Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences

Welcome to the Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences

At the Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences, early career researchers can obtain the following academic degrees:


Doctor of Philosophy (Dr. phil.)

Doctor of Economic and Social Sciences (Dr. rer. pol.)


 
With the award of the right to confer doctoral degrees, the extraordinary research strength of the Universities of Applied Sciences in Saxony-Anhalt has been recognized and honored. The Universities of Applied Sciences can now independently of classical universities lead scientists to doctoral degrees. The Doctoral Center combines the expertise of the Universities of Applied Sciences Merseburg, Anhalt, Harz and Magdeburg-Stendal.

Some professors of those Universities of Applied Sciences are members of the Doctoral Center, i.e. they fulfill the required quality criteria to supervise doctorates.

The Doctoral Center offers an individual doctoral path, i.e. you will write your doctoral thesis under the supervision of a professor. The Universities of Applied Sciences provide coaching and networking opportunities as well as non-subject specific qualification workshops like “Academic Writing in English” for free. Knowledge of the German language is necessary for many of those offers. The Center does not offer a structured doctoral program.

 

 


General information

Excellent support at four universities of applied sciences

The distinctive interdisciplinarity and the broad expertise of the participating professors from the four universities of applied sciences Magdeburg-Stendal, Anhalt, Harz and Merseburg are the special strengths of the inter-university Doctoral Center SGW. For your doctorate, supervising professors from the three disciplines of social sciences, health sciences and economics stand by your side.


Three thematic fields for more research strength

The research work of the Doctoral Center SGW in the thematic field of social sciences focuses on the interrelationships of social conditions, social and political systems, and institutions, their structures and functions, as well as their interactions with individuals, their actions and behavior.

Doctoral studies in the field of health sciences focus on the study of health, disease and rehabilitation processes. Research questions are based on the principles of population and system orientation, social situation orientation, multidisciplinarity and application orientation.

The research of the Doctoral Center SGW in the field of economics deals with topics from the four main disciplines: Business Administration, Economics, Business Informatics and Industrial Engineering. Furthermore, research questions from the fields of business ethics, business history, business education, business psychology, business sociology and business law are addressed.

 
Complex questions of the future

The doctoral students of the Doctoral Center SGW aim to contribute to answering the increasingly complex questions in the field of tension between the individual and society. In the context of the doctorate, interdisciplinary research approaches as well as the regional and supra-regional transfer of research results are to play a particular role.

Do you have an idea?

Do you have an idea for a dissertation topic in the fields of social sciences, health sciences or economics and are interested in a doctorate at a university of applied sciences in Saxony-Anhalt? Then read through the Doctoral Degree Regulations of the Doctoral Center SGW. You can find the Regulations in the Download section. Then look for a professor at the Doctoral Center SGW who would like to supervise the topic. It is best to make an appointment with the potential supervisor to present the topic and to win him/her over for your project. In the next step, you will conclude a doctoral agreement with your supervisor and submit the application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate with all the necessary documents to the doctoral committee. This also includes writing an exposé on the doctoral project.

The application is sent by postal mailing and digitally to the contact person at the university where your first supervisor is located. If the supervisor is located at Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, please send the documents to Josephin Winkler (josephin.winkler@h2.de). Address: Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal, z.H. Josephin Winkler, Osterburger Str. 25, 39576 Stendal, Germany.

If your first supervisor is at another university, please inform yourself here:
Anhalt University of Applied Sciences, Harz University of Applied Sciences, Merseburg University of Applied Sciences.

The process of doctoral studies at the Doctoral Center

The process of doctoral studies at the Doctoral Center

Here you will find step-by-step instructions on how to complete a doctorate with us. If you have any questions, please do not hestitate to contact the Coordinator of the Doctral Center, Josephin Winkler.

Before doctorate

Interest

Do you have an idea for a dissertation topic in the social sciences, health sciences or economics? Are you interested in doing a doctorate at a university of applied sciences in Saxony-Anhalt? Josephin Winkler, the coordinator of the Doctoral Center, will gladly give you an individual consultation! You can also get advice on doctoral studies at the Doctoral Center at the other three cooperating universities:

Anhalt University of Applied Sciences

Harz University of Applied Sciences

Merseburg University of Applied Sciences 

 

Inform

Read the Doctoral Center's doctoral regulations. It forms the legal basis for the doctoral studies and describes, among other things, the rights and duties of doctoral students. If you have any questions regarding the doctoral regulations, please feel free to contact Josephin Winkler. 

