Social Origin And Structured Doctoral Education: Which Influence Do They Exert On Performance During The Doctoral Phase?

The paper addresses the impact of the parental socio-economic status (SES) on the performances during the conferral of a doctorate in life sciences (medicine and biology). Further, it investigates the question how structured doctoral programs affect this relation. A standardized survey of life science doctorates showed that SES solely had minor effects on the performances. However, occupations linked to the graduation, e.g. being a research assistant or having a scholarship, are very important for a better performance. The participation in a structured doctoral program neither affects the performance, nor has it a moderating effect on the relationship between SES and performance.