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Training & Networking Grants

The Graduate School on Geosciences (GSGS) offers Training and Networking Grants to its doctoral candidate members. Their aim is to help young researchers to expand their professional network.

| GSGS Training and Networking Grant Reports

Climate and Cryosphere Open Science Conference 2026

9–12 February 2026
Poster Presentation on new insights on late Quaternary East Antarctic Ice Sheet behavior from a lake sediment record from Vestfold Hills

© Matthew Jeromson

With the support of GSGS, I was able to attend the 2026 Climate and Cryosphere Open Science Conference (CliC) in Wellington, New Zealand. This relatively intimate conference of around 400 participants brought together researchers from a wide range of disciplines working on polar regions and their role in the global climate system. As someone focusing on Antarctica, it was a great opportunity to meet leading researchers in the field, including key members of the British Antarctic Survey and the Australian Antarctic Division who have first-hand experience in my study region, the Vestfold Hills.

In addition to presenting a poster, I was invited to give a three-minute lightning talk in front of approximately 150 participants. This gave me valuable public speaking experience and helped draw attention to my poster. The discussions that followed were extremely helpful and allowed me to receive feedback from researchers working on ice-sheet modelling, glacial geology, and sea-level change. I was also able to connect with scientists from New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and the UK, which may lead to future collaborations during my PhD or in potential postdoctoral projects.

I also used this opportunity to visit collaborators in Australia, both at Macquarie University in Sydney and at the University of Canberra. As I am currently writing my first paper, these visits gave me the chance to discuss my results and interpretations with experts who have worked in the Vestfold Hills since the 1980s. They were able to share insights, unpublished observations, and practical advice on structuring the manuscript. Conversations at the University of Canberra also led to ideas for a potential second paper using complementary datasets they have collected.

Overall, attending CliC 2026 was an important step in developing my research network and strengthening the scientific direction of my PhD. This experience would not have been possible without the support of the GSGS Training and Networking Grant.

Jacob Feller
PhD student
Institute of Geology and Mineralogy
PhD project: Late Quaternary Glacial History of the Vestfold Hills, East Antarctica
Poster/Lightning Talk Title: “New insights on late Quaternary East Antarctic Ice Sheet behavior from a lake sediment record from the Vestfold Hills”

Until further notice, there is no fixed deadline to apply for a Training & Networking Grant up to 400€. You can apply at any time.

Deadlines for applications over 400€ are:

     Call 2026 B: 31 Oct 2026
     Call 2027 A: 30 Apr 2027

 ... annual fixed dates are 30 Apr & 31 Oct

Applications can be made for conferences, workshops, training courses, summer/fall/winter schools, and online events where registration fees are due. Please plan ahead. It is better to apply earlier than later. Still, you can apply if you attended any such event since January of the current year and paid the fees privately, especially for events that could not be planned far ahead.

Applicants should not book any tickets or accommodation before having a travel authorization. Contact the GSGS if you need to book before having a response to your application.

Please use the application form available in our download section. It should be signed digitally and should be submitted by e-mail to <gradschool-geosci(at)uni-koeln(dot)de> only.

Applications can be made

  • for events/training taking place in the 9 months following the submission deadline or
  • for events/training for which a compulsory step (i.e. a binding registration or abstract submission) is to take place during said period.
  • for events/training you attended since January of the same year and for which you paid fees privately.

Guidelines for applications for GSGS Training & Networking Grants

The Graduate School on Geosciences (GSGS) offers Training & Networking grants to its doctoral candidate members. Their aim is to help early-career researchers to expand their professional network and enable them to
•    attend useful training courses or summer/winter schools, including online events;
•    present their work at national and international conferences (oral or poster presentation).

Prerequisites

  • Only complete applications are accepted.
  • The applicant should be a registered member of the GSGS.
  • Applicants must have signed a supervision agreement with their Thesis Advisory Committee and be up to date with their reporting. This means being up to date with your TAC meetings and regularly uploading signed copies of your TAC Status Report to your Docfile G-folder. The Steering Committee decides on any exceptions.
  • Applications can be made for events for which a compulsory step (i.e. a binding registration or abstract submission) is to take place in the 9 months following the submission deadline. Please state the date and the action needed in your motivation.
  • Previous GSGS Travel Grants or Training & Networking Grants awarded to the doctoral candidate will be taken into consideration in
    the selection procedure.
  • The acceptance notification from the organiser (for conferences, also the accepted abstract) should be handed in as soon as possible.
  • For conferences: in principle, only active participation (oral or poster presentation) is funded; exceptions should be justified by the advisor.
  • For conferences: for multiple-author contributions, only the main presenter can apply.
  • Successful applicants must submit a short report of their activities for the GSGS website to the GSGS manager within two weeks after the event, or a.s.a.p. for past trips, preferably by e-mail to gradschool-geosci(at)uni-koeln(dot)de. Please consult the online guidelines.
  • The event can take place up to 6 months after the candidate's thesis defence.

Funding

We cannot guarantee that all funds applied for will be granted. Everyone is asked to keep costs down so that we can support as many people as possible. Advisors are explicitly asked to check and support the funds applied for. In principle, reimbursement of any travel expenses will be based on UoC rules (cf. Landesreisekostengesetz) and direct costs for flights / train travel will likely be capped according to the flat rates as defined in the regulations of the DAAD.

Application procedure

To apply for a GSGS Training & Networking Grant, a full written application should be submitted to the GSGS office by e-mail to <gradschool-geosci@uni-koeln.de> using the application form below; please use typescript and sign the form digitally. Provide evidence for stated amounts wherever possible (e.g. screenshot). The applicant’s advisor needs to provide a support statement (please note any special justifications needed) and sign the application digitally. 

You will receive a confirmation of receipt of your application within two working days.

The selection process

After an initial assessment of their completeness by the GSGS manager, all applications of an institute are forwarded to the respective institute representatives on the Steering Committee of the GSGS. They rank all applications of their institute, whenever feasible in consultation with the institute.
The selection criteria are: the motivation and relevance of the event to the candidate’s project or professional development; your application for funding from other sources (this supports your application with the GSGS).
The final decision on the distribution of funds, and of the funding awarded to each successful applicant, lies with the Steering Committee and is subject to the availability of funds. All applicants will be notified of the outcome of the selection procedure within a month of the application deadline.

After approval

Successful applicants should not book any tickets or accommodation for “in person” events until they have received any necessary travel authorization. They will need to apply for reimbursement through the normal channels of the university (usually Travel Reimbursement Department, Reisekostenstelle). The GSGS coordinator should be contacted to arrange the administrative details before handing in any documents. It is the recipient’s responsibility to provide all necessary information in a timely manner to allow smooth processes during application and reimbursement.

After returning home, you are supposed to hand in a Grant report, please use the template in the downloads section and send it to gsgs-admin(at)uni-koeln(dot)de