How to apply

The application procedure for admission to the IMPRS-SPCE is online. Since your registration as an applicant and your application form are submitted in one document, it is essential for you to read this entire section carefully so that you do things in the proper order. Note that you will not be able to change your data after it has been submitted.

You may apply as of December 15. The deadline for applications is March 15.

The Procedure at a glance
Step 1: Submit Application and Registration Form
Step 2: Submit Supplementary Application Materials
For Referees

The Procedure at a glance

Here is the procedure at a glance. Read this before submitting any documents.

See Information for Applicants to make sure you are eligible to apply.
Start compiling your documents early. You will need a fair amount of time to get all the information together, and your referees need to have time to write their letters.
Find referees. You will need to ask two referees to write letters of recommendation for you. You have to name them in your Application and Registration form, so you must first ensure that they are willing to provide the recommendation. When you have submitted your Application and Registration form, the referees will receive an automatic e-mail linking them to the Letter of Recommendation form. It is your responsibility to contact your referees and make sure they submit the form in due time.
Fill out the Application and Registration form.
Look out for the Confirmation E-Mail with your Registration Code. Your spam filter might sort out the confirmation e-mail, so check your spam folder if you do not receive the confirmation e-mail within an hour.
Upload your Supplementary Application Materials, including a cover letter, CV, project proposal and transcripts.

Step 1: Submit Application and Registration Form

The Application and Registration form — including your contact information, educational background, the names of two referees and your choice of which faculty members you want to meet if you are invited for an interview — is also the form with which you register to take part in the whole online application procedure. You must submit it before you upload the supplementary application materials, and before your referees can submit their letters. When we have received your application form, you will get a confirmation mail with a personal Registration Code to which all later documents must refer. Since the system does not allow for you to save this form with your data in it, and the completed form will not be sent back to you, copy it (with copy and paste into Word, for example) and save it for your records before submitting it. Save any long texts separately, as they will not be fully displayed in your Word copy.

Application and Registration form

Step 2: Submit Supplementary Application Materials

Use the Supplementary Application Materials form to upload the other documents required for your application.

A cover letter including your motivation for entry to the IMPRS-SPCE.
Your curriculum vitae, including your academic training and professional experience.
One example of scholarly work, up to 20 pages (seminar paper, chapter of your master thesis, etc.).
A list of possible dissertation topics with a short explanation of each.
Scans of official transcripts/records of studies of all colleges/universities you attended.

The preferred document type is PDF. However, RTF/Word, JPEG and ZIP documents are also accepted. Your files should not exceed 10 MB as a whole. When scanning your documents, choose a lower resolution to ensure a smaller file size.

Supplementary Application Materials form

For Referees

You have been asked by an applicant to the IMPRS-SPCE to write a letter of recommendation? Please refer to the applicant's Registration Code as stated in the e-mail you received from us.

Letter of Recommendation Form