Leibniz Graduate School for Quantitative Spectroscopy in Astrophysics

News: The Leibniz Graduate School currently offers eight positions for Doctoral Students. Here, you can find more information about the application procedures and the topic of the doctoral theses.

News: The Leibniz Graduate School currently offers a position for a Postdoctoral Associate/Program Manager.

The Leibniz Graduate School  for Quantitative Spectroscopy in Astrophysics is a collaborative project of the Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP) and the Institute of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Potsdam (UP) starting in 2013. The Graduate School provides a comprehensive and integrative research and training environment for young scientists, promoting the application of spectroscopic methods to cutting-edge astrophysical research topics. AIP and UP both have a broad research profile within astrophysics, reaching from solar and planetary physics via stellar and extragalactic research to cosmology. In this diversity, the development of new instruments and methods for spectroscopy forms a common denominator for many of the astrophysical research activities in Potsdam. The Graduate School connects to and builds upon this characteristic portfolio. By focussing on the »quantitative« aspects of astrophysical spectroscopy, we express our ambition to go beyond »descriptive« astronomy (which nevertheless has its merits) and to promote the advancement of a physical understanding of cosmic objects. While the Graduate School is motivated by an observational approach and by new observational opportunities, an essential element in the proposed research is the quantitative comparison with theoretical predictions and models.

The characteristic feature of the Graduate School is its seamless combination of training on the relatively broad subject of spectroscopy with research on highly specialized scientific questions. Key components are supervision through thesis committees, mentoring by senior students, joint colloquia, and dedicated teaching and training courses covering scientific topics as well as soft skills. An additional major training element of the Graduate School will consist of incoming and outgoing internships: (1) A summer research fellowship program will invite  (international) undergraduate students to work with the doctoral students on a well-defined aspect of their research projects. (2) The doctoral students will work with senior scientists at institutions outside of Germany, who can add additional expertise to the thesis projects. The overall goal of the Graduate School is thus to contribute to the education of the next generation of young scientists that is well-positioned to face the upcoming challenges within science, academia, and industry.