PhD in Transnational Studies – (Ph.D.)

General

Our PhD programme comprises three years of study, starting in September of each year. The bulk of the workload for candidates in the programme takes the form