Faculty Public Presentation (FÖP)

The public presentation of the doctoral research project (FÖP) is the first mandatory step for all DSPL43 doctoral candidates in the entry phase, following admission to the doctoral programme. It is a prerequisite for the official approval of the dissertation topic and for concluding the doctoral thesis agreement. The FÖP must be completed within the first year of study.

Requirements for FÖP Registration

• Participation in the FÖP is only possible with valid admission to the doctoral programme.
• Subject-specific requirements ("Auflagen") should ideally be fulfilled before the FÖP. In exceptional cases, DSPL43 may grant approval despite outstanding requirements.
• The dissertation must be supervised by a habilitated person authorized to supervise doctoral students. A current list of eligible supervisors is available on the SSC Philosophy website and on the VDP homepage.

Registration for the FÖP

FÖP registration must be submitted via the SSC Philosophy Servicedesk. Deadlines and dates can be found online. The order and time slots for the presentations are determined by DSPL43. The following documents must be submitted as PDFs via the Servicedesk:

1. Registration of the dissertation topic (SL/D11)
2. Declaration on the rules of good academic practice (SL/W1)
3. Exposé of the dissertation project (requirements available on the VDP website)
4. Cotutelle agreement (only if applicable)

Structure of the FÖP

1. Presentation (max. 10 minutes, in German or English, based on the exposé; presentation slides are possible)
2. Discussion (20 minutes with the Doctoral Advisory Board)
3. Result: Announced after a closed discussion by the board, possibly including suggestions for revision or further recommendations.

A written protocol is kept during the FÖP and can be viewed in person at the SSC Philosophy by appointment.

If the FÖP is not passed, the dissertation topic may be withdrawn, and the candidate may resubmit a revised exposé and reapply for a later date. In this case, registration must again be completed via the SSC Philosophy Servicedesk.

After the FÖP

1. Protocol review: Appointment via the Servicedesk
2. Next steps: Once the protocol is signed by DSPL43, the doctoral thesis agreement may be concluded

Dissertation Agreement & ECTS

After the dissertation project has been approved as part of the FÖP (doctoral thesis agreement presentation), the research phase begins. According to the curriculum, a total of 24 ECTS must be earned — either through DSPL43 courses or through other academic activities that support the doctoral project.

The planned distribution of ECTS is documented in the Dissertation Agreement (DV) (Page 2, Section 7). The DSPL recommends earning at least 15 ECTS through doctoral seminars offered by DSPL43. Deviations from this recommendation must be justified (e.g., in relation to the research project or future career plans).

Submitting the Dissertation Agreement

After successfully completing the FÖP, students must conclude a Dissertation Agreement (DV) with their supervisor(s), which must then be approved by DSPL43.

1. Complete the Dissertation Agreement form (DV.01)
2. Obtain signatures from the supervisor(s)
3. Submit the form as a PDF via the Servicedesk
4. Review and approval by DSPL43

Key Contents of the Dissertation Agreement

Dissertation Project (Page 1)

All relevant information about the study program and dissertation subject is included in the Studienblatt (available via u:space).

Feedback (Page 2, Section 4):

• DSPL43 guideline: Feedback must be provided within four weeks after submission of chapters or research results.
• It must be indicated whether feedback will be given orally, in writing, or both.

ECTS Planning (Page 2, Section 7):

• Section 7 of the Dissertation Agreement outlines how the 24 ECTS required for the doctoral program will be earned.
• ECTS can be obtained through DSPL43 courses (e.g., seminars, workshops) or through other academic activities that support the doctoral project.
• If possible, specific courses or conferences should already be named (e.g., Seminar X, Conference Y).
• The DSPL recommends that at least 15 ECTS be earned through DSPL43 doctoral seminars. Any deviation from this recommendation must be clearly justified in the DV and aligned with the dissertation project or individual career goals.
• A possible distribution could be: “15 ECTS through DSPL43 doctoral seminars, 9 ECTS through academic activities.”

Recognition of External Achievements & Academic Activities

Progress reports

After successfully completing the FÖP, it is recommended to submit a progress report annually. The report serves to document the progress of the research and ensures the continuous development of the dissertation. It also provides an opportunity to record any necessary adjustments to the research plan and coordinate them with DSPL43.

Submission:

1. The progress report (Form DZ.V02) can be submitted once per year, shortly after the reporting period has ended, as a PDF via the Service Desk for approval by DSPL43.

Assignment of the dissertation to examiners

The assignment of the dissertation to the examiners marks the beginning of the final phase of the doctoral program. The assignment determines which persons will evaluate the dissertation. The following is the process for assigning a dissertation in the context of DSPL43:

1. Students and supervisors jointly submit three proposals for external reviewers to the DSPL using the application for assignment of the dissertation to examiners (SL.D3). - The application must be accompanied by a German and (if possible) an English abstract (SL.D 4 DE and EN) and one CV including a list of publications for each proposed person (the forms SL.D3 and SL.D4 and CV files must be submitted as a single PDF file via the SSC's service desk; the forms can be found here)
2. The DSPL makes a preliminary decision as to which reviewers should be requested by the SSC and the SSC contacts the reviewers.
3. As soon as the SSC has two acceptances, the potential external reviewers are submitted to the Studienpräses for approval.

Important notes:

• Helpful information for the selection of reviewers can also be found on the website of the VDP.
• Neither the students nor the supervisors may contact (potential) examiners - students must not have worked scientifically with the examiners in the past, e.g. published publications
• Only submit the application for assignment to examiners when you can foresee that you will soon be submitting your dissertation
• The application for assignment must go through several instances and the acceptance or rejection of the invitation by the external reviewers can take some time - it may take several weeks before the reviewers can be approved by the Studienpräses.

Submission of the dissertation

After the dissertation has been assigned to the external reviewers, it can be submitted via u:space. Information on submission via u:space can be found here.

Once the dissertation has passed the plagiarism check and been sent to the external reviewers for assessment, students must submit the following to the SSC:

1. A digital copy of the signed HOPLA upload confirmation - via the service desk
2. Form SL.D6 Submission of the dissertation - via the service desk, the form can be found here
3. 3 printed copies of the dissertation including a copy of the HOPLA upload confirmation to be submitted in person at the SSC

The SSC must receive the two external reviews within a period of four months. As soon as the SSC receives a review, it will be forwarded to the students and supervisors via the SSC service desk.

Important note:

Students and their supervisors must not under any circumstances contact the reviewers during the review period.

Defense

After the positive assessment of the dissertation and the completion of all course work, students can register for the public defense via the SSC's service desk. The necessary form SL.P4 Registration for the Final Oral Examination can be found here.

The examination board for the defense consists of the DSPL (chair) and the two external reviewers (examiners) and awards the grade for the defensio.

The defensio consists of the following:

• The students give a presentation on the research field of the dissertation (up to 20 minutes)
• The presentation is followed by questions from the examination board (approx. 40 minutes)
• Non-public discussion of the examination board
• Grading Announcement

Notes:

• The defense is a public examination, members of the public may attend the defensio
• The grade for the defensio assesses the quality of the presentation and the student's performance during the defense, i.e. the grade does not take into account the dissertation or its grade