Traditionally in Germany, students graduated after four to six years either with a Magister degree in Social Sciences, Humanities, Linguistics and the Arts or with a Diplom degree in Natural Sciences, Economics, Business Administration, Political Science, Sociology, Theology and Engineering. Those degrees were the first and at the same time highest non-PhD/Doctorate-title in many disciplines before its gradual replacement by other, Anglo-Saxon-inspired master's and bachelor's degrees under the. Bologna process. The Magister and Diplom awarded by universities, both of which require a final thesis, are considered equivalent to a master's degree, although the Diplom awarded by a Fachhochschule (university of applied sciences) is at bachelor's degree level.
A special kind of examination is the Staatsexamen (State Examination). It is not an academic degree but a government licensing examination that future doctors, dentists, teachers, lawyers (solicitors), judges, public prosecutors, patent attorneys, and pharmacists have to pass in order to be eligible to work in their profession. Students usually study at university for three to six year, depending on the field, before they take the first Staatsexamen. While this. is normally at master's level, a few courses (e.g. primary and lower secondary level teaching), which have a standard study period of three years, are assigned to bachelor's level. After the first Staatsexamen, teachers and lawyers go through a form of pupillage, the Vorbereitungsdienst, for two years, before they are able to take the second Staatsexamen, which tests their practical abilities in their jobs. At some institutions pharmacists and jurists can choose whether to be awarded the first Staatsexamen or a master's degree (or formerly the Diplom).
Since 1999, the traditional degrees have been replaced by bachelor's (Bachelor) and master's (Master) degrees as part of the Bologna process. The main reasons for this change are to make degrees internationally comparable, and to introduce degrees to the German system which take less time to complete (German students typically took five years or more to earn a Magister or Diplom). Some universities were initially resistant to this change, considering it a displacement of a venerable tradition for the pure sake of globalization. However, universities had to fulfill the new standard by the end of 2007. Enrollment into Diplom and Magister programs is no longer possible. However, programs leading to Staatsexamen did usually not make the transition to Bologna degrees.
Doctorates are issued with various designations, depending on the faculty: e.g., Doktor der Naturwissenschaften (Doctor of Natural Science); Doktor der Rechtswissenschaften (Doctor of Law); Doktor der Medizin (Doctor of Medicine); Doktor der Philosophie (Doctor of Philosophy), to name just a few. Multiple doctorates and honorary doctorates are often listed and even used in forms of address in German-speaking countries. A Diplom, Magister, Master's or Staatsexamen student can proceed to a doctorate. Well qualified bachelor's graduates can also enrol directly into PhD programs after a procedure to determine their aptitude administered by the admitting university.
The doctoral degree (e.g., Dr. rer. nat., Dr. phil. and others) is the highest academic degree in Germany and generally a research degree. The degree Dr. med. for medical doctors has to be viewed differently; medical students usually write their doctoral theses right after they have completed studies, without any previous conducted scientific research, just as students in other disciplines write a Diplom, Magister or Master's thesis. Higher doctorates, such as the D.Sc. degree in the UK, are not present in the German system.
However, sometimes incorrectly regarded as a degree, the Habilitation is a higher academic qualification in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland that allows further teaching and research endorsement after a doctorate. It is earned by writing a second thesis (the Habilitationsschrift) or presenting a portfolio of first-author publications in an advanced topic. The exact requirements for satisfying a Habilitation depend on individual universities. The "habil.", as it is abbreviated to represent that a habilitation has been awarded after the doctorate, was traditionally the conventional qualification for serving at least as a Privatdozent (e.g. "PD Dr. habil.") (Senior Lecturer) in an academic professorship. Some German universities no longer require the Habilitation, although preference may still be given to applicants who have this credential, for academic posts in the more traditional fields.