Summer School

The Summer School of Personality Science (SSPS) is a week-long intensive program sponsored by the European Association of Personality Psychology (EAPP). Around 14 graduate students (master’s and PhD level) join four internationally renowned experts to engage in cutting-edge training in personality psychology.

Participants experience a rich mini-curriculum that blends lectures, seminars, workshops, panel discussions, and individual mentoring. The program covers a wide spectrum of cutting-edge topics—from theoretical innovations to methodological advancements—that shape the future of personality science. 

Beyond academic excellence, the SSPS fosters career development and mentoring while creating a vibrant, international network of young scholars and leading researchers. Students leave the summer school not only with new knowledge and skills, but hopefully also with lasting connections and fresh inspiration for their own research journeys. 

SSPS 2025

It will take place from July 15 to July 19, 2026 (prior to the ECP22) in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Timeline

• November 2, 2025 – November 20, 2025: Applications Open

• December 2025/January 2026: Review period

• January/February 2026: Decisions announced

Eligibility

• Graduate or advanced Master’s students (should not have obtained a PhD at the time of the program)

• Past participants of SISPP, EASP, EAPP, or SASP summer schools are not eligible to apply.  

• You may apply to multiple 2026 summer schools (EASP or EAPP), but you may only attend one.

• Students can only apply via one association; applications to several associations (e.g., via EAPP and SPSP) will result in disqualification from the selection process.

Application Process

To get familiar with the required documents and information for the application, students can already view the Application Template from the last Summer School on OSF: https://osf.io/kr3qn (see Files → OSF Storage → Application). The official template for SSPS 2026 will be released soon and will look very similar.

• Download the official SSPS Application Template (once available).

• Complete it in English.

• Save it as a PDF file that includes your last name in the filename.

• Submit it via the Conftool system once the application portal is open.

The link to the Conftool system will be provided here before November 2025.

Financial Support

EAPP will cover lodging and some meals (coffee breaks, lunch) for all accepted students, and there is no registration fee to attend. In addition, a limited number of travel stipends of up to €800 are available to help offset travel expenses. Because funds are restricted, students must apply separately for this support. We kindly ask applicants who already have access to other sources of travel funding (e.g., through participation in the subsequent ECP conference) to refrain from applying for the SSPS travel stipend, so that resources can be directed to those most in need.

Additional Details

Questions about the summer school application and funding for this program should be directed to the SSPS Director, Prof. Susanne Buecker (susanne.buecker@uni-wh.de). For more information on the SSPS, visit https://osf.io/ts59d.