Doctoral degree regulations

 

Search for a supervisor

Look for a supervisor among the professors of the Doctoral Center SGW who would like to supervise the topic. It is best to make an appointment with the potential supervisor to present the topic, the preliminary research question and the relevance. 

 

Exposé

Write an exposé that outlines your research project. If your supervisor does not specify otherwise, use the Exposé Handout as a guide. Revise your draft together with your supervisor. Also conclude a supervision agreement with your supervisor. 

Exposé Handout

Supervision Agreement

 

Application

Complete the acceptance application and the survey form for the doctoral statistics and enclose the supervision agreement, the exposé and the other required documents (see "Checklist" under "Documents"). The application is sent by postal mailing and digitally to the contact person at the university where your supervisor is located. If the (first) supervisor is located at Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, please send the documents to Josephin Winkler (josephin.winkler@h2.de).

Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal

z.H. Josephin Winkler

Osterburger Str. 25, 39576 Stendal, Germany

Checklist

If your first supervisor is at another university, please inform yourself here:

Anhalt University of Applied Sciences,

Harz University of Applied Sciences,

Merseburg University of Applied Sciences. 

 

Examination of your documents

Your documents will be checked for completeness before the meeting of the doctoral committee in which your acceptance as a doctoral student will be decided. We will contact you if any documents are still needed. 

 

Acceptance at the Doctoral Center

The Doctoral Committee decides on your acceptance as a doctoral student at the Doctoral Center. If necessary, you will be admitted with conditions which you should fulfill in the course of your doctoral studies. You will be informed about the decision by postal mailing.

During doctorate

Enrollment

After acceptance, you can enroll at the university where the first supervisor is located, if desired. At Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, you can take a leave of absence for individual semesters for health reasons, pregnancy/maternity leave, parental leave, caring for close relatives, and exceptional workload during employment in order to save semester fees.

 

Writing your dissertation

You write your dissertation on the basis of the exposé. Basically, you have the choice to write a monograph or to write a cumulative dissertation. A monograph is a coherent scientific work (equivalent to a book). To write a cumulative dissertation means that you publish three closely related scientific papers in journals and write an introducing and concluding text for them ("Manteltext"). Consider with your supervisor which model is a better fit for your dissertation project.

On average, a doctorate takes four to five years to complete. After more than five years, the doctoral committee decides if you can continue with the doctorate. You may be enrolled for ten semesters; after that, the Enrollment Office will need a letter from the dissertation committee and your supervisor to continue enrollment.

Continue to meet regularly with your supervisor during this phase and report on your progress. Attend at least two seminars and events related to your doctorate (be aware that the seminars/events need to fulfil certain criteria to be accepted, see "Documents"), and adhere to the principles of good scientific practice in your research and writing.

 

Initiate the doctoral process

When your dissertation is completed, submit an application to the doctoral committee together with your dissertation in printed and digital form to initiate the doctoral process. You can propose reviewers for your dissertation - one of the reviewing persons must be a member of the Doctoral Center and fit to your discipline. The other person will be external. Please note that your supervisor is not allowed to review your thesis. The Doctoral Center hereby follows a recommendation of the German Council of Science and Humanities to ensure the independence of the reviewers.

 

Wait

The doctoral committee decides whether to initiate the doctoral procedure. If the procedure is initiated, the committee appoints a doctoral panel for your doctoral procedure and appoints the reviewers of your thesis.

Completion of the doctorate

Review

The reviewers then have eight weeks to assess your dissertation. If the assessments including a proposal for the evaluation are available, the appointed doctoral panel can inspect the thesis and the reviews for two weeks. After that, the doctoral committee decides on the acceptance of the dissertation on the basis of the expert opinions. In exceptional cases, you may need to make additions or changes to your dissertation before it can be accepted; the doctoral committee will then set a deadline for you to do so.

