PhD Positions at the International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD) in Social and Agricultural Sciences
Call for applications
Scholarship Start: 1 May 2015.
The ICDD is an
interdisciplinary and international scientific network of excellence
with the head office located at the University of Kassel (Germany)
and partner universities in Latin America, Africa and Asia. It
co-operates closely with the International Labour Organization (ILO)
and various NGOs. The ICDD is funded by the programme “ex)/(ceed –
Higher Education Excellence in Development Cooperation” launched by
the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
(BMZ) through the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). In the
framework of its Graduate School of Socio-Ecological Research for
Development, the ICDD invites students from ODA
recipient countries (countries eligible for Official Development
Assistance of the OECD) to apply for a PhD scholarship position in a
particular academic field at an ICDD partner university:
- Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil, in economics,
- University of Cape Coast (UCC), Ghana, in development studies,
- Egerton University (EGU), Kenya, in agricultural science,
- University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF), Pakistan, in agricultural science,
- University of Kassel, Germany, in agricultural science,
- University of Kassel, Germany, in the social sciences,
- Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), India, in labour studies,
- University of the Witwatersrand (Wits),
South Africa, in sociology.
The ICDD supports research in four main thematic areas to which PhD projects must relate:
- Decent work along agricultural value
chains
- Organizing the informal economy
- Extractivism and rural welfare
- Rural-urban linkages: transformation
processes, livelihoods, and social protection
Scholarship: PhD students of the ICDD Graduate School will be based at the partner university they chose (see above) and enrolled in its PhD training programme. Moreover, successful candidates participate in the annual PhD workshops of the ICDD Graduate School and get involved in the lively academic exchange and activities within the ICDD network.
The
PhD scholarship will be awarded for three years. An extension for a
fourth year is possible under certain conditions. The scholarships
will cover a country-specific monthly allowance, tuition fees (if
applicable), the participation in ICDD Graduate School activities as
well as the opportunity to apply for field research funding. Final
admission to the ICDD Graduate School is conditioned on the
admittance to the PhD programme of the chosen ICDD partner university
and a positive progress evaluation by the ICDD in the first
scholarship year.
Application Requirements
- A completed or almost completed MA/MSc
degree, with excellent results, in a discipline related to the above
topics; the applicant’s last academic degree should not be more
than six years ago; if an applicant already started with his/her PhD
project, it should have started not more than three years ago
- A high proficiency of English (CEFR
level: C1 or above), demonstrated by one of the following language
certificates: TOEFL, with a minimum score of 550 PBT (paper-based
test) / 80 IBT (Internet-based test); IELTS 6.5 or above; the
Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English or an equivalent (native
speakers and applicants who have completed their first degree fully
in English do not have to provide an English proficiency
certificate)
- Academic or vocational experience in
one of the disciplines related to the thematic field of development
and decent work
- Citizenship of an ODA
recipient country (countries eligible for Official
Development Assistance of the OECD)
Application Procedure
1.) Online Application
Apart from providing some
personal information, information on your academic background etc.,
the following documents must be uploaded as PDF or WORD files at the
end of the online application process:
- A detailed curriculum vitae (including the academic background, the list of publications [if applicable], professional experience, language skills, voluntary work)
- A preliminary PhD project proposal (about 2000 words, including topic, research question, short overview of the relevant literature, theoretical approach, research design and methodology)
- A summary of the Master thesis (about 1500 words)
- Scanned copy of an English proficiency certificate, if required
- Scanned copies of the following documents in the original language with translations attached, if the language of these documents is not German, English, French, Spanish or Portuguese:
- The certificate and transcript of records of your recognised Master degree, listing all subjects and grades (if you have not yet completed your Master degree, please provide only the transcript and substitute the certificate with a letter from the programme coordinator testifying the date and likelihood of the successful completion of the course)
- The certificate and transcript of records of your recognised Bachelor degree, listing all subjects and grades
- Certificates for the completion of additional studies, listing all subjects and grades, if applicable
- Scanned copies of certificates of previous professional/vocational experience, if applicable.
Please submit your complete
application no later than 15
February 2015, 12:00 pm
(GMT + 01:00).
Applications submitted after
this deadline cannot be processed.
2.)Two letters of
recommendation: Apart from your application, two recent letters
of recommendation must be provided from professors or course
instructors qualified to assess your academic achievements. The
referees must sign the letter and send it as a scanned copy from the
referee´s email account to:
Alternatively, the letters of
reference can be sent in a sealed envelope by post directly to:
Executive Director of the
International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD), University of Kassel, Kleine Rosenstr. 1-3, 34109 Kassel, Germany.
The letter of recommendation
must also arrive at the ICDD no later than
15 February 2015.
If you are selected for
admission, officially authenticated photocopies of all the documents
and translations will have to be presented.
For further information
contact the ICDD Graduate School staff
Phone: + 49 (0)561 804
7395
Email:
phdapplication@icdd.uni-kassel.de 
