Are you passionate about ancient civilizations, languages, and texts? A unique opportunity awaits international students to pursue a fully funded PhD in Germany’s vibrant capital. The Graduate School Scholarship Program (GSSP) of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is offering two fully funded scholarships for doctoral studies in the “Ancient Languages and Texts” (ALT) doctoral program under the BerGSAS at the Berlin Graduate School of Ancient Studies.
Scholarship Overview and Funding Benefits
Selected scholars will receive financial support from October 2026 to September 2030. The scholarship package includes:
- Monthly stipend of €1,300
- Travel allowance
- Health, accident, and liability insurance
- Study and research allowances
- Family and rent allowances (if applicable)
- German language course support (pre-sessional)
- Annual research support of €1,000, managed by the host institute
- Support for research stays outside Germany (not exceeding 25% of the total funding period).
Who Can Apply?
This prestigious opportunity is open to applicants who:
- Are not German citizens
- Have not completed a PhD previously
- Completed (or will complete) their master’s degree after March 1, 2020
- Have not resided in Germany continuously before December 1, 2024
- Hold an excellent master’s degree (MA, MSc, MSt) in a relevant field, or have submitted and received a final grade on their thesis by the time of application.
Available Research Areas
The ALT doctoral program welcomes research in a wide range of disciplines related to ancient civilizations. Fields include:
- Ancient History, History of Late Antiquity, Early Middle Ages
- Ancient Oriental Languages and Studies
- Classical and Byzantine Greek Philology, Latin Studies (Classical, Medieval, Modern)
- Egyptology and Coptology
- Iranian and Semitic Studies
- Comparative Indo-European Linguistics
- Jewish Studies, Arabic Studies, Protestant Theology, Religious Studies
- Roman Law, Mediaeval History
- Digital Humanities and Computer Philology as applied to ancient texts
The program emphasizes philological, historical, and digital methodologies to explore ancient texts, inscriptions, and media with a focus on textual interpretation and transmission.
Apply: https://www.berliner-antike-kolleg.org/en/bergsas/ausschreibungen/index.html
Required Documents With Your Scholarship Application
Prepare the following documents (certified copies not required unless specified):
- Academic degree certificates and transcripts (BA and MA) with grade explanation
- Certificate of English language proficiency (IELTS/TOEFL – minimum B2; C1 required for FU Berlin)
- Two confidential academic recommendation letters (one must be from a professor at your home university)
- Research proposal and motivation statement (details available on the portal)
Letters of recommendation must be emailed directly by professors to: [email protected].
Application Deadline
The last date to apply for the DAAD GSSP PhD Scholarships in Ancient Languages and Texts at BerGSAS is 15 October 2025.