Emergency Fund for Doctoral Candidates in the Final Phase of their Doctorate

The emergency funding is aimed at doctoral students of the Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, who have had their doctoral project delayed for reasons beyond their control and whose previous funding has expired. It represents an emergency solution to enable an efficient graduation without financial difficulties.

Funding Conditions

Eligible to apply are registered doctoral students (according to Hochschulstatistikgesetz) of all faculties of the OVGU (according to the current doctoral regulations) who are in the final phase of their doctorate. Emergency funding is provided for a maximum of 3 months and takes the form of a scholarship according to the state graduate funding.

 

The following conditions must be met for an application to be submitted:

• The own income as well as the income of the spouse may not exceed the amounts stated in the GradFVO during the funding phase.

and

• The dissertation must be in the final phase, i.e. the supervisor estimates the status of the dissertation in such a way that the submission within three months is realistic.

and

• The duration of the doctorate so far and the applicant's doctoral career path as shown in the application show a clear focus on the doctoral process. The subject-specific duration of doctoral projects must be taken into account. In accordance with the WissZeitVG (§2), the duration of the doctorate hitherto should generally not exceed 6 years.

and

• The doctoral candidate has his or her 1st residence in Germany. Any children to be considered live in the applicant's household.

and

• The thesis will not be completed abroad.

 

and one of the other following reasons must be fulfilled:

• There are family obligations which have led to the delay of the dissertation (e.g. child care or care for a relative in need of care (cf. PflegeZG § 7, 3-4).

or

• There were exceptional, unforeseeable difficulties in carrying out laboratory or field work (e.g. long-term failure of required equipment, travel restrictions due to political crises or natural disasters).

or

• There were significant delays due to illness of the applicant.

or

• There are other substantial and justifiable reasons for delay.

 

Application and Application Deadlines

Applications can be submitted on the following dates:

March 01 | June 01 | September 01 | December 01

The handling time is max. 4 weeks. The following documents must be submitted with the application:

• Application Form (pdf)
• Letter of application describing the reasons for the delay in the course of the doctorate
• Timetable for the months to be funded for completion of the dissertation
• Vote of the supervisor including

1. 1. a justification for the financial necessity of the graduation grant,
   2. confirmation that no other means are available,
   3. the confirmation that completion can be achieved during the funding phase

• curriculum vitae
• if applicable, list of already published papers in the context of the doctoral project
• Proof of income

 

Criteria for the award of grants

The evaluation of the applications submitted will be based on the following criteria:

• Vote of the supervisor,
• The reasons given for the delay are comprehensible,
• Assessment of the severity of the individual situation depending on the number of applications and the available budget.

 

Award Commission and procedure

The decision on the granting is made by a commission consisting of 5 members:

• Vice Rector for Research, Technology and Equal Opportunities
• Director of the Graduate Academy
• Commissioner for Foreigners
• Equal Opportunities Officer
• Family Representative

 

Applications are submitted to the Graduate Academy office. The GA staff will prepare these applications for the Commission's decision, if necessary with the support of the International Office.

 

Information obligation of the recipient

The recipient of the emergency aid has to inform the GA office immediately if there are any changes in income or family situation. Once the doctorate has been successfully defended, the grant ends at the end of the calendar month in which the defence was made. The phase between the defence of the thesis and its publication is not eligible for funding.

After the end of the grant, the recipient has to submit a report to the GA office within 3 months. As a rule, at least the submission of the thesis should then have already taken place. In this case a short information on the (imminent) conclusion of the procedure is sufficient. If no submission has been made, the reasons for the further delay must be explained.

In the case of a verifiable misuse of the grant, repayment of the grant may be demanded.

 

Addendum, valid during a WHO declared pandemic

For the period of a pandemic, emergency funding will be made available to post-docs in justified exceptional cases. Funding is granted if an emergency situation exists and an application with a description of the planned scientific work has been positively evaluated by the awards committee. A decision on this funding will be made at short notice within one week, also possible by circular letter. Grants are awarded on a monthly basis or depending on the development of the pandemic.

 

Submission

Graduate Academy Office, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg

Graduate.Academy@OVGU.de | Phone: +49 391 67 58930

 

Download Call (pdf)

Application Form (pdf)