Max Planck Florida Announces First US-based International Max Planck Research School
Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (MPFI) has received approval to launch a new Ph.D. program. The International Max Planck Research School for Synapses and Circuits (IMPRS-SC) will give the brightest students from around the world the opportunity to pursue research in MPFI’s state of the art facilities while earning a Ph.D. from neighboring Florida Atlantic University. MPFI and FAU previously partnered with the University of Bonn and the Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesar in Bonn, Germany to create the transatlantic IMPRS for Brain and Behavior Ph.D. program, and after a successful initial 6 years, the partner institutes established independent Ph.D. programs in Jupiter and Bonn to tailor training to the local research environments and educational systems. The IMPRS for Synapses and Circuits is the first and only independent IMPRS program in the United States, and it will offer unique opportunities for IMPRS students in Florida to build an international scientific network with PhD students from neuroscience-focused Max Planck Institutes in Germany.
“The IMPRS for Synapses and Circuits is an exciting step forward in cutting-edge neuroscience education as the flagship US-based IMPRS program. We are delighted to launch this program that features a critical mass of leading neuroscience researchers and uniquely engages our students in the international bioscience community,” said Dr. David Fitzpatrick, CEO and Scientific Director of MPFI.
The Max Planck Society launched the International Max Planck Research Schools program in 2000 to attract and train the most talented Ph.D. students across the world. IMPRS programs are graduate programs offered through a Max Planck Institute(s) in collaboration with a university partner, which provides an exceptional framework for doctoral training. As of 2021, there are currently 65 IMPRS programs, where more than 3,500 students are working towards their Ph.D. 80 of the Max Planck Society’s 86 institutes are affiliated with an IMPRS training program, along with 38 universities worldwide.
“The IMPRS for Synapses and Circuits enables students to harness the unparalleled resources at MPFI to make groundbreaking discoveries about the basic structure and function of the nervous system. The opportunities for our students to closely interact with Max Planck researchers is unique from other neuroscience PhD programs in the US, and the IMPRS program provides an exceptional framework for students to develop into productive, resourceful, and independent scientists,” said Dr. McLean Bolton, the IMPRS Spokesperson and Research Group Leader at MPFI.
Applications have closed for the current IMPRS admissions cycle and will reopen in September 2022. More information on the program can be found at https://www.mpfi.org/training/graduate-programs/imprs-sc/