Just concentrate on your studies! We will financially support you with a stipend during your Master’s and a working contract during the PhD phase of the graduate program.

Conduct cutting-edge research at the forefront of Matter to Life, a highly interdisciplinary and rapidly emerging field. With a student body from across the globe, our program is taught entirely in English.

During our integrated graduate program, you will be supervised by one or more of our MPS MtL Fellows and profit from the broad and excellent School’s network.

Our graduates are prepared for a broad spectrum of careers — from academia, research management and industrial R&D to consulting, data science, and many more. Whichever path you choose, we will equip you with the skills and experience to thrive.

Lecture topic: Synthetic cell-based artificial tissues to study T cell activation
T cells integrate biochemical and biophysical cues within lymph nodes, collectively determining activation of adaptive immunity. Quantitatively understanding how mechanical and biochemical signals converge at the single-cell and tissue level requires new model systems. To address this, we developed millimeter-sized artificial lymph nodes assembled from synthetic cells and artificial extracellular matrix. The mechanical properties of the synthetic cells, specifically their Young’s modulus, can be precisely tuned, while their surfaces can be functionalized with biochemical stimuli. This allows to independently tune their biomechanics and biochemistry. The resulting tissue architecture, including its anisotropy and stiffness, can be engineered to probe emergent, tissue-scale phenomena. Performing live cell microscopy of migrating T-cells within synthetic lymph nodes, we validate that they reproduce in vivo T-cell motility. Statistical modeling of migration trajectories reveals that tissues must support search strategies for effective signal integration and that confinement degree promotes regulatory phenotypes of the T cells. Our synthetic cell-based tissues recapitulate architectural features of lymphatic organs, providing a platform to dissect how mechano-signaling interacts with biochemical cues to shape T-cell immunity.

This year's MtL Spring Days took us to the medieval city of Marburg – and delivered everything from surprise snowfall to inspiring keynotes and lively poster sessions. Fellows, PhD candidates and guests shared science at its finest. We returned with new friendships, fresh collaborations, and are now excitedly looking forward to our nex MtL Days in Fall! 

On the occasion of International Women's Day, our PhD candidates Irene and Anna interviewed their peer Aysecan, who is about to defend her dissertation. She talks about collagen, cryo-electron microscopy, resilience, and what she would tell her younger self at the start of this journey

Andrey explored his research passions during his lab rotation in a collaborative project led by MtL Fellows Hendrik Dietz and Petra Schwille, which took him into the rapidly developing world of protein design.

This is not the beginning of a joke, but rather the beginning of every MtL Day—and the MtL Fall Day 2025 in Mainz was no exception. PhD candidates from diverse backgrounds and Fellows from various disciplines convened as knowledge was shared, exchanged, absorbed, and amplified. This year’s host: The Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz. 

In August, a group of MtL PhD candidates, Fellows and invited speakers  gathered at the Umweltforschungsstation Schneefernerhaus on the Zugspitze for four days of talks, workshops, and stargazing.
Read the recap! 

Starting in October, there will be 18 new MtL Fellows, creating 18 new opportunities for our PhD candidates to pursue exciting research projects. 

Get a glimpse into their research!