PhD Handbook

9 3.3 HOW LONG DOES A DISSERTATION TAKE? There is no exact time frame or deadline for a PhD disser- tation in Germany, although it usually should take 3 to 3½ years and should not take longer than 5 years. Although most universities have a primary deadline by which you should have submitted your thesis, this is usually extendable. This dead- line is not attached to the funding which is provided either through a working contract or scholarship. 3.4 WHO CAN BE MY SUPERVISOR? Generally your supervisor is a professor or a faculty member who has completed a “Habilitation”. This is a particular qua- lification like a second dissertation that is common for those in academia in Germany and permits to teach at university. Anyone could be your supervisor; however, you must have at least one professor or “PD” on your committee as your “Doktorvater/-mutter”. 3.5 WHAT TO EXPECT FROM MY SUPERVISOR? Ultimately, your supervisor should support and guide you throughout your time as a PhD candidate to produce a good dissertation. Your supervisor should meet with you regularly to give advice on problems that arise but not do the work for you. Some Helmholtz centers provide special supervisor guide- lines which specifically define tasks and duties of scientific supervision. As your project gets underway, your supervisor should support you planning your experiments, laboratory and field work. When you have become more familiar with your topic, they should allow you increased freedom in the laboratory and give more attention to the analysis, interpretation and presentation of your results. Your supervisor will also have a better idea about how long it takes to write a dissertation and when you should end practi- cal work and start to write up. Supervisors know many people in their field; so use their capacity as great networking tools. At conferences or at your institute they should introduce you to faculty or academics in the same field as you. An article in the Science magazine Careers section entitled ‘The PhD-Doctor: What (Not) to Expect From Your Supervisor’ by Herman Lelieveldt is also well worth a read: www.sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_magazine/previ- ous_issues/articles/2003_08_22/nodoi.2427969316782463479 3.6 WHAT SHOULD YOUR SUPERVISOR EXPECT FROM YOU? Supervisors expect you to take your PhD seriously, to drive the project and to be excited about your research and share the interesting results with them openly for discussion. They expect you to turn up to meetings on time, and heed the ad- vice they give to you. You should organize regular meetings to discuss your project as this will help to keep you on track. At the beginning, you will learn a lot from your supervisors but towards the end of your time as a PhD, your advisor will expect to be learning something from you! Please also check your center’s individual PhD and supervision guidelines.

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