The International Max Planck Research School for Brain and Behavior trains doctoral students in neuroethology — how brain circuits produce animal behavior. It is run jointly by the Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesar, the University of Bonn and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, all based in Bonn, Germany.
Students join a research group at one of the three institutions and carry out their own project, combining experimental and computational approaches across species. The working language is English, and more than half of the PhD students come from outside Germany.
The doctorate is awarded by the University of Bonn, either as a PhD in Neuroscience through the Medical Faculty or as a Dr. rer. nat. through the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. The school recruits once a year, with the application portal open from 31 August to 15 October.
Benefits & funding
- A salaried position for the whole duration of the doctorate, with a net salary of around €2,000 a month that increases over the years.
- A four-year structured program, taught and supervised in English.
- Up to three eight-week lab rotations (six months in total) during the first six months, before a supervisor is chosen.
- A week-long Neuroscience Boot Camp covering electrophysiology, microscopy, programming and behavioral imaging.
- A Thesis Advisory Committee of at least three faculty members from different institutes, meeting at least once a year.
- Methods workshops, travel grants, soft-skills and career-development courses, a monthly reading club, an annual student retreat, and covered registration for the Bonn Brain³ conference.
- Travel costs for the on-site visit to Bonn during the matching phase are covered by the school; visa costs are not.
- Administrative support for international students, plus family support.
Eligibility
- Open to applicants of any nationality; no residency requirement is stated.
- A Master’s degree (or equivalent) in a relevant field is required. The application page states the degree must be awarded before October 2026.
- Students come from backgrounds including neuroscience, biology, physics, mathematics, medicine, cognitive science and psychology.
- Fluency in written and spoken English. Applicants taught mostly in English do not need a standardized language test.
- GRE scores are not required, but the program strongly encourages them.
- Final admission also depends on meeting the University of Bonn matriculation requirements.
- No age, gender or work-experience limit is stated.
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Application process
- 1Create an account in the online portal once the round opens on 31 August 2026.
- 2Complete the online application and nominate up to three hiring principal investigators; a PI missing from the drop-down is not recruiting in that round.
- 3Upload the Bachelor’s certificate and transcript, the Master’s certificate and transcript if the degree is already completed, and English translations where the originals are in another language.
- 4Write a motivation letter and three short research statements, one for each nominated principal investigator.
- 5Give the contact details of two referees, who are contacted automatically and must submit their forms by 20 October 2026.
- 6Shortlisted applicants take online one-on-one interviews from mid to late November, then attend the online Selection Symposium in late January 2027, which includes a panel presentation and panel interviews.
- 7Candidates who pass the symposium are invited to Bonn for lab tours and interviews with hiring PIs, and are admitted once a match with a supervisor is agreed.
Program timeline
Application round opens
31 August 2026
Application deadline
15 October 2026
Referee submission deadline
20 October 2026
Online one-on-one interviews
Mid to late November 2026
Online Selection Symposium
Late January 2027
Applicants who were not shortlisted are notified
Early February 2027
PhD positions start
March 2027 to 1 October 2027