International, Interdisciplinary, Intensive: Master/Ph.D. in Molecular Biology

In the winter term 2000/01 the University of Göttingen and the Max-Planck Society introduced the international Master/Ph.D. course in 'Molecular Biology'. This intensive course takes a graduate student from a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) level or its equivalent to a Master of Science degree in 18 months and to a Ph.D. or Dr. rer. nat. in four years. Conceptually the course is aimed at internationalisation, shortening the time spent studying for a degree and guaranteeing a research-based education. Various academic units contribute to the course - the Faculties of Biology, Medicine, Chemistry, and Agriculture, the Göttingen Center for Molecular Biosciences as well as the Max-Planck Institutes for Biophysical Chemistry and Experimental Medicine. This course is also an International Max Planck Research School.
A maximum of twenty students is accepted to the program each year; half of them are international students. All classes are taught in English. There are no semesters; all participating units offer an integrated teaching schedule, thus shortening the duration of the course. Graduates are qualified to work in professions which require molecular or cellular bio-scientists.

The course is organized into two parts. During the first year lectures, tutorials, seminars, and methods courses as well as individually tutored research projects are taught in a framework of 36 weeks. Intensive applied education is the goal here. Lab rotations and individual tutoring as well as integrating lecturers from the Max Planck Institutes guarantee that research is applied and intensive. Close contact between students and teachers, work in small groups, intensive advising, and contact with international guest scholars integrates students within their subject and also socially. The first year ends with one written and two oral exams, which qualify students for the writing of the Master´s thesis - a six-months research thesis. For students who enter the program with a qualifying degree (B.Sc. or equivalent) this requirement may be waived so that they can transfer directly into the Ph.D. program.

The Ph.D. program is mentored by a thesis committee consisting of the thesis mentor and two further lecturers. Participation in scientific conferences and courses as well as placing publications in international journals are requirements for completing the Ph.D. program. Stays in laboratories abroad are possible.

Social integration is an important factor in the course. A coordinator helps international students to get started in Göttingen and continues to provide support during the entire course. An orientation program at the beginning - which takes several weeks - offers intensive German classes and opportunities for getting to know the city of Göttingen, the University and its surroundings.

The Ministry for Science and Culture of the State of Lower Saxony (MWK) supports the three first cohorts of the Ph.D. program with a total of 15 Georg-Christoph-Lichtenberg scholarships.