Index

Structured doctoral programs

Rather than doing an individual doctoral project, you may decide to take part in one of the Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy’s many structured doctoral programs.

For more general information on structured doctoral programs, please visit the homepage of the Graduate Center.

Safety in the laboratory

FAU and the Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy are committed to ensuring all university members use the laboratory facilities in a safe and responsible manner to prevent accidents, personal injury, and damage to university property.

While most doctoral candidates likely already know the basics of laboratory safety, it might be helpful to read through the following resources, especially if you are, for example, working with hazardous materials for the first time.

More detailed information on specific safety concerns in the laboratory may be found on the individual webpages of the various chairs and working groups.

Current Research Information System (CRIS)

FAU’s Current Research Information System or CRIS is a centralized database that provides details on all projects, inventions, and publications completed by researchers in the FAU community. While CRIS is a valuable resource, it cannot account for all of FAU’s research activities or output. Please see the CRIS homepage for more information.

Services for researchers

As part of the University Administration, the Department of Research Services and Research Development can be a valuable resource in applying for third-party funding, publishing, project proposals and management, and more. Please see their homepage for more information.

Researching abroad

You may decide, during the course of your doctoral studies, to complete some of your research abroad, either as an opportunity to improve your language skills or as part of an international collaboration or both.

For more information on researching abroad, please contact the Department of Research Services and Research Development and/or the Central Office for International Affairs (RIA).

Registration via docDaten

All doctoral candidates of the FAU are required to register via the online portal docDaten. Following registration, submit all required documents to the Office of Doctoral Affairs (Promotionsbüro); these documents are available for download from docDaten.

More information can be found on the homepage of the Graduate Center.

Psychological and psychotherapeutic counseling

Working towards a doctoral degree can be stressful, and it is common for doctoral candidates to experience depression, anxiety, and other psychological symptoms as a result. If you are struggling and need help, consider making an appointment with the Studentenwerk’s psychological and psychotherapeutic counseling service.

In case you need to talk to someone outside of normal operating hours (evenings, weekends, and holidays), consider contacting Erlangen’s 24-hour counselling hotline or the crisis service of Central Franconia.

All links given above are only available in German at this time.

Process of doctoral study

The process of your doctoral studies may vary depending on your topic, employment contract, or the type of degree program. Individual doctoral degrees might take longer and might require different steps when compared with a structured degree program, for example. Your doctoral supervisor is the best resource for figuring out this process, but you might also find the Graduate Centre helpful for more information and support.

Networking with other doctoral candidates

Networking is not just for business students – getting to know other doctoral candidates can lead to interesting research collaborations, not to mention help you to build up a network of social support during this often stressful phase in life.

For more information on upcoming networking events, please see the program schedule available on the homepage of the Graduate Center.

You might also try the networking opportunities at the following links:

Libraries

Information on availability, locations, and opening times for both specialized libraries and the main university library are available on the homepage of the Universitätsbibliothek.