In September 2010 the PhD students founded their own initative, which helps to represent the interests of PhD students. Regular meetings and other activities are organized to support interaction and communication between the departments of the DSMZ.
Since October 2024 the PhD students are represented by Maximilian von Frieling und Philipp Halama.
The DSMZ PhD Initiative is part of the Leibniz-PhD Network and collaborates also with the Network of networks, an initiative also interacting with Max Planck PhDnet and the Helmholtz Juniors.