 

Disputation

No later than three months after acceptance of the dissertation, you will defend it orally before the doctoral panel. In addition to other professors, your supervisor(s) and the reviewers sit in the committee. Before the defense (disputation) you will give a presentation of max. 30 minutes; afterwards you will be examined for 60-90 minutes. The content of the disputation is as follows: "The disputation discusses the content of the dissertation, includes the expert opinions and also covers related problems of the subject and adjacent areas of other subjects as well as the state of research in them" (Doctoral Regulations §17, para.7).

Directly after the disputation, the overall grade will be given (for dissertation and disputation). This is the end of the doctoral procedure.

 

Publication of the dissertation

You should publish your dissertation within two years after the disputation. For this purpose, you will have to implement any conditions imposed on you by the doctoral panel after the disputation. The chairperson of the doctoral committee approves the publication-ready version before publication.

 

Awarding the doctoral degree

As soon as the dissertation is published, you will receive your doctoral degree certificate. From that point on, you may use your doctoral degree. Congratulations!

 

 

Supervising professors

Supervising professors of all universities at one glance

Supervising professors of all universities at one glance

Abbreviations

h2: Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, HSH: Harz University of Applied Sciences, HOME: Merseburg University of Applied Sciences, HSA: Anhalt University of Applied Sciences

Abbreviations

h2: Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences,

HSH: Harz University of Applied Sciences,

HOME: Merseburg University of Applied Sciences,

HSA: Anhalt University of Applied Sciences

 

NameUni.FieldProfessor forResearch focus
Prof. Dr. Kerstin Baumgarten
Mail
h2Health sciencesHealth sciences, methods of health promotionStrategies of health promotion in living environments, health competence

Prof. Dr. Fabian
Behrendt
Mail

 h2

Economics

Logistics, manufacturing science, SAP

Production and logistics systems, industry 4.0, logistics 4.0, mobility and traffic
Prof. Dr. habil.
Gabriele Helga Franke
Mail

 h2

Health sciences

Psychological assessments

Assessments in rehabilita-   tion psychology, clinical psychology and medical psychology

Prof. Dr.
Rahim Hajji
Mail

 h2

Social  sciences

Research methods, sociology

Health sciences (sociology), integration and migration research, education  research

Prof. Dr.
Michael Herzog
Mail

 h2

Economics

Business   informatics

Education technologies, Human-computer-interaction, adaptive information systems, digitization and sustainability

Prof. Dr. habil.
Günter Mey
Mail

 h2

Social  sciences

Developmental psychology

Qualitative methodology and methods, biography, identity, childhood/ adolescence (culture), inter- transgenerationality, performative social science, Open Access and scientific communication

Prof. Dr. Matthias Morfeld
Mail

 h2

Health and social sciences

Rehabilitation  system

Research on participation and inclusion, participation benefits, ICF

Prof. Dr. Mike
Mösko
Mail

 h2

Health sciences

Clinical Psychology

(Intercultural) healthcare research, multilingualism in healthcare provision, intercultural opening up of the healtcare system, mental health, psychotherapy research

Prof. Dr. Katrin
Reimer-Gordinskaya
Mail

 h2

Social  sciences

Child development,
education, socialization

Social psychology, childhood sciences, qualitative/ subject-scientific methods

Prof. Dr. habil.
Annette Schmitt
Mail

 h2

Social  sciences

Education and didactics in the elementary sector

Child development and early education, biopsychosocial model, digital learning and training environments, digitalization in early education practice, practice materials

