The licentiate examination determines the ability to teach theology.

1) The applicant must have completed basic and main studies(2) (degree: Diploma in Catholic Theology or teaching certificate for secondary schools in the subject Catholic Religion with additional certificates of achievement according to the "Supplementary Regulations" for the Supplementary Examination or an equivalent examination agreed between Church and State for the College of Sankt Georgen and specified by the College of Sankt Georgen) with more than a sufficient grade. 

2) Final examinations in Catholic theology passed outside the Federal Republic of Germany may be recognized by the Rector as equivalent to the Diploma examination if the content and scope of the course of study and examination are essentially the same as those of the Diploma course in Catholic theology at the Sankt Georgen College of Philosophy and Theology. According to the decision of the Rector, before the beginning of the postgraduate studies, additional proof of academic achievement to an extent to be determined by the Rector must be submitted to show whether the applicant meets the requirements.

3) The applicant must have completed a postgraduate course of study of four semesters - at least two of which must have been completed at the Sankt Georgen College of Philosophy and Theology. This postgraduate course of study is intended to develop the candidate's ability to carry out independent scientific work and promote her or his specialization in a theological subject (cf. Sapientia Christiana, Special Norms, Art. 72b; Ordinances, Art. 51, n. 2). The Rector shall decide on the recognition of study and examination achievements obtained elsewhere (up to a maximum of four of the credits required under subsection 4).

4) The success of the postgraduate studies shall be documented by a total of eight course-related certificates of achievement, at least three of which shall be acquired in seminars. Two of these certificates must relate to subjects outside the selected subject group (cf. § 1, paragraph 2). The scope of an examination for which such a credit record is issued corresponds to the subject matter of a course comprising of at least two semester hours per week. In all other respects, the provisions of the Diploma Examination Regulations (see §§ 10 and 19 DPO) shall apply to the acquisition of the course-related certificates of academic achievement. The selection of the corresponding seminars and other courses is made in agreement with the moderator or the director of studies for postgraduate studies.

5) The candidate must have a knowledge of ancient and modern languages which is necessary to deal with the subject in question.

1) The application for the licentiate is made by means of a written application to the Rector, which can already be submitted at the end of the 3rd semester of the postgraduate studies. 

2) The application must be accompanied by 

a. a curriculum vitae, which must primarily describe the applicant's educational background; 

b. proof that the requirements specified in § 3, sections 1-5 are fulfilled; 

c. the scientific thesis in three stapled copies; 

d. a written assurance that the candidate has written the paper herself/himself, that she/he has not used any outside help in writing it, that she/he has not used any other writings or aids than those listed in the list of publications of the thesis, and that she/he has indicated all passages taken from the literature, either verbatim or analogously, and that the thesis has not already been submitted elsewhere as an examination thesis; 

e. an indication of the subject areas for the oral examination (cf. § 6, section 3); 

f. a reference from a church authority; 

g. a receipt for payment of the examination fee (cf. Fee Schedule).

1) The thesis should show that the candidate is able to work independently in scientific research. 

2) The topic is to be determined by the candidate in agreement with the moderator. 

3) As a rule, the thesis is to be written in German. An exception requires the approval of the Rector. 

4) The literature used must be given in completely and a table of contents must be enclosed. 

5) The thesis should be about 80-150 pages (about 2,000 characters each). 

6) The moderator and a second reviewer appointed by the Rector will evaluate the paper within three months - not counting the semester breaks - by means of a grade with reasons in written form. In the event of a different assessment, the final grade is the average of the two individual grades. 

7) The applicant may inspect the reports. 

8) If the final grade is not at least "sufficient" (4.0), the applicant must be informed accordingly. If they so wish, the paper can be returned once for improvement within one year or a period to be approved by the Rector. 

9) After completion of the licentiate procedure, a copy of the thesis remains in the archives.

1) After a positive evaluation of the scientific thesis (at least "sufficient" 4.0), the candidate takes an oral examination. This is open to the public. 

2) The oral examination covers subjects from the subject of the scientific thesis and two other subjects, one of which should belong to a subject group other than that of the scientific thesis. 

3) These subject areas shall be selected by the candidate in agreement with the moderator and shall be determined at the latest before the fourth semester. They should correspond to the extent of a lecture of two semester hours per week in each subject. 

4) The Rector shall appoint three examiners and one of them as chairman; he shall fix the date of the examination in agreement with the examiners and the candidate. 

5) The oral examination is a commission examination and lasts one hour, twenty minutes for each subject. 

6) Before fixing the grade, each examiner hears the other two examiners. The oral examination is passed if each of the three parts of the examination has been graded at least as "sufficient" (4,0). 

7) If the oral examination was not passed, it may be repeated once. The repeat examination shall take place after six months at the earliest and within twelve months at the latest.

1) The overall grade of the licentiate examination is calculated from the grades of the eight course-related credits, the final grade of the scientific thesis, which is graded six-fold, and the three grades of the oral examination, which are graded twice. 

2) The following grades are used for the assessment of the examination performances: 

1 = very good: an excellent performance; 

2 = good: a performance which is considerably above the average requirements; 

3 = satisfactory: a performance which meets the average requirements; 

4 = sufficient: a performance which, despite its shortcomings, still meets the requirements; 

5 = unsatisfactory: a performance which no longer meets the requirements due to considerable deficiencies. 

For a differentiated evaluation of the examination performances, intermediate values can be formed by lowering or raising the whole-numbered grades by 0.3; the grades 0.7, 4.3, 4.7 and 5.3 are excluded. 

The overall grade of the licentiate examination is 

from 1,0 to 1,5: very good (summa cum laude) 

from 1,6 to 2,5: good (magna cum laude) 

from 2,6 to 3,5: satisfactory (cum laude) 

from 3,6 to 4,0: sufficient (rite) 

above 4,0: insufficient. 

Only the first decimal place after the decimal point is taken into account in the formation of the overall grade, all other places are deleted without rounding.

1) The awarding of a licentiate degree is carried out by the issue of a certificate. 

2) The degree certificate states the subject group, the special subject and the title of the scientific thesis and gives the overall grade. 

3) The licentiate certificate is signed by the Rector and the representative of the Grand Chancellor and bears the seal of the College.

1) These regulations for the licentiate were adopted by the College council on December 19, 1997. It will come into effect with its approbation by the Congregation for Catholic Education on March 4, 1998 (Prot.N. 749/79/C). On the same date, the "Regulations for the Licentiate and Doctorate" of 20 November 1991 are repealed. 

2) Licentiates who take their licentiate examination within one year of the approval of these Regulations may, on application, do so in accordance with the previous "Regulations for the Licentiate and Doctorate".

Frankfurt am Main, March 27, 1998

(Prof. Dr. Michael Sievernich SJ) 

Rector

[Translate to Englisch:]

1. Personen- und Funktionsbezeichnungen in dieser Ordnung beziehen sich in gleicher Weise auf Frauen und Männer.

2. * In accordance with Art. 27 of the Collegiate Statutes, in addition to a four-semester basic course of study in Catholic Theology with a focus on Philosophy and related subjects, the College of Sankt Georgen offers a six-semester main course of study in Catholic Theology, generally leading to a diploma (Baccalaureate in Catholic Theology).