Travel awards 2017–2019
Measure 1 a+b
Transition from Master’s program to doctoral program(s)
In order to organize and facilitate systematically the transition from Master’s programs to the doctoral phase, we would like to implement two measures: (a) Master Awards for “Mind and Brain” Master’s students (previous page), and (b) the expansion of our existing Travel Awards for international Master’s students below).
(1b) Expansion of the one-week M&B Travel Awards to month-long stays
Since 2009, M&B has offered annual week-long Travel Awards to between 10 and 20 Master’s students from all over the world. From 2017, awards will be reduced in numbers, but individual stays extended to 1−2 months (longer stays preferred). The Berlin School of Mind and Brain now offers 6−8 awards for research and lab visits of one to two months. These stays are subject to strict application and selection criteria for awardees.
Background
Many of our international applicants for the doctoral program are unfamiliar with German academic life. In addition, the Berlin School of Mind and Brain requires applicants to apply with their own research project. Research project proposals and the required level of independent work is not very common outside Germany. Therefore, it presents a particularly high hurdle for international applicants. We would like to lower this hurdle by offering prospective doctoral candidates of the Berlin School of Mind and Brain an extended stay in Berlin prior to their application.
What’s on offer 2019?
- 5–6 awards for (preferably) 2 months each,
- up to 2,500 € per stay (depending on length of stay and travel expenses),
- supporting courses and workshops.
A preparation program will offered by the school: Information about the application process; courses on grant application writing and/or project development, project budgeting and time management; scientific writing course; mock project presentations (if requested); intercultural communication including information about the German academic system.
Travel Awardees work with potential supervisors with a view to elaborating on project ideas for submssion to the Berlin School of Mind and Brain's doctoral program. They will take part in events and come into contact with students doing their doctorates as well postdocs through lab rotations and workshops. If accepted into the doctoral program, this preparation will speed up starting their individual projects and minimize problems with the project implementation.
The following two-day courses (worth 500 € each) will be available for free to travel awardees:
22–23 July 2019 (Monday/Tuesday), 9.00–17.00
Doctoral Proposal Writing
Trainers: Dr. Judith Vey & Alexander Egeling
(for M&B Master's students and Travel Awardees only,
funded by the Einstein Doctoral Programme prize)
Venue: Luisenstraße 56, 10117 Berlin
1–2 October 2019 (Tuesday/Wednesday), 9.00-17.00
Doctoral Proposal Writing
Trainers: Dr. Judith Vey & Alexander Egeling
(for M&B Master's students and Travel Awardees only,
funded by the Einstein Doctoral Programme prize)
Venue: Luisenstraße 56, 10117 Berlin
Terms and conditions
The Berlin School of Mind and Brain offers awards for 6–8 students on one- to two-month lab visits in Berlin. Awards amount up to 2,500 € (depending on duration and travel). The awards will cover a substantial part of the cost of living for the duration of students’ stay in Berlin (accommodation, food, transportation).
You will have to make contact with the faculty member you would like to work with and agree on a stay in their lab:
During your stay you will not only get to know the lab of the faculty member you applied for, but also participate in scientific soft-skill courses (scientific writing, grant application writing/presentation) and work on your research proposal for the application to the doctoral program.
APPLICATION PACKAGE
(1) A letter of motivation (detailing your reasons for applying for the travel award and lab you want to visit, your background and research interests; max. 1,000 words)
(2) An preliminary outline for the project/research idea you would like to pursue during your planned doctorate (max. 1,000 words);
(3) Your academic CV;
(4) Transcript and certificate of BSc/BA and current transcript of Master studies;
(5) Statement of acceptance by the faculty member you want to visit, stating the dates and duration of your stay.
(6) Please send your application in ONE PDF file no larger than 7 MB (YourSurname_TA2019.pdf) to mb-manager@hu-berlin.de, stating your
- planned start date,
- planned duration of stay,
- estimated travel costs (i.e., cost of ticket for your flight, bus or train ride to Berlin)
(7) One letter of recommendation should be sent by recommenders directly to mb-manager@hu-berlin.de
Deadline for applications 2019
20 May 2019, 23:59:59 hrs CEST
Travel period 2019
1 July to 30 November 2019
Eligibility
In order to be eligible for this award you need to meet the basic eligibility criteria for applying to the School’s doctoral program in 2019; in particular you need to have completed or be in the process of completing a Master’s or equivalent degree in an area of study relevant to the School.
Further details about eligibility criteria for study at the School can be found here (internal link).
Who is my contact?
Annette Winkelmann
