Tag: PHD studentship

Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies: PhD Studentships in Lived Experience of Violence and Coerced Livelihoods in Translocal Spaces of Conflict (Germany)

“Studentships“

Lived Experience of Violence and Coerced Livelihoods in Translocal Spaces of Conflict PhD Studentships, Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies, Bonn, Germany. Deadline: 17 May 2026.

The Doctoral Researcher position is part of the research group “Lived Experiences of Violence and Coerced Livelihoods in Translocal Spaces of Conflict” (VIOLET), led by Dr. Benjamin Etzold, funded by the German Research Foundation under Germany’s Excellence Strategy – Cluster of Excellence Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS) at the University of Bonn. The BCDSS offers excellent opportunities for interdisciplinary and comparative research of different forms of Strong Asymmetrical Dependencies (SADs) across time periods and world regions. In its second funding phase (2026–2032), the BCDSS will investigate the underlying causes and mechanisms that contribute to the persistence of SADs across historical and contemporary contexts.

Within the BCDSS, the research group VIOLET will investigate the entanglements of violence, labour exploitation and livelihood precarity in translocal settings of armed conflict and displacement. It seeks to answer how livelihoods and dependencies evolve under violent conditions, and which traces lived experiences of violence leave within societies. The PhD research shall contribute to this research group, bicc’s research on the conditions, dynamics and consequences of violent conflicts and to the BCDSS’s research Area “Power, Violence and Trauma”. The successful candidate will participate in BCDSS’s Doctoral Program that offers thorough preparation and support during doctoral dissertation work, including academic course work, additional skills training, and close supervision.

Details: Two part time positions to be filled (65% each). Salary according to German public sector tariff (TV-L) EG 13 and previous working experience. The position may be filled as of 1.10.2026 for a fixed term of 48 month until 30.09.2030.

Concordia U: PhD Studentships in Immigration and Politics (Canada)

“Studentships“

PhD Studentships in immigration and politics, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. Deadline: 29 April 2026.

The Institute for Research on Migration and Society (IRMS) at Concordia University is currently recruiting MA and PhD students to study immigration and politics under the supervision of Mireille Paquet, Antoine Bilodeau, or Colin Scott. Selected students will receive a generous funding package for their studies (including international tuition release), and the cost of living in the vibrant city of Montreal remains affordable. Concordia has an excellent track record for student placement, and provides a highly supportive training environment.

As part of the project Migrant Integration in the Mid-21st Century: Bridging Divides, the Department of Political Science at Concordia is pleased to offer generous admission awards and research fellowships for incoming graduate students.

These funding opportunities are available for incoming PhD students to conduct research under the direction of Mireille Paquet, Antoine Bilodeau and Colin Scott on topics related to immigrant integration. Topics include, but are not restricted to:

  • Immigrant integration in comparative perspective
  • Barriers to the political integration of immigrants
  • Belonging and trust among immigrant populations
  • The politicization of immigration in Canada and in comparative perspective
  • Immigration integration policies, past and future
  • The use of technologies, such as AI, in immigration management
  • The impact of online service delivery for immigrant integration
  • Trends in naturalization and citizenship acquisition
  • The impact of social media on immigration decisions and on integration processes
  • The relations between governments and “migration industries”, recruiters, immigration agents, etc.

King’s College: PhD Studentships in the History of International Development in the Global South (UK)

“Studentships“

PhD Studentships in the History of International Development in the Global South, King’s College London, UK. Deadline: 29 April 2026.

Actually Existing Development: Twentieth Century International Development and the Global South (DEVHIST) is a five-year research project led by Agnieszka Sobocinska and funded by a Consolidator Grant from the European Research Council.

Actually Existing Development systematically examines the encounters between individuals, groups and worldviews that attended and often reshaped international development at points of implementation across the Global South, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Uncovering the complex negotiations that remade international development projects at the point of implementation, this project aims to reveal the viewpoints, agency and impacts of Global South communities and mid-level aid workers on the international system. A more granular understanding of the lived experience of international development, including the coercion, resistance and renegotiation that frequently attended development projects in the Global South, will also facilitate a re-evaluation of historical international development and the broader systems of global governance that emerged in the post-war period. To achieve these outcomes, DEVHIST employs a multiscalar historical methodology that traces international development programmes through every stage of their lifecycle, and draws upon a previously neglected source base including Project Files and Global South-produced accounts. It applies this approach to programmes and projects implemented by a range of development actors, including Western and Eastern bloc state development agencies, multilateral development banks, international organisations, and development NGOs in selected nations within Asia, Africa and Latin America.

They are looking for two PhD scholars to conduct original research applying the ‘Actually Existing Development’ project approach to:

  • Southeast Asian Experiences of International Development, with a focus on Indonesia (preferred), Malaysia, Thailand or Philippines, ca. 1950-2000s
  • African Experiences of International Development, preferably with a focus on Ghana, Nigeria or Ethiopia, ca. 1950-1990s.

