The official statistics do not show directly how many people in Germany hold a doctorate. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis, in German) counts doctoral candidates and completed doctorates every year, and the two figures are different. This guide shows the 2025 figures and explains why they cannot be added up into a total of all title holders.
Short answer: In 2025 there were 216,200 doctoral candidates in Germany, meaning people in an ongoing doctorate (Destatis, release of 26 August 2026). In the 2025 examination year, 28,800 doctorates were completed (Destatis, release of 2 October 2026). A total of all people with a doctorate cannot be derived from these annual figures. Last updated: October 2026.
The most important points
- In 2025 there were 216,200 doctoral candidates, meaning people in an ongoing doctorate (Destatis).
- In the 2025 examination year, 28,800 doctorates were completed, 700 more than the year before (Destatis).
- About a quarter of doctoral candidates, 54,200 people, hold a foreign nationality.
- Stock figures and completions are different measures and should not be equated.
- A total number of doctorate holders in Germany cannot be derived from the published annual figures.
What are the figures for 2025?
The table lists the key figures we have cross-checked. Each figure carries the date of the Destatis release so you can see its status.
| Figure | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doctoral candidates (stock) | 216,200 people | Year 2025 | Destatis, release of 26 August 2026 |
| of whom foreign nationals | 54,200 people (25 percent) | Year 2025 | Destatis, release of 26 August 2026 |
| Completed doctorates | 28,800 | Examination year 2025 | Destatis, release of 2 October 2026 |
| Degrees from universities in total | 527,600 | Examination year 2025 | Destatis, release of 2 October 2026 |
Why stock figures and completions are not the same
Doctoral candidates are people who are in a doctorate on a reference date. The figure is a stock. Completed doctorates, by contrast, are events within one examination year. Someone who starts a doctorate in 2025 counts in the stock figure. They appear in the completion figure only in the year in which they pass the examination. Conversely, a doctorate completed in 2025 counts even if it began years earlier.
It follows that the 216,200 doctoral candidates will not all become doctors in the following year. Some drop out, some need longer, and others change university or post. Anyone who compares stock and completions directly is therefore not comparing like with like. How a doctorate is financed is explained in Promotion finanzieren: Stelle, Stipendium oder Eigenmittel im Vergleich (in German).
How the figures changed compared with the year before
Destatis reports the change from the previous year for both measures. We derived the previous-year values from these changes. They are therefore calculated, not published separately. The underlying figures are rounded, so a percentage may differ slightly from the calculation.
| Figure | Change in 2025 | Previous year (calculated) |
|---|---|---|
| Doctoral candidates | +3,800 or +1.8 percent | about 212,400 |
| Completed doctorates | +700 or +2.4 percent | about 28,100 |
| Degrees from universities in total | +3 percent | not calculated, because no absolute change is given |
This calculation only covers the figures that Destatis itself named in its releases. For other years, check the tables instead of estimating previous values.
Students and doctoral candidates compared
For comparison: in the winter semester 2025/26, Destatis counted 2,876,900 students at German universities in its preliminary flash estimate (release of 28 November 2025). The number of doctoral candidates is therefore much smaller. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) reports about 426,200 international students and doctoral candidates together for the same semester. This combined figure cannot be split into the two groups.
What the statistics do not show
- No information on subjects and gender in this guide. Destatis publishes tables on these, but we have not taken over their values here.
- No information on the average length of a doctorate.
- No information on the funding or pay of doctoral candidates.
- No total number of people who hold a doctorate. The published annual figures do not provide that basis.
Reading the figures over time
Single years say little. A series of years becomes meaningful when definitions and surveys have stayed the same. Destatis often reports only the change from the previous year. If you want to describe a trend, compile several years from the tables and check whether the survey has changed in between.
For 2025 this means: the stock of doctoral candidates rose by 1.8 percent and completed doctorates by 2.4 percent. Both changes are small. Whether this becomes a trend only shows when compared with further years, which we have not analysed for this guide.
Key terms explained
- Doctoral candidates: people who are in an ongoing doctorate on a reference date.
- Completed doctorates: doctorates passed in the respective examination year.
- Examination year: the year to which the examination figures refer, as stated by Destatis.
- Preliminary: a result from a flash estimate that may still change in the final analysis.
Frequently asked questions
How many doctors are there in Germany in total?
An official total of all title holders cannot be derived from the published annual figures. The statistics record doctoral candidates on a reference date and completed doctorates in an examination year. To add them up, you would have to combine cohorts over many years, account for dropouts and classify titles obtained abroad. That is not possible cleanly with these figures.
Why is the share of foreign doctoral candidates so high?
The statistics give the share but not the reasons. The DAAD publishes its own analyses of international students and doctoral candidates. Whether individual programmes, the labour market or other factors play a role cannot be read from these numbers.
Are the 2025 figures final?
The figures come from Destatis releases of August and October 2026. Later analyses can correct numbers. For that reason we give the release date for every figure. Check before publishing whether a newer release exists.
Where can I find figures by subject and gender?
Destatis offers examination and doctoral candidate statistics in the database GENESIS-Online (in German). There you can choose subject groups and gender. For this guide we took over only the total figures. Destatis updates the tables regularly, so state the date of any figure you cite.
How to cite the figures correctly
- Name the measure, for example doctoral candidates or completed doctorates.
- Give the date of the Destatis release or the examination year.
- Do not use sums across several years as a total stock.
- Check before publication whether a newer release exists.
Related reading
- Promotion in Deutschland: Wege, Dauer, Finanzierung und Doktortitel (in German)
- How many doctoral students are there in Germany? Figures by subject and gender (in German)
- Promotionsstelle oder Stipendium: Netto-Vergleich mit Rechenbeispiel
- Promotion in der Industrie: Gehalt und Vertrag
- Postdoc: Gehalt, Befristung und Krankenversicherung
Sources: Destatis, release of 26 August 2026 (doctoral candidates 2025, in German); Destatis, release of 2 October 2026 (completed doctorates 2025, in German); Destatis, release of 28 November 2025 (students winter semester 2025/26, preliminary, in German); DAAD, press release of 14 October 2026.
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice.
