The Berlin Graduate School of Ancient Studies (BerGSAS) has signed an agreement with the University of Oxford, Humanities Division that will enable PhD students to participate in research stays focused on ancient studies at the partner institution. The exchange program will begin this autumn. As a general rule, PhD students at BerGSAS will be able study at the University of Oxford during the “Michaelmas term”, from October to December, attending seminars and courses there. Conversely, PhD students from Oxford will be able to spend a summer or winter semester with BerGSAS in Berlin.

Stays abroad are an integral part of the five interdisciplinary BerGSAS doctoral programs. They enable PhD students to broaden their perspectives on their research subject, access other research traditions and academic systems, and facilitate intercultural contacts. Additionally, they provide a unique opportunity to establish contacts with external experts on one's own research topic, and to discuss one's research with these experts.

Jointly supported by the Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, BerGSAS is the graduate school of Berliner Antike-Kolleg. Four independent research institutions are also connected with BerGSAS: the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the German Archaeological Institute, the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science. Since its establishment, the graduate school has furthermore been working closely with the Topoi (The Formation and Transformation of Space and Knowledge in Ancient Civilizations” Cluster of Excellence, which is supported by the same universities and institutions. A total of 18 research subjects focused on the ancient sciences have been grouped together under the umbrella of BerGSAS, ranging from Ancient History to Archaeologies, the Philologies of Ancient Languages to Theology, Philosophy, and the Geosciences.