Prof. Dr. habil.
Nicole Wetzel
Mail

 h2

Health sciences

Neurocognitive development

Development of cognitive functions on a neuronal and behavioral level
Prof. Dr. habil.
Markus Zenger
Mail
h2Health sciencesDifferential and
personality
psychology
Psychometrics, representative surveys in the German population, mental health, Saxon Longitudinal Study
Prof. Dr. habil.
Birgit
Apfelbaum
Mail
HSHSocial sciencesCommunication and social sciencesResearch on demographic consequences, age/aging and technology, integration and inclusion, social innovation, multilingual communication, applied conversational research, qualitative social research, transdisciplinary participative methods
Prof. Dr. habil.
Theo Berger
Mail
HSHEconomicsStatistics and data
analytics
Forecasting, financial econometrics, sports analytics, data science, deep learning
Prof. Dr.
Alena Bleicher
Mail
HSHEconomicsCommunication and social sciencesDesign of technologies, circular economy, geothermal energy, production of wood for energy
Prof. Dr.
Axel Dreyer
Mail
HSHEconomicsTourism management and marketingWine tourism, culinary tourism, regional products and further aspects of cultural tourism, sports-related tourism
Prof. Dr. Philipp David Schaller  MailHSHEconomicsGeneral business administration and managementOrganisation development, change management & sustainable transformation, organization theory & design, management and contemporary management concepts (e.g. scaled agile), sustainable management and IDGs, evidence-based management
Prof. Dr. habil.
Ulrike Starker
Mail
HSHSocial  sciencesHuman resources development and methodologyComplex problem solving, corporate management, management skills, emotion
Prof. Dr. Jürgen
Stember
Mail
HSHAdministrative sciencesAdministrative sciencesE-Government, economic development, administrative modernization, New Public Management
Prof. Dr.
Jens Weiß
Mail
HSHAdministrative sciencesAdministrative sciencesAdministrative management, administrative reforms, administrative scientific evaluation research, administrative digitization
Prof. Dr. habil.
Ansgar Wübker
Mail
HSH

Economics

EconomicsHealth economics, empirical economic research
Prof. Dr. habil.
Gundula Barsch
Mail
HOMESocial  sciencesDrugs and social workSubstitution, cannabis
Prof. Dr.
Jens Borchert
Mail
HOMESocial  sciencesCriminologyCurrent developments in the penal system and penal enforcement, political education, anti-Semitism
Prof. Dr.
Maika Böhm
Mail
HOMESocial  sciencesSexology and family planningDigital media and sexuality, sexual and gender diversity, pregnancy, family planning, reproductive self-determination
Prof. Dr.
Stefan Meißner
Mail
HOMESocial  sciencesMedia sciences and cultural sciencesDigital culture, media and cultural theory, sociology of culture, technical sociology
Prof. Dr.
Michael Meng
Mail
HOMEEconomicsApplied linguistics and technical GermanUsability, evidence-based information design, language comprehension and text optimization
Prof. Dr. habil.
Doreén Pick
Mail
HOMEEconomicsGeneral business administration, marketing and international economicsRelationship marketing, consumer behaviour, pricing, services marketing, sharing economy

Prof. Dr.
Dirk Sackmann
Mail

HOMEEconomicsGeneral business administration,
production economics
and logistics
Operations and supply chain management
Prof. Dr.
Heinz-Jürgen Voß
Mail
HOMESocial  sciencesSexology and sexual educationSexology, social sciences, prevention of sexualised violence, gender, diversity, intersectionality
Prof. Dr. habil.
Michael Brusch
Mail
HSAEconomicsGeneral business administration,
marketing and business planning
Methods of empirical market research, market orientation in product and service development, the wish of elderly employees for continued employment
Prof. Dr.
Carsten Fussan
Mail
HSAEconomicsBusiness administration, entrepreneurship
and strategic
management
Entrepreneurship, corporate entrepreneurship, digitization, digital communication

Prof. Dr. Daniel Michelis  Mail

 

HSAEconomicsBusiness administration, esp. marketing and communicationDigitization and sustainability, sustainability communication
Prof. Dr.
Sebastian Trojahn
Mail
HSAEconomicsLogisticsLogistics, resource logistics, digital logistics

Structure

The Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences consists of four bodies/committees with different functions:

Doctoral Committee

The doctoral committee decides on the formal procedural matters of doctoral studies at the center, e.g. it accepts doctoral students at the center, appoints their supervisor(s) as well as reviewers and appoints the doctoral panel.
Chairperson of the doctoral committee:
Prof. Gabriele Helga Franke


Further members of the doctoral committee:
Prof. Fabian Behrendt (Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences)
Prof. Sebastian Trojahn (Anhalt University of Applied Sciences)
Prof. Heinz-Jürgen Voß (Merseburg University of Applied Sciences)
Prof. Jens Weiß (Harz University of Applied Sciences)

Advising doctoral students:
Janine Jänisch, Michael Stieber
Deputy: Julius Brinken

Center Management

The Directors manage the Center and implement decisions of the Doctoral Committee and of the Center's Council. This includes budget planning, public relations and reporting.

