Admissions

Only complete online applications which have been submitted by January 15 can be considered for admission. Online registration closes on January 15, 24:00 h CET. Ideally, all letters of recommendation have been submitted at that time as well. Please make sure to inform the persons writing these references for you early enough. Reference letter reaching us after January 17 cannot be considered in the evaluation of your application.

Admission to our Molecular Biology Program involves three stages: (1) Evaluation of the online application, (2) evaluation of short-listed candidates (approx. 15-20% of all applicants) in 15-min interviews in January, and (3) evaluation of candidates who qualified for the final stage of the admission process (top 60) in 30-min interviews in February. We process all applications as soon as possible. Please refrain from inquiries regarding the status of your application. We will notify all applicants when the results become available.

Stage 1: Evaluation of online applications (mid-January)
Our admission board evaluates all applications considering the academic qualification and motivation. Shortlisted candidates will be notified within approx. one week after the application deadline that they have qualified for 15-min interviews in January (see below). At the same time, unsuccessful applicants will be informed about the status of their application.

Stage 2: 15-min interviews (January 29-30, 2024)
Approximately 15-20% of all applicants will qualify for the second round of the three-stage admission process and participate in 15-min interviews with members of our admission board. These interviews are held online via zoom in the last week of January. The 15-min interviews focus on subject related short questions in the fields of molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry and structural biology/physical chemistry. To cover a good spectrum of topics, short and concise answers are expected from the candidates. Further details will be included in the invitations sent to invited candidates by email. A review of your college course material and common undergraduate textbooks is recommended to prepare for the interviews.

Stage 3: 30-min interviews (February 12-14, 2024)
Approximately half of the applicants who passed the 15-min interviews in January qualify for the third and final stage of the admission process. They will be invited to two 30-min interviews with members of our admission board. These interviews will also be held online via zoom in the second week of February. Further details will be included in the invitations sent by email.

Notification on admission
Our admission board will reach its decisions based on the online application, the 15-min interviews in January and the 30-min interviews in February. All applicants who participated in the interviews will be informed about the results immediately afterwards, latest by the end of February.