Modern sources of synchrotron radiation (SR) and neutrons are very powerful tools in a wide range of important research activities, ranging from biology and medicine to solid state physics and micro/nano-technology. This lecture series will provide basic knowledge of the operational principles, control and manipulation of SR and neutron beams and describe their main characteristics. X-ray and neutron optics will be described in detail, explaining basic experimental techniques such as absorption, photoelectron spectroscopy, diffraction analysis and wide/small angle scattering for both beam types. The program also includes future perspectives for new source developments, i.e. X-ray Free Electron Lasers (FEL), Energy-Recovery X-ray Sources and new Neutron Sources. Practical sessions will take place at the BESSY II storage ring in Adlershof and the neutron source BER II at Wannsee, providing students access to state-of-the-art instrumentation and methods.