The Berlin-Brandenburg School for Regenerative Therapies (BSRT) combines pure science, materials science, clinical disciplines, and biotechnology with the goal of repairing or replacing tissues and organs impaired by aging, diseases, trauma, or congenital abnormalities. BSRT is run by Freie Universität, Humboldt-Universität, and their jointly operated medical school Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, as well as Technische Universität Berlin, Universität Potsdam, and other high-ranking research institutes in Berlin and Brandenburg, including several Max Planck Institutes, Helmholtz Institutes, Fraunhofer Institutes, Leibnitz Institutes, and the Hasso Plattner Institute.

The graduate school operates in close association with the Berlin-Brandenburg Center for Regenerative Therapies (BCRT) and offers an excellent interdisciplinary education and outstanding research opportunities. It aims to prepare young scientists coming from different disciplines for a successful research career in the highly interdisciplinary field of regenerative medicine. The training and research cover four main areas: disorders of the immune system, the cardiovascular system, the nervous system, and the musculoskeletal system.

BSRT doctoral students are educated to have not only a profound understanding of their own field, but also a substantial understanding of the associated clinical needs and a broad knowledge in cell biology, molecular biology, bioengineering, biotechnology, and biomaterials. The students are supervised by outstanding representatives from academia and industry.

With the additional funding during the second phase of the German Excellence Initiative, BSRT is expanding its educational program. With the support of the BSRT network, postdocs are able to pursue their own innovative research ideas in regenerative medicine. Students enrolled in master’s programs in the life sciences at the various universities in Berlin, are being given first insights into the research going on at BSRT.

The main objective of BRST is interdisciplinary cooperation between early-career scientists in various branches of regenerative medicine – from basic research to applications.

The BSRT Clinical Scientist Track has evolved into a Charité-wide educational program, the Charité Clinical Scientist Program. Participants are provided the unique opportunity to combine their residency training with protected time for research. This structured career path fosters translation of scientific discoveries into application and strengthens the innovative capacity of academic medicine.

Additionally, a training program called Bio Thinking was developed at BRST in cooperation with the HPI School of Design Thinking at the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam. Innovative training concepts are employed that ensure interdisciplinary collaboration in research projects and offer the potential for more creative approaches by scientists.

In addition to the Berlin-Brandenburg School for Regenerative Therapies (BSRT), there are six other graduate schools at Freie Universität Berlin that are funded through the German Excellence Initiative:

• Berlin Graduate School of Muslim Cultures and Societies
• Berlin Mathematical School
• Berlin School of Integrative Oncology
• Friedrich Schlegel Graduate School of Literary Studies
• Graduate School of East Asian Studies
• Graduate School of North American Studies