According to data released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Wednesday, there were 216,200 individuals enrolled in ongoing doctoral programs in German universities in 2025. This figure represents an increase of 3,800, or 1.8 percent, compared to the previous year. The proportion of female doctoral candidates remained steady at 49 percent (106,400).
The average age of these candidates was 30.5 years. Men were older than women, at 30.9 years versus 30.1 years. Furthermore, one-quarter (25 percent, or 54,200 people) of those pursuing doctorates held a foreign nationality.
In terms of subject matter, the largest group, accounting for 30 percent (64,100 people), was concentrated in Human Medicine and Health Sciences. The second most significant field was Mathematics and Natural Sciences, with 47,300 candidates (22 percent). Engineering studies followed, comprising 40,100 doctoral candidates (19 percent).
Significant gender differences were observed across the various fields. In Engineering studies, nearly three out of four candidates (76 percent) were men, whereas in the Art and Art Sciences field, women made up two out of three candidates (66 percent). The largest absolute group of men pursuing a doctorate was seen in Engineering (30,400), while the largest group of women was in Human Medicine and Health Sciences (39,900).
This year saw 35,800 individuals (17 percent of all doctoral candidates) register at a German university for the first time in 2025-a 3 percent increase from the prior year. Among these new entrants, slightly more than a quarter (27 percent, or 9,800 people) were foreign nationals, resulting in a slightly higher percentage of international students among new starters (27 percent) than among all doctoral candidates (25 percent).
Focusing on institutional concentration, 18 percent of all doctoral candidates attend only four universities. The Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, maintaining its lead from the previous year, was the university with the most ongoing doctoral programs (10,200 people), closely followed by the Technical University of Munich (10,100 people), both accounting for five percent of all candidates. The Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg (9,600 people) and the Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen (8,000 people) each accounted for four percent.
