Students at the GSN have a multitude of opportunities during their studies to network with cutting-edge researchers, both in Munich and internationally. Furthermore, the structure of the GSN program is highly compatible with other programs worldwide, and GSN graduate students receive an internationally recognized M.Sc. or Ph.D. degree.
Apply to the Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences (GSN) at LMU Munich in just a few steps. Below, you’ll find everything you need to prepare and submit your application.
1. Check eligibility
Make sure you meet the academic and program requirements.
2. Prepare your documents
Gather all required certificates and supporting materials.
3. Provide referee information
Provide contact details for your recommendation letters.
4. Submit your application
Complete and submit your application via the online portal.
5. Selection process
Shortlisted candidates are invited to interviews. Successful applicants complete the LMU enrolment process and start their studies in October.
The GSN does not charge application or tuition fees. See more information about student fees at the LMU Munich.
Starting a new program is exciting but also a lot to take in. The GSN makes sure no one navigates it alone.
From your first days on campus to the start of your research journey, we provide the guidance, resources, and community connections you need to hit the ground running.
Applicants should:
Applications are welcome even if the degree has not yet been awarded at the time of application. However, the degree must be conferred before courses begin in October.
PhD program
Applicants must hold an MSc or equivalent degree in biology, psychology, medicine, physics, or a related field.
Fast-Track Ph.D.
Exceptionally qualified Bachelor’s graduates may apply for the Fast-Track Ph.D. program. In some cases, promising candidates may also be recommended by the selection committee for direct admission.
If you have started a doctoral neuroscience research project within the last year but would like to achieve a Ph.D. degree according to the standards of the GSN regulations, you may also apply. In this case, you should have secured your own funding for the duration of your Ph.D. project.
Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in biology, psychology, medicine, physics, or a related field.
Please refer to the program’s specific entry requirements.
Please note that we will only consider applications and corresponding documentation submitted during the application phase through our online application site.
Applications via email or through external platforms such as Uni-Assist.de or similar are not possible.
Please upload a CV as a PDF document, organized chronologically from your high school studies up to your current situation. Dates should be entered as MM/YYYY and should cover the entire time span without any time gaps longer than 3 months.
Applications are welcome even if the degree has not yet been awarded at the time of application. However, the degree must be conferred before courses begin in October.
It should describe your reasons for applying to the GSN program(s) you have selected, listed in order of preference, and be structured as recommended. Make sure to also read the included note on the use of generative AI for application texts.
The statement should describe all research experience you consider relevant for your application (max. 2000 characters).
It is mandatory for PhD applicants (except Neurophilosophy).Extra document requirements for neurophilosophy applicants
Applicants for the Master's and Fast-Track programs can, but don't have to, enter a research experience statement.
The research experience statement is NOT about listing the methods used in your research, since a dedicated field for methods already exists in the online application tool.
Letters of recommendation need to be submitted by the referees themselves.
As part of the online application, you will have to provide contact details and email addresses for your two referees who have agreed to write a letter of recommendation on your behalf.
After submitting your application, an automatic email will be sent to the referees with the necessary information to electronically submit the letter of reference. We recommend that you confirm with your referees in advance before submitting your application and reconfirm the arrival of the email invitation with them.
Should your referee have not received the automated email, ask them to check all folders, including the Spam/Junk. Reach out to us with updated referee details in case you want to make a change. Due to the high number of applications, we must limit the number of changes to a referee to two attempts. The latest time for changing referee details is Friday, February 20th, 2026 at 12:00 noon CET.
Please note that it is your responsibility to make sure that letters are submitted by your referees before the deadline on February 23rd, 2026 at 12:00 (noon) CET. Once a referee has submitted a letter of recommendation, you will both get an automatic email.
Only complete applications with two reference letters received within the deadline on February 23rd, 2026, at 12:00 (noon) CET can be considered.
Are you fascinated by how the nervous system controls the entire body? Do you want to uncover how neural circuits contribute to metabolic disorders and other systemic diseases? Join our team at the Ertürk Lab as a PhD student and work at the interface of neuroscience, whole body imaging and AI.
What You Will Do
• Perform advanced tissue clearing and light sheet microscopy to map the nervous system across the whole mouse body at single cell resolution.
• Use wildDISCO and related whole body immunolabeling approaches to visualize autonomic, sensory and central circuits that regulate metabolic organs such as liver, pancreas, adipose tissue and gut.
• Apply and further develop AI based analysis tools for 3D image registration, cell detection and circuit quantification to extract meaningful biological insights from large scale datasets.
• Investigate how changes in peripheral and central nervous system connectivity and activity contribute to metabolic disorders and systemic disease states.
• Collaborate with biologists, clinicians and AI scientists to integrate imaging, molecular and functional data into a coherent picture of whole body neuro control.
• Publish your work in high impact journals and present at international conferences.
What We Offer
• State of the art platforms for tissue clearing, light sheet microscopy and large scale computational analysis.
• A highly interdisciplinary and international environment that combines neuroscience, metabolism, AI and systems biology.
• Close collaborations with leading groups worldwide and access to unique whole body imaging pipelines established in the Ertürk Lab.
• Mentoring and career development toward both academic and industry paths.
Your Profile
• Master’s degree in neuroscience, biomedical sciences, systems biology, biomedical engineering or a related field.
• Strong interest in how the nervous system controls whole body physiology and metabolic disease.
• Practical experience in at least one of the following is a plus: microscopy or imaging, tissue processing, programming (for example Python, Matlab), machine learning or data analysis.
• Curious, proactive mindset and willingness to learn new experimental and computational methods.
