The PhD degrees are awarded by the departments of Goethe University Frankfurt. The FIGSS PhD students are typically funded by research grants to their advisors and are expected to obtain their PhD degrees within three years. Currently, FIGSS has about 50 students, about half of them of foreign origin.

In addition to research training, doctoral training in FIGSS includes various courses taught by FIAS Fellows. These are a basic course on methods for studying complex systems as well as many specialised courses in the various research areas of the institute. In addition, PhD students can choose courses on various soft skills offered by GRADE, the Goethe Graduate Academy of the University of Frankfurt. All courses are taught in English. The doctoral students are supported by a doctoral committee with which they meet every six months to discuss their progress in courses and research.

A core activity of FIGSS is its weekly interdisciplinary seminar, where FIGSS students and post-docs of the institute report on the status of their research. Special care is taken that the talks are accessible to an interdisciplinary audience. 

To acknowledge this accordingly, the "Best FIGSS Talk Award" was created in the winter semester 2022/2023. It is awarded to the two best presentations by doctoral students each semester.

In order to apply for the FIGSS, interested students should apply directly to the FIAS fellow they want to work with and ask for open positions.