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PhD Positions

PhD Spring Selection 2025 – Open Projects

This is a list of currently 17 group leaders who are intending to recruit in the PhD Spring Selection 2025 and potential projects they’re offering.

Please note: this list will be constantly updated. Therefore, in your application you are welcome to include other groups of your interest.

Portrait Marius Ader

© CRTD

Marius Ader

Open Project
  • Mechanism and functional integration of human photoreceptors and RPE cells transplanted into pre-clinical mouse models of retinal degeneration
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biomedicine & Regenerative Biology

Portrait Mareike Albert

© CRTD

Mareike Albert

Open Project
  • Epigenetic regulation of human cortical development
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Genetics, Neurobiology

Portrait Oliver Bruns

Oliver Bruns

Open Project
  • Biomedical imaging beyond the visible
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biochemistry, biology, biomedicine, bioengineering
    → Detailed information as PDF

Portrait Frank Buchholz

© CRTD

Frank Buchholz

Open Project
  • Development and validation of genome editing tools for therapeutic treatment
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, Gene Editing

Portrait Federico Calegari

© TUD/Magdalena Gonciarz

Federico Calegari

Open Project
  • Decoding the computational role of adult neurogenesis in hippocampus
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Neuroscience, Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science
    → Detailed information as PDF

Portrait Triantafyllos Chavakis

Triantafyllos Chavakis

Open Project
  • Regulation of adipogenesis and adipocyte fate by inflammatory signalling
    → Detailed information as PDF

    This is a joint project with Peter Mirtschink. It will be conducted through collaboration between TUD, the University of Zurich, and ETH Zurich. It is part of the International Research Training Group Metabolic and Endocrine Drivers of Infection Susceptibility (IRTG3019). Within this collaboration, students will have the opportunity to obtain a joint certificate from TUD and the universities in Zurich.

Portrait Stefan Diez

© TUD CMCB, Magdalena Gonciarz

Stefan Diez

Open Projects
  • Oscillatory Behaviour of Molecular Motors in Biological and Engineered Systems
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Cell Biology, Biophysics, Bioengineering

  • Generation of Helical Movement and Torque by Cytoskeletal Motor Proteins
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Cell Biology, Biophysics, Bioengineering

Portrait Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

Elisabeth Fischer-Friedrich

Open Project
  • Regulation of epithelial cell shape through distinct surface tensions
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biophysics, Physics, Biology, Biotechnology

Portrait Anthony Gavalas

Anthony Gavalas

Open Project
  • Human pluripotent stem cell derived, vascularised pancreatic islet miniorgans as models for human development and diabetes
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Molecular Biology or related

Portrait Claudia Goettsch

Claudia Goettsch

Open Project
  • Cytoskeleton Dynamics and Extracellular Vesicles in Arterial Remodeling
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biology, molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, biomedicine
    → Detailed information as PDF

Portrait Anna Poetsch

Anna Poetsch

Open Projects
  • Using DNA language models to understand genome evolution
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biology, Machine Learning

  • Hijacking of chromatin architecture in leukemias
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biomedicine, Computational Biology

  • Following glioma development with gene regulatory networks from single cell multi-omics data
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biomedicine, Computational Biology

Portrait Tian Qiu

Tian Qiu

Open Project
  • 3D-Printed In Vitro Tumor Models for Micro-/Nano-robots
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: A Master degree in Biophysics, Biology, Biomedical Engineering, Tissue Engineering, Cell Biology or relevant fields is required
    → Detailed information as PDF

Portrait Natalia Rodríguez Muela

Natalia Rodríguez Muela

Open Project
  • Understanding the developmental origin of neurodegenerative diseases
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Neuroscience, cell biology, molecular biology

Portrait Mirko Schmidt

Mirko Schmidt

Open Project
  • Role of EGFL7 in brain lymphatics and malignant brain tumors
    Preferred Course of Study/Expertise of Candidate: Biology, molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, microscopy, neuroscience
    → Detailed information as PDF

PhD Spring Selection 2025

call is closed

interview week:
4–7 March 2025

PhD Summer Selection 2025

call opens 3 March 2025
call closes 6 May 2025

video interviews with admission committee:
16–20 June 2025
interview week:
19 – 22 August 2025

PhD Winter Selection 2026

call opens 18 August 2025
call closes 28 October 2025

video interviews with admission committee:
8–12 December 2025
interview week:
3 – 6 February 2026

For additional opportunities you might want to consider our partner program
IMPRS-CellDevoSys