German citizens Enrolment in a doctoral programme

• Have your documents ready (see below), e.g. current confirmation of acceptance, examination certificate, certificate of exmatriculation, school leaving certificate
• Log in to the heiCO portal with your Uni ID.
• Start your application for enrolment via the tile "My applications for a degree programme".
• Enter the required information and upload your documents.
• Once you have been admitted and your study place has been accepted, a link to print out your enrolment application will appear.
• Please print out your enrolment application, sign it and send it back in duplicate: by upload in heiCO and by post in paper form.
• Enclose all other paper documents requested in heiCO, e.g. the notarised examination certificate.

Please send your documents to the following address:

Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
Studierendenadministration/ Zentrales Doktorandenbüro
Seminarstr. 2
69117 Heidelberg

Digital documents:

• Certificate of your university degree (usually Master's or state examination)
• University entrance qualification (Abitur or similar)
• Certificate of acceptance issued no more than 6 months ago by the faculty's doctoral office
• Uni-ID
• Certificate of study progress (if applicable)
• Certificate of exmatriculation (NOT: notice of exmatriculation due to lack of re-registration) (if applicable)
• identity card
• passport photo

Documents in paper form:

• Application for enrolment (will be activated in the course of the procedure and will be submitted twice, i.e. digitally and in paper form)
• Notarised copy of the university degree (usually Master's or state examination)

After completing your enrolment, you will receive an e-mail informing you that you can only collect your student ID in person and by presenting an official photo ID (e.g. identity card or passport) from the University Administration service portal.

If you are still enrolled in another degree programme at Heidelberg University and would like to switch to the doctoral programme, this is a transfer of registration. Fewer documents are required for this than for re-enrolment (see below). However, re-enrolment is only possible if your enrolment remains uninterrupted.

You can choose whether you want to re-enrol for the current semester or for the following semester. It is always possible to change your enrolment for the current semester during the semester in question. If you wish to re-register for the following semester, please first transfer the semester fee for re-registration during the re-registration period. The payment will be credited to you after the transfer to the doctoral programme. The transfer to the doctoral programme is only possible after the end of the re-registration period in heiCO: from 16 February for the following summer semester and from 16 July for the following winter semester.

To transfer to the doctoral programme, please proceed as follows:

• Have your documents ready (see below).
• Start your application for transfer to doctoral studies in the heiCO portal as usual via the “My applications” tile as a new degree programme.
• The heiCO portal recognises your existing enrolment and automatically treats you as a transfer student.

Digital documents for the transfer

• Certificate of acceptance issued no more than 6 months ago by the doctoral office of your faculty
• Degree certificate (usually Master's degree, state examination or medical examination certificate)
• Application for re-registration: will be provided in heiCO for downloading and uploading again

All accepted doctoral candidates are legally obliged to enrol for the duration of their doctorate until they take the oral doctoral examination (viva voce or defence).

Exemption from the enrolment requirement is possible for employees of the University or the University Hospital.