Right to award doctorates granted to the Universities of Applied Sciences in Deggendorf, Augsburg and Landshut

13.3.2024 | DIT Public Relations

The official opening of the Promotionszentrum DigiTech was celebrated at the Deggendorf Institute of Technology (DIT) on 11 March. Prior to this, in November 2023, the DIT, which had the lead in the application process, was officially granted the right to award doctorates in the field of digital technologies and their application (DigiTech) in cooperation with the Technical University of Applied Sciences Augsburg (THA) and Landshut University of Applied Sciences (HaWL). Master's graduates in the relevant subject areas can now obtain their doctorate at these Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS). Previously, this had been only possible in cooperation with regular universities. DigiTech is the first cross-university alliance in Bavaria to accept doctoral students as early as March 2024.

Two years, a team of ten, eleven faculties, 31 professors with strong research expertise, 51 virtual meetings and 199 pages ‒ this is how Prof. Dr. Roland Zink, Scientific Director of the Graduate School of the DIT, outlines the application process. It was one of the applications that were already approved in the first round and without any additional inspection. The team had developed Doctorate Regulations which embody the highest quality standards for obtaining a doctorate.

The presidents of the three Bavarian UAS ‒ Prof. Dr. Peter Sperber (DIT), Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Gordon Thomas Rohrmair (THA) and Prof. Dr. Fritz Pörnbacher (HaWL) ‒ expressed their admiration for the team’s achievements at the opening ceremony. For them, the right to award doctorates is a logical and yet historic step towards recognising the scientific achievements of UAS researchers at the very same level as at regular universities. Prof. Dr. Christian Facchi, Head of the Graduate Center at the TH Ingolstadt and member of the German Science and Humanities Council (Wissenschaftsrat), emphasised in his speech that it is "by no means a second-class doctorate". Rather, it is an opportunity for raising the profile of UAS as teaching and researching institutions with a high level of orientation towards application.

Six doctoral students ‒ two from each UAS ‒ have already embarked on their journey with DigiTech on 1 March. They will be researching in the area of megatrend topics in digitalisation. Prof. Dr. Andreas Kassler, the Steering Committee‘s spokesperson and holder of a Top Professorship (Spitzenprofessur) at the DIT, encouraged them to see their journey ahead as a "springboard for creativity and determination", in which they can always fully rely on the support of the Promotionszentrum DigiTech.

Until the Bavarian Higher Education Innovation Act (BayHIG) was passed in 2022, the awarding of doctorates was the exclusive right of regular universities. Bavaria is the fifth federal state in Germany where it was granted to UAS. The inclusion of the right to award doctorates in the BayHIG was preceded by many years of heated debate between supporters and opponents. Similarly, it was not possible for UAS to conduct any research until 1998. Today, the DIT, the THA and the HaWL are among the strongest research universities in Germany.

Additional information: Promotionszentrum DigiTech

Bild (DIT): Members of the DigiTech Doctoral and Steering Committees together with the Vice Presidents of the three member UAS.