Application and Hiring Process

There are formal requirements in order to become a professor in Germany. Successful candidates must have obtained an excellent doctorate, have proven knowledge in their particular field, relevant publications, as well as experience in research and teaching. Full professors are usually expected to have obtained further academic achievements such as a habilitation degree or have five to six years’ experience in research and management as a Junior Professor or Junior Research Group Leader with positive evaluations and excellent publications.  

Please refer to the individual job offers for specific details. 

Among the standard documents you will be required to submit are the following:

Essential: 

• Academic CV
• Certificates, Credentials
• List of publications
• List of courses taught  

Additional:  

• Details on acquired third-party funding 
• Presentation of research strategy
• Descriptive statement of philosophy and strategy for teaching 

References are not required.  

Specific requirements beyond the listed documents may be stated in the individual job offer.

Although the historically strict ban on internal appointments (“Hausberufungsverbot”) has been somewhat softened in recent years, internal appointments within a university are still considered to be exceptional cases in the German academic system. One idea behind this principle is to avoid having a scholar remain at the same institution throughout graduate school and then on to a tenured professorship. Another principle behind this ban is to guarantee equal chances for all applicants and ensure the selection of the best qualified candidate for a given position; the ban avoids giving those already working at a university explicit or implicit advantages in comparison to external applicants. This ban is anchored in Article 33 of the German constitution. As a result, scholars are generally required to move to a different institution at least once before receiving a tenured position. 

Negotiations about the offer of appointment take place in a meeting with the faculty dean for fixed-term professorships (W1/W2) and with the President’s Office and a faculty representative for tenure-track and full professorships (W3).    

After the negotiation meeting, the university will send a written offer to the candidate, usually stating a deadline by which it must be accepted, contested with a counter-offer, or declined. If declined, the next candidate on the list will be considered and made an offer until a candidate either accepts or the list is exhausted and a new public advertisement must be made.