The Leibniz Institute on Aging - Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) as well as the graduate school belong to the Leibniz Association - a non-university research organisation equivalent to the Max Planck Society and the Helmholtz Association.

Therefore doctoral researcher have to be admitted as PhD candidates at a university. LGSA PhD candidates will receive their PhD degree from that particular university.  

The graduate school is a joint activity of the Leibniz Institute on Aging - Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) and the Friedrich Schiller University (FSU) in Jena.  We highly recommend the admission either at the Faculty of Biology and Pharmacy, the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Chemistry and Earth Sciences or the Faculty of Physics and Astronomy of the Friedrich Schiller University (FSU) in Jena. Receiving the degree from another university is possible, if a co-supervisor with an affiliation at that university is available.

A Master's degree or equivalent is required for admission as a PhD candidate. However, during the LGSA selection we will only evaluate your knowledge and skills that are necessary to perform a PhD research project at our institute. The final decision about acceptance of your undergraduate studies and the respective degree is done by the Faculties at university. Each degree certificate will be verified by the university’s authorities on an individual basis.

In general, if your degree would allow you to enter a PhD program in your home country, it is possible to apply. In case the number of semesters needed to complete your undergraduate studies is less than 10 or your degree does not include a thesis, you should talk to the LGSA coordinator during the recruitment session. In such a case, the university might ask you to join additional lectures, seminars and practical courses and to do additional exams.

No, you do not need to apply at the university in advance. In most cases, the university accepts our selected candidates. After joining the institute, the LGSA coordinator will help you to get admission at university.  

You are eligible to apply up to six month before receiving the degree. However, the selection committee will evaluate the research you have done in your Master's thesis. You should be ready and confident to present your research project, even if it is not finished yet.

Before starting our PhD course your need to finish your Master's degree at least with a preliminary confirmation from your university.

Yes. We accept applications according to the guidelines throughout the whole year. We will keep these applications for positions that cannot be filled during the running recruitment session, new upcoming and urgent possibilities or the next official selection.

All PhD candidates supervised by FLI group leaders are selected via the graduate school, irrespective of the source of financial support. Therefore we do not have a fixed number of positions or of candidates that will be accepted for the program.

Research groups within the Leibniz Institute on Aging - Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) have different abilities to hire PhD candidates.

Each group has a defined number of positions financed from the in house group budget. In addition, all research groups are active in raising third party funds for PhD candidates. The graduate school offers 1-2 additional fellowships for selected, excellent PhD candidates per year. These fellowships belong to the selected PhD candidate and will be added to the group chosen by the fellow. A maximum of 3 fellows per group is permitted. Therefore not all groups participating in a graduate school call might have an open position available, but rather try to attract one of the awarded fellows. Moreover, group leaders interested in accepted candidates after the recruitment session might help the candidate to apply for a personal stipend.

Unless PhD candidates obtain their own fellowship, we offer a working contract with a salary according to the German TV-L E13, 50-65% (salary agreement for public service employees) including health insurance and social insurance.

PhD candidates initially receive a one-year contract. The contract can be extended to three years with the possibility of an additional one-year extension, provided that a written positive statement from the thesis committee supports these extensions. At present, PhD candidates receive a contract with a 50 % salary during the first year and a 65 % salary during the second, third and fourth year.

No, you do not need to provide any certificate of a language exam.

The general working language within the FLI is English. We expect very good communication skills in English. We will assess your English proficiency during the recruitment session.

German language knowledge is not required for the admission. However, the FLI offers German language courses at different levels and we highly recommend joing such a course during your stay in Germany.

No, there are no tuition fees for the graduate school and the admission as a PhD candidate to the appropriate faculty of the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena.

PhD candidates have the possibility to enrol at the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena. Enrolment is not compulsory, but it offers a whole range of advantages. The enrolment requires the payment of a semester fee. Information regarding the semester fee can be found on the website of the Graduate Academy Jena.

No. We consider all applications in the same way, regardless of citizenship. We are an international research institution and you are welcome to join us.

The final acceptance of your undergraduate studies abroad and the respective degree is done by the faculties at university. Each degree certificate will be verified by the university’s authorities on an individual basis. This process starts after the LGSA recruitment. In most cases, the university accepts our selected candidates from abroad. You will be asked to provide certified English translations of your transcripts and certificates from the Bachelor's and the Master's degree if you are accepted to the graduate school, however, for the application process and recruitment session, these documents are not required.

In order to join the recruitment session you might need a valid passport and a short stay (Schengen) visa. The LGSA coordination office will send you an official invitation letter for your visa application on request.

Before entering the program after acceptance, international non-EU nationals must have a visa status entitling the holder to take up a paid employment. The LGSA coordination office will help you to apply for such visa.