The Berlin Graduate School Muslim Cultures and Societies (BGSMCS) is a joint project by Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO). As a part of Freie Universität Berlin’s Department of History and Cultural Studies, our offices are situated on Freie Universität Berlin’s campus in Berlin Dahlem.

Programme

The BGSMCS supports doctoral candidates who develop academically well-founded and relevant answers to questions arising in various research areas under the thematical umbrella of Muslim cultures and societies. The BGSMCS also provides its fellows with access to a broad academic network. The program is ideal for highly qualified and socially engaged junior scholars with a global outlook.

Scholarships

For admission in October 2026, the BGSMCS will award two scholarships from the Gerda Henkel Foundation to projects with a historical focus. These scholarships include a monthly stipend for living expenses, as well as travel and research funds.

Additionally, the BGSMCS will select eight candidates who will be guaranteed a place at the graduate school on the condition that they raise their own external funding (private funding is not permitted). The selected candidates will be supported by the BGSMCS in applying for external funding, for example from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Avicenna-Studienwerk, the Gerda Henkel Foundation, or the Elsa Neumann Foundation.

Application

An application comprises the following documents:

• Curriculum Vitae (CV / Resume) and motivation letter
• Selection of a supervisor from the list of supervisors in the application portal
• An outline of the dissertation project., incl. time table
• One letter of recommendation
• Proof of relevant language skills
• Original and certified copies of degrees

The application package, complete with all documents, needs to be submitted via the application platform. The platform only accepts PDF documents as uploads. The documents must not be in read-only format.

Application Deadline

The application deadline is 1 November 2025, 12:00 noon (CET).

Further Information

The guidelines below will help you to prepare your application.

If you have further questions that are not addressed in the guidelines or in the FAQ on our website, please write to us at the following email address: application@bgsmcs.fu-berlin.de.

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