Doctoral Studies Office at the School of Cultural Studies and Social Sciences

At the beginning of the winter semester 2016/17, the  new doctoral regulations of the School of Cultural Studies and Social Sciences came into force, which will apply to all doctoral projects accepted from Oct. 2016, amended according to the official gazette of Osnabrück University dated 29.02.2024,
Nr. 02/2024.

The relevant  information and forms are available for download.

For doctoral candidates who were accepted before Oct. 2016, the previous doctoral regulations of the former Schools of Cultural Studies and Geography continue to apply. Please therefore refer to:

 Information and forms for doctoral procedures in the social sciences (acceptance before Oct. 2016)
(Political Science and Sociology)

 Information and forms for doctoral procedures in the cultural and earth sciences (acceptance before Oct. 2016)
(Geography, History, Art History, Art/Art Education and Textile Design).

In the preliminary procedure, the application of the new doctoral regulations can be requested
( sample text application (PDF, 368 kB)).

The doctoral committee usually meets once a month. The next meeting of the doctoral committee will take place on Wednesday, November 19, 2025. Any applications for acceptance as a doctoral candidate or admission to doctoral studies, etc., must be submitted to the doctoral office by Wednesday, November 5, 2025, at the latest.

Further meeting dates are scheduled for: Wednesday, December 10, 2025 (application deadline: November 26, 2025); Wednesday, February 4, 2026 (application deadline: January 21, 2026); Wednesday, March 4, 2026 (application deadline: February 18, 2026); and Wednesday, April 29, 2026 (application deadline: April 15, 2026). Please note that dates are subject to change! Please refer to the current information here on the homepage.

Official notifications regarding submitted applications are usually sent by mail within approximately two weeks after the meeting date. Until then, we kindly ask you to refrain from making any inquiries. 

Since the beginning of the summer semester 2016, an Individual Development Plan (IDP) must be completed for all new doctoral procedures. The supervisors are responsible for keeping the IDP themselves in order to protect the confidentiality of the agreements.

The form documenting the completion of the IDP must be signed by the supervisor and doctoral candidate and submitted to the Office of the Doctoral Committee as an attachment to the application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate.

Additionally, an IDP must be completed for all doctoral procedures currently in progress. The "Confirmation of completion of an Individual Doctoral Development Plan" must therefore be attached to the application for admission to doctoral studies, i.e., when the dissertation is submitted, unless it has already been submitted earlier.

 Individual Development Plan for the Doctorate (PDF, 1.27 MB)

 Confirmation of conclusion of an Individual Development Plan (IDP) for PhD Studies (PDF, 184 kB)