In Germany, Switzerland (and probably some other countries) when you study at university you get a first degree (Magister, Lizentiat etc.) with which you finish your regular university studies. Some people go on and get a second degree (Doktorat), means practically they write a book and pass an exam, but the 'Doktorat' is not the same as a Ph.D. for you can't teach as 'regular' professor at university/hold a Chair. So people who want to be professor get a third degree (Habilitation), means that they write a second book and pass another examination. So 'Habilitation' refers to the degree, sometimes also to the book published or the (examination) process you have to pass for getting the degree.

Yes, a "Habilitation" comes after doctoral studies.

In Germany, a "Habilitation" is a prerequisite to receiving a full professorship at a "full" university (as opposed to a university of applied sciences). Think of it as a large PhD for postdocs.

And if anyone here is "habilitiert", please don't shoot me if my description is not completely accurate. ;-)

So on a Cv in the education section would "Habilitation zum Thema..." mean "Postdoctoral thesis/dissertation on ..." or would it be better to use "postdoctoral studies on the subject ..."?

If you read it in a CV, "Habilitation zum Thema ..." means the postdoctoral thesis/dissertation, the "..." part being the title of the thesis. (Which need not be published, unlike a doctoral thesis.)

"Habilitation" is often used for the thesis, but like "Promotion" that's a bit inaccurate. "Habilitationsschrift" is the thesis, "Habilitation" is the process of becoming "Dr. habil." or the result ("nach der Habilitation in München Übernahme einer Professur in Hamburg"). "Dr. habil" is the academic degree, but usually only used by people who are neither "Privatdozent" nor "Professor" - if someone is PD or Prof. it is self-evident he is "habilitiert". Well, at least up to now, as German federal legislation introduced other ways of becoming a Professor with the aim of virtually abolishing "Habilitation" (but the Federal Constitutional Court will decide later this year if these regulations are constitional).

I would leave the word "Habilitation" stand as it is. The "Habilitation" is, as mentioned somewhere else, 'just' a prerequisite in order to be qualified to teach at university level; and as such, it is a kind of second PhD usually in the same subject field in which you did your first dissertation. The "Habilitation" is quite a unique scholarly invention in the German education system, as far as I know, required only in the humanities or the so-called 'Geisteswissenschaft'.

Quote tqt:
"The "Habilitation" is quite a unique scholarly invention in the German education system, as far as I know, required only in the humanities or the so-called 'Geisteswissenschaft'. "


Sorry, but AFAIK, the second part of this statement is not true! If you want a full professorship, i.e. a chair (Lehrstuhl), at a full university in Germany, you will not get it without a "Habilitation". There is no difference between the humanities and for example physics, business, law, medicine, etc..

Maik: there are indeed some areas where a Habilitation is not needed to become a regular "Professor" even in regular universities, especially in engineering you can apply for such a position without the Habilitation.

kukka: Well, I keep learning new things every day. :-)
But I still think it is a bit restrictive to say that a Habilitation is only required in the humanities.

Maik: I agree

I agree, too. To get back to conf's original question, I think mentioning a "Habilitation" is much more impressive on a CV than just "postdoctoral studies" which could mean a lot of different things.

Thanks for everyone's information. It's really helpful.

Martina - But would "Habilitation thesis" for example be understood by an english employer?

maybe you could explain it with a footnote?
For a detailled definition, click here: http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Hab...

The link provided by Martina is a brief and accurate account.

It is indeed possible to become a regular Professor at a German Universität without haven written a "Habilitationsschrift", as equivalent achievements can replace that requirement, but this is very rare (in the field of engineering it is more common). To become a Professor at a Fachhochschule (commonly translated as "University of Applied Sciences" - the generic term for "Universität" and "Fachhochschule" is "Hochschule") practical experience is required, not a "Habilitation".

...
ItŽs funny to read this thread...because a lot is half true, half outdated, half wrong ;-)

To start: if you would read in the Brockhaus from 1968 you will find (cited off the head) "an outdated procedure which will be abolished soon."

