Career after the doctorate
Whether in academia or in other sectors: Doctoral graduates have excellent career prospects in Germany!
Career in academia
A doctorate is the basic requirement for a career in academia: as a scientist, doctoral graduates can research and teach at universities, universities of applied sciences, or non-university research institutions (e.g. Max Planck or Fraunhofer Institutes).
There are usually two qualification phases after the doctorate. As a postdoctoral researcher the first step is to raise your own profile through publications and third-party funding.
In the career phase Junior Faculty researchers then establish their eligibility for a professorship. This is done either through a habilitation, by successfully leading a junior research group or through a junior professorship. If the junior professorship has a so-called "tenure track", it leads directly to a tenured professorship if the evaluation is successful.
Career in business and society
Doctoral graduates are in high demand on the German job market: they have high employment rates, above-average salaries and great satisfaction in their jobs. The high market value of the Dr. title can be explained by various factors.
A successful doctorate demonstrates in-depth specialist knowledge, analytical skills and stamina. In addition, doctoral researchers develop important transferable skills: they manage complex projects, communicate their research results at international conferences and work independently. These skills are highly sought after by employers outside of universities.
What is the right choice for me?
At the beginning of their doctorate, many candidates do not yet know which career path they would like to take in the long term. For a successful career start, however, it is advisable to make a decision at an early stage.
The Graduate Center supports you in your career orientation and planning with individual advice and events for information, qualification and networking.
For their career planning, doctoral candidates should reflect on their own goals, motivations and skills:
- What do I enjoy?
- What am I good at?
- How important are pay, idealistic aspects or other framework conditions (e.g. work-life balance) to me?
Find out about interesting career paths in order to better understand the activities, requirements and framework conditions. Many events of the Graduate Center and the Research Academy Ruhr, such as the Karriereforum or the Wirtschaftskolleg, offer valuable information in this regard.
Where can I find a suitable job?
You can find jobs for doctoral graduates via the usual job search portals as well as on some specialized websites.
- General job search: e.g. Indeed or StepStone
- Science management: academics.de
- Public service: interamt.de