The Max Planck School of Cognition invites applications from exceedingly bright students with strong academic experience in areas related to cognition such as artificial intelligence, biology, (cognitive) neuroscience, genetics, linguistics, mathematics, neurobiology, neuroimaging, neurology, neurophysics, philosophy, physics, psychiatry, and psychology. The doctoral program offers a superior grasp of the different methods and approaches used in the rapidly evolving field of Cognition. The school is driven by the passion to better understand human cognition and “mental phenomena” (potentially) occurring in non-biological systems and agents. The program consists of an orientation year (basic courses, lab rotations) followed by three years of research for the doctorate and is fully financed.

Your complete application needs to be submitted through the online application portal . Please prepare the following documents:

• Certificates or proof of current enrollment (B.S. and / or M.S.) (see FAQs 1.3-1.5)
• Official transcripts with explicit grade where applicable, and if available course descriptions detailing the content of courses you have completed (see FAQs 3.3-3.4)
• Your high school diploma
• Copy of your passport / identity card
• Academic curriculum vitae (see FAQ 3.1)
• Personal statement (see FAQ 2.2)
• Names of four preferred fellows from the Max Planck School of Cognition for your lab rotations during the orientation year (1st year). You may also choose (ONE) faculty from our Associated Researchers
• Names of three potential supervisors from the Max Planck School of Cognition Fellows for your doctoral phase (2nd - 4th years; please do not contact the potential supervisors ahead of admission to the program; only necessary to identify 3 names of interest in the application)
• Contact of two referees for recommendation letters (see FAQs 3.5-3.6). Note, the deadline of the application call also applies to the referees
• Non-native English-speaking applicants must provide evidence of their English language proficiency (see FAQs 1.11-1.12)

Deadline for Application is December 01, 2020.

During the COVID-19 pandemic the Max Planck School of Cognition drops consideration of GRE scores.

The Max Planck School of Cognition wishes to increase the participation of women wherever they are underrepresented; therefore, applications from women are particularly encouraged. Following its commitment to an equal opportunities employment policy, the Max Planck School of Cognition also especially encourages persons with a disability to submit their applications.