Non-EU PhD title in Germany

Question

I am a German PhD student in South America and am worried about whether my PhD title will be accepted in Germany (as Dr.) and internationally in general.

If you successfully complete a PhD in the EU, you are allowed to carry the title "Dr.", as any PhD in Germany does.

I am working in a faculty with a professor with international experience, who, for research reasons, left a reasonably strong department in Europe for the position in South America, which is incidentally one of the strongest two departments in South America.

I am attending international conferences every now and then, have two papers published in international journals (one jointly, one alone) and two more papers in preparation.

For all I know, I can reasonably expect that my research performance (and eventually, my PhD thesis) is not below the European standard.

The default format for PhDs from a non-EU country is something like "Hans Wurst (Doutorado, Universidade de Ipanema)", which looks like I should just use my self-confidence instead and not mention that I did a PhD unless someone asks.

I don't know if it's off-topic, because this might just be "too localized", but of course I am wondering if it is possible to have my PhD accredited to use my PhD title in Germany like any "normal" PhD.

I'm also wondering, whether the international community is as strict as German law, or whether I should just call myself "Hans Wurst, PhD" on job applications, my professional webpage, etc. (where the place will be listed somewhere), and hope nobody tells me it should be "Hans Wurst (Doutorado, Universidade de Ipanema)" instead.

Did I make a mistake in my career planning in that the only title that is worth carrying (until full tenure, I guess) I can't carry without a large number of not-so-fancy accessories?

Answer 1

How your PhD is counted depends a lot on from which country you obtained it. Currently, degrees from Australia, Canada, Japan, Israel, and most doctoral-granting American universities are recognized as fully equivalent to "Dr." Beyond that, however, the PhD is listed as a PhD, so long as it's been granted by an institution accredited to give out doctoral degrees. (It has to be legitimately "earned.") You just would not technically be allowed to call yourself "Herr Dr. Hans Wurst"; you'd be "Herr Hans Wurst, Ph.D." (or whatever the formal name of your degree is).

Unfortunately, the classification of the degree does matter in Germany. Someone who holds a Dr. rer. nat. (sciences), for instance, will have a harder time getting a position in an engineering faculty than someone who holds a Dr.-Ing. (engineering). PhD's may or may not count as being equivalent to either degree, unless the specific regulations of the universities allow for this. (This can make a difference in setting up thesis committees, depending upon the regulations of the faculty in question. Yes, it's really annoying, but that's the way the system is set up.)

Fortunately, as Nate says in his answer, the rest of the world is nowhere near as strict as German law (even the modified version now in effect).

Also, you can apply to the Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen (Central Authority for Foreign Education) for recognition of a foreign-obtained degree as equivalent to the corresponding German degree.

Answer 2

Did I make a mistake in my career planning in that the only title that is worth carrying (until full tenure, I guess) I can’t carry without a large number of not-so-fancy accessories?

No. You make the good old German mistake of thinking that ‘carrying’ the title has any relevance whatsoever. You will have the equivalent of a doctoral degree from a respectable university (presumably) backed with a reasonable publication record. This is what’s going to matter. Whether it will be called a doctorate or a PhD does not matter to any employer (that you would actually want to work for). Also, for practical purposes, the people that care about such things will be calling you Dr. Hans Wurst anyway, even if you technically have a slightly different title. It’s close enough.

The default format for PhDs from a non-EU country is something like “Hans Wurst (Doutorado, Universidade de Ipanema)”, which looks like I should just use my self-confidence instead and not mention that I did a PhD unless someone asks.

I don’t quite understand. You don’t want to mention your PhD because of ... what exactly?

I’m also wondering whether the international community is as strict as German law, or whether I should just call myself “Hans Wurst, PhD” on job applications, my professional webpage, etc. (where the place will be listed somewhere), and hope nobody tells me it should be “Hans Wurst (Doutorado, Universidade de Ipanema)” instead.

Practically, on anything but the most formal documents, I have seen people in similar situations call themselves anything out of: Dr. Hans Wurst; Hans Wurst, PhD; or Hans Wurst, PhD (Universidade de Ipanema). All of those mean essentially the same thing to the pragmatic observer.

Clarifications

First off, I am not German myself, but Austrian with strong ties to Germany (and Austria is the place that Germans make fun of because we are presumably so fond of our academic titles), so I do think I am able to comment on this issue.

Second, I think it is required to distinguish a few things which are somewhat mangled up in my above response as well as the questions:

Will the OP formally be allowed to carry the title Dr. Hans Wurst?

No, not without going through nostrification, as indicated in other answers.

Will people informally still refer to him as they would to the holder of a European PhD? (e.g., put a Dr. Hans Wurst on his door in the office?). Basically, would people in their day-to-day life consider the difference to be a technicality?

Yes, I am convinced that would be the case in most places. If non-EU people were treated as “not really doctors at all”, we would not have any foreign faculty or postdocs. In Vienna, while I did my postdoc there, we had people who had received PhDs from Austria, Germany, the US, and China, and they all were uniformly referred to as “Drs.” by peers and university administration alike. It may not be formally correct, but people are also not stupid (in general).

Will it make a difference in his professional life?

Assuming the university is indeed excellent (I have personally never heard of it, but my knowledge of African universities is very limited), it should really not make a difference. I guess the main problem is that if the university is not very well-known, a hiring committee might not go through the trouble of actually finding out whether or not the university is good. However, at least in academic posts, I would not assume that the OP will have any disadvantage in comparison to a holder of a German PhD. International experience is usually considered a big plus. The examples provided by aeismail and Nate Eldredge are completely opposed to every personal experience I’ve ever had.

Answer 3

To address your last question: the international community is not as strict as Germany. Here in the US, there are no formal regulations on the use of the title. If you hold an earned doctorate from a reasonable university somewhere in the world, nobody is going to complain about your use of "Dr." or "Ph.D." or both. Even holders of honorary doctorates, or those from non-accredited universities, usually get away with it. On the other hand, we typically don't use those titles as universally as Germans do.