What can you expect from us?

• Reasonable and professional conception of a research project that is clearly outlined and delimited in order to successfully complete it within the given time frame
• Familiarization with the essential methods required for your work
• Provision of relevant literature for the project
• Supervision by a project manager present in the laboratory, as well as by corresponding full-time employees who are also working on similar topics
• Provision of a suitable workstation in the laboratory
• Provision of all materials and equipment required for the work; in addition, sufficient third-party funding is available to cover the financial requirements of the research work
• Co-authorship of publications resulting from the laboratory work
• Publication(s) in international (peer-reviewed) journals is always aimed for and has been the rule to date
• Independent presentation of your own data and research results at national and international congresses as a poster or lecture

What do we expect from you?

• Ability to work in a team with the ability to integrate into an existing group
• Ability to work carefully and precisely
• The duration of the experimental work should be approx. 1 to 1 1/2 years. A longer period should be avoided under all circumstances. This is not in the spirit of the doctoral regulations and is not to be expected with an average level of commitment
• After appropriate instruction and familiarization, independent project work with accompanying theoretical training, which should also include the discussion of independent ideas in the course of the doctoral thesis
• Regular participation in the "laboratory or science seminars", which usually take place once a week or once a month.
• The independent written composition of the doctoral thesis no later than one year after completion of the experimental work (regardless of the date of submission to the Office of the Dean).

The AG Biochemistry and Tumor Biology accepts a limited number of PhD students in order to ensure all of the above points - especially good supervision and guidance. It begins with a two-week "trial period" to ensure that mutual expectations are met. This is followed by an interview during which the topic is formulated and necessary formalities are completed in accordance with the MHH doctoral regulations. This also results in an obligation for us to ensure the success of the work, insofar as this is within our power.

The decision for or against a dissertation and even more so between a "statistical" and an "experimental" doctoral thesis is a difficult one. What are the reasons for an experimental dissertation?

1. You will become familiar with methods (e.g. cell and tissue culture of normal cells and tumor cell populations, subcellular fractionation, PCR, Western blot, protein biochemistry and proteome analyses, etc.) that are important in modern medicine for the diagnosis of diseases
   
2. You will gain practical experience with methods that are important for the discovery of new therapeutic targets (e.g. identification and biochemical analysis of 'key proteins' with associated signal transduction pathways; analysis of differentially expressed genes and proteins).
   
3. You will receive up-to-date theoretical training, particularly in the field of research (e.g. molecular cell biology, tumor research)