PhD Program
For students entering the program, their research will focus on biology, neuroscience, computer science, and interdisciplinary areas. Students with a background in related disciplines, such as physics and mathematics, are also encouraged to apply.
IST Austria offers PhD student positions with the following faculty:
| Group Leader | Research Topic |
|---|---|
| Nick Barton | Evolutionary and Mathematical Biology |
| Jonathan P. Bollback | Evolutionary Biology |
| Tobias Bollenbach | Biophysics and Systems Biology |
| Krishnendu Chatterjee | Game Theory and Software Systems Theory |
| Sylvia Cremer | Evolutionary and Behavioral Biology |
| Jozsef Csicsvari | Systems Neuroscience |
| Herbert Edelsbrunner | Algorithms, Geometry and Topology |
| Călin C. Guet | Systems and Synthetic Biology |
| Carl-Philipp Heisenberg | Cell and Developmental Biology |
| Thomas A. Henzinger | Software Systems Theory |
| Simon Hippenmeyer | Developmental Neurobiology |
| Harald Janovjak | Molecular and Cellular Biophysics, Optogenetics |
| Peter Jonas | Neuroscience |
| Vladimir Kolmogorov | Computer Vision and Graph Algorithms |
| Christoph Lampert | Computer Vision and Machine Learning |
| Krzysztof Pietrzak | Cryptography |
| Ryuichi Shigemoto | Molecular Neuroscience |
| Daria Siekhaus | Cell and Developmental Biology |
| Michael Sixt | Cell Biology and Immunology |
| Gašper Tkačik | Theoretical Biophysics and Neuroscience |
| Caroline Uhler | Statistics |
| Chris Wojtan | Computer Graphics |
Program Description
The duration of the program is on average four to five years (depending on previous education and individual progress) and is divided into two phases: before and after the qualifying exam.
Students with a BS degree have at most two years from their start date, and students with an MS degree have one year from their start date, to pass the qualifying exam.
First part of PhD Studies
When joining the PhD program of IST Austria, a student may be part of a research group (with a Thesis Supervisor) from the beginning or start as unaffiliated student. The overall requirements are the same in both cases.
During the first phase a student must:
- Do three lab rotations with three different professors (approx. two months each).
- Fulfill a course requirement:
- two introductory courses:"Introduction to Research at IST Austria" and "Scientific Presentation and Conduct"
- Take four core (or the equivalent of eight half) modules.
- Form a thesis committee and pass a qualifyingexam.
This includes finding a thesis supervisor (Professor or Assistant Professor of IST Austria), forming a thesis committee, preparing a thesis proposal and a reading list.
The qualifying exam consists of:
- an oral presentation of the thesis proposal (normally 20 – 30 minutes), followed by
- an oral exam about the thesis proposal and the Reading List (normally 30 – 40 minutes).
Second Part of PhD Studies
After passing the qualifying exam, a PhD student works primarily on research towards a thesis.
Every student and supervisor hold regular progress reviews, and a committee of professors must approve each year that the student makes satisfactory progress towards completing the PhD degree.
A Thesis Defense must be scheduled within four years of passing the Qualifying Exam.
The thesis defense consists of a public oral presentation of the draft thesis (normally 40 – 50 minutes) in the presence of the thesis committee, followed by questions and answers on the thesis.
Once a final thesis is submitted, within two months of the defense, and accepted by the thesis committee, the PhD degree is awarded by the Institute.