• Scientific Working
  • PostDoc: the candidate works scientifically and/or is leading a project related to an industrial problem.
  • PhD: the candidate works scientifically (scientific PhD) or industry-oriented (industrial PhD).
  • Master/Diploma: the candidate works scientifically (academic master) or industry-oriented (professional master).
  • Bachelor: the candidate works industrial-oriented.

• Support
  • PostDoc: the candidate works without supervision. Active and passive advise is highly welcome.
  • PhD: the candidate works under advise of a mentor (doctor-father/mother).
  • Master/Diploma: the candidate is supervised by a Professor, PostDoc, or a PhD candidate. For industrial projects, an external expert can do the support.
  • Bachelor: the candidate is supervised by a Professor, PostDoc, or a PhD candidate. For industrial projects, an external expert can do the support; severer than for a master.

• Time
  • PostDoc: up to several years
  • PhD: 3-4 years
  • Master/Diploma: 6 months - 2 years
  • Bachelor: 5-6 months

• Place
  • PostDoc: several places are possible, because of the research intentions.
  • PhD: 1-2 different places, depending on the reviewing team (see also co-tutuelle).
  • Master/Diploma: 1-2 places.
  • Bachelor: 1-2 places - in case the work is performed as a cooperation between industry and academics.

• Cooperation with Industry
  • PostDoc: seldom but possible.
  • PhD: possible (industrial/professional PhD).
  • Master/Diploma: possible.
  • Bachelor: in many cases.

• Motivation
  • PostDoc: academic career (=> habilitation).
  • PhD: academic PhD mostly intends to become an expert in the specialized field; industrial PhD mostly intends to receive a higher qualification and income.
  • Master/Diploma: finalizing the studies; higher qualification; higher income
  • Bachelor: finalizing the studies;

• Subject of the thesis
  • PostDoc: can vary, since several connected research topic are concerned.
  • PhD: mostly one = a specific research field.
  • Master/Diploma: mostly part of a research field or a project.
  • Bachelor: no research field, more a doing.

• Relevance for Teaching
  • PostDoc: active teaching is done both independently (foudation courses) or directly influenced by research (specialization)
  • PhD: active teaching is fully influenced by research
  • Master/Diploma: passive teaching, but sometimes active teaching for bachelor level
  • Bachelor: passive teaching

• Direction
  • PostDoc: academic
  • PhD: academic and industrial
  • Master/Diploma: academic and industrial
  • Bachelor: pure industrial

• Degree
  • PostDoc: Habilitation, Professorsship
  • PhD: PhD, Dr. rer. nat, Dr. phil. nat., etc.
  • Master/Diploma: MSc, MEng
  • Bachelor: BSc, BEng

• Publication
  • PostDoc: absolutely necessary
  • PhD: absolutely necessary
  • Master/Diploma: recommended, but not necessary (first finish the M/D-Project and afterwards think about a publication of the thesis)
  • Bachelor: not necessary
• Implementation
  • In case that your Project contains a practical implementation: has your implementation been validated on a sufficient number of tests? how did you design the test? test-strategies?
  • In case that your Project contains a practical implementation: why did you choose this type of implementation (language, programming-techniques, etc.)? what components did you use? did you use some guidelines for the implementation? how to reuse the implementation?
• Information Management
  One big problem is to manage the information. During a PMDB-Project, you read lots of papers/articles/books and afterwards you forget lots of the information. People also use pen and paper to store information and, thereafter, the paper is lost or never read. Maybe, everybody has to think about information management. Some approaches how it can be done:
  • Wiki-Server; good approach because you can use it from everywhere and maybe other readers correct it.
  • Papers/Articles which are published, then you get also some kind of feedback.
  • Internal Reports = big paper which is not published. In my opinion only interesting, if several people read it and give feedback.
  • Talks, Tutorials, Workshops --> in my opinion only interesting if the audience is at least specialist in the topic.

Recommendations

• Is your work more research and innovation?
• How to perform a quality control of your work?
• What are the success factors of your work?
• Do you have a working plan for your work, e.g. 3-4 years for a PhD or 6-9 months for your Bachelor?
• For PhD students: In case that the associated project stops before you finishes the PhD: how to continue?
• For PhD students:What do you think about the co-tutelle? Do you stay in contact with your co-advisor?
• To all: please read the Réglement-Grand-Ducale concerning your studies!
• Continue on reading sources - but not too much (you shold beware your own ideas)
• For PhD students: Do you have any scientific contacts? Invitations? Visits? If no, then try to find ones!
• For PhD students: Do you have enough publications? On which conferences have they been presented?
• For PhD students: Is the thesis part of a research project and/or part of a PhD-thesis? If yes, then make sure that this is considered in your documenation!
• For Master: Take 2-3 months to summarize your thesis! Do not start writing in the end, but start writing in parallel!
• To all: in which language you intend to write your thesis? Please clarify, in case you have to inform the students' secretariate!
• Follow the 'P5-strategy' :
  • Plan your thesis - workplan / funding / topics / contacts
  • Prepare your work: Software and Hardware, Supervision of Students, Gaining from courses (teaching), etc.
  • Program: perform your thesis
  • Present: Presentation Slides, Tutorials(?), Workshop organisation(?)
  • Publish: Documentation, Conferences contributions