Integrated School of Ocean Sciences
The Integrated School of Ocean Sciences is a post-graduate school for marine scientists in Kiel, Germany. It is part of the Cluster of Excellence "The Future Ocean" which is an interdisciplinary marine research group of the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel. It is however not a graduate school in terms of the "German Universities Excellence Initiative". [1]
General
PhD candidates and their advisors participate on a voluntary basis in the ISOS doctoral program based on a system of incentives and obligations. The goal is to provide training and research through a four-pronged approach encompassing a supervisory framework, supplementary training, networking and financial incentives. Currently more than 120 PhD candidates from 14 institutes and 5 faculties of the university participate in the program, representing all natural sciences, law, economics and life sciences. An extension to politics and philosophy is imminent. ISOS is open to all Kiel PhD students who choose to work on a marine topic and include cohorts from two SFB programms and other structured and non-structured marine science projects. [2]
Between 2007 and 2011 ISOS offered 46 scientific courses (e.g. scientific methods, programming skills, multidisciplinary marine topics) that were attended by more than 550 students and 45 transferable skill courses (e.g. scientific and grant writing, personal competence, communication skills) that were attended by more than 650 students. [3]