About the program
The Centre for Organismal Studies (COS) at Heidelberg University aims to study organismic biology beyond the borders of organisational level.
Research and teaching at COS is dedicated to study organismic biology from the basic molecular principles to cell biology, developmental biology and physiology both in plants and in animals and to further extend into evolution, biodiversity, systems biology and biotechnology.
Programme Structure
Main research topics are:
- Molecular and cell biology
- Genetics
- Stem cell and developmental biology
- Neurobiology
- Physiology
- Biodiversity
- Evolutionary Biology
Academic requirements
We are not aware of any specific GRE, GMAT or GPA grading score requirements for this programme.
English requirements
TOEFL iBT: 90
IELTS: 6.5
General requirements
- The requirement for admission to HBIGS is a university degree that will allow the applicant to be accepted as PhD student at Heidelberg University according to the regulations set by the Faculty of Biosciences. Qualified PhD applicants are invited to submit applications to HBIGS throughout the whole year, exclusively through the HBIGS online application system.
- All candidates who wish to become a member of HBIGS have to submit their application prior to the start of their PhD project. Students who have already started their PhD project are not eligible to apply.
Duration
- Full-time: 36 months
Start dates & application deadlines
- Starting October 2026
- Apply anytime.
Language
English
Delivered
On Campus
Campus Location
- Heidelberg, Germany
Disciplines
Biology, Genetics

