Diplom

**Diplom** (from Greek  _diploma_) is a high level degree awarded for learning. It is awarded in European countries such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Estonia, Croatia, Serbia, Ukraine, Belarus and Greece. It is a similar award to the Bachelor's and Master's degrees in other countries.

The Diplom was first awarded when the _Technische Hochschulen_ became a university.

The diplom is slowly being replaced by a system that awards Bachelor's and Master's degrees. Bachelor's degrees, sometimes called _Bakkalaureus_ in Germany, are thought of as a "small Diplom".

## Germany / Austria

The Diplom may be awarded by the two types of German university. At a University of Applied Sciences (Fachhochschule), the diploma degree is called a _Diplom (FH)_ and normally takes four years to study and gain work experience. At a _Universität_ the degree is called a _Diplom_ or sometimes a _Diplom (Univ.)_ and takes four or five years.  These years are called "regular study time" (_Regelstudienzeit_) but study for the universität normally takes longer.

The _Diplom_ is the first university award for many students. There has been no Bachelor's degree in the German/Austrian educational system.

To win the Diplom certificate, a student must pass the tests for the _Hauptstudium_ (main study time) after the _Vordiplom_, then one or more _Studienarbeit_ (study research projects), and then write a _Diplomarbeit_ (diploma thesis). The curriculum of diplom studies at a University of Applied Sciences (Fachhochschule) is focused on using (applying) the science. The Universität is focused on learning.

A student must have a _Diplom_ before studying for a PhD (_Doctorate_). The diplom qualifies a student to study for a doctorate in most other countries.

This chart is a guide to the number of years of university study needed in a diplom system to begin studying for a doctorate:

|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|1<sup>st</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|2<sup>nd</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|3<sup>rd</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|4<sup>th</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|5<sup>th</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|6<sup>th</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|7<sup>th</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|8<sup>th</sup> year|style="width: 81px; background: #aaa;"|9<sup>th</sup> year|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|style="background: #ddd" colspan="1"|Vordiplom|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Diplom (FH) with best grades|style="background: #ddd" colspan="2"|additional work|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Doctorate|||||||||||
|style="background: #ddd" colspan="1"|Vordiplom|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Diplom (FH)|style="background: #ddd" colspan="2"|Masters|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Doctorate|||||||||||
|style="background: #ddd" colspan="2"|Vordiplom|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Diplom (Universität)|style="background: #ddd" colspan="3"|Doctorate|style="background: #fff" colspan="1"||||||||||||

**Note**: For the Diplom (FH) a student has to spend two years with a company where he or she does not study before studying for a doctorate. These years are shown as "additional work" in the table.

**Also note**: A Diplom student can begin the doctorate without the additional work if their work has been good enough. Normally a Master's course is taken before a doctorate.

## Related pages

- Magister
- German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)