We are currently offering PhD positions. The closing date for applications is February 20, 2026. Any documents received after the deadline will not be considered. More information here

Please note our research topics and potential thesis topics

Eligibility criteria and application requirements:

There are three requirements which you must fullfill:

1. You have a Master's degree or are in the final year of a Master's programme in subjects like physics, informatics/computer science, electrical engineering or chemical process engineering.
2. You don't have a doctorate yet.
3. You've got to comply with the mobility rule. You must not have resided or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc) in Germany for more than 12 months in the 36 months before the application deadline. 

You need to  have a good command  of spoken and written English, approximately at level B2.

If your application is successful, you'll get a work contract for 36 months, including social benefits like health, long-term care and unemployment insurance, as well as a contribution to the German pension fund.

Application process

Our application process consists of two steps:

1. The first step is to register using the online application form below.
   
   For the web form you need to provide the following information:
   - Basic information including titles and names of supervisors of your Master thesis.
   - Length of study.
   - Grades of Bachelor and Master.
   - Preferred research field (out of four) for your PhD research.
   - Up to three KSETA Principal Investigators (PIs) as potential thesis supervisors.
   Applicants may optionally propose a specific research sub-field, topic, or project; this will be further developed in collaboration with supervisors during the initial month after recruitment.
2. Submission of application materials. After submitting the online form, please send the following materials directly to apply∂kseta kit edu by the senior scientists:
   1.  a motivation letter (of up to 2 pages) containing:
      - a statement of research interests,
      - an explanation why  you have chosen KIT and KSETA, and
      - a statement about the academic qualifications preparing you for the envisaged research field (e.g. special lectures, internships, summer schools).
   2.  a tabulated curriculum vitae (CV) including information on
      - academic education (attended universities, fields, specialisations),
      - additional extra-curricular activities (small research projects, advanced voluntary academic courses),
      - mobility (internships at other scientific institutions, studies in foreign countries, e.g. with ERASMUS, intersectoral mobility to the non-academic world),
      - brief descriptions of the projects of your Bachelor’s and Master’s theses,
      - academic prizes, publications and patents,
      - competencies related to foreign languages and cultures,
      - other professional competencies (e.g. programming languages), and
      - teaching, outreach, public awareness activities, as well as social engagement.
   3. transcripts of record and certificates of Bachelor and Master studies.
   4. Please complete the ethics self-assessment. If you answered any questions with "yes", please write a few sentences on how to mitigate the corresponding risk of ethics violations.

You should provide two letters of recommendation, one from the supervisor of your Masters thesis and one from another senior scientist. The second letter can be from another scientist of your choice. Please combine all your materials into a single PDF file.

If you have any further questions or need clarification on any points, please contact us at eleonora trynieieva∂kit edu

The closing date for applications is 20 February 2026.  Any documents received after the deadline will not be considered.

You can find further information about the selection process here