This is the application webpage for the IMPRS for Astronomy and Cosmic Physics, located in Heidelberg, Germany.

If you also want to apply to other IMPRS schools on astronomy, you have to apply separately, following the instructions on their webpages. 

For applicants, who also want to apply to the Graduate School of Physics of Heidelberg University, HGSFP: The IMPRS-HD is an independent part of the HGSFP. The HGSFP application form is equivalent to this IMPRS-HD application form. However, the IMPRS-HD form asks for some additional specifically astronomy/astrophysics-related input, which we think is important for the evaluation of your application by the IMPRS. Thus, please, specify your interest in astronomical / astrophysical research in this form, as requested. All astronomy/astrophysics applications to HGSFP will be evaluated by the same IMPRS-HD evaluation committee.

The Max Planck Society strives for gender equality and diversity. 

The Max Planck Society has set itself the goal of employing more severely disabled people. Applications from severely disabled people are expressly encouraged. If you have any questions on equal opportunities, please contact the Max Planck Equal Opportunities Officer (equality@mpia.de), or Ralf Launhardt (rl@mpia.de) on the subject of severe disability. Please, declare a disability in your application clearly, if you want to tell.

Please carefully fill in this online application form, considering the following instructions:

  1. Do only use the standard character set, i.e. don't use e.g.  ä,ö,ü,à,á,â, etc.

  2. Fields marked with * are mandatory to complete.
 
  3. Try to be as brief as possible when entering your text.

   4. Applicants are expected to have very good oral and written English language skills. However, we do not require any formal language test, as we will check English communication skills during the interview.

   5. We expect applicants to write their application themselves and only use AI in support. If AI was used, please declare when and how it was used (in final Section "Additional information").

Give a brief record of your education starting with your high school, state college, university etc., with dates and field of study. Also describe your employment history, if applicable, e.g. if you had worked on jobs outside science after or during your studies.*  

Do not exceed a box size of 20 lines.

Briefly describe the support (family aquaintance, institutional) as well as sources of difficulties (personal, structural/social, ...) you have encountered, and how you dealt with it on your path towards this application. Please mention in particular if you experience severe disabilities (you may contact the MPIA's disabled employees’ representative Ralf Launhardt, launhardt@mpia.de, in case of questions).

Answers to this field are absolutely optional.

 Do not exceed a box size of 20 lines.

State the type of your studies and university degree(s). 

If you have more than two degrees, only enter the degrees that are most relevant to this application.

If you only have one degree, leave the second part blank.  

Studies for First Degree

Studies for Second Degree

Scholarships and Honours

In the case you had personal scholarships, honours, or awards that might be relevant for this application, please list them including dates and a brief description.

Do not exceed a box size of 15 lines.

Course Work

Briefly list the core courses in physics you have taken (with credits and marks). If textbooks were used in the courses, please indicate. Heidelberg University expects a deep and broad study of physics for doctoral students in astrophysics and astronomy.*

Do not care about the layout at this point.

Add information about the grading system (e.g. a link, or the information to your transcript upload). 

Do not exceed a box size of 15 lines.

Motivation:

Tell us briefly what motivated you to apply for this doctoral program in astronomy/astrophysics, and what you hope to get out of it. Summarize what scientific topics or research approaches (e.g. theory, data modelling, instrumentation, etc.) you find most interesting.Indicate what areas of research you would most like to work in. If there are particular reasons for applying to the IMPRS program in Heidelberg, please tell them briefly. This part may include your possibly early interest in the field, but should move beyond.*

Do not exceed a box size of 30 lines.

Research Experience: 

Describe your research experience in detail. Indicate the aims and methods of your past research, the practical content (internships, thesis, etc.), and your personal contribution to research results. State the period of time you were involved. List publications if any. Mention your experience with common "research tools", such as coding / numerical tools / data analysis / data reduction / instruments / etc. (if applicable). This section is typically most essential to potential supervisors for their selection of candidates.*

Do not exceed a box size of 45 lines.

Areas of Interest for your Graduate Research: 

Provide a priority list of up to three possible research fields for your PhD. 

You may either give a more general statement, for example "numerical simulations", or "spectroscopy", or "observational projects", or "instrumentation". 

