Study

The GGNB doctoral program / International Max Planck Research School "Physics of Biological and Complex Systems" is a member of the Göttingen Graduate Center for Neurosciences and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB). The graduate center offers a joint modular training program to which the fifteen doctoral programs of GGNB contribute and that is open to all GGNB students. In addition to a lecture and seminar program, training consists of (1) individual counselling by thesis committees, (2) intensive methods courses of 1-3 weeks in special training labs, (3) 2-3-day methods courses in the laboratories of the participating faculty, (4) professional skills courses such as scientific writing, presentation skills, intercultural communication, project management, team-leadership skills, conflict resolution, ethics, and career development, and (5) student-organized scientific meetings, industry excursions, and intercultural events. Students are able to tailor their individual curriculum by choosing from a large number of courses and events.

The program teaches, on the one hand, the development of new cutting-edge techniques that are essential for studying life processes, on the other hand the application of new technologies to solve biological question. The program will furthermore teach quantitative physical approaches. An important aim is to overcome traditional barriers between the disciplines and expose graduate students to enough physics, chemistry and biology, so that they can reach a deeper understanding of language, priorities and scientific culture in all areas, with the long-term goal of preparing students for increasingly interdisciplinary, but also increasingly quantitative research in the life sciences. In addition, the program will play a leading role in the establishement of an extended course in advanced microscopy.

Experimental research constitutes the major component of the doctoral studies and is conducted in the laboratory of a faculty member of the doctoral program. Doctoral research projects are complemented by a school-wide training program, offered to all GGNB students, who are members of a vibrant international research community. The language of the doctoral program is English.