International Max Planck Research School for Global Biogeochemical Cycles (IMPRS-gBGC)

The key elements of life, such as carbon, oxygen and nitrogen, are continuously exchanged between land, ocean and atmosphere through processes known as global biogeochemical cycles. Research activities in the IMPRS-gBGC aim at a fundamental understanding of these cycles, how they are interconnected, and how they can change with an altering climate and with human activity. PhD researchers participate in ongoing research comprising field observations, method development, experiments and modelling. The PhD programme is thus an excellent starting platform for a successful career in a field related to global biogeochemical cycles and Earth System Science. To answer questions relating to global biogeochemical cycling, individual PhD projects can involve aspects of (geo-)microbiology, soil science, atmospheric measurement techniques, atmospheric transport models, terrestrial and atmospheric remote sensing, model data integration, data mining, land surface models, ecosystem fluxes, isotope methods, biodiversity, organismic interactions, biological mineral formation, palaeoclimatology, micropalaeontology and palaeolimnology. The particular combinations depend on the PhD researcher's interests and on the orientation of open positions. Besides their own scientific research culminating in the PhD thesis, PhD researchers complete an additional training programme to develop a broad understanding of Earth System Science. The additional curriculum comprises several partially elective elements: Courses offered by faculty members of the IMPRS: An overview course on biogeochemical cycles and core courses that introduce the PhD researchers to scientific fields relevant to global biogeochemical cycles in which they have no deep knowledge as yet; this will facilitate interdisciplinary communication and collaboration Specific skills courses relevant for research in global biogeochemical cycles Participation in summer schools and workshops related to the PhD project Training in collaborative research through short-term research visits at foreign top-level research groups Workshops on any personal skills which will improve PhD researchers' employment opportunities and future career performance in academia and elsewhere Outreach activities such as presentations of results at international conferences, publications in international journals, and explanation of PhD researchers' own scientific work to the general public (either in Germany or in the researchers' home countries)