Welcome to the homepage of the Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences (BAGSS)!

The Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences (BAGSS) was established in 2010 to create an innovative working and learning environment for exceptionally qualified doctoral researchers. It has received funding under the German Excellence Initiative since November 2012. 

The School’s ambition is to stimulate and guide cutting-edge research on some of the most crucial challenges faced by modern knowledge-based societies. Its substantive focus is on the complex interaction of:

• variations in the ability and opportunity of individuals to acquire the competencies and qualifications necessary to participate in social, economic and political life ( Pillar 1: Education, Personal Development and Learning from Early Childhood to Adulthood);
• patterns of social and economic inequality contributing to variations in access to education – and the choices individuals make about their own and their offspring’s education across the life course ( Pillar 2: Education and Social Inequality Across the Entire Life Course);
• the consequences of such variations and of demographic developments for labour markets and businesses that are subject to global competition for market shares, investment and human capital ( Pillar 3: Changes in Human Capital, Labour Markets and Demographic Structures and their Impact on Social Inequality in Modern Societies);
• the choices of policy makers searching for responses to these challenges, adjusting national and transnational institutions and seeking to secure political control across a complex web of governance layers from the local to the global ( Pillar 4: Governance, Institutional Change and Political Behaviour).

BAGSS offers a highly attractive place for doctoral students wishing to pursue research, and receive tailored training, on these and related issues. Doctoral researchers at BAGSS benefit from:

• the pooled expertise of a number of nationally and internationally recognised sociologists, psychologists, educational scientists, political scientists, economists, demographers and statisticians;
• a highly research-active environment with an outstanding track record of interdisciplinary projects;
• a well-established network of high-quality national and international collaborations;
• a structured yet flexible qualification programme;
• close and comprehensive supervision and mentoring.

These pages are designed to assist you in finding information about

• BAGSS and its academic profile;
• its organisational structure;
• members and faculty;
• its doctoral programme and funding opportunities;
• the admissions process;
• upcoming and past events.

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us.