For more than 40 years, the Universitätsgesellschaft Oldenburg eV (UGO) has been promoting academic education at the University of Oldenburg and cultivating the university's relations with the surrounding community. In addition to honouring academics at Carl von Ossietzky University for their excellent doctoral work, research and teaching, the outstanding performance in the supervision of doctoral candidates is now also recognised in addition to the already established prizes for outstanding doctoral work or excellent research and the teaching prize: In 2021, the UGO has announced the prize for outstanding doctoral supervision for the first time.

This prize is awarded annually and is endowed with 2,000 euros for a total of 2 award winners. The prize money for each award winner is 1,000 euros. The award is meant to recognise outstanding supervisory work and exceptional commitment to the guidance of young academics.

The patron of the Award for Excellent Doctoral Supervision is the Vice President for Early Career Researchers, Equal Opportunities and Diversity. A jury headed by the chairperson of UGO, two university lecturers and the Vice President for Early Career Researchers, Equal Opportunities and Diversity will determine the two award winners.

More information on the categories for nomination[1] are to be found in the appendix to the nomination form

Categories for nominations and criteria for the selection process

The nomination process

Who may nominate candidates?

Doctoral candidates in the final phase of their doctorate whose disputation will take place or has taken place in September 2024 at the latest, as well as doctorates whose doctoral certificate was issued after July 31, 2022, are eligible for nomination.

Who may be nominated?

All employees of the University of Oldenburg who have played a substantial role in supervising a doctoral candidate as the first or second supervisor in accordance with the relevant doctoral regulations may be nominated.

How can PhD candidates submit a nomination?

To nominate a candidate, the following documents must be submitted: the nomination form and a free-text statement of 1-2 pages addressing all five criteria and considerations listed in the appendix to this nomination form for the selection process.

Doctoral candidates should send their fully completed nomination forms with a personal statement of 1-2 pages by 31 July 2024 to the Graduate Academy’s email address: .

What's next?

The nomination forms and personal statements will then be anonymized by the Graduate Academy’s Officer for Early Career Researchers with a Focus on Doctoral Candidates and International Issues and forwarded to the jury in an anonymized form. The more specific (and high in quality) the examples, the more likely it is that particularly strong nominations will be considered in the shortlisting process.

The jury, composed of the chairperson of UGO, the Vice President for Early Career Researchers, Equal Opportunities and Diversity, and two further university lecturers from two different faculties, will then select the two award winners. The jury’s decision will be based on the reasons and comprehensible examples given in the personal statements. The more concretely the examples are elaborated in the personal statement with regard to all five criteria, the easier it is for the jury to make a shortlist and a final decision.

The UGO board will decide on the awarding of the prize, following the recommendation of the jury. This decision cannot be legally challenged.

The award ceremony will take place during the PhD day on November 20, 2024.

Please address any questions to the team of the Graduate Academy, who will be happy to help: