Max Planck Schools

What Max Planck Schools does

Max Planck Schools is a German non-profit joint graduate program operated by the Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e.V.) under co-leadership with the German Rectors' Conference (HRK). It coordinates fully funded PhD and integrated MSc/PhD tracks across four thematic schools — Cognition, Matter to Life, Photonics, and (newly launched in March 2026) Biomedical Artificial Intelligence — delivered through a network of 30 German universities and 33 non-university research institutes, including Max Planck Institutes, Helmholtz Association centers, and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft bodies. The program serves ambitious international PhD candidates with Bachelor's or Master's degrees, as well as medical professionals via the Clinician Scientist Program, providing tuition-free positions, grants during the MSc phase, employment contracts during the PhD phase, and supervision by a network of 134+ Fellows that includes Nobel laureates and 18 Leibniz Prize winners.

The core technology is an integrated graduate program platform with a digital teaching and virtual campus infrastructure delivered through the mps.cloud.opencampus.net application portal, supplemented by specialized offerings such as the Cognition Colloquium lecture series and the MPSP Escape Room educational outreach game. GTM is event-driven and annual: applications are accepted each fall for September intake the following year, with recruitment via the website, social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Bluesky), and participation in international science conferences and events such as Berlin Science Week and the Falling Walls Conference.

Max Planck Schools does not generate tuition or commercial revenue; the program is funded by institutional grants from the Max Planck Society, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and the Dieter Schwarz Foundation as a national program from 2025 onward. The pilot phase ended in autumn 2025, after which the program was restructured under joint MPG/HRK leadership. The headquarters is in Munich, with coordination offices in Leipzig and Jena, and events hosted at the Bildungscampus Heilbronn. While AI is not an internal capability of the program itself, AI is a strategic vertical via the newly launched Biomedical Artificial Intelligence school.

Name

Max Planck Schools

Legal name

Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e.V.

Website

https://www.maxplanckschools.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Max Planck Schools is a German non-profit joint graduate program operating four fully funded PhD schools — Cognition, Matter to Life, Photonics, and Biomedical AI — across 30 universities and 33 research institutes, serving international PhD candidates and medical professionals with tuition-free, multi-year research positions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Graduate Education & Doctoral Programs

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Research Universities with Multi-Campus Systems (EDAHAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Research Universities with National Laboratories/Big Science Facilities (EDAHAAAJ)

Keywords

• Graduate education programs
• Interdisciplinary PhD research
• Doctoral training network
• Fully funded PhD positions
• Scientific graduate schools

Headquarters

HQ city

München

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Institutional Funding: Funded by Max Planck Society, German government through BMBF, and Dieter Schwarz Foundation. Provides fully financed PhD positions without tuition fees for qualifying candidates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Max Planck Schools is a joint graduate program offering fully financed PhD positions across 30 German universities and 33 non-university research institutes. It delivers integrated MSc/PhD tracks and standalone PhD programs in four interdisciplinary fields: Cognition, Matter to Life, Photonics, and Biomedical Artificial Intelligence, providing students with close supervision by leading scientists and access to first-class research infrastructure at no tuition cost.

Product overview

The Max Planck Schools is a joint graduate program comprising four distinct PhD programs - Cognition, Matter to Life, Photonics, and Biomedical Artificial Intelligence - across 30 universities and 33 institutes from non-university research organizations. The programs offer fully financed PhD positions with cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, close supervision by outstanding scientists, and access to first-class research infrastructure. Programs include integrated MSc/PhD tracks or standalone PhD programs, supplemented by specialized offerings such as the Clinician Scientist Program for medical graduates and the Cognition Colloquium lecture series.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Max Planck School of Cognition: Cognitive neuroscience and psychology research PhD program covering psychology, physics, computer science, philosophy, biology, and medicine.
• Max Planck School Matter to Life
• Max Planck School of Photonics
• Max Planck School of Biomedical Artificial Intelligence

