Marine research for doctoral students

As part of its efforts to promote young scientists, the AWI offers numerous doctoral positions. Doctoral students are involved in various national and international projects, where they are supervised and supported by scientists. The doctoral theses contribute significantly to the scientific output of the AWI and are a central part of its efforts to promote young scientists.
 

https://www.awi.de/en/work-study/out-of-university/as-phd-student.html

POLMAR at the AWI is a graduate school for doctoral students. Various courses are offered as part of a training program. A certificate is issued for a minimum number of courses. There are annually changing courses, summer and winter schools, PhD conferences, workshops, and excursions. The aim of POLMAR is to improve the qualifications of the participating doctoral students. Courses from programs at partner institutions can also be credited, namely: GLOMAR and MarMic.

https://www.awi.de/en/work-study/out-of-university/graduate-school-polmar.html 

The BGR regularly advertises positions for scientific staff, which offer the opportunity to obtain a scientific qualification (doctorate or habilitation).

https://www.bgr.bund.de/DE/Karriere/Karrieremoeglichkeiten/Studium-Berufseinstieg/studium-berufseinstieg_node.html#doc878376bodyText3 

At the doctoral student meetings at the BGR, doctoral candidates can give each other advice, present their findings, discuss issues, and exchange experiences.

https://www.bgr.bund.de/DE/Karriere/BGR-als-Arbeitgeber/Entwicklung/entwicklung_node.html#doc597146bodyText5 

SICCS (School of Integrated Climate and Earth System Sciences) is an international component of the University of Hamburg's educational concept. It offers interdisciplinary and research-oriented training in earth and climate sciences. The doctoral school is a career program that brings together doctoral students from different scientific backgrounds. To ensure the successful and timely completion of dissertations, a mentoring and advisory tool is offered in the form of an advisory board system.

https://www.sicss.uni-hamburg.de/phd-program.html

Every year, CLICCS nominates outstanding dissertations in climate and Earth system research for the Wladimir Köppen Prize. The prize is endowed with €5,000 and is awarded to excellent doctoral theses focusing on climate research.

https://www.cliccs.uni-hamburg.de/career/koeppen-award/about-koeppen-prize.html 

The German Oceanographic Museum offers students the opportunity to write their scientific theses, including doctoral dissertations. The specific options and topics are discussed with the staff and depend on their capacity.

https://www.deutsches-meeresmuseum.de/wissenschaft/stellen-themen/themen-fuer-wissenschaftliche-arbeiten 

The DSM offers the opportunity to pursue a doctorate on a topic related to the exhibition and research program “Humans & the Sea.” The program includes a scientific evaluation. Doctoral students are encouraged to pursue a stay abroad and to engage in regular continuing education. Participation in the AWI's POLMAR graduate school is particularly emphasized.

https://www.dsm.museum/en/science/cooperative-research/promoting-young-researchers

The TU Braunschweig offers doctoral programs in a wide variety of fields.

https://www.tu-braunschweig.de/en/forschung/default-9518a33bd6/translate-to-english-promovierende-1

The GradTUBS Graduate Academy offers all doctoral students at TU Braunschweig interdisciplinary and cross-faculty support on their path to a doctoral degree in the form of target group-specific continuing education courses and networking events. A central component is a comprehensive range of courses for developing key career-relevant skills. In addition, contact with regional and national businesses and non-university research institutions is encouraged.
 

https://www.tu-braunschweig.de/en/gradtubs

Right at the start of the doctoral project, you should write to youngtalents@geomar.de at GEOMAR to arrange an initial welcome meeting with GEOMAR's junior researcher support team to get to know each other and find out about the most important next steps.

https://www.geomar.de/en/studying/doctoral-researcher/geomar-offers-for-doctoral-researchers

The FYORD program is a jointly organized interdisciplinary and interinstitutional program of the Kiel Marine Science research focus at Kiel University and the GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel. As both institutions are committed to promoting young talent and offer attractive opportunities for young scientists, they have set up a joint program called FYORD. It is aimed at young scientists in marine research, from master's students to doctoral candidates and postdocs, with the aim of building a cross-institutional scientific community within and outside Kiel.
 

