CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE EUROPEAN DOCTORAL PROGRAMME IN THE HUMAN AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
CURRICULUM IN ‘EUROPE AND THE INVENTION OF MODERNITY’
Educational project
The aim of the doctoral programme is to give young researchers advanced training in the historic disciplines, viewed in the context of the current international debate on historiography, and to equip them with the tools they need to interpret historiography in relation to the other human and social sciences. Students will also receive instruction in techniques for accessing sources, and in the peculiar methodologies and procedures of historic research. The programme is not only designed for scholars specializing in modern history, but covers a long period ranging from the end of the Middle Ages through to the contemporary age. The doctorate has a specifically European perspective, not only as regards its scientific objectives but also in the way it is structured, bringing together as it does five research and research training institutions in four different nations. Using the resources at their disposal, the five institutions intend to establish a dialogue between different historiographic traditions within a unitary discourse, a fundamental goal for achieving a better understanding of Europe today.
Study grants
Four three-year study grants will be awarded by the SUM. The grants are worth € 20,000 per year, paid out in monthly instalments. A specific insurance policy (health and accident insurance) valid in the Country where the student will stay will be taken out for each student. The doctoral students will also be given access to the teaching and scientific resources of the partner institutions. Candidates are admitted to the programme according to a classification, up until the number of places available. In the event of the withdrawal of one or more of the successful candidates from the programme within 60 days of the start date, other candidates will be admitted on the basis of their position in the classification.
Admission requirements
University qualifications
- Candidates must possess a degree that makes them eligible for enrolling in a research doctorate in one of the countries belonging to the European Union.
- Scholars who have already been awarded a research doctorate and grant are not eligible to apply.
Research project
In addition to their application, candidates are required to submit a detailed research proposal for the three-year period (max. 15,000 key strokes); the proposals are to be written in one of the languages of the programme (French, English, Italian, German).
Knowledge of foreign languages
The Selection Committee will take account of the language skills of the candidates, given the nature of the doctoral programme, which involves teaching and research activities in four different nations. At the moment of selection, applicants are required to have a knowledge of two of the following languages: French, English, Italian, German. Candidates must also undertake to learn a third language.
Admission procedure
- Applications, written in French, Italian, German or English according to the enclosed model, must be sent to the following address by and no later than 23 november 2009:
Istituto Italiano di Scienze Umane
Ufficio Servizi per la Didattica
Palazzo Strozzi
Piazza degli Strozzi
I – 50123 Firenze
- Together with their application form, candidates must include: two letters of reference, written by scholars in disciplines pertaining to the doctorate; a research proposal; and a curriculum. The latter may be accompanied by any other documents which help to illustrate the educational background and research aptitude of the applicant (publications, dissertations, research findings, research and work experience, etc.).
- The Selection Committee will consist of representatives from all the partner institutions. A preliminary selection will be made on the basis of qualifications, of research projects and of the curricula. The selected candidates will then be invited to sit an oral exam. Applicants invited to sit the examinations are entitled to reimbursement of 80% of their travel costs.
- The successful applicants will make a principal enrolment in an institution of their choice from amongst those taking part in the programme, and must meet the administrative conditions laid down by the law in force in the nation to which the institution concerned belongs. Students will also make two secondary enrolments, without any supplementry fees, in two further institutions belonging to two other nations, in the ambit of the joint doctoral supervision (cotutelle) agreements.
Teaching programme
- Students will be required to attend, in the different partner institutions, the research seminars or courses organized for them according to a calendar drawn up by the Coordinator. This will consist of two six-week periods per year for the first two years of the doctoral programme. The third year will be mainly devoted to writing the doctoral thesis. The courses will be held on a rotating basis at the five partner institutions. Attendance is compulsory. The opportunity for students to move between the institutions will enable them to draw the maximum benefit from the resources available in the different institutions on the basis of their research interests. Each student will be assigned a supervisor chosen by the Faculty Council. Students will also take part in interdisciplinary workshops and sessions devoted to discussion of their research work.
- The Faculty Council will convene at the end of the first and second year to decide whether the doctoral students can move on respectively to the second and third year. The Council will make their decision on the basis of an interview with each student and discussion of a written report prepared by the student. If the Council makes a negative ruling, the student will be required to leave the programme. More specifically, students are required to submit the following:
- a historiographic paper and a detailed account of the overall research project (end of first year);
- an annotated table of contents and two chapters of the thesis (end of second year).
- Payment of the scholarships is closely dependent on the regular submission by students of the reports on the progress of their research.
All the activities of the programme will respect the principles of the European Charter of Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers.
Supervision
1) Choice of supervisors: Within six months of the beginning of the programme, the Faculty Council will appoint one supervisor for each doctoral student, chosen from amongst the members of the Faculty Council and/or external academics. Assessment of supervision: the Faculty Council will evaluate on a periodical basis the degree of interaction between the student and the supervisor, and the effectiveness of the supervision with regard to the progress of the students’ studies and research.
Doctoral thesis
At the end of the third year, students will be required to submit a doctoral thesis that makes an original and innovative contribution to his or her field of research. Students are expected to display a wide and in-depth knowledge of their topic, both in relation to existing literature on the theme and in the form of a thorough investigation. carried out through a rigorous and convincing method. The theses will be defended in one of the partner institutions, and must be written in one of the languages of the programme, as chosen by the scholar according to the international laws on joint degrees (cotutelle) in force in the countries of the member Institutions
Qualification
Upon completion of their period of study, a PhD will be awarded to students who have complied with all the required conditions. The PhD will be signed in accordance with the regulations laid down in the joint doctoral supervision agreements. This qualification is a European certificate, and is part of the project to set up a European doctoral diploma. It is recognized in each country according to the criteria defined by the European University Association.
Partner institutions
- Istituto Italiano di Scienze Umane
- Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales
- Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes
- Humboldt Universität
- Central European University
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