International Applicants
The IPP strongly supports the internationalisation of postgraduate studies in the humanities. We welcome applications from around the world and encourage our members to find international co-supervisors and acquire bi-national degrees.
Entry Requirements
The IPP follows the guidelines and statutes of the Justus Liebig University Giessen. Postgraduate researchers need to have an M.A. or equivalent university degree with a grade well-above average in literary or cultural studies. You can find reliable information on the equivalence of your degree online at Anabin.
Admission will be decided upon on the basis of the applicant’s academic profile, the quality of the research proposal as well as the compatibility of the dissertation project with the IPP's research profile.
Once admitted, all IPP members must enrol as postgraduate researchers at JLU for the entire duration of their postgraduate studies. Detailed information on enrolment procedures can be obtained from the university's international pages.
Furthermore, IPP members must register as postgraduate researchers with the Faculty of Language, Literature and Culture (FB05) and choose a supervisor from one of its affiliated departments: English and American Studies, German Studies, Romance Studies, Slavic Studies, Comparative Literature and Theatre Studies. The IPP supports its members in finding a supervisor after their admission to the programme.
Language skills
The languages of instruction at the IPP are English and German. The language of the dissertation and the dissertation defense is generally German or English.
The faculty’s examination board may accept the language of your respective discipline (i.e. French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese), too. If the language of the dissertation is other than German, basic skills in German need to be proved. These skills may be acquired, for instance, by attending German language courses offered by the International Office of the JLU. The IPP reimburses the costs of attending these courses.
In general, applications for postgraduate studies at the JLU require proof of at least two foreign languages (one of which can be German), including Latin for dissertations covering periods prior to and including early modernity. For special language requirements in your discipline, please refer to the annex to the Doctoral Regulations in the Humanities (in German) at the JLU.
Funding
The IPP cannot offer funding but provides its members with professional scholarship advice. International applicants are advised to consult the website of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for funding opportunities. Please note that applications to the DAAD need to be submitted about one year prior to the beginning of studies in Germany. At the JLU you will be required to contribute an enrolment fee of approximately €270 per semester. This enrolment fee contains a number of benefits including free public transportation within the region.