Physics of Life

Tuition is No tuition fees; 340 EUR/semester, and applications are due 31 May for the following winter semester.

The Master of Science in Physics of Life at TU Dresden addresses biological problems through the methods and frameworks of physics. The programme covers topics including the motion of molecules in organisms, energy generation and distribution in cells, tissue deformation during embryonic development, and force measurement in cells and tissues. Students work across the intersection of physics, biology, chemistry, and medicine, combining computational models and experimental techniques to study open problems in biophysics. The four-semester programme is structured as follows. The first semester introduces biophysics, polymer physics, physical and biological chemistry, molecular cell biology, and experimental design, with hands-on practicals and computational biology projects. In the second semester, students study stochastic processes, continuum descriptions of living matter, mechanobiology, and the biology of molecular machines, and choose a specialisation from Experimental Biological Physics, Theoretical Biological Physics, or Nanobiotechnology. The third semester deepens topics such as pattern formation and active matter theory through specialisation electives, and students begin an extensive lab project. The fourth semester is dedicated to the Master's thesis, carried out within research groups associated with the Cluster of Excellence Physics of Life, B CUBE, BIOTEC, and CRTD, as well as other TU Dresden departments or partner institutions. The programme starts in the winter semester. The programme is offered at TU Dresden, located in Dresden, Germany.