overview where to go with your questions:

The standard doctorate, offered at our Department, is coordinated through the International School of Applied Mathematics (ISAM) If you are interested in applying to the programs TopMath or IGDK, there are important steps to be taken prior to admission. 

1. Formal degree requirements

To fulfill the formal requirements for a doctorate at our department, you must have completed your master's degree or diploma with at least the grade 2.5 in the German grading system. Applicants with a degree obtained from a foreign university must get a recognition to determine the equivalence of their degree by translating your Grade Point Average into the German grading system. With the Grade Conversion Tool you can check the result for your Grade Point Average.

For further information and advice concerning formal requirements, please contact the dean’s office.

2. Finding your supervisor

In order to be admitted to a standard doctoral program, you will need the supervision provided by a member of the Faculty of Mathematics. That's why we recommend external applicants to get in touch with a potential supervisor in advance, and present documents that support their abilities. If your dissertation topic is definite, fill in the supervision agreement together with the supervisor.

You can find information on the required procedure under Graduate Office.

3. Registration on the doctoral candidacy list

In order to receive the status of an official doctoral candidate, you have to apply for official registration on the Department's doctoral candidacy list. Please submit the application via the online platform DocGS. The registration is mandatory.

• Applicants with a German or foreign degree: Please submit the documents listed here to the dean's office.
• Applicants with a foreign degree: Inform yourself about the recognition procedure, which is integrated in the application for entry in the doctoral candidacy list.
• Here you find information which documents you need to hand in as certified copies.
• After your registration on the doctoral list you can decide yourself if you want to enroll as a doctoral student for student benefits.

4. Qualification program

According to the TUM doctoral regulations, any doctoral student has to fulfill the mandatory basic program during the promotion period. In the supervision agreement, you may declare further accomplishments to be achieved, such as scientific qualification, transferable skills, or international experience. Your graduate center will inform you about categories and requirements.

For more information, see the instructions on Graduate Office.

5. Interim evaluation

Interim evaluations are conducted after one to two years of work on the dissertation. At this time your supervisor will assess progress and help determine whether the dissertation should be continued in the planned form.

For more information about milestones and benefits, look at Graduate Office.

6. Submit your promotion

Once you have finished your dissertation, you can apply for your doctorate. Therefore, you have to submit your dissertation first electronically through the DocGS platform and then as a paper. Please note that an upload is possible only after you have successfully completed the respective requirements. To submit your dissertation, please read the instructions carefully and direct all remaining questions to the Dean's Office.