Possible stays abroad during the doctoral studies
International experience is becoming more and more important for many professions and academic careers. The doctoral studies offer many possibilities to integrate a stay abroad, e.g. as a teaching stay, for archive or library research or for gaining special expertise abroad.
We are happy to support you with information and a consultation service on the possibilities of international mobility.
You want to teach a block seminar at Istanbul University? Or maybe do some team teaching with a colleague from Madrid? How about inviting a French NGO representative to teach at Paderborn University?
Erasmus+ makes all of this possible and also funds short stays abroad for guest lecturers. As a guest lecturer your stay abroad contributes to strengthening the European dimension of the host university, broadens the course content and enables you to share your experiences with colleagues in teaching and research (STA1). It is also possible to invite members of staff from companies in the ERASMUS program countries to come and teach at Paderborn (STA2).
The International Office team will provide you with consultation and further information.
Interested in job shadowing the Press Officer at the Universidad de Vigo for one week? Want to exchange experiences with librarians from all over Europe at a staff training event in Helsinki? How about freshening up your English skills at a language school in Limerick?
The Erasmus program funds further training and educational measures in Europe (Erasmus region) for academic and non-academic staff in many ways:
Individual, self-organized stays at (partner) universities
- Job shadowing in your own or a related area of work
Participation in a staff training week
- Staff training weeks are group events organized by universities that usually last one week.
Further training (not at a university)
- Language courses
- Further training in areas such as project management, third-party funding etc.
- Job shadowing at a company/organization
The International Office team will provide you with consultation and further information.
The new Erasmus+ program from the European Union “Mobility with Partner Countries” (Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility), provides financial support for mobility for teaching purposes (STA) to selected non-European universities. Teaching staff from these selected universities can also be funded if this has been contractually agreed.
In the framework of this program Paderborn University cooperates with the partner countries Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel, Cameroon, Cuba, Togo, Tunisia and Vietnam.
The International Office team will provide you with consultation and further information.
If you are interested in a stay abroad for research purposes, please contact the experts of the Research & Consultancy Division of Paderborn University for consultation and information.
As a doctoral student, you generally have the opportunity to study abroad as part of your doctoral studies at one of our partner universities of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.
It is important that you are officially enrolled as a doctoral student at Paderborn University.
If you are also under an official employment contract with Paderborn University, the possibility of studying abroad in combination with the obligations of your employment contract must be cleared with your direct supervisor and the Human Resources Department at an early stage.
Overview of the partner universities for the 3rd Cycle (exchange during the doctoral studies)
Get advice on the possibilities of an exchange during the doctoral phase!
Notes for doctoral students with an employment contract at Paderborn University
Stays abroad of up to three months must be reported as business trips. They will be charged via the state travel expenses law as long as the direct supervisor agrees to this business trip. In some cases, the costs for the stay abroad need to be additionally (co-)financed within the framework of the research project or e.g. via a scholarship.
For the stay abroad, an international health insurance (important - no travel health insurance) must be taken out by the respective employee themselves. For stays abroad in Europe, the German health insurance covers this insurance benefit (via European Health Insurance Card). During the business trip (as far as correctly indicated) as well as during the arrival and departure there exists accident insurance coverage via the responsible employers' liability insurance association.
For stays abroad of more than 3 months, additional agreements must be made regarding your employment contract. Please contact the Human Resources Department of Paderborn University directly and talk to your direct supervisor beforehand.
For studies abroad in the context of your doctoral studies, the possibilities also need to be checked in each individual case. Whether a study abroad is possible has to be checked individually, since you have certain service obligations within the scope of your employment contract at Paderborn University, which can be in conflict with a study abroad (e.g. teaching obligations, attendance times at the workplace, etc.). Please contact Paderborn University's Human Resources Department directly and talk to your direct supervisor beforehand.
Notes for doctoral students with alternative funding
A scholarship does not establish an employment relationship, i.e. neither the university nor the scholarship provider become your employer. The scholarship is tax-free and is not subject to social security contributions. Therefore, as a scholarship holder, you do not have any pension, nursing care, or unemployment insurance, nor do you have any health or accident insurance. Some scholarship providers offer the possibility of taking out accident insurance through the scholarship provider's supplementary/group insurance policies. Please contact your scholarship provider for more information.
Doctoral students who are enrolled as doctoral students at Paderborn University will also receive accident insurance coverage for their scholarship-related stay abroad through the university or the responsible employers' liability insurance association. In this context, it is particularly important to confirm that there is an organizational connection to the work within the university. In the case of temporary work in another company (e.g. in the form of an internship), accident insurance must be ensured via this employer.
The information shown here does not raise any legal claim but serves as orientation.
Research and going abroad
7 good reasons for research abroad (website only available in German)
Research stays during the doctoral phase (website only available in German)