    Each PhD project will uncover and assess the perspectives of specific groups, communities and/or individuals targeted for international development projects/interventions, and how they changed over time. They will trace how aid-recipient communities understood, conceptualised and experienced specific international development projects, how they responded (including whether and how they mobilised for/against the interventions), and the impact of their responses on international development agencies, regional and national governments, and others.

U Autònoma de Barcelona: PhD Studentship on Women, Nature, and Early Modernity in Japan (Spain)

“Studentships“PhD Studentship on Consuming Nature: Early Modernity, Popular Culture, and the Natural World in Japan, 1600-1900, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain. Deadline: 20 April 2026.

Applications are invited for a salaried, full-time, 3 year PhD position (with the possibility of extension for a 4th year) as part of the Consuming Nature project at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. The working language of the project is English.

The successful candidate will undertake their PhD as a member of a team of international researchers in the context of an innovative project within the prestigious European Research Council framework. They will be provided with a working space at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in a shared office with other members of the project, and will be expected to be regularly present in the office to collaborate with other members of the team. This position does not allow for remote working, other than during periods of pre-approved fieldwork.

Topic: The successful candidate will write his or her dissertation on nature, early modernity, and women in Japan and will address the research questions of the “Consuming Nature” project. Examples of the kinds of questions the dissertation could use as a departure point include:

  • In what ways did women consume and participate in nature-related activities within early modern Japanese popular culture?
  • Was women’s experience of the natural world in Japan changed by the developments of the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries that are associated with Tokugawa “early modernity” and/or Meiji “modernity”?
  • Was their experience different to men, and how did experiences differ between women of different status groups?

Södertörn U: Doctoral Studentships (Sweden)

“Studentships“Ph.D. Studentships, Baltic and East European Graduate School, Södertörn University, Stockholm, Sweden. Deadline: 11 February 2026.

Multiple doctoral studentships are available in Sociology, Political Science, Social Work, Journalism, Business Studies, and Public Administration, all relating to the interdisciplinary topic of “Politics, Economy and the Organisation of Society.”

The planned research for these studentships must be relevant to the Baltic Sea region or Eastern Europe because they are affiliated with the Baltic and East European Graduate School (BEEGS), financed by the Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies, and part of the Centre for Baltic and East European Studies (CBEES) at Södertörn University. Eastern Europe comprises post-communist central, south and east Europe. The Baltic Sea Region is the Baltic Sea and the surrounding countries. A specific list of eligible countries is here.

King’s College: Arts & Humanities Studentships (UK)

“Studentships“

Arts and Humanities Studentships, King’s College London, UK. Deadline: 13 February 2026.

The Doctoral School for Arts & Humanities is the home of the new Arts & Humanities Doctoral Studentships, offering a range of full and partially funded PhD scholarships. Starting October 2026, the programme offers 13 fully funded studentships, including 2 AHRC Doctoral Landscape Awards, plus four fees-only studentships.

Studentships cover all PhD programmes offered by the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, namely:

  • Byzantine & Modern Greek Studies
  • Classics
  • Comparative Literature
  • Creative Writing
  • Culture, Media & Creative Industries
  • Digital Humanities
  • English
  • Film Studies
  • French
  • German
  • History
  • Interdisciplinary Humanities
  • Music
  • Palaeography & Manuscript Studies
  • Philosophy
  • Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies
  • Theology & Religious Studies

Funding will be for 3.5 years (full-time) or 7 years (part-time). Full tuition fees covered, including international fees.

Vienna U: Teaching & Research Associate, Institute for Intercultural Communication (Austria)

“Studentships“Teaching and Research Associate (PhD Position), Institute for Intercultural Communication, Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU), Vienna, Austria. Deadline: 28 January 2026.

“Do you want to understand how language and culture are connected and make a fundamental impact? We offer an environment where you can realize your full potential. At one of Europe’s largest and most modern business and economics universities. On a campus where quality of work is also quality of life. We are looking for support at the

Institute for Intercultural Communication
Part-time, 30 hours/week
Starting April 01, 2026, and ending after 6 years

We explore how culture shapes human interaction and discourse, especially in organizational communication. Our current projects investigate intercultural / multilingual face-to-face and video-mediated interactions (multimodal conversation analysis) and language, culture, and communication in the context of migration.

Our teaching focuses on intercultural communication, including cross-cultural competence training courses, applied research projects on migration and diversity, intercultural simulations, as well as general courses on intercultural business communication.

What to expect

  • Writing a dissertation: You will investigate your research topic in the field of intercultural (business) communication and spend a third of your working hours on writing your PhD dissertation. The outcomes of your research will be published in international academic journals.

  • Regular research exchange: You will regularly present and discuss your research at international conferences and at our Institute’s regular research meetings and data sessions.

  • Doctoral courses: You will enroll in WU’s PhD program and complete doctoral courses as part of your education.

