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Ph.D. Programme in Political Studies – Network for the Advancement of Social and Political Sciences (NASP)

Published by sanja

Deadline: 3 July 2019
Open to: students with a background in Political Science, Political Philosophy, International relations, Political Economy, Public Administration, Welfare Studies, European Union Studies
Benefits: scholarships of approx. 16.000 EUR gross per year, renewable up to a maximum of three years

Description

The Network for the Advancement of Social and Political Studies (NASP) is pleased to announce that its Ph.D. Programme in Political Studies (POLS) calls for application for 7 PhD positions covered by scholarships (duration: 3 years).

The application deadline is July 3, 2019, h.14.00 (Italian time)

The Ph.D. program in Political Studies is based at the University of Milan and is jointly promoted by the following departments, members of NASP:

  • Department of Political Sciences – DISPO (University of Genoa);
  • Department of Social and Political Sciences – SPS (University of Milan);
  • Department of Political and Social Sciences (University of Pavia).

The programme aims at training highly skilled professionals who can undertake research within academic institutions, think tanks and research centres, as well as provide consultancy for political, economic, public or private organizations.

The programme offers a two-levels training. First, the acquisition of a common background on the most up-to-date knowledge and methods in the field of political science and political philosophy. Second, a personalized training subdivided in four main paths of specialization.

  • The path on Institutions and Public Policy focuses on the analysis of contemporary political systems and their related issues, such as the functioning of parliaments, governments, and other political institutions at the national, local and European levels, the definitions of welfare programmes, the evaluation of public policies, the processes of democratization.
  • The path on International Studies aims to provide tools to interpret the international dimension of politics and the processes of mutual conditioning between the domestic and the external spheres by discussing the main themes of the theory of International Relations, and analysing the most important sub-regional systems and the main international actors’ foreign policies.
  • The path on Public Opinion, Political Communication and Political Behaviour delves into the analysis of the electoral processes, of the role the main actors involved play, of their communication strategies with the citizens, and of how the latter build, express and translate into electoral behaviours their attitudes towards politics.
  • The path on Political Theory offers an in-depth study of the main paradigms that orient the contemporary debate on political philosophy, normative political theory, and applied ethics, and provides the necessary competences to build political arguments, to evaluate their theoretical and practical implications, and to elaborate conceptual frameworks to treat politically relevant issues.

You can see all programs here.

The programme extends over a three years period. All classes and teaching activities are in English.

Eligibility

In order to apply for the Ph.D. Programme, applicants are required to possess:

  • either an Italian Laurea Magistrale, a Master’s Degree or any equivalent degree.
  • a B2 level or above English language certification (including all the 4 skills Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking) issued by any authorized certifying body as laid down by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages – CEFR. The list of certifications accepted by the University of Milan is available in the call for application and at the following link: http://www.unimi.it/cataloghi/slam/certificazioniENG_Feb2019.pdf. The certificate is not required for some specific exceptions listed in the call for application. If the candidate does not possess such certification, or does not possess one of the four skills required, and/or did not attend any of the abovementioned courses, she is not admitted to the Ph.D. The admitted candidates must provide the certification by the date of enrollment.

Applicants who expect to obtain an Italian Laurea Magistrale, a Master’s Degree or equivalent within October 31, 2019 are also eligible to apply for admission.

Scholarship

The scholarship is approx. of 16.000 EUR gross per year (up to 3 years). A 50% increase of the scholarship is provided for visiting periods abroad. Starting from the second year, students are also awarded a research budget amounting up to 10% of the yearly scholarship.

How to apply?

In order to apply, and for more information, please check the official call.