A central goal of the IRTG is to empower early-career researchers to become independent scientists while equipping supervisors with the skills to support this development. To this end, the program offers project management training for doctoral candidates and supervisors, as well as access to established mentoring programs such as LMU’s MOMENTE and Career Mentoring initiatives.

Career development is further supported through job application training for senior doctoral candidates, alumni talks highlighting academic and non-academic career paths, and a competitive grant proposal award in the third year. Participants receive professional grant-writing training and develop their own project ideas; the top three proposals are awarded €5,000 in start-up funding, with detailed feedback provided to all applicants.

All doctoral candidates are embedded in a structured training framework centered on a Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC). Each TAC consists of the primary supervisor and at least two additional principal investigators, including at least one external member. The TAC accompanies candidates throughout their doctorate, meets annually to review progress, provide strategic guidance, and support scientific and personal development. This structured supervision ensures clear milestones, regular feedback, and a high level of project quality and success.

Target Agreements

Together with his/her TAC, the Ph.D. candidate signs a target agreement, which not only reflects the supervision, but also gives information on the planned research project, milestones, curricular elements, etc. The target agreement is signed by all TAC members and the Ph.D. candidate. It must be handed in by the end of the second semester at the very latest, otherwise the Ph.D. candidate will be exmatriculated from the program.

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