Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences

The Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences (GESS) at the University of Mannheim provides graduate training in empirical and quantitative methods as well as their application to business, economics, and the social sciences.

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Doctoral programs

Credit: Stefanie Eichler

The Center for Doctoral Studies in Business (CDSB) administers the PhD program at the Business School of the University of Mannheim, which is triple accredited by AACSB, EFDM (EQUIS) and AMBA.

Credit: Anna Logue

The Center for Doctoral Studies in Economics (CDSE) administers the PhD program at the Department of Economics of the University of Mannheim.

Credit: Anna Logue

The Center for Doctoral Studies in Social and Behavioral Sciences (CDSS) administers PhD programs in Political Science, Psychology and Sociology in close collaboration with the School of Social Sciences at the University of Mannheim.

Apply

How to apply at the GESS

Student Financing

Financial support for our students

Placements

Where our alumni work

Getting help

Gender and Diversity Committee, childcare, mental health support and more

Anti-Discrimination Statement

Our commitment to creating an inclusive research and teaching environment

Bennet Janssen wearing a blue shirt and receiving the Impact Award

Credit: Universität Liechtenstein

CDSB students Bennet Janssen and Youpeng Zhang receive the Impact Award

CDSB students Bennet Janssen and Youpeng Zhang received the Impact Award for their paper “Beyond Consensus: ESG Ratings Divergence and Sustainable Investments” at the Liechtenstein Workshop of Sustainable Finance 2025. The Impact Award is presented by the LIFE Climate Foundation Liechtenstein to ...

Portrait of Jan Menzner. He is wearing a black sweater and standing in front of a wall.

Credit: Sophie Garbe

Hot of the press – The Importance of Descriptive Representation & Cue-Taking in Free List Local Elections

In the previous local elections in Mannheim, candidates performed best in their own residential districts and in districts similar to them. The success of younger candidates is especially affected by the age composition of the district's citizens. This is the result of a recent study by Jan ...

A group photo showing, from left to right, Fabienne Partsch, Hannah Rajski, Malena Ullrich, Leonard Wendering, Julius Diener, and Harmut Höhle, all smiling. The award winners are holding their award certificates toward the camera.

Credit: Marion Lehnert

Meet the Winners: GESS 2025 Awards

We proudly present the doctoral candidates whose accomplishments in teaching and research have earned them the GESS Awards. The graduate school’s Teaching Awards recognize the central part GESS doctoral students play in enriching learning across the Business School, the Department of Economics, and ...

Credit: Sophia Sonja Guthier

Welcome to the 2025 Doctoral Student Cohort!

Orientation day is here in Mannheim! Today we warmly welcome our incoming cohort of doctoral students as they arrive for orientations. This marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter as researchers at the GESS, University of Mannheim! After months of preparation, we cannot wait to meet you and ...

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Five Students conversing on the Ehrenhof.

Credit: Anna Logue

Job market candidates

Check out our job market candidates from the Center for Doctoral Studies of Business, Economics und Social Sciences.

Rankings

Our 12 full-time doctoral programs provide access to world-class teaching and a vibrant and international faculty at the forefront of cutting-edge research.

#1 in Germany

in Accounting & Finance, #2 in Business & Management and #3 in Economics & Econometrics – QS University Rankings 2025 (ranking by subject)

#2 in Germany

in Political Science and #3 in Finance – Shanghai Ranking 2025 (ranking by subject)

#3 in Germany

in Business & Economics and Social Sciences – Times Higher Education Ranking 2025 (ranking by subject)