The integrated Research Training Group of the Collaborative Research Center (CRC) TRR 170 'Late accretion onto terrestrial planets' teaches methods and concepts from the fields of geophysics, geology, geochemistry, petrology, remote sensing and computer science related to research questions about the late-accretion history of the Earth, its Moon, and other terrestrial planets. During the first funding period, 14 research projects at universities and research institutes in Berlin and Münster provide new insights into timing, chemical budget and geodynamic implications of late stages of terrestrial planet formation. About 20 doctoral students are participating actively in these projects.

In close collaboration with partner institutions at Freie Universität Berlin, Technische Universität Berlin, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, and German Aerospace Center in Berlin, we provide doctoral students of CRC-TRR 170 with a broad education in planetary sciences and the tools for a successful career within and outside of science and academia.

The Integrated Research Training Group in Planetary Sciences is the only graduate program in planetary sciences in Germany. Our students will gain special expertise through their research projects, coursework, seminars and a summer school program. The large choice of method based courses from different disciplines (analytical and experimental methods, data processing and modelling of remote sensing data, geodynamic modelling) represents a unique feature of this program.

Our program focuses coursework in three key educational areas¾specialized knowledge/skills that relate to the student’s research area, general (topical) knowledge that widely relates to the field of planetary sciences, and transferrable skills that are needed for general career success.

These courses will be offered at the two locations (Berlin, Münster) of the TRR 170 as part of the normal semester curriculum, during the TRR 170 summer/winter schools, and as provided through other institutional organizations that support graduate students.