Degrees

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)

Degree programs leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts are undergraduate programs in a subject or a combination of subjects leading to a first university degree qualifying the student for a profession. The academic degree awarded at the Faculty of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies is the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.).

In their programs, students gain an overview of their chosen field(s) of study as well as basic professional and methodological competence. The standard period of study in Bachelor's program at the Faculty of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies is six semesters. Our international Bachelor's programs (German-French, German-Spanish, German-Italian, German-Czech) represent a special case of Bachelor's programs at the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies. These are single-subject programs conducted in cooperation with partner universities abroad.

Available subject combinations in the regular Bachelor's program can be found in § 2 of the Bachelor's Examination and Study Regulations for the Faculties of Humanities I-III (German language only). A good overview can also be found on the website of the Student Office. Subject-specific information on the Bachelor's program is available on relevant departments' websites.

Since the Bachelor's examination regulations have to be adapt regularly, the faculty administration strongly recommends to check which version is relevant for you.

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Programs leading to the academic degree of Master lead to an advanced professional qualification. The academic degree awarded at the Faculty of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies is the Master of Arts (M.A). To be admitted to a Master's program, students must always have at least a Bachelor's degree or a comparable first professional degree. The individual examination regulations define which specific degrees qualify for the respective Master's program and whether further admission requirements (e.g. foreign language skills) are required.

Most of the Master's programs at the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies build on the content of the corresponding Bachelor's/Baccalaureate degree program, resulting in a more in-depth specialization within the chosen field of study (or interdisciplinary specialization leading to a new field of study) during the Master's program.

The standard period of study of the Master's programs of the Faculty of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies is four semesters. Subject-specific information on our  Master's programs is provided on the websites of the individual departments.

Staatsexamen – Teaching Profession

This degree is acquired within the framework of a state examination regulated by the state of Bavaria.

At the Faculty of Linguistics, Literature and Cultural Studies, the state examination concludes the teacher training courses in the areas of elementary schools, secondary schools and university-preparatory schools. Training and examinations are regulated uniformly throughout the state by the legal examination regulations of the teaching profession (Lehramtsprüfungsordung/LPO). University education is completed with the first state examination. This is followed by a traineeship at corresponding schools, which is completed with the second state examination.

The subject combinations that can be studied at the University of Regensburg can be found on the pages of the Student Office.

Doctoral Studies at the Faculty for Languages, Literatures, and Cultures

The doctorate serves as proof of a special scientific qualification achieved through independent research achievements. The responsibility lies with the respective faculty. The faculties of philosophy award the academic degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Dr. phil.) of the University of Regensburg on the basis of their regulations for the award of doctoral degrees.

For this, a written thesis in the doctoral subject (dissertation) must be written. Furthermore, it must be demonstrated in the oral examination (disputation) that the doctoral candidate has mastered their domain and other fields touched upon by it, and that he/she is familiar with recent developments in the subject.

⇒ Regulations for the Award of Doctoral Degrees at the Faculties of Arts and Humanities

(1) Acceptance as Doctoral Candidate

The application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate must be submitted to the Faculty's Examination Office. The following documents must be attached:

• Application in campus portal
• Form for acceptance as a doctoral candidate (see forms)
• Proof of general university entrance qualification or relevant subject-related university entrance qualification
• Proof of academic university studies in the doctoral subject completed with a grade of at least "good" (or corresponding exceptions according to § 6 of the doctoral regulations)
• Proof of the subject-specific requirements according to § 7 of the doctoral regulations (these can also only be proven at the time of admission to the doctoral program)
• Declarations and certificates of other academic, governmental or ecclesiastical examinations
• Specification of the preliminary doctoral topic with a short description of the goal (approx. one page)
• Supervision agreement

All documents must be submitted with original signatures of all parties.
All certificates must either be officially certified or submitted as originals with a copy to the faculty administration. For foreign transcripts, an official translation must also be submitted.

(2) Application for Graduation

The application graduation must be submitted to the Dean's Office. The following documents must be enclosed for this purpose:

• Form "Admission for graduation" (see forms)
• Curriculum vitae with a description of the course of study and details of the university teacher under whose supervision the dissertation was written
• If applicable, list of scientific papers published to date
• proof of the subject-specific requirements according to § 7 of the doctoral regulations
• Official certificate of good conduct, if the candidate has been exmatriculated for more than 3 months at the time of application and is not in public office
• Three seminar certificates or corresponding proofs (signed by the supervisor)
• Three printed copies of the dissertation incl. electronic version (USB stick)
• Affidavit of the examinee

All documents must be submitted with original signatures of all parties.
The affidavit can only be provided at the University of Regensburg. For this purpose, an appointment should be made with the responsible faculty administration within a reasonable time frame (contact details).

(3) Disputation (oral examination)

After the evaluation, interpretation and acceptance of the dissertation as well as the determination of the grade, the candidate must take an oral examination, which is open to the public at the university.

The purpose of this examination is to demonstrate that the candidate has mastered the field of work and other subject areas affected by it, and that they are familiar with recent developments in the subject.

The oral examination should take place no later than two months after acceptance of the dissertation. The date is set by the chairperson of the doctoral committee in consultation with the members of the examination committee.

For this purpose, the candidate discusses several potential dates with the reviewers and informs the faculty administration of these for the final determination of the date. For the organization of the disputation and compliance with the legally prescribed invitation period, a lead time of at least three weeks must be observed.

The faculty administration then invites the candidate, the members of the examination committee, persons who have submitted a special report and all university lecturers of the respective faculty and announces the date to the university. The chair of the examination and the taking of minutes are organized by the faculty administration.

The disputation should last at least 60 minutes, but no longer than 90 minutes. As an introduction, the examinee explains the most important results of the work. This is followed by a scientific discussion. This covers selected challenges of the doctoral subject and related areas of other subjects as well as the current state of research. The comments of the reviewers can be included in the oral examination. It is therefore strongly recommended to exercise the right of inspection of these comments before the disputation.

(4) Publication of the Dissertation

The faculty administration is responsible for keeping track of publication.

The dissertation shall be published within two years after passing the examination. In addition, the number of copies specified in Section 20, Paragraph 3, shall be submitted free of charge to the University Library through the Faculty Administration.

Before going to press, approval must be obtained for the version of the text to be published. This approval is granted by the Dean on the basis of the release by the doctoral committee. The appropriate forms will be sent to the candidate by the faculty administration after all examinations have been completed.

The dissertation shall be made available to the scientific public in an appropriate manner. This is the case if the author delivers two copies of the dissertation - in addition to the copy remaining in the examination files - in the approved form to the Faculty Administration and also ensures publication of the dissertation in one of the publication forms listed in § 20 of the doctoral regulations.

Along with the deposit copies, the doctoral candidate must submit a declaration that the content of the deposit copies corresponds to that of the original manuscript.

Only after publication is a certificate of conferral of the doctoral degree issued. With this, one acquires the right to call oneself Dr. phil.

As of 03/2022

Habilitation

The goal of the habilitation is to give particularly qualified young scientists the opportunity to qualify for appointment to a professorship. For this purpose, they are to be given the opportunity to independently perform tasks in research and teaching. The habilitation proves the scientific and pedagogical aptitude to become a professor in a certain field at universities.

The Habilitation procedure is the responsibility of the faculty to which the candidate's  subject area belongs. The habilitation procedure is regulated in the habilitation regulations of the faculties of philosophy.