The Center Management consists of Director Prof. Gabriele Helga Franke, Deputy Director Prof. Dirk Sackmann and Deputy Director Prof. Ulrike Starker.

 

 

Center's Council

The Center's Council decides on fundamental matters such as the admission of new professorial members, amendments to the doctoral regulations and statute, and the quality assurance of doctoral procedures.

Members of the Center's Council

  • Prof. Fabian Behrendt, Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Alena Bleicher, Harz University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Gabriele Helga Franke, Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Dirk Sackmann, Merseburg University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Ulrike Starker, Harz University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Ansgar Wuebker, Harz University of Applied Sciences
  • Prof. Sebastian Trojahn, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences

 

Advisory members

Doctoral student: Anja Jonas, Deputy: Julius Brinken
Equal Opportunity Officer of the Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences


Advisory Board

The Advisory Board acts in an advisory capacity. However, it has the right to veto decisions of fundamental importance made by the Center Management. It also decides on the Center's budget.

Members:
The Vice Rectors for Research of the four Universities of Applied Sciences
The Center Director Prof. Gabriele Helga Franke (advisory)
One member of the Center's Council (advisory)
Doctoral student: Niels Schmidtke (advisory), Deputy: Alexandra Maierhofer

Documents

Legal basis

Doctoral degree regulations

The Statute of the Doctoral Center is thus far only available in German. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Josephin Winkler.

 

Documents for the application as a doctoral candidate

Application for acceptance as a doctoral candidate

Information on data protection for the doctoral procedure at Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences

Further information on data protection - Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences

Checklist

Doctorate Agreement

Questionnaire on doctoral statistics

Exposé instructions

The exposé instructions are a recommendation for prospective doctoral candidates. Individual agreements about the exposé with the supervisor take precedence.

 

Forms for doctoral students

Notification of change

Template: minutes of meeting with the supervisor

Notification termination of the doctorate

Confirmation of doctoral student's share in publication - for cumulative doctorates in publications with co-authors

Doctoral students who want to hand in their dissertation need to fill in the Application for initiation of the doctoral procedure. You will receive the form from Josephin Winkler upon request.


Guidlines of the doctoral committee

Seminars and events accompanying the doctorate

Disputations conducted in hybrid format

For cumulative doctorates:
Internationally recognized journals

For cumulative doctorates:
Proof of own contribution in the case of co-authorship

For cumulative doctorates:
Publication prior to admission as doctoral candidate

For cumulative doctorates:
Framework text

Contact details

Coordinator Doctoral Center Social, Health and Economic Sciences
Josephin Winkler

Phone: 0049 3931 2187 3812

E-Mail: josephin.winkler(at)h2.de

Address: Stendal, Osterburger Str. 25, House 2, Room 1.18

Make an appointment for a consultation here.

Consultation hours via phone for doctoral students and interested persons:
Mondays 12:00 - 13:00, Central European Time
Wednesdays 11:00 - 12:00, Central European Time

Time Zone Converter [external link]

You can also make an individual appointment for a Zoom meeting.

Sessions of the Doctoral Committee

The documents for applying as a doctoral candidate need to be handed in two weeks prior to the respective session of the Doctoral Committee to Josephin Winkler.

  • April 12, 2024
  • May 17, 2024
  • June 21, 2024
  • July 12, 2024

The Directors

Director: Prof. Dr. habil. Gabriele Helga Franke, University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg-Stendal

Phone: 0049 3931 2187 4826

E-Mail: gabriele.franke(at)h2.de

Address: Stendal, Osterburger Str. 25, House 3, Room 1.18

Consultation hour via phone: Wednesdays 8:00 - 9:00

Deputy Director: Prof. Dr. Dirk Sackmann, University of Applied Sciences Merseburg

Deputy Director: Prof. Dr. Steffi Zander, University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg-Stendal

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