Many German physicians write their doctoral thesis while they are still studying medicine. Critics mock the result as Dr. med. Dünnbrett-Bohrer, a doctor of medicine who drills through thin boards. Even the German Council of Science and Humanities recommends writing the thesis only after graduation. The medical doctorate is still the most common one. In 2025, 30 percent of all doctoral candidates in Germany were working toward a doctorate in human medicine or health sciences.
The title still opens doors, but Germans ask how much work stands behind it.