Career opportunites for students

The Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics (MPA) in Garching invites students to carry out their research at MPA. We welcome applicants from Germany and abroad. In principle there are three options for doing research at MPA:

Internships
Bachelor/Master Thesis
PhD Thesis

Internships

MPA offers internships for high school and university students interested in astrophysics. Please note, however, that we cannot offer a placement for every candidate due to the limited number of supervisors.

General requirements:

  • High school / Abitur – marks or Bachelor marks higher than average (please attach certificates (as PDF file) to your application)
  • Interest in astrophysics; we are working on theoretical problems mainly
  • Good computing and programming skills
  • A minimum time schedule of 4 weeks, anything less is not worth it!
  • Contact us in time, a minimum of 2-3 months before you’d like begin your internship

We are happy if you are interested in doing an internship at MPA and are looking forward to your application. Please include your expectations and whether you are interested in a special field of research.

Send your application documents (cover letter, CV) as a PDF file to:

info (at) mpa-garching.mpg.de

or on paper to our mailing address:

Cornelia Rickl

Max-Planck-Institut für Astrophysik

Postfach 1317

D-85741 Garching

Bachelor's or Master's thesis

If you are interested in writing your bachelor- or master-thesis in cooperation with the MPA, please contact the head of the research group you are interested in.

You can find more information about the scientific work at MPA on the webpages of the various research areas:

PhD thesis

A dissertation in cooperation with MPA can be done as an individually supervised project or through participation in our PhD-programme IMPRS.

International Max-Planck Research School (IMPRS) on Astrophysics

In collaboration with the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE), the Observatory of the Ludwig Maximilians University (USM), and the European Southern Observatory (ESO), MPA offers excellent research opportunities in theoretical and observational astrophysics for IMPRS students, covering all wavelengths from radio waves to gamma rays. Students conduct their graduate studies in a very stimulating environment and have the opportunity to develop a broad background in astrophysics beyond their own dedicated research project. The MPA is one of the most renowned institutions for theoretical and computational astrophysics. Graduate students will receive comprehensive training in theoretical and observational astronomy covering the whole spectrum of research activities present in the participating institutes.

Link to the IMPRS web pages

You can find more information about the scientific work at MPA on the webpages of the various research areas:

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