Support for postdocs
The Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen and the Friedrich Miescher Laboratory employ about 45 postdocs from over 20 countries. Pursuing your postdoctoral training here means working in an exciting, interdisciplinary and stimulating environment. As a postdoc you are offered superb research conditions with well-equipped laboratories and access to world-class on-site facilities.
Joining the Institute
The Postdoc Coordinator and the International Office Managers support all (international) postdocs who are coming to work at the Institute.
The International Office Managers will help you to handle the burdens of bureaucracy in order to enable you to concentrate on your research career from the very beginning. The Postdoc Coordinator will be in touch to welcome you to the institute and share information about the support we offer during your time with us.
Development Opportunities for Postdocs
We offer a number of development opportunities and events for postdocs. Our postdocs can also benefit from the training opportunities at the ‘Planck Academy’ and the University of Tübingen.
Next to workshops we offer a number of career development opportunities, such as ‘Connect the docs’. ‘Connect the docs’ is a lunchtime networking meeting where a project or group leader shares insights into how they got to their position and lessons learned.
Postdoc Ana Montalvão about her research at the MPI for Biology
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jpISccxrPMPostdoc Representatives
Two postdocs are elected by the postdoc community to represent the institutes’ postdocs. This ensures that matters impacting postdocs at the institutes are also considered from a postdoc perspective. They work closely with the Postdoc Coordinator and assist with the organization of events and activities for postdocs. Furthermore, they help to improve the working conditions of postdocs and serve as a direct link between the postdoc community and the MPI’s and FML’s faculty and administration.
Current Representatives:
Pélagie Ratchinski and Maryam Mahmoudi
Previous Representatives:
- 2025 Hadeer Elhabashy
- 2024 Emma Kane and Daniel Liesner
- 2023 Ana Paula Montalvao
- 2022 Kelsey Huus and Josué Barrera Redondo
- 2021 Brandon Seah and Carolina Sánchez
- 2020 Aditi Singh and Joana Pereira
- 2019 Layla Hiramatsu and Wei Yuan
Kelsey Huus, Postdoc with Ruth Ley (2021 – 2026)
Currently Assistant Professor at the University of Ottawa, Canada
“I am incredibly grateful that I joined Ruth Ley at the MPI Tübingen for my postdoc. It’s the kind of place where you can pursue big, ambitious scientific projects – you have so much support, you really get to live that scientific dream of being limited only by your imagination. It’s not just the resources: I will be forever grateful to Ruth and to the whole Ley lab for creating such a stimulating, supportive team atmosphere to work in. Plus, Tübingen is an adorable German town, and if you ever have the itch to travel, the rest of Europe is only a train ride away. Doing a postdoc abroad is a big decision, but I would make the same decision again in a heartbeat.”
Josué Barrera Redondo, Postdoc with Susana Coelho (2021 – 2024)
Currently Assistant Professor at the Center for Research and Advanced Studies, Irapuato, Mexico
“I joined Susana Coelho's department for my first and only postdoc position in 2021, which I consider a turning point in my career. The MPI for Biology offers a state-of-the-art infrastructure, a multicultural community and numerous academic development opportunities for researchers.
I would like to highlight the academic excellence of the institute: the scientific staff is full of brilliant minds who have helped and inspired me through collaboration and stimulating conversations. An impromptu discussion in the hallway even led to the publication of my first postdoc project.
The institute organises weekly events to network with other researchers at the institute and meet prominent scientists from around the world. In particular, Susana has always supported my intellectual freedom, encouraged me to pursue my academic interests, and helped me establish a line of research that I continue to develop today. Susana also motivated me to pursue third-party funding, which I consider an important step towards academic independence and a successful academic career.
The administrative and support staff were also exceptionally friendly and helpful throughout my stay as a non-EU citizen.
I am deeply grateful for the valuable memories of the wonderful people I met in Tübingen and for the excellent academic opportunities that this stay offered me.”
Talia Karasov, Postdoc with Detlef Weigel (2015 – 2020)
Currently Assistant Professor at the University of Utah, USA
“Moving to Germany to do a postdoc at the MPI in Tuebingen was among the best decisions I have made in my scientific career. On a scientific level, the MPI in Tuebingen offers opportunities that few other institutions can. With the abundant resources of the MPI and surrounded by collaborative colleagues from diverse scientific backgrounds, I found that I was able to explore new fields in biology, and to pursue my own ideas rigorously. On a personal level, the slow pace of life in that gorgeous town was just right.”
Taichi Suzuki, Postdoc with Ruth Ley (2018 – 2022)
Currently Assistant Professor at Arizona State University, USA
“Thanks to Ruth Ley and colleagues at the MPI, my postdoc experience was fantastic. I can think of at least three major advantages being a postdoc at the MPI. First, I got a postdoc contract of an appropriate length plus extensions which gave me sufficient job security and enabled me to develop new skills and to work on an exploratory, longer-term project.
Second, the privileged funding system at the MPI allows researchers to access cutting edge equipment and talented human resources. I got to conduct one of my dream projects that cannot be done without the MPI resource (e.g., an in-house germ-free facility!). Lastly, the diversity in research topics within and between departments was very educational. I got to interact, learn, and collaborate closely with many people with diverse backgrounds and interests within the Ley lab, during seminars, beer hours, and the ping-pong table on the roof top terrace. Tübingen is a very cute, safe, and international German town that you need to visit. I am thankful and proud to be part of the MPI for Biology Tübingen.”
Hadeer Elhabashy, Postdoc with Andrei Lupas (2024 – 2025)
Currently Junior Professor at the University of Bayreuth, Germany
“Having completed my PhD through the IMPRS program, I already knew what a remarkable place the MPI for Biology in Tübingen is. Joining Andrei Lupas's Department of Protein Evolution as a postdoc, though, taught me what it means to grow into an independent scientist.
At our first postdoc meeting, I shared with Andrei an ambitious goal: I have a scientific question I am passionate about, and I gave myself a maximum of two years to establish my research group for its sake. He worried I was pushing myself too hard—four years seemed safer to him—but he did everything he could to help me get there anyway. He gave me freedom to pursue my own questions, let me mentor students, and encouraged me to write grants, present my work, and build a network. His open-door mentorship style, and his commitment to nurturing young scientists, is something I—and many others—remain grateful for.
A defining moment came through the institute's Distinguished Speaker Seminar Series, where I learned about a Junior Professorship opening at the University of Bayreuth. Just a few months past my PhD, I believed in myself and applied—and the committee believed in my vision and supported my research agenda. In January 2026, I started my lab as Junior Professor of AI in Protein Science at Bayreuth.
Looking back, I'm delighted the plan worked out—though it might not have without Andrei and the MPI for Biology. To this day, I remain affiliated with the Lupas Department and maintain strong ties to that wonderful community at the MPI for Biology.“
James Lightfoot, Postdoc with Ralf Sommer (2012 – 2020)
Currently Group Leader at the MPI for Neurobiology of Behaviour, Bonn
"When I joined Ralf Sommer’s department in Tübingen, I was looking for a position that would provide me with the opportunity to develop and explore my own research ideas in a stimulating scientific environment. Fortunately, I found this in abundance at the MPI for Biology in Tübingen where I was surrounded with brilliant scientists who were pursuing research across a broad range of topics. The mix of international researchers from all over the world made the atmosphere welcoming with new collaborations as well as long lasting friendships being easily established. Another great advantage is the easy access to state-of-the-art equipment, knowledgeable technicians and other essential staff which made even complex experiments possible. Overall, my time as a postdoc at the institute greatly developed my scientific creativity as well as the leadership skills which have proven essential to continue my career as an independent group leader."