International Doctoral Candidates

The IO would like to support international doctoral candidates in their doctoral studies at the University of Hildesheim and offers a comprehensive service for this purpose:

• Help with finding accommodation
• Participation in the introductory days for international program students
• Participation in offers of the semester program
• Language courses offered by the International Office
• Network meetings for international doctoral students at the University of Hildesheim
• Arrangement of a language tandem
• Media lending
• Advice, support and integration

Download the service flyer.

• Application for admission to doctoral studies (German version)
• Application for admission to doctoral studies (English version)
• Further information on admission to doctoral studies
• Research at the University of Hildesheim
• Graduate Center - Doctorate
• Enrolment Office - All forms
• Doctoral information of the individual departments:
  • Department 1: Education & Social Sciences
  • Department 2: Cultural Studies & Aesthetic Communication
  • Department 3: Linguistics and Information Science
  • Department 4: Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Economics and Computer Science

• DAAD umbrella portal
• DAAD - Doing a doctorate in Germany
• EURACCESS: Information on housing, insurance, schools, etc. for incoming researchers
• Living in Germany - Portal of the DAAD
• IO link tips on Germany and life in Germany
• BMBF Stipendienlotse - Scholarship database of the BMBF incl. doctoral scholarships
• DAAD scholarship database
• European Commission Funding Opportunitieshttps://www.boell.de/de/stipendien
• Friedrich Ebert Foundation
• German Research Foundation (DFG)
• Gerda Henkel Foundation (funding primarily in the field of history)
• Quick Check Visa
• Federal Foreign Office

More information and the leaflet for download can be found on the HRK website: https://www.hrk.de/themen/internationales/internationale-studierende-und-forschende/mobilitaet-und-anerkennung/aufenthaltstitel

You can use the Quick Check to quickly find out whether you meet the requirements for a visa. Further information is also available on the website of the Federal Foreign Office.

The German Residence Act offers various options for international researchers from countries outside the European Union who wish to come to Germany for research purposes for a limited period of time, e.g. to complete a doctorate, or on a long-term basis.

Depending on the individual situation (form of research project, desired duration of stay, salary level, family circumstances, etc.), several residence permits are possible (residence for the purpose of studies, residence for the purpose of highly qualified employment/EU Blue Card, settlement permit for skilled workers, research visa), which are structured differently and address different target groups.

For this reason, the HRK has compiled an overview in German and English of the various residence permits for researchers from non-EU countries. This is intended to make it easier for both foreign researchers and the inviting and advising bodies at German universities and research institutions to choose the appropriate residence permit.

The overview provides information on the requirements for obtaining a specific residence permit, such as minimum salary limits or required language skills, and also contains information on topics such as family reunification and access to social benefits such as child or parental benefits. The German and English versions of the leaflet were published in a revised edition in August 2020.

You can find more information on the HRK website:
https://www.hrk.de/themen/internationales/internationale-studierende-und-forschende/mobilitaet-und-anerkennung/aufenthaltstitel

Links:

https://www.make-it-in-germany.com/en/visa-residence/quick-check

https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/en/visa-service

Downloads:

https://www.hrk.de/fileadmin/redaktion/hrk/02-Dokumente/02-10-Publikationsdatenbank/EVI_2024_Deutsches_Aufenthaltsrecht_fuer_Wissenschaftler_2024.pdf

By: Hamza Rafique, Syed Babar Ali School of Science & Engineering | Lahore, 02.12.2024

I am deeply grateful to the University of Hildesheim for inviting me as a guest PhD researcher for a three-month research stay. This experience has been a transformative and enriching one. From the moment I arrived, I was struck by the university's warm and welcoming atmosphere, whose support extended to all aspects of my stay, from finding accommodation to navigating transportation and accessing campus facilities, allowing me to settle in and feel at home in a foreign country.

During my stay at the University of Hildesheim, I had the opportunity to immerse myself in the Department of Geography's vibrant research environment. As a guest researcher, I was able to tap into the department's expertise in geographic information systems (GIS), remote sensing, and nature conservation. Specifically, I was able to develop new skills in combining technological aspects with environmental conservation, including the application of remote sensing techniques in grassland habitat conservation. This was a timely and relevant area of research, and I was able to present my work to the faculty and research students, who provided valuable feedback and insights that helped me refine my ideas and approaches. I firmly believe that the progress I made in such a short span of time was only possible here, thanks to the university's in-house expertise.

