Molecular Biotechnology - Master
The concept of the master's program
Nowadays, both basic research and applied biomedical research are subject to interdisciplinary standards. The Master's program in Molecular Biotechnology at Heidelberg University meets these requirements in an innovative way by combining the three disciplines of drug discovery, biophysical chemistry, and bioinformatics. This allows students to specialize according to their areas of interest and optimally prepares them for a career in the many fields of life sciences.
Students can choose from a wide range of lectures and seminars offered by Heidelberg University. However, the focus of this program is on practical training, which students can obtain in the form of several research internships. Here, they devote themselves to current research tasks in working groups not only in Heidelberg, but all over the world. In contrast to typical, school-like laboratory internships at the university, students spend most of their study time as members of a research group, which in some cases even leads to a scientific publication. Students benefit from these experiences not only during their master's thesis, which represents a first step toward independent scientific work, but also throughout their future careers in the life sciences.
The scientific and social environment
The center of this interdisciplinary master's program is the Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology (IPMB), which offers students an ideal scientific environment by combining molecular biology, biophysical chemistry, and bioinformatics. This unique environment of biotechnological knowledge is an excellent basis for work in the field of drug discovery and biomedical research.
The IPMB is part of Heidelberg University, one of the leading universities in the field of life sciences. However, scientific progress is not only achieved by the university, but also by renowned research institutions such as the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, and various biotech companies based in Heidelberg. This international and motivating scientific environment is located in the world-famous, romantic city of Heidelberg, a typical German city not far from the major cities of Frankfurt, Stuttgart, and Mannheim.
The advantages of the master's program
The master's program in molecular biotechnology allows students to pursue their individual scientific interests and offers them much greater flexibility than other programs of this kind. Thanks to the diversity and abundance of lectures, seminars, and research projects on offer, students can explore various areas of modern research.
The unique structure of the program requires a high degree of self-organization, responsibility, and independence. Students are completely free to choose the research groups in which they complete their internships: not only in Heidelberg, but also in other German cities and internationally, the doors of research organizations are open to students. These internships are an ideal way to establish contact with the scientific community at an early stage, broaden one's horizons, and prepare for a career in the life sciences.