Once it is up and running, the Research School will cover three doctoral degree programmes – such as Computational Engineering and Applied Data Science - that will enable emerging scientists to engage in great research.
Up to now, early career researchers celebrating the award of their doctoral degrees have been something of a rarity at HAW Hamburg, and not something readily associated with our institution. It has been possible to complete a doctoral degree at HAW Hamburg, one of Germany’s largest institutions for the study of applied sciences, but every doctoral project has required cooperation with a university. This is now set to change – upcoming academics at HAW Hamburg will soon have doctoral degrees to celebrate on a regular basis. In February saw the Science, Research, Equality and Districts Authority of the city of Hamburg grant its official approval to HAW Hamburg’s application to award doctoral degrees in its own right.
Hamburg’s Parliament (Bürgerschaft) had paved the way for this exciting new development back in October of last year, when it approved the required change in the law, at both the first and second readings of the amended legislation, without further discussion. It based its decision on the proposal for the award of doctoral degrees submitted by HAW Hamburg, which had received a positive evaluation from the German Science and Humanities Council a year previously. In line with this proposal, HAW Hamburg has set up a Research School under whose aegis three doctoral programmes will soon come into being: Interdisciplinary Social and Health Research, Computational Engineering and Applied Data Science, and Sustainable Technologies and Systems. Aspiring academics will be able to complete doctorates in these three areas, with their strong existing research track records. The German Science and Humanities Council perceived ‘great potential for innovation’ in these areas’ collaboration, adding that ‘[t]he designated members of the doctoral programmes are already engaged in high-quality research.
‘I am absolutely delighted that HAW Hamburg has been granted the right to award doctorates; it means we have reached a further milestone in our delivery of academic education in applied research,’ said Katharina Fegebank, Hamburg’s Senator for Science, Research and Equality. ‘Students have gained brilliant prospects in three key areas of research; HAW Hamburg has gained its own Research School and the fantastic potential for innovation that will arise as the research areas work together; and Hamburg, as a city of science and research, has gained another beacon of academic excellence for researchers in training. We have the amazing commitment of all those involved to thank for this success. And from now on, we’ll really have doctoral degrees made at HAW Hamburg.’
‘We today completed the final stage of our journey towards being able to award doctorates in our own right – a journey that we have been on for several years,’ noted Prof. Dr. Ute Lohrentz, President of HAW Hamburg. ‘I would like to thank all those involved in the process for their tenacious work, which has been so vital in opening up paths for Hamburg’s applied research landscape. My especial thanks go to the Science, Research, Equality and Districts Authority for its faith in our institution and for its active support throughout this process.’ Prof. Lohrentz emphasised how pleased she was for the highly qualified early career researchers who will benefit from the new Research School at HAW Hamburg. ‘The doctoral programmes will enable aspiring scientists to create the innovative, sustainable contributions to research that our society needs so urgently at this time, as they engage with issues around the transition to renewable energy, protecting the climate, the rise of artificial intelligence and data-driven technologies, and people’s health and full participation in the life of society.’
‘I am very much looking forward to the work of our new Research School, which came into being on 1 March,’ said Prof. Dr. Peter Wulf, Vice-President for Research and Knowledge Transfer at HAW Hamburg. ‘Here at our institution, doctoral researchers have the chance to become leading experts in their fields and specialisms – and to make their mark on a research landscape that brings together critical thinking, creativity and innovation.’ Continuing, he remarked: ‘We’ve been successful in creating numerous key conditions for the completion and award of academically top-quality doctoral degrees in research that centres on practical application. Now we have the right to award our own doctorates, we can move forward in the months to come, making the final preparations for the admission of our first cohort of doctoral students in October.’
