Ways to join TUMJA
The academy invites students of TUM and the partner universities HFF (Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film), ADBK (Akademie der Bildenden Künste) and HMTM (Hochschule für Musik und Theater München) as well as the students of HfPh to apply for the program.
At TUM, students of every school are nominated based on their grade average, compared to other students of their semester. However, students can also apply proactively with a letter of recommendation.
Partner university students do not need to submit letters of recommendation with their application.
Besides academic performance, the most important criteria for admission to the scholarship program are a convinced research interest, creativity, social commitment and the willingness to take on responsibility.
Eligibility criteria
You are
- enrolled at TUM (incl. HfP), ADBK, HFF, or HMTM
- one of the outstanding students of your semester
- eager to continue your personal development
- highly interested in science and research
- not likely to be compromised in your educational performance by the membership
Please note: A semester abroad is generally not a disqualifying factor for an application. What matters most is your motivation to contribute to your research project remotely (especially considering timezone differences, etc.). Since most project teams hold their meetings in a hybrid format, collaboration is usually not an issue. How you coordinate your project work with your time abroad should be discussed within your team.
If you cannot be on-site during the second application phase, the Selection Days, we will arrange an online interview with you. Please inform us in such a case as early as possible after you receive a positive response for the first application phase.
Application documents
Please note:
All documents must be submitted in English. Only the Letter of Recommendation may be written in English or German.
We aim to assess all applicants as neutral as possible. Thus, we ask for the Letter of Motivation, CV and Essay/Video to be handed in anonymously (i.e. without your name and picture). Please also name the files in a neutral manner (e.g. “CV”, “Letter of Motivation”, “Essay” - we are still able to relate it to your application).
| 1 | Letter of motivation (1-2 pages) (anonymized) | Let us know why membership in the TUM: Junge Akademie is attractive to you, what you expect from your time in the TUMJA and how you would like to get involved. |
| 2 | Curriculum Vitae (tabular) (anonymized) | |
| 3 | Transcript of academic records, including grades Students of partner universities (HMTM, HFF and ADBK) who cannot provide a transcript of records upload a certificate of enrollment instead. | official document (does not need to be signed) |
| 4 | Essay on this year's call (2-3 pages) or a self-made video (2-3 minutes) (anonymized, if possible) | Work on a topic of your choice, inspired by this year's call, and explore it in depth in a structured way. The essay or video will help us to get to know you better during the selection process. It should contain visions and be creative - and may even be surprising. |
| 5 | Letter of Recommendation Mandatory for initiative applications from TUM students (i.e. without a nomination), optional for everyone else. | It is up to you to decide who you ask for a recommendation. The person you choose should know you well and be informed about your current activities and situation. If you have been nominated for the TUM: Junge Akademie or are studying at a partner university, you can also voluntarily submit a letter of recommendation. Please consider whether this can offer us an additional perspective on your person that is not sufficiently conveyed by other documents. The Letter of Recommendation may be written in English or German. The letter of recommendation (only it!) can also be submitted after the application deadline until September 15. If you would like to make use of this extended deadline, please indicate so i the application form via the designated checkbox. |
Note on the letter of recommendation
The letter of recommendation is meant to provide us with a better impression of you as an applicant. As degree programs vary greatly in size, a personal assessment by a member of the professoriate can be difficult.
Therefore, in contrast to previous years, the letter of recommendation can also be written by non-professors (e.g. representatives of student initiatives or team leaders of volunteering you participate in).
Find the greeting video by Prof. Müller, Director of the TUM: Junge Akademie, as presented during the info event on August 6th here.
Questions?
Please take a look at our FAQ first.
If your questions isn't answered there, Taskforce Recruiting is happy to assist with issues and questions: recruiting(at)ja.tum.de