That might put you on the shortlist of a number of potential supervisors. Or you can be quite specific, for example "rotation of low mass stars", or "emission lines of AGN". That might put you on the shortlist of only few potential supervisors, but shows that you have specific experience. 

If you are open to multiple research fields, it may be useful to specify several topics. Being completely open may indicate a lack of qualification, or a lack of preparation. By being too specific, you may fail the attention of other supervisors. All projects we offer are interesting! 

Do not exceed 2 lines for each topic.

Indicate the names and email addresses of your refeeres* (two referees are mandatory).

Please omit titles (such as Prof., Dr., etc.).

IMPORTANT:  YOU NEED to ask your referees to upload their letters before the given application deadline via this LINK 

Do not forget!

Mandatory Referees

Optional Referee

Enter here any information that you would like to share and that can not be listed elsewhere.

Do not exceed 20 lines.

The default starting date of the school program will be September 2026.

Are there reasons which may prevent you from starting at that date? *

Depending on the funding situation, you may start earlier with your research project.

Consolidate the following documents into up to  4 separate PDF files:

1. All degree certificates and transcripts (mandatory)

2. Your MSc thesis or a preliminary MSc abstract (if applicable)

3. Your BSc thesis or a preliminary abstract (if applicable)

4. Other documents that you want to share e.g. a CV, major publications (optional)

By submitting this application, I am certifying the complete accuracy of all information stated herein. 

I consent to the storage of my personal data for application and admission purposes. 

Please note that you cannot change your data once it has been submitted!

The Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e.V. (MPG) takes the protection of your personal data very seriously. Here we provide you with information concerning the main aspects of data processing in the context of our application and recruitment procedures.

1. Contact details of the data controller

The controller as defined by the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other provisions under data protection law is:

Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e.V. (MPG)

Hofgartenstraße 8, 80539 Munich, Phone: +49 89 2108 -0 www.mpg.de

2. Contact details of the Data Protection Officer

The Data Protection Officer of the controller is Heidi Schuster, Hofgartenstraße 8, D-80539 Munich, telephone: +49 (89) 2108-1554, email address: datenschutz@mpg.de

3. Purpose and legal basis of data processing

The personal data entered by you in our application system is saved and processed solely for the application and recruitment processes of the Max Planck Institute of Astronomy.

Mandatory fields are required for the application process. If you do not provide these details, you cannot take part in the application process. The legal basis for processing is Article 6, para. 1, lit b GDPR (contractual basis) and § 26 Federal Data Protection Act 2018 (data processing as the basis for establishing an employment contract).

Fields not marked with an * are fields which you can complete voluntarily. By completing the voluntary fields, you give us your permission to store and process this data exclusively for the purpose of the application and recruitment process. The legal basis for processing in these instances is Article 6, para. 1, lit. a GDPR (consent of the data subject).

4. Data recipients and categories of data recipients

Processing of your personal details is carried out by way of order processing via heyflow.com. The Max-Planck-Gesellschaft as the responsible body only has access to your data insofar as this is necessary for the application and recruitment process in line with the internal allocation of responsibilities. Personnel management staff have access to the data. They transfer the data to the selection committee assembled for the respective application procedure, as well as to the Gender Equality Officer and the Works Council. The selection committee may also include external experts with whom the data is then shared. The data is not shared with any other third parties.

5. Duration of storage

Your data will be stored until the end of the recruitment process or, in the case of a speculative application, until the end of the exploratory process or the appointment process, as the case may be. We only save your data for longer if you have given us your consent to do so.

6. Your rights

If you wish to have your data deleted before the end of the recruitment process, please write an email to career@mpia.de

You are fundamentally entitled to the rights of access (Article 15 GDPR), rectification (Article 16 GDPR), erasure (Article 17, para. 1 GDPR), restriction of processing (Article 18 GDPR), data portability (Article 20 GDPR) and withdrawal of consent (Article 7, para. 3 GDPR).

In order to assert your rights, please contact

Max Planck Institute of Astronomy

Königstuhl 17

D-69117 Heidelberg

If you believe that processing of your personal data is in breach of data protection law or your claims under data protection law are being violated in any other way, please contact the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Data Protection Officer at datenschutz@mpg.de. The supervisory authority responsible for the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft is BayLDA (Bavarian Data Protection Authority), Postfach 606, 91511 Ansbach.