Studentship at University of Gothenburg, Sweden in Political Science for International Students

About the Scholarship/ and University
The University of Gothenburg is one of the most prestigious university in Sweden, which offers various of programmes. This university is the third-oldest of the current Swedish universities which employs thousands of staff members for over 40,000 students.

The Department of Political Science has an open climate that encourages involvement in broader societal debates. Research areas of specialisation include elections, democracy, corruption, governance, globalisation, environmental politics and European studies. The Department of Political Science is currently looking qualified and motivated international students for up to four doctoral studentship positions (PhD students) in Political Science.

Requirements
To be eligible for the position, the applicant must meet both general and specific entry requirements. An applicant meets the general entry requirements for third-cycle (PhD) studies if he/she has obtained:

• A degree at the second-cycle level (MA level, or equivalent)
• At least 240 higher education (university) credits, of which at least 60 must be at the second cycle, level, or
• Largely equivalent knowledge acquired in other ways in Sweden or abroad. 

In Sweden, 240 university credits equal four years of successfully completed full-time studies. Applicants who have acquired largely equivalent knowledge in Sweden or abroad will also be considered to meet the specific entry requirements. Finally, although not a formal requirement, we encourage successful applicants to acquire sufficient competency in the Swedish language to be able to actively participate in seminars and other activities at the Department, within a two-year period.

According to the Higher Education Ordinance Ch. 7, applicants will be assessed based on their estimated ability to benefit from the study programmes and on the Department’s supervisory resources. We will base this assessment primarily on the following:

• Relevant work, which will be assessed in terms of ability to formulate, delimit and analyse research tasks and present research results
• A draft of the intended research project stating the applicant’s research interest(s) and planned focus area of his/ her doctoral thesis. In addition, the project draft must demonstrate familiarity with previous and current research as well as an ability to formulate scientific problems. Maximum 2500 words (approx. 6 pages)
• Academic transcripts
• Previous merits
• The selection process may include interviews
• Applicants may be asked to provide letters of recommendation

Awards/ Grants
The studentships are in form of salary. The employment is explained as below:

• Type of employment: 4 years
• Extent: 100% (full-time)
• Location: Department of Political Science, Gothenburg
• First Day of Employment: 01 September 2020

Regulations for employment of doctoral student are given in SFS 1998:80. Only those who are admitted to third-cycles studies may be appointed to doctoral studentships. Those appointed to doctoral studentships shall primarily devote themselves to their studies. They may, however, work to a limited extent with educational tasks, research and administration according to the regulations. Salaries for doctoral students are regulated in a local agreement at the University.

Application Process
Please register your application electronically under ‘Apply online’. In order for the application to be considered complete it must include:

1. An introductory letter of 1000 words maximum (approx. 2 pages), preferably shorter. The letter should consist of four paragraphs in the following order: a) a short presentation of yourself. b) a short presentation of your merits, c) a short presentation of the intended research project and d) a short account for why the Department of Political Science and/or the doctoral studies programme is of interest to you.
2. CV including a list of publications (if applicable).   
3. One writing sample. Normally, this would be a master’s thesis, but it could also be a revised version of the thesis, or another paper, article or book chapter for example, or equivalent work. The texts must be submitted in Swedish or English. Any translated versions must be accompanied by the original text and translated in their entirety.
4. A description of the intended research project indicating the applicant’s research interests and planned focus area of his/her thesis and research. The project description must demonstrate familiarity with previous and current research as well as an ability to formulate scientific problems. 2500 words maximum (approx. 6 pages) including abstract, excluding bibliography. Further directions for the description can be found on the website.
5. Verified copies of academic transcripts and evidence of other relevant qualifications, if applicable. Please note that you need to submit detailed academic transcripts that specify your finished courses, credits and degrees. If English is not the original language, you need to submit both the original and an English translation. For degree transcripts from universities within the EU, please provide a diploma supplement.
6. Applicants may be asked to provide recommendation letters later on in the process. If so, we will contact you during week 12-13 and ask you to provide two recommendation letters. Please get in touch with two persons who may write a recommendation letter for you and ask them to prepare for submitting the letters following the instructions on our website during the above-mentioned weeks. Please do not submit any recommendation letters before we contact you and explicitly ask you to.

It is for the applicant to make sure that the application is complete. No changes/additions are allowed after the last date of application. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
All electronic documents must be submitted in PDF format. The closing date of application is 04 February 2020, for further information, kindly visit this Scholarship Link.