Teaching & Supervision
During my current term of office (2022–2028) as Vice President of the Bochum University of Applied Sciences the number of courses is reduced.
Current Courses
Machine Learning and Data Mining
Undergraduate course covering the fundamentals of machine learning and data mining.
Applied Artificial Intelligence
Graduate course on applied methods in artificial intelligence.
For further information, for example on seminar papers, see the German website of the work group.
Thesis Topics
I welcome bachelor's and master's thesis topics related to my current research fields and projects, ranging from applied machine learning and LLM-based systems to educational data mining. Theses in cooperation with a company are possible as well, provided the topic has a clear connection to our fields.
You are always welcome to simply come by my office to talk about a thesis. It is usually more effective, though, if you describe your ideas briefly in an e-mail beforehand: which field you would like to work in, your own topic ideas if you already have some, which relevant courses you have taken, and your intended time frame. Then we can both prepare for the conversation. If you do not have a topic idea yet, that is no problem at all; in that case we can suggest topics from our projects and research.
One expectation matters for your own benefit: you should have shown reasonably good results in the bachelor courses related to the topic and in the mathematical foundations. A thesis in these fields builds directly on that material, and it should become a success for you.
Doctoral Studies (PhD)
I supervise doctoral researchers in all of my research fields. The primary route is the Promotionskolleg NRW (PK NRW), where I am a member with independent doctoral supervision rights; alternatively, a cooperative doctorate with a partner university such as the University of Wuppertal is possible.
Note that German universities do not award a "PhD" as such; the equivalent German degree is a doctorate (Doktorgrad), here a Dr. rer. nat. or Dr.-Ing. This page uses "PhD" only as the internationally common term.
How the system works
A doctorate is first and foremost an independent research project, not a taught degree. Within the structured doctoral programs of PK NRW it is accompanied by a moderate qualification program (seminars, colloquia, workshops); in a cooperative doctorate at a partner university there is typically no coursework at all. In either case, being accepted as a doctoral candidate does not come with a salary or position. Supervision and funding are two separate questions. The typical funding models are:
- A research position in one of our funded projects: the most common model in our group. Such positions only exist while a matching project is running; they are advertised publicly and unfortunately cannot be created on request.
- A doctorate alongside employment in industry: an option for candidates working in Germany whose employer supports the endeavour and whose topic fits our research fields.
- A scholarship: a realistic option for strong candidates. Ideally you already have a concrete plan for this when you contact me; the section below tells you where to look.
The route via PK NRW
PK NRW is the doctoral school of the universities of applied sciences in North Rhine-Westphalia, with its own right to award doctoral degrees. Our group belongs to the Department of Computer and Data Science; the matching structured program is AI and Data Science. You are supervised by a team of three professors, and the program is designed to be completed within about three years.
The formal entry requirement is a master's degree (or equivalent) in computer science or, just as welcome, in mathematics; a degree in physics is often a good basis as well. In any case, the AI and Data Science program expects a solid foundation in mathematics and strong knowledge in computer science and statistics. The formalities take time, especially with a foreign degree, so read the PK NRW pages on the steps before the doctorate early.
One aspect that confuses many applicants is the double enrollment. PK NRW is jointly supported by the universities of applied sciences in NRW: it runs the admission procedure and the qualification program and awards the degree, but the day-to-day research takes place at the university of your primary supervisor, in our case the Bochum University of Applied Sciences. As a doctoral candidate you are therefore enrolled at both institutions at the same time. You enroll in Bochum first; this requires the supervision confirmation approved by PK NRW, gives you student status, and the usual semester fee applies. To put that fee into perspective, especially for international readers: there are no tuition fees in the sense known from the US or the UK. The semester fee is an administrative and social contribution; as of the winter semester 2026/27 it is 376.80 €, of which 226.80 € already pay for the Deutschlandticket, a semester ticket for public transport throughout Germany. Within four weeks you then also enroll at PK NRW via its KISS platform, which is free of charge. Both enrollments are initially provisional: they become final once the Doctoral Examining Committee has formally admitted you, which must happen within one year.
