PhD Programme in Transnational Studies and International Relations at the Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies

PhD Programme in Transnational Studies and International Relations at the Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies

Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies

Scholarships: 9 Doctoral Scholarships

Date: 3 year full-time PhDprogramme starting September 2009

Starting date for Applications: 1 December, 2008

Deadline for Applications: 1 February, 2009

Online application

The Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies (BTS), a joint endeavour of the Freie Universität Berlin (FUB), the Hertie School of Governance (HSoG) and the Social Science Center Berlin (WZB), announces its next call for applications for its full-time PhD programme. All three are leading institutions in the field of political science and its neighbouring disciplines. The programme draws upon their faculty, research projects, facilities and services.

The three-year English language doctoral programme is designed for exceptionally talented and motivated graduate students. It offers state-of-the-art survey classes, a strong training in research methods and research design, skills courses and individualized supervision. While the courses and training present an important part of the curriculum, the bulk of the workload for the PhD candidates in the programme will be in the form of independent research for their dissertations.

The successful applicants will be informed in the first half of April 2009 in order to enter to the doctoral programme in September of the same year. The three-year programme has a strong focus on social science theories and methods but also welcomes applications from adjacent disciplines like economics, history, law, and area studies. Dissertation topics should refer to one of the following three areas of concentration broadly defined:

* The analysis of national and transnational causes and consequences of political, societal and cultural globalization.
* The challenges to governance in international and transnational settings including issues of politization and legitimacy, as well as in areas of limited statehood.
* The comparative study of regional cooperation, including the EU.

The application requirements for the programme are:

• An exceptionally strong completed university degree qualifying for PhD studies in political science, international relations, sociology, economics, law or adjacent disciplines.

• Proof of C1 level English language skills or the equivalent.

• CV

• A short letter of motivation (600 words maximum)

• A research proposal (5000 words maximum

• Two letters of reference from faculty members

The deadline for applications to the doctoral programme is 1 February 2009. Applicants are required to apply online. The respective website will be available from 1 December 2008 at www.transnationalstudies.eu.