Products and services

• Max Planck School of Cognition International four-year doctoral program covering cognition research across psychology, physics, computer science, philosophy, biology and medicine, with a one-year orientation phase followed by a three-year dissertation research phase.
• Max Planck School Matter to Life Integrated MSc/PhD program investigating fundamental questions about life and whether processes, functions and objects related to life can be simulated and recreated in the laboratory, spanning highly interdisciplinary research fields.
• Max Planck School of Photonics Top-tier interdisciplinary graduate school providing an integrated MSc and PhD program (or PhD only) in Photonics, the science of light enabling technologies such as non-contact sensors, quantum computers, and energy and information carriers.
• Max Planck School of Biomedical Artificial Intelligence The newest Max Planck School investigating fundamental scientific questions at the interface between biomedicine and artificial intelligence.
• Clinician Scientist Program Specialized program for candidates with a medical degree (Staatsexamen, M.D.) interested in academic careers in psychiatry and neurology, combining cutting-edge cognitive neuroscience research with clinical residency training at university clinics.

Quantifiable outcome

• Fully funded positions without tuition fees for all accepted candidates

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Max Planck Society is the founding organization and co-leader of the Max Planck Schools initiative, providing institutional framework and funding through its network of research institutes.
• German Rectors' Conference (HRK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint leadership partner with Max Planck Society for the national graduate program, representing German universities in the initiative.
• 30 German UniversitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner universities providing teaching facilities, research infrastructure, and supervision for PhD candidates across the three original Schools.
• 33 Non-University Research InstitutescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch organizations including Max Planck Institutes, Helmholtz Association, and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft contributing to the research network.
• 134 Fellows NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner134 distinguished scientists from universities and research institutions appointed as Fellows, including Nobel laureates and Leibniz Prize winners, providing supervision and mentorship.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• International Max Planck Research Schools (IMPRS): Operated by the same parent organization (Max Planck Society), IMPRS is a network of approximately 60 graduate schools offering fully funded PhD positions across Max Planck Institutes. It is the most direct comparable program in scope, funding model, and target candidate pool.
• Helmholtz Graduate Schools: Helmholtz Association's coordinated graduate school program offers fully funded PhD training across 18 German research centers, sharing Max Planck Schools' fully funded model, multi-institutional network structure, and focus on interdisciplinary research candidates.
• Fraunhofer Graduate Schools: Part of the same German non-university research ecosystem as Max Planck Schools (both 33 non-university research institute partners in the program), Fraunhofer's graduate programs target applied research PhDs with close industry connections, providing a comparable funding-and-network model.
• Leibniz Graduate Schools: Leibniz Association's graduate school program offers structured PhD training across German research institutes, directly comparable as a parallel national graduate program model targeting international research talent with multi-institutional coordination.
• EMBL International PhD Programme: European Molecular Biology Laboratory's international PhD program is a fully funded, interdisciplinary graduate program across European research sites, with a similar model of recruiting international candidates for cutting-edge life sciences research, comparable to Max Planck Schools' Matter to Life and Biomedical AI tracks.
• Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) Graduate School: OIST is a fully funded, interdisciplinary English-language PhD program with no tuition fees, attracting international candidates to a research-only environment. Comparable to Max Planck Schools in funding model, interdisciplinary focus, and international recruitment.
• Weizmann Institute of Science Graduate School: Israeli research institute offering fully funded PhD programs in sciences with international recruitment and tight supervision. Comparable in funding model, international candidate pool, and research intensity, though not directly competing in the same geography.

Regional players

• DFG International Research Training Groups (IRTG / GRK): German Research Foundation's structured graduate programs train doctoral researchers in coordinated German-German or German-international university partnerships. Comparable as a publicly funded, structured graduate training model but not directly competing for the same candidate pool.

Broad incumbents

• ETH Zurich PhD Program: A leading European research university running large-scale fully funded PhD programs across STEM disciplines. Comparable in attracting top international research talent and offering competitive funding, though institution-based rather than a multi-institutional network.

Others

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Networks (EU): EU-funded doctoral networks that train PhD candidates across multi-institutional European consortia with full funding and mobility support. Comparable in multi-institutional network structure and international recruitment, but funded by EU grants rather than national funding.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/mps_photonics
• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=fckBGRh1xQo
• Facebookfacebook.com/maxplanckschool.of.photonics
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/maxplanckschools
• Instagraminstagram.com/mps.photonics

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Max Planck Schools