My experience at the University of Hildesheim has not only enriched my academic knowledge but also had a profound impact on my personal growth and cultural exposure. Through my interactions with the faculty and students, I developed a greater appreciation for the diversity of cultures, perspectives, and experiences, forming lasting connections. As I return to my home institution, while I will miss the time I spent with my colleagues at Mensa, I am confident that the skills, knowledge, and connections I made during my stay at the University of Hildesheim will continue to shape my research and academic pursuits for years to come.

By: Amr Azouz, Ainshams University | Cairo, 10.12.2021

The following is my experience report on my research stay in Hildesheim. From 1.7.2021 to 1.10.2021, I had the opportunity to spend three months as a PHD student at the University of Hildesheim. The stay takes place in a crucial phase of my work and has helped me to better focus on the topic of the thesis. In addition, the discussions with my host supervisor Prof. Dr. Elke Montanari, Prof. Dr. Bettina Kluge and Prof. Dr. Burckhard Moenighoff have opened up new perspectives for me in dealing with the topic. I am very grateful to all of them for that. In Hildesheim, I not only had the chance to develop myself further on an academic level, but I also had the opportunity to visit and get to know other interesting German cities. I would like to thank all of Prof. Dr. Montanari's staff for their cooperative support. They all helped me with help and advice. The role of the university's International Office was very important. The people in charge at the International Office helped me with the preparations and finalization of the documents. Overall, I am very satisfied with my experience in Hildesheim and would like to have the opportunity to visit the city and the university again. I also hope that the cooperation between my home university and the University of Hildesheim will continue and develop.

Amr Azouz

Assistant Lecturer- Ainshams University

Spending three months at the University of Hildesheim did my dissertation project a lot of good. First of all, I was able to present this project in the course of Prof. René Dausner's doctoral colloquium, which was designed as a block event lasting two days. Specifically, my research project revolves around the bilingual literature of the Austrian-Israeli poet and aphorist Elazar Benyoetz (*1937 in Wiener Neustadt, Austria). Getting feedback on specific questions that arise during the writing process helps researchers of all levels to achieve better results. The regular meetings with my local supervisor Prof. Dausner - who himself did his doctorate on Elazar Benyoëtz - also contributed significantly to this. Thanks to his comments and observations, I was able to refine and sharpen chapters and sub-chapters that were already almost finished, as well as give more concrete form to those that were in the process of being written.

In addition, other interdisciplinary and international research projects were initiated by Prof. Dausner. To this end, I organized several video conferences in our project team with Prof. Michael Bongardt (Siegen), Prof. Katharina Heyden (Bern), Prof. Claudia Welz (Aarhus) and Prof. Dausner around a (documentary) film about the life and work of Elazar Benyoëtz. Initial explorations with possible filmmakers have taken place.

I am also once again involved in the publication of an academic journal, this time as editor together with Claudia Welz: a special edition of the series "Conditio Judaica. Studien und Quellen zur deutschen Literatur- und Kulturgeschichte" (Bern) series to mark Benyoëtz's 85th birthday in 2022 is being planned.

Last but not least, I was able to complete the first phase of another project with Prof. Dausner at the beginning of November: In cooperation with the Franz Rosenzweig Minerva Research Center at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, including specifically through collaboration with Dr. Jan Kühne and Prof. Benjamin Pollock, we submitted a project proposal to the Volkswagen Foundation. The research project is entitled Digitality and Dignity - Spaces of Memory in the Age of Digital Reproducibility and is intended to investigate the material and virtual conditions of human dignity in their interrelationship with the transformation of the book medium in the digital age, at the interface between library and archival science, computer science and informatics.

Apart from the exciting research projects, I also had my first contribution on the radio thanks to my supervisor, Prof. Dausner, namely as part of a podcast production with NDR about the work-free Sunday. I spoke about the Shabbat, which was part of the program on the occasion of the anniversary of 1700 years of Jewish life in Germany. The program was broadcast on 8.8.2021 and is part of the podcast series "vertikal horizontal. Questions of faith and conscience" until 4.2.2022.

I also made good use of the weekends, albeit not for research: thanks to the state-wide semester ticket of the student bodies in Lower Saxony and Bremen, I was able to explore the area and discovered many a beautiful place.

