Imagine designing the next generation of cities where mobility systems no longer lock people into fossil fuels, unequal access, or unsafe streets. Where data, policy, business models, and community voices work together instead of in silos. That is exactly the research frontier the Dresden Leibniz Graduate School (DLGS) is opening for outstanding early-career researchers through its 2027 doctoral scholarships.
The DLGS PhD Scholarship 2027 focuses on one of the most pressing challenges of our time: “Levers for sustainable urban mobility transformations.” If you hold a recent Master’s degree and want to pursue high-impact interdisciplinary research in Germany with full financial support, this call deserves your immediate attention.
Scholarship Summary
- Host Country: Germany
- Host University: Dresden Leibniz Graduate School (DLGS), jointly with Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development (IOER) and Technische Universität Dresden (TU Dresden)
- Scholarship Type: PhD Scholarships
- Eligible Countries: All Countries
- Scholarship Benefits: Full tuition fee, Living stipend, etc.
Why Urban Mobility Transformations Matter Now
Contemporary urban mobility sits at the heart of the sustainability crisis. Persistent dependence on fossil fuels drives climate emissions, air pollution harms public health, and many systems still fail on accessibility, equity, and safety. At the same time, digitalization, automation, and electrification are reshaping how people and goods move at an unprecedented speed. These changes create opportunities but also unintended consequences, especially when platform-based services or niche innovations scale without broader system thinking.
A core problem is the long-standing separation between transport planning and spatial development. Land-use patterns and mobility systems influence each other deeply, yet they are still often governed and researched in isolation. Established business models dominate, while promising alternatives remain limited. New data sources and AI-enabled spatial analysis tools exist, but they are not yet fully integrated into inclusive, participatory, and decision-relevant approaches.
The DLGS call deliberately targets these gaps. It seeks doctoral projects that move beyond incremental improvements and explore systemic levers for change.
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Research Topics You Can Address
Applicants must propose highly innovative projects that address at least one of the following challenge-driven areas:
- Public policy – governance structures, institutional designs, planning processes, instruments, and techniques that enable or hinder sustainable mobility transitions.
- Business models – sustainable and economically viable models for private, civil-society, or third-sector organisations delivering mobility solutions and services.
- Integrative Tools – data-driven approaches, methods, models, and interfaces that support analysis, modelling, and decision-making under uncertainty.
- Integrated perspectives – concepts and approaches that deliberately link public policy, private sector, civil society, and third-sector logics, practices, methods, and tools.
Projects may use qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods, including empirical work, modelling, and conceptual or methodological development. Interdisciplinary designs are expected; transdisciplinary approaches that engage stakeholders are explicitly encouraged when they connect to ongoing IOER activities in the Dresden/Saxony region.
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Who Can Apply for DLGS PhD Scholarship 2027: Clear Eligibility Rules
The scholarship is open to outstanding graduates from any country. You must meet every criterion:
- First Master’s degree obtained within the last three years (certificate date counts).
- Above-average academic performance equivalent to the German grade “gut” or higher.
- Research proposal that clearly aligns with the annual topic and the IOER research profile.
- Identification of potential supervisors at TU Dresden or IOER (prior contact is not required).
- Complete application submitted on time through the official online system only.
Relevant disciplines include (but are not limited to) transport studies, urban and regional planning, geography, data science, urban informatics, economics, business, sociology, political science, and transition or innovation studies. For transdisciplinary projects linked to local IOER work, German language proficiency at C1 level is required.
Incomplete applications or those submitted by email or post are not considered. The eligibility rules are fixed.
What the Scholarship Provides
Selected candidates receive a full-time scholarship for three years. The monthly stipend is €1,515, aligned with standard German Research Foundation rates for doctoral candidates. Additional support covers travel and research activities. As a public university programme in Saxony, there are no tuition fees. Doctoral degrees are awarded by TU Dresden while fellows are embedded in the research environment of the IOER.
This combination of living stipend, research support, structured interdisciplinary training, and access to an excellent research institute creates a strong foundation for developing the next generation of transformative leaders in spatial sustainability science.
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How and When to Apply
The official call and application portal are available on the DLGS website: https://dlgs-dresden.de/application/funding/scholarships
Key dates:
- Application deadline: 1 September 2026
- Programme start: 1 March 2027
You must submit a complete online application that includes your research proposal, academic documents, and identification of potential supervisors. Guidance on preparing a strong proposal is provided on the DLGS site. Read the full call carefully before starting.
For broader context on the graduate school and its joint structure with the IOER and TU Dresden, see the IOER page on DLGS and the DAAD International Programmes entry for the programme.
Tips to Strengthen Your Application
Successful proposals demonstrate clear fit with the stated research gaps and one or more of the four topics. They show methodological rigor, originality, and awareness of both system dynamics and practical planning or decision-making contexts. Interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary framing is an advantage. Because selection is competitive, invest time in aligning your idea tightly with the IOER research profile and in articulating why your project matters for sustainable urban mobility transformations.
Start early. The three-year Master’s window is strict, and the online system is the only accepted route.
Why This Opportunity Stands Out
Germany remains one of the strongest destinations for funded doctoral research, combining excellent infrastructure, international research environments, and living stipends without tuition fees at public institutions. The DLGS adds a focused, structured programme that prepares researchers to tackle real spatial sustainability challenges rather than producing isolated academic outputs.
If your Master’s research already touches transport, spatial planning, data science for cities, governance of transitions, or sustainable business models, this call offers a rare chance to turn that foundation into a fully supported three-year PhD that can influence how cities move toward more sustainable, equitable, and resilient mobility systems.
The window is open now. Review the official materials, refine your research idea against the listed gaps and topics, and submit a complete application before 1 September 2026. The cities of the future will be shaped by the researchers who start this work in 2027.