Max Planck Institute for the Biology of Ageing; CECAD; CEPLAS
Courses are only held in English. We offer professional training to improve your scientific communication and writing skills.
The Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine is an advanced programme focused on basic research and its translation into biotechnology and biomedicine. We participate in collaborative research in biology, chemistry, medicine, and in the Excellence Clusters CECAD and CEPLAS, facilitating placement of our students in a broad range of cutting edge labs.
Our programme will advance both your knowledge of the life sciences and crucially your practical skills. All students join an early preparatory course in advanced biochemistry and molecular medicine to get to know each other and to lay common theoretical foundations.
Also in the first semester, you will select your first subject module from a broad range allowing you to tailor the degree to your personal preferences. Subject modules combine theory and practice in a specific area of the life sciences, for example neuroscience, genomics, proteomics, cell biology, biochemistry, structural biology, bioinformatics, or molecular medicine.
After completing two subject modules, you advance to laboratory modules with a bigger emphasis on experiments and independence. You are free to select the labs that best suit your needs in Cologne, Germany, and abroad. After two practical projects of this kind, you are ready for the final step.
In the last semester and after having experienced different corners of the life sciences, you will be well placed to specialise and find a lab for your ideal Master's thesis. After an earlier scientific competency workshop, you will draft a project proposal similar to a grant or stipend application and then execute that plan in a half-year Master's thesis. Finally, after a total of two years, you will be ready to move on and up into academic/commercial research or your profession of choice.
Many of our students perform lab rotations abroad supported by our professional and student network. International speakers will be invited.
The semester contribution amounts to approx. 340 EUR per semester. The fee includes a "Deutschlandsemesterticket" that covers public transport in Germany.
Academic admission requirements include a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in biochemistry or a similar natural science from a programme in which at least 180 credit points have been achieved and the final grade is "good" or "better". At least 36 credit points must have been achieved in biochemical courses with a practical component or the Bachelor's thesis.
Many of our students work part-time as teaching or research assistants. We will support you in your search.
Accommodation is available through the student union ("Kölner Studierendenwerk") or on the private market. Rent for a single room in a student hall of residence is approx. 200 to 350 EUR. Rent for a single room on the private housing market is approx. 500 EUR.
International Office
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