Hildesheim Research Life

I came to Hildesheim in 2014 without knowing what to expect and without much expectation from the coming five years. I visited the town one time during the heat wave that summer and realized that though it is small it can easily become a temporary home, the same went for the University.

However, I was not prepared for the pleasant surprise the Hildesheim University turned out to be. In the very beginning I was very fortunate to have a dedicated supervisor, Prof. Dr. Stefan Krankenhagen. He placed a lot of challenge and trust in me, giving me a large room to conceptualize and test my ideas, always with enthusiastic and at the same time assertive tone. During my five-year research project, I had a chance to work with undergraduate and master students at the university, through to seminars and two excursions abroad. I came to know how specific and above all interesting the program of cultural studies in Hildesheim is, and was truly humbled by the vit and intellectual level and potentials of most of my students.

Much of my good experience is owed to what the University of Hildesheim has to offer as an educational and research institution - from working spaces and library to the significant support of the International Office, I as an international student received. The International Office assisted me with any and all issues I as a foreigner in Germany encountered, and they even made it possible to get an official engagement as a research assistant within the Institute for Media, Theater and Popular culture. They did their best to make Hildesheim feel like home for the very first day. And the programs they do offer for international Ph.D. students do provide very useful skills, especially the language courses with the English academic writing seminar being of great help for the production of my thesis.

As much as I know that much of the positive experience of my Hildesheim research life is owed to the great synergy I had with my supervisor, that can be seen as simply luck.

I expect many will not look back too fondly at the year 2020 for obvious reasons...but I hope all of us were able to find a silver lining in the midst of adversity.The pandemic has taught me to count my blessings and live in the moment which is no bad thing!In all honesty, I did not harbor great hopes to be able to carry out my research stay at Hildesheim University; it had already been delayed by six months and I feared that it would never happen.However, fortunately, with a bit of luck, my stay received the go-ahead! I felt both privileged and relieved to be able to travel (something that I had hitherto taken for granted) to carry out my research activities.Although the pandemic had tempered my expectations, I still had high hopes for my stay at Hildesheim University and I was certainly not disappointed!On the contrary, the experience exceeded my expectations.My personal highlight was the visit to Heidelberg; a quaint and elegant city along the Neckar river and the academic home of many grand scholars, notably, Max Weber and Jürgen Habermas.The snakes-and-ladders climb along the "Philosophenweg" (Philosophers Walk) was certainly worth the physical effort, with a breath-taking backdrop of the city a sight to behold.Naturally, my stay involved a lot of hard graft, and lockdown Mark II at least helped me to focus on the task at hand. Hildesheim University's modern, state-of-the-art facilities ensured that I could get the most out of my research stay.That said, the experience was not all plain sailing. As in much of Europe, the pandemic situation began to deteriorate in the Autumn, and I had to adjust quickly to heightened restrictions at roughly the halfway point of my stay.Amenities began to close such as museums, gyms, bars and restaurants and I had to find different ways to keep mentally and physically healthy.Luckily, Hildesheim and the surrounding area is blessed with beautiful woodlands and countryside, which allowed me to go for daily walks and jogs to keep my spirits high.Although limited opportunities to socialize proved a challenge at times, fortunately, Hildesheim University provided regular virtual courses and workshops to keep me engaged!On the whole, my experience was an immensely positive one, and I thoroughly recommend prospective students to choose Hildesheim University for an international exchange.I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to Professor Schünemann for his unwavering support on both a personal and professional level.I learned a great deal about my PhD project (as well as Germany's rich culture!) from our verbal exchanges.I would like to extend my thanks to the University's International Office for their ongoing support and assistance and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for awarding me the research scholarship.

And many thanks to Hildesheim!

My life and studies in Hildesheim

This small town offers me everything I need. I can walk everywhere and can be in the countryside within fifteen minutes of the city center. Here I also have contact with other people outside the university, which is also important for me, because as a doctoral student I stay more than a normal Erasmus student and many of the students I met at the university have already left. I think this city is perfect for doing a doctorate, you don't have so many distractions and you can still have a really good time. The staff at the university, both the lecturers and professors as well as the employees, are always easy to reach and communication with them is always very friendly and personal, which I really like. I can also work very well in the library and find the most important literature for my dissertation topic there. That's why the University of Hildesheim was and is my first choice and I'm happy that I can do my doctorate here.

Liliana Camacho González, May 2019