LIFE Fellows

Lifespan research examines the gradual and systematic changes in behavior that take place over the course of a person’s life. By observing such changes, scientists are able to draw valuable conclusions about child and youth development.

Since 2007, the Jacobs Foundation has been funding nine doctoral students at the University of Zurich who are participating in “The Life Course: Evolutionary and Ontogenetic Dynamics” (LIFE), a program run by the International Max Planck Research School. The LIFE fellowship program is offered at five locations: the Center of Educational Research at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Freie Universität Berlin; Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; the University of Michigan; the University of Virginia; and the University of Zurich.

To be eligible for a LIFE fellowship, applicants must hold a master’s or equivalent degree in psychology. They must also have strong research interests and skills.
The third group of LIFE Fellows supported by the Jacobs Foundation is working on the following topics:

Healthy aging
Social-cognitive factors in changes in health behavior
The development of goal representations over the life course

“LIFE Academies” are held twice a year at one of the program sites, providing training and dissertation support for the Fellows. Fellows also have the opportunity for international networking with other doctoral students and leading experts in the field of lifespan research.

More activities

Jacobs Foundation Research Fellowship Program

Highly talented and innovative early career researchers working on child and youth development advance their research with a Jacobs Foundation Research Fellowship, which will improve the development and living conditions of children and youth.

CCLM Fellows

Can memory training boost children’s achievement and intelligence? To what extent is the development of a child’s motor skills correlated with learning in general? These are just some of the questions that the Center for Cognition, Learning and Memory (CCLM) is investigating.

Jacobs Young Scholars

Every year, senior scholars nominate approximately a dozen young scholars to participate in the Jacobs Foundation’s annual conference. Invitations are extended to postdoctoral researchers whose work is directly related to the focus of the conference.

Jacobs Foundation Conference

Every year since 1991, the Jacobs Foundation has held a conference at Marbach Castle on Lake Constance, attracting leading scientists and young scholars from all over the world.

CIDER – Interdisciplinary Educational Research

The purpose of the College for Interdisciplinary Educational Research (CIDER) is to foster interdisciplinary cooperation in the field of education research.

DIPF – Promoting Individual Learning

How can we gain a better understanding of the prerequisite of children’s learning, and how can we provide targeted support? These questions guide the new partnership between the German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF) and the Jacobs Foundation.

The Swiss Ed Tech Collider – A Modern Co-working Space

Society is changing, and so is education. Classrooms have entered the digital age. As a result, we not only need new teaching methods; we also need to introduce new educational technologies to the classroom.