Bochum University of Applied Sciences
University of the primary supervisor
- Day-to-day research in our group
- Student status, workplace, and infrastructure
- No tuition; semester fee of 376.80 € (as of winter 2026/27), more than half of which is a Germany-wide public-transport ticket
- Requires the supervision confirmation approved by PK NRW
Promotionskolleg NRW
Joint doctoral school of the NRW universities of applied sciences
- Admission procedure and doctoral regulations
- Qualification program and colloquia
- Awards the doctoral degree
In practice, the sequence is a bit of a ping-pong between the two institutions: you first need a document from PK NRW to enroll in Bochum, and you need the Bochum enrollment to complete the steps at PK NRW. Step by step:
- First contact Our group
You contact me with a first outline of your interests. We discuss it, sharpen the direction together, and agree that I act as your primary supervisor. - Confirmation of supervision PK NRW
The confirmation of supervision (PK NRW template) is signed by me as your primary supervisor and countersigned by PK NRW. You need this document before you can enroll anywhere. Only my confirmation is required at this point; the full supervisory team comes later. - Provisional enrollment in Bochum Bochum UAS
With the countersigned confirmation you apply for enrollment as a doctoral student via the application portal of Bochum University of Applied Sciences (page in German). This gives you student status; the semester fee applies. - Enrollment at PK NRW PK NRW
Within four weeks of the Bochum enrollment you apply for enrollment at PK NRW via its KISS platform, attaching the Bochum enrollment certificate, the confirmation of supervision, and your certificates. This step is free of charge. - Assembling the supervisory team Our group
PK NRW requires a supervisory team of three professors: two academic supervisors and a third supervisor or mentor. The complete team, or at least a concrete proposal for it, is needed for the admission application in the next step, and the search can run in parallel to the steps above. Finding the two further members is a joint task: PK NRW does not prescribe who drives it, and practices differ between supervisors; I see much of it as my job as primary supervisor and will actively help, so you are not expected to recruit professors on your own. - Admission as doctoral candidate PK NRW
Together with the PK NRW enrollment application, or within three months of it, you apply via KISS for admission: with the confirmations of the full supervisory team, the short exposé, your CV, and your certificates. The Doctoral Examining Committee of the department decides. The admission must be completed within one year; only then do both enrollments become final. - Supervision agreement (Betreuungsvereinbarung) Our group PK NRW
You and your supervisory team conclude the written supervision agreement that PK NRW requires. It fixes mutual expectations, regular progress meetings, and feedback. This sounds like bureaucracy, but it is one of the strengths of the structured route: it guarantees you supervision you can rely on.
The most important primary sources:
- Framework Doctoral Degree Regulations (RPO) (PDF, English)
- Doctoral Degree Regulations of the Department of Computer and Data Science (APO) (PDF, English)
- Guidance on the required exposé (PDF, unfortunately in German only)
- Confirmation of supervision for the primary supervisor (template) (Word, English)
- KISS short guide on enrollment and admission (PDF, unfortunately in German only)
- Enrollment page for doctoral students of Bochum University of Applied Sciences (unfortunately in German only)
PK NRW updates these documents from time to time. In case of doubt, the current versions on the PK NRW website are authoritative.
Scholarships in more detail
What follows is a curated selection, not a complete list; there are far more foundations than any page can enumerate.
The first address in Germany are the thirteen federally supported Begabtenförderungswerke (website in German). They fund all subjects, including computer science and AI, and currently pay a monthly stipend of 1,650 € plus a 100 € research allowance (as of 2026). Their profiles differ: the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes is politically and religiously independent; six foundations are each close to a political party, namely the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, the Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung, the Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung, and the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung; the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung is close to the trade unions, the Stiftung der Deutschen Wirtschaft to business, and there are several religiously affiliated funding bodies. Each awards a limited number of doctoral scholarships, and the selection weighs more than grades: the quality of the research proposal and social engagement matter as well. Pick the one whose profile genuinely fits you. The political foundations in particular can be a very good fit for research with a societal dimension, such as responsible AI or educational data mining.
Specifically for computer science, the large tech companies run PhD fellowships that fund your doctorate at your own university, for example the Google PhD Fellowship, the Microsoft Research PhD Fellowship, the IBM PhD Fellowship within the IBM Academic Awards, and the Meta PhD Fellowship. Your nationality does not matter for these programs; eligibility follows the university where you are enrolled, so they are equally open to international candidates doing their doctorate with us. They are highly competitive, usually require a nomination by the university, and typically go to candidates who are already a year or two into the doctorate with first publications. They rarely fund the start of a doctorate, but they are worth planning for.
When you research further foundations, check two things before investing time. First, whether the foundation awards individual doctoral scholarships at all; many fund programs and institutions instead. Second, whether their scholarships work for a doctorate with us: some foundations are regionally bound to other federal states, and some tie their scholarships to a doctorate at their own institution.
International candidates should additionally look at the DAAD, at funding programs in their country of origin, and at the English-language funding overview of Research in Germany.
Two points are often misunderstood. First, unlike in some countries, the university itself does not award doctoral scholarships. Second, the short-term scholarships of PK NRW are open only to candidates who are already admitted there, and they run for a few months. They can be a valuable building block for an interim or final phase, for example when the doctorate takes longer than planned, but by design they are not a way to start one.
How to get in touch
If you would like to discuss a possible doctorate, send me an e-mail containing:
- a short research outline (1–2 pages): which field would you like to work in, what questions interest you, and how does that connect to our research fields? This does not need to be a finished dissertation plan. Topics develop over time, and shaping and narrowing them is something we do together; that is part of my job as a supervisor. PK NRW requires a short exposé for admission anyway (see the guidance linked above), so nothing of this work is wasted;
- your CV;
- transcripts of your bachelor's and master's studies, including grades;
- one or two sentences on how you plan to fund the doctorate (project position, employer, scholarship).
None of this needs to be perfect. What matters is that I can see what you are interested in and that you have already engaged with it; a mail that only states the wish to do a doctorate is a difficult starting point for both sides. I read and answer every e-mail that is recognisably written to me personally. Please understand, though, that I cannot respond to template mails sent to many professors at once, or to proposals without any connection to my research fields. And if you are mainly looking for a funded position, the public job advertisements of our projects are the right place to watch.