The Social Science Research Council offers fellowships to support the completion of doctoral degrees and to promote next generation social science research in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. The fellowships support dissertation research on peace, security, and development topics.
Doctoral dissertation proposal fellowships support PhD students working on developing a doctoral dissertation research proposal as well as students who recently completed a master’s degree and seek to enroll in a PhD program. The fellowships support short-term research costs of up to US$3,000 to develop a doctoral dissertation proposal. This program also includes two workshops each year that have been designed to create fellows’ networks, help fellows refine, develop and strengthen research questions, match research methods to questions, engage key literature in their fields, and finalize their doctoral research proposals.
Eligibility:
All applicants must:
- be citizens of any sub-Saharan African country
- be enrolled, or intend to enroll by the time of the award, and working towards a PhD in an accredited university, or affiliated to an institution in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, or Uganda
- hold a master’s degree at the time of application
As of May 2015, the program prioritizes applicants holding a faculty position or demonstrating a durable commitment to higher education in Africa, but does not restrict eligibility to such individuals.
The program seeks to promote diversity and encourages women to apply.
Method of Application:Â
All applications must be submitted using the online application portal.
Strong proposals will offer clear and concise descriptions of the project and its significance. Proposals should display thorough knowledge of the relevant social science literature that applicants will engage and the methodologies relevant to the project. In addition, applicants must demonstrate that all proposed activities are feasible and can be completed in a timely manner. All proposals will be evaluated for these criteria by an independent, international committee of leading scholars from a range of social science and related disciplines.Â
Fellows must be willing to attend two workshops sponsored by the SSRC each year that are intended to help early-career faculty engage in scholarly reflections, research and writing. We anticipate awarding up to 45 fellowships in total across all three categories each year.
Application Deadline:Â Â February 1, 2022.
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