• Good communication skills and a collaborative working style in an interdisciplinary team.
Join Us
Be part of our team to explore how the whole body nervous system drives metabolic disorders and other systemic diseases.
We are seeking a highly motivated PhD student to join our research group at the Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), LMU Munich. The project focuses on mechanisms of chronic neuroinflammation after brain injury, with a particular emphasis on microglia biology, long-term epigenetic reprogramming and innate immune memory in microglial cells. Using state-of-the-art approaches including single-cell and spatial transcriptomics, functional imaging, epigenetic profiling, mouse models of stroke and neuroinflammation, as well as established collaborations with computational and clinical partners, the project aims to define how microglia retain pathological memory and drive long-term brain dysfunction.
The ideal candidate holds a Master’s degree in neuroscience, immunology, molecular biology or a related field, and brings enthusiasm for mechanistic in vivo and ex vivo research. Experience with neuroimmunology, mouse work, imaging, or omics technologies is an advantage but not required. We are looking for a curious, ambitious, and collaborative scientist who enjoys working in an interdisciplinary and international team.
We offer a stimulating research environment within the ISD, the SyNergy Cluster and a newly established Collaborative Research Center on Stroke Research, with access to advanced imaging platforms, single-cell and spatial multiomics pipelines, high-performance computing, and close interaction with international experts. The PhD student will be embedded in structured graduate training programs and benefit from excellent supervision, career development support, and opportunities for conference participation and international exchange.
Contact: Liesz Lab: https://www.isd-research.de/liesz-lab
The recently established group of Prof. Dr. Anna Schroeder at LMU Munich is seeking a motivated candidate for a PhD position.
Our lab investigates the neural circuits underlying emotions, motivations, and physiological needs, focusing on how these internal states shape behavior in dynamic environments. Specifically, we study the subthalamic circuits of the zona incerta, an enigmatic brain region that integrates internal states, external sensory cues, and past experiences to adapt behavior flexibly.
To address these questions, we employ cutting-edge molecular, cellular, and circuit-level approaches including in vivo calcium imaging with 2-photon microscopy or Miniscopes, whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology, single-cell RNA sequencing, optogenetics, chemogenetics and viral circuit tracing. We also leverage state-driven behavioral paradigms, advanced machine learning techniques and transgenic mouse models to dissect the neural circuit mechanisms driving behavior.
Our ultimate goal is to advance understanding of brain function and develop novel therapeutic strategies for psychiatric disorders through neuromodulation. Prof. Schroeder is deeply committed to training, mentorship and career development for lab members. The lab offers state-of-the-art neuroscience in a very supportive environment.
For more information, visit https://www.annaschroederlab.com
We are seeking a highly-motivated PhD student for a DFG-funded, 3-year PhD position to join our research group Sleep-dependent memory consolidation in birds.
www.mls.ls.tum.de/zoologie/arbeitsgruppe-ondracek/
https://www.ondraceklab.com/
This project integrates electrophysiological, behavioral, and computational approaches to investigate how neural population activity changes as a function of behavioral state in the songbird.
The project will be carried out at the Chair of Zoology at the Technical University of Munich, located at the TUM Life Sciences Campus in Weihenstephan-Freising. https://www.mls.ls.tum.de/zoologie/startseite/
Project Background
During vocal learning, a juvenile bird transitions from acoustically simple, highly variable “subsongs” to complex and stereotypical adult songs through a process of motor learning. Critically involved in this learning process is a set of interconnected brain areas that make up a basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuit known as the Anterior Forebrain Pathway (AFP). Although these brain areas have been extensively characterized individually during singing, little is known about spontaneous neural dynamics across the intact circuit and during different behavioral states.
In this project, we will build from our preliminary work (Lorenz et al., 2025) to chronically implant multishank Neuropixels 2.0 probes in the brains of adult and juvenile male zebra finches to simultaneously record from multiple brain areas across behavioral states.
1. Lorenz C, Das A, Centeno EGZ, Yeganegi H, Duvoisin R, Ursu R, Retailleau A, Giret N, Leblois A, Hahnloser RHR, Ondracek JM. Sharp Waves, Bursts, and Coherence: Activity in a Songbird Vocal Circuit Is Influenced by Behavioral State. J Neurosci. 2025 Nov 19;45(47):e1903242025.
2. Yeganegi H, Ondracek JM. Local sleep in songbirds: different simultaneous sleep states across the avian pallium. J Sleep Res. 2025 Jun;34(3):e14344.
3. Yeganegi H, Ondracek JM. Multi-channel recordings reveal age-related differences in the sleep of juvenile and adult zebra finches. Sci Rep. 2023 May 27;13(1):8607.
4. Shein-Idelson M, Ondracek JM, Liaw HP, Reiter S, Laurent G. Slow waves, sharp waves, ripples, and REM in sleeping dragons. Science. 2016 Apr 29;352(6285):590-5.
Required skills
• MSc or equivalent degree in neuroscience, electrical engineering, or biology with emphasis on systems or computational neuroscience
• Experience using electrophysiological and computational approaches
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (e.g. Python, MATLAB)
• Strong analytical and signal processing skills
• Highly motivated and able to work independently
• English language speaking and writing skills
Our Offer
The doctoral candidate will be employed by TUM (65 % TV-L E13) for a total duration of three years. Successful applicants will be enrolled in the Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences (GSN) program at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and receive a structured doctoral training.
The student will benefit from international research exchanges and collaborations with France and Switzerland, in addition to the networking opportunities available within the vibrant neuroscience community in Munich.
Contact: Dr. Janie Ondracek, janie.ondracek@tum.de