However, if you look at the REAL facts (I am just talking about medicine) you will find the following: it is NOT a (legal7formal) prerequisite anymore, even not for a chair: if you look into job offers, you quite often (close to usually) you will find "or equivalent qualification". The reason: to be also attractive for scientist from abroad.

However again, if you look how young (german) scientists behave nowadays, you will find that the majority is still persuing this totally unnecessary task.

Unnecessary for the fact that most faculties nowadays allow a socalled "Sammel-Habiltitation" which is nothing else than "cutŽn paste" your already published papers into a bigger one which sometimes even has to be published as a book (e.g. Thieme copythek) and is quite unlikely to be read by anyone..

All together: this issue is still "in transition" .

And making things even more complicated we also have to distinguish between "Habilitation" and "Venia legendi".....

Whether it is "impressive" in a CV?...I think thatŽs in "the eyes of the beholder"....#

To answer the question (as already proposed by others): DON'T translate.

I enjoyed very much reading this stuff. But yes, why the hell don't you just lookup a real dictionary/encyclopedia instead of tediously searching websites ???

1) leave "Habilitation", it is a German title
2) "venia legendi" is Latin and gives the right to teach used, therefore
3) a "Privatdozent" (also a German title so leave it) fits also into the definition in Latin, but
4) "venia legendi" is also used for the "Habilitationsschrift" which allows you to become a professor and give lectures etc.

So my suggestions:
1) Why do you want to translate everything ? German is a beautiful language so just keep expressions that lack an equivalent in another language
2) Buy a dictionary/encyclopedia e.g. Brockhaus, Oxford, whatever and USE IT
3) Learn Latin if you have so much time

I enjoyed very much reading this stuff. But yes, why the hell don't you just lookup a real dictionary/encyclopedia instead of tediously searching websites ???

1) leave "Habilitation", it is a German title
2) "venia legendi" is Latin and gives the right to teach used, therefore
3) a "Privatdozent" (also a German title so leave it) fits also into the definition in Latin, but
4) "venia legendi" is also used for the "Habilitationsschrift" which allows you to become a professor and give lectures etc.

So my suggestions:
1) Why do you want to translate everything ? German is a beautiful language so just keep expressions that lack an equivalent in another language
2) Buy a dictionary/encyclopedia e.g. Brockhaus, Oxford, whatever and USE IT
3) Learn Latin if you have so much time

... and about the combination "impressive" and "CV": A CV should be honest, concise and not misleading. It should stress your skills according for what you apply. Impress by your skills, not by useless mischief.

Habilitation

Yes, I too would translate the term as 'habiliation', but I would put the term in italics in English. Any of the other translations presented so far do not quite cover what a 'habilitation' implies.

"Habilitation (postdoctoral university degree with lecture qualification)" http://www.mi.fu-berlin.de/en/stud/prom-habil...

Germany Tries to Break Its Habilitation Habit. 1999 article in Science, the magazine of the Amer. Assn. for the Advancement of Science. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/28...

{Wikipedia] Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a person can achieve by their own pursuit in certain European and Asian countries .... France, Germany, Austria, Portugal, .... Whereas in the United States, the United Kingdom and most other countries, the doctorate is sufficient qualification for a faculty position at a university, in other countries only the habilitation qualifies the holder to supervise doctoral candidates .... In 2004, the habilitation was the subject of a major political debate in Germany." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habilitation

The article in Wikipedia is pretty nearly comprehensive. It even reflects many of the "updating" comments in this thread.

The real question seems to be rather, what is a Ph.D. in the above countries? That is, now that we outsiders have learned what you can do with a habilitation (you can lecture at a university and supervise Ph.D. candidates), the question becomes, what can you do with just a Ph.D.?

Über den Umweg ins französische wo die Übersetzung Französisch - Deutsch auch Bevollmächtigung, Ermächtigung, Berechtigung lautet - all diese Begiffe von Deutsch ins Englische übersetzt ergeben authorisation (Quelle LEO)

And this relay-race translation game proves what, exactly??

The term is habilitation. There is no equivalent at English-speaking universities, so you have to use the German. But that has been said a number of times in this resurrected thread.