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Statutory Declaration

Faculties: BW, SW

After the main content section of your academic paper, additional formal elements follow: the bibliography, the appendix, and the statutory declaration. With the statutory declaration, you confirm, among other things, that you have written the paper independently.

Info: Here you can find an overview of the overall structure of a Social Science paper.

With the statutory declaration, you confirm that you have written the paper yourself, used only the sources listed, and properly cited any sources used. You also confirm that you have not submitted the work for any other course or to any other examination office.

The statutory declaration must be dated and signed.

It is legally required for final theses and is sometimes requested by instructors for term papers as well.

Example of a statutory declaration

I hereby declare that this paper was written independently and has not been submitted for examination purposes elsewhere, that no sources or aids other than those indicated were used, and that literal or paraphrased quotations have been marked as such.

Date, Signature

The statutory declaration is usually a mandatory part of the structure of an academic paper.

Frequently asked questions

What do I need to keep in mind for the statutory declaration?

The statutory declaration is legally required for final theses and is sometimes requested by instructors for term papers as well. It must be dated and signed.

Why is a statutory declaration necessary?

It legally ensures that students always write their final theses themselves.

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Faculties: BW, SW

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Faculties: all

Contributors: Carola Gröhlich, Susanne Heidenreich, Maria Noll, Erika von Rautenfeld, Schreibzentrum, Dzifa Vode

This article was published in August 2025 and last updated in April 2025.

Faculties: BW, SW

Contributors: Carola Gröhlich, Susanne Heidenreich, Maria Noll, Erika von Rautenfeld, Schreibzentrum, Dzifa Vode

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