What Is Special About the Master's Degree Program in Biology at KIT?

At KIT, research-oriented teaching is implemented in a targeted manner. The practical modules are offered in four-week blocks that can be freely chosen. This gives you the opportunity to stay on the ball with a project and the chance to achieve useful results during your studies and participate in the research of the respective working group. You are also completely free to design and organize your course of study yourself.

To make this possible, the semester is divided into 3 four-week blocks. In addition, there is a block after the lecture period of the winter and summer semester or before the lecture period in the winter semester.

Within the Master's program, you choose 3 areas and within these areas two research modules (FOR), which are four-week block practicals accompanied by a lecture. At the end of a research module, a written examination is usually taken (in individual cases, another form of examination is also used). The allocation of places in the research modules is determined in the module selection in September for the winter semester and in March for the summer semester

In each of the three areas, you will also complete a project module, which is also a four-week internship in which you will work on your own small research project. As a performance assessment, you will write a protocol and usually also give a presentation within the institute. The project modules are agreed with the supervisors independently of the fixed module plans.
The descriptions of the modules can be found in the module handbook

In addition to the internships, you will complete a total of 4 seminars and a major excursion with a lecture during the Master's degree program: Integrative Biology

The seminars include two Interdisciplinary seminars Here you can choose between the networking modules or the doctoral seminar or an alternative at the Language Center or House of Competence (HOC).

You will also attend two literature seminars, one entitled "Advanced Research" and one on "Advanced Presentations". A time slot is kept free for the seminars in the morning until 10:00 and in the afternoon from 17:00. There are no biological practicals during this time.

A central component of the Master's program is the field trip with a corresponding lecture: Integrated Analysis of Ecosystems (Integrated Thinking). You can choose whether to complete a botanical excursion in the Alps or a marine biology excursion to Helgoland or Giglio.