This 2-year program is based in the beautiful city of Erlangen in Bavaria. Students will spend the first 3 semesters deepening their knowledge by taking courses, such as analytical paleobiology, phylogenetics, biostratigraphy, vertebrate paleobiology, and science communication. In addition to these courses, students have the opportunity to choose a variety of supplementary courses, which can include field excursions to destinations such as Italy, Poland, and Sweden, as well as short-term research projects, and bespoke training courses in computational and laboratory techniques. Courses are taught entirely through English by staff at the Paleontological Institute and GeoZentrum Nordbayern alongside guest lecturers from all over the world. During each of these courses, students will develop a wide range of professional and transferrable skills, including data analysis and interpretation, research project planning, ethics, problem-solving and hypothesis testing. Students will learn to communicate research findings and data through written reports, oral presentations, and graphical displays.

In the final semester, students will have the opportunity to hone these skills and develop their own individual research project on a paleontological topic of their choosing. This program has no tuition fees for students of any nationality.