https://www.uni-kiel.de/en/fyord

Hereon offers students the opportunity to write their doctoral thesis at one of the four institutes or at the Climate Service Center Germany GERICS, a Hereon institution. In addition to the scientific and technical departments, this is also possible in the administrative department. The four areas are materials research, coastal research, polymer research, climate research, and biomaterials research.
 

https://www.hereon.de/career/phd/index.php.en

The ICBM's doctoral programmes support the training of doctoral students by offering introductory and advanced courses. The programmes aim to attract the most promising young scientists with specific areas of expertise. These are biology, biotechnology, biochemistry, chemistry, and bioinformatics. Scientists from Oldenburg, Braunschweig, and Göttingen are conducting research under the title “Ecology, Physiology, and Molecular Biology of the Roseobacter Group: Towards a Systems Biology Understanding of a Globally Important Group of Marine Bacteria.” Roseobacter is integrated into the graduate college. The funded doctoral program “The Ecology of the Molecules” (EcoMol) deals with the interaction of ecological and geochemical processes in seawater and their molecular complexity. Both programmes are coordinated by the ICBM.
 

https://uol.de/en/icbm/look-and-sea/junior-scientists

The Graduate School of Natural Sciences, Medicine, and Technology (OLTECH) at Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg provides an umbrella for various doctoral programs and structured doctoral programs offered by the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (Faculty V), the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (Faculty VI), and the Department of Computer Science at Faculty II.
The objectives of the OLTECH Graduate School are to train doctoral students in an international and interdisciplinary context. They learn to develop research questions and new approaches to solutions, to plan and manage projects, and to present the results of their studies. Doctoral students learn about the relevant models and hypotheses in their field of science and discuss them in their group.

The curriculum of the doctoral programs combines several disciplines and ensures that doctoral students can integrate their scientific skills into a broader context. All elements of the curriculum serve to promote the scientific independence and creativity of doctoral students.
 

https://uol.de/en/oltech 

The IOW offers doctoral theses in marine research.

https://www.io-warnemuende.de/studies.html

With the FYORD program, Kiel Marine Science (KMS) and GEOMAR promote the development of young marine researchers across all status groups, from master's students and doctoral candidates to postdoctoral researchers. The aim of this jointly organised, inter-institutional and interdisciplinary programme is to enable successful careers in marine topics and to establish a vibrant, comprehensive scientific network on the subject of marine research in Kiel. All target groups should not only benefit from different experiences, but also develop new and fundable research questions and receive impetus for their own career paths.

https://www.uni-kiel.de/en/fyord

MarData is an interdisciplinary training concept for doctoral students at KMS, MARUM, GEOMAR, and AWI. The aim is to provide further training for doctoral students so that they can use big data methods to gain new insights from marine science data sets.

https://www.mardata.de/ 

The MARUM Graduate Programme brings together doctoral students in marine sciences from the University of Bremen and Constructor University. If you are employed at MARUM, you automatically become part of the programme. Doctoral students who are employed elsewhere and/or receive a scholarship are also welcome and can enjoy all the benefits.

We support you in acquiring the skills and competencies necessary for excellent research and in preparing for the next steps in your career. In addition to all the offerings of the MARUM Research Academy, members of the graduate programme benefit from a strong network of doctoral students from various disciplines and have access to our counseling and coaching services. You can participate in all networking and social events as well as the annual Bremen Doctoral Symposium for Marine Sciences.

Members of the MARUM Graduate Programme are supervised by a team as standard. This doctoral advisory committee (TAC) consists of the main supervisor and at least two other scientists, one of whom must come from a different working group.
 

https://www.marum.de/research-academy/graduate-programme.html 

The MARUM Research Academy supports doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers who are involved in supraregional research projects.