  • Teaching: You will teach your own course and contribute to the development of courses and course materials in intercultural (business) communication

  • Research and teaching support: You will support administrative tasks related to research, teaching, research-to-practice activities, and self-governance and collaborate with our senior researchers on projects, proposals and papers.”

 

MITIME: 15 Studentships on Migration (EU)

“Studentships“

15 Ph.D. Studentships: MITIME, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Turkey, Spain, Belgium, and Netherlands. Deadline: 1 February 2026.

Applications are invited for 15 fully funded PhD positions, to begin in September 2026. Hired Doctoral Researchers will become members of MITIME, an EU-funded doctoral programme offering early-stage researchers international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral training. MITIME is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network focusing on how time shapes migration, inequality, and urban life in post-industrial Europe. They train early-stage researchers in cutting-edge theory, methods and transferable skills, and innovate approaches to understand human mobility as a multi-directional, contingent and relational process.

Each MITIME Doctoral Researcher will be employed full-time on a 36-month contract and enrolled in a PhD programme at one of the network’s seven partner universities in Belgium, Finland, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, or Türkiye. Successful candidates will conduct original research on migration, temporality, and urban inequalities, and participate in all network-wide training and mobility activities.

Applicants to the programme must hold—or be close to completing—a Master’s degree in a relevant field (i.e. migration studies, anthropology, sociology, urban studies, social policy, political science, or public administration). Candidates should show a strong interest in collaborative, interdisciplinary research and in working in international.

Swansea U: PHD Studentship in Bilingualism & Linguistics (UK)

“Studentships“Ph.D. Studentship: Bilingualism and Linguistics, Swansea University, Wales, UK. Deadline: 11 December 2025.

Open to: UK and international applicants

Funding Provider: ESRC WGSSS 50%; Swansea University 50%

Prospective students are invited to propose a research topic for doctoral study in the language-related areas of expertise of staff in Applied Linguistics. Broadly, these areas include research that addresses:

  • Bilingualism/Multilingualism
  • Second language acquisition
  • Lexical studies
  • and/or the structure, meaning and use of language in linguistics, psycho- and sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, psychology, sociology, language technology and education.

Supervision can also be held jointly with colleagues in Welsh, Modern Languages, Translation, Psychology and Education.

U Cambridge: PhD Studentship: Colombo: Layered Histories in the Global South City (UK)

“Studentships“Ph.D. Studentship: Colombo: Layered Histories in the Global South City Studentship, University of Cambridge, England, UK. Deadline: 31 August 2025.

The UKRI-funded 5-year project, ‘Colombo: Layered Histories in the Global South City’, selected for funding by the European Research Council under its ‘HORIZON’ programme, is recruiting to its doctoral studentship. This is a fully funded full-time international studentship for three years, commencing January 2026. The prospective doctoral student will focus their attention within the broad field of the ‘Environmental and/or cultural history of Colombo’, ideally in the early modern or modern era. Given the project’s aim to generate dialogue between Sri Lanka and Europe, candidates applying from Sri Lanka are especially encouraged.

Colombo has a deeply layered imperial past. It came under a succession of European empires, Portuguese (first trading post in 1518), Dutch (1656-1796) and British (1796-1948). It was also pivotal to the early globalisation of Islam and has housed a series of diasporic and minority communities. This project interrogates how invaders and residents made a city in an unstable environment at the centre of the Indian Ocean, in which arose a diverse society, generating an abundance of cultural production and a sequence of violent politics. The four pathways of research are as follows:

  • In environmental terms, this multiply-colonised and repeatedly-engineered city is built in a wetland without a significant natural harbour;

  • In social terms, in a heavily nationalised state, the city has resisted indigeneity, as it is inhabited by many minority communities with long narrations of origin;

  • As for culture, Colombo was represented in keeping with recurrent motifs, as a site of transit across the Indian Ocean, including for enslaved and indentured labour as well as settlers;

  • And on politics, the heavy work needed, at the bridge of sea and land set one context for the rise of urban violence between communities in the midst of civil war in addition to sustained strikes and new political movements.

    At its broadest perspective, the project aims to develop resources with which to consider the pasts, presents and futures of this global South city as located within the remit of other global South cities elsewhere.

The doctoral candidate’s work on this project will fall under themes 2) environment and/or 4) culture. This five-year project is led by Professor Sujit Sivasundaram. The successful applicant will join a team of researchers, including postdoctoral fellows and an existing doctoral student. Their research will contribute to a wider collaborative project.

The doctoral studentship will pay full tuition fees at the University of Cambridge over three years. It also provides a maintenance allowance of £20,780 per year and a budget for training and research.

This studentship is only open to international applicants (excluding UK, including EU and EEA). Candidates applying from Sri Lanka are especially encouraged given the grant’s formal aim to generate dialogue on these research questions between Sri Lanka and Europe. Preference will be given to candidates demonstrating competence in both Sinhala and Tamil, with competence in one of these language for research purposes being an essential requirement for the successful candidate.