Important Information for Applicants
Scope of the Laboratory Course
Deadline for applications is 21 May 2024
Prerequisites:
- You will need elementary knowledge of applied mathematics and solid state physics, at the level usually taught as part of a BSc in natural sciences.
- BSc, Master's (or equivalent) in physics, chemistry, or another natural science
- Participants are expected to be fluent in written and spoken English.
- The course is suitable for early-career postdocs with little or no experience with neutron scattering
The course is not suited for:
- Post-docs who already have broad experience with neutron scattering.
- Students who are only interested in one particular technique.
Your acceptance to the course is bound by the validity of the statements you made at the time of application. If any of these change later on (irrespective of how), we may reconsider your acceptance. A typical case would be a change of institution or PhD group. Please inform us as quickly as possible about any important changes.
Cancellations
We do not charge a “non-reimbursable registration fee” to force you to participate.
In return, we ask you to inform us as soon as possible if you are accepted onto but later find you cannot attend the course. The earlier we know, the sooner we can give your place to someone on the waiting list: be fair to your fellow students and tell us as early as possible if you are unable to attend!
Travel expenses
The JCNS Laboratory Course in Neutron Scattering is one of the very few courses on X-ray and neutron scattering that does not charge tuition fees, provides free accommodation, almost entirely covers living expenses, and assists with travel expenses.
Please bear in mind:
1. Due to limited funds, our travel expense budget is very restricted to a € 500 (Euro) limit. We are aware that this will not cover the ticket price for intercontinental travel. So, if you apply for this course, make sure that the difference can be funded by other means, e.g. by local funding from your university/institution.
2. We estimate travel expenses based on the country of residence stated in your application. If, however, you travel to the course from a different country, we can only pay your expenses if they are the same or lower than from your country of residence. For example, if you applied from a European institution and later moved to the USA, we will reimburse you as if you had travelled within Europe.
3. We usually support travel from your home to the course and back for the dates immediately before and after the course. Because of flight issues, you may have to arrive one day earlier or leave one day later from the Cologne/Dusseldorf area. If there are compelling reasons for your travel plans to deviate from this, please discuss them with the organisers immediately. There is no way for us to extend your time of stay in Munich because of the notoriously difficult accommodation situation there and we also cannot guarantee accommodation in Jülich for any extra days. Unless we have specifically agreed an arrangement with you in advance, your reimbursement will be restricted to the cost of the cheapest form of transportation and additional nights will not be reimbursed.
4. Although we provide some travel tips, we cannot plan your individual trip. It is your responsibility to find transportation which is within the reimbursable limit or at least does not burden you with high out-of-pocket costs. When planning your travel, please consider the environment and your carbon footprint.
Contacting us
Our normal working times are Monday–Friday 08:00–16:40 local time. Please contact us by e-mail or phone during these times in order to avoid delayed responses.
Please use the address neutronlab@fz-juelich.de instead of personal e-mail addresses of individual organisers to make sure that you get a response if a particular person is away from the office.
ECTS Credits
If you participate in the test to obtain ECTS credits , you will receive a grade on the international scale A-F according to the system outlined here based on a small exam at the end. Especially when converted to the German grading system, this scale may seem harsh. Nevertheless, to maintain comparability on an international level, we are obliged to adopt it for students from all countries in the same way.
The laboratory course is part of the curriculum at RWTH Aachen University.
Lecture notes
Before the course, you will receive download links for PDF versions of the lecture notes and upon arrival at the course, you will receive a print version.
Lectures are given by the directors and professors of the JCNS institutes, established scientists and group leaders, all of whom are experts in their fields.