If your project is based at MARUM, you are automatically a member of the Research Academy. If your project is carried out at another location and you are based in Bremen, you are welcome to apply for membership.

https://www.marum.de/research-academy/graduate-programme/research-training-groups.html 

The Master's and Doctoral Program, MarMic, is aimed at highly qualified students. They are trained to view marine microbiology from many perspectives. Classes are held in English. The beginning of the MarMic program consists of lectures and seminars, internships, and laboratory projects. After the first year, students work on a research-based master's thesis, which they complete after six months with a Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree. They can then go on to earn a doctorate within another three years. In addition to the MPI-MM, the University of Bremen, Jacobs University Bremen, and the AWI are also involved in MarMic.

https://www.mpi-bremen.de/MSc-PhD-program-of-the-IMPRS-of-Marine-Microbiology-IMPRS-MarMic.html 

PhDnet is a Germany-wide network of all doctoral students at the Max Planck Society. It serves as a platform for mutual exchange and as a point of contact for representatives of PhD students, provides information about the activities of the PhDnet working groups, and shares the latest news. At MPI-MM, several doctoral students act as representatives to ensure that the concerns of PhD students are heard and maintain a close-knit community.
 

https://www.mpi-bremen.de/Doktorandenvertreter-innen.html 

Baltic TRANSCOAST is the interdisciplinary graduate school of the MTS. Its aim is to enable doctoral students to acquire scientific expertise and core competencies for their scientific careers. The focus is on coastal research.

https://www.baltic-transcoast.uni-rostock.de/ 

The summer school is aimed at international young professionals, doctoral students, postdocs, and selected master's graduates with a background in all areas of marine technology or marine science!

https://www.inf.uni-rostock.de/mts/otc-rostock/summer-school/root-2025/ 

The Mare Balticum Fellowship Programme promotes interdisciplinarity at the University of Rostock and specifically supports exchange with international scientists.

Each year, at least four international scientists (fellows) are invited to conduct research and network at the University of Rostock during a guest stay of up to three months (see call for applications).

The Mare Balticum Fellowship Programme at the University of Rostock offers researchers in the early stages of their careers a unique opportunity to network with international guests, broaden their interdisciplinary perspectives, and gain inspiration for their own scientific development.
 

https://www.uni-rostock.de/en/research/fellows/overview/

EU-CONEXUS is an alliance of nine European universities from France, Spain, Croatia, Romania, Greece, Lithuania, Ireland, and Cyprus, as well as the University of Rostock. Its aim is to facilitate innovative and interdisciplinary research across national borders and to offer students a European degree program. The thematic focus is on the sustainability of coastal regions.

https://www.uni-rostock.de/en/international-affairs/international-profile/eu-conexus/

At the University of Greifswald, it is possible to pursue a doctorate after completing a master's degree.. 

https://www.uni-greifswald.de/studium/nach-dem-studium/promotionsstudium/

The Graduate Academy at the University of Greifswald is a program for doctoral candidates and postdocs. Its aim is to support doctoral studies and postdoctoral research and to prepare young scientists for careers within or outside academia.

https://www.uni-greifswald.de/en/research/junior-researchers/graduate-academy/

The ZMT Academy is primarily aimed at doctoral students and postdocs, but also at bachelor's and master's students. The courses are designed to support them in their education, further training, and career development in the field of sustainable resource management. The focus is on interdisciplinarity, sustainability, transdisciplinarity, and internationality. A wide range of courses is available to young scientists. There is also the opportunity to participate in counseling or training for personal and career development. For doctoral students, there is the doctoral student program, which provides a temporal and organizational framework. The ZMT collaborates with the GLOMAR and MarMic graduate schools.
 

https://www.leibniz-zmt.de/en/zmt-academy.html

The ZMT doctoral programme is aimed at all doctoral students who are pursuing their doctorates at the ZMT as part of a project or with a scholarship. In accordance with the Doctoral Studies Regulations, it provides for a three-year doctoral process with corresponding milestones. Every doctoral student at the ZMT participates in a Welcome Week, which is offered every year in the fall. The core of the “ZMT Welcome Week” is a three-day course on the mission of the ZMT. In addition, a one-day intercultural training course is held, which all doctoral students must complete. Furthermore, doctoral students can attend all courses offered by the ZMT Academy. Counseling on the doctoral process or career development issues is also available.
 

https://www.leibniz-zmt.de/en/work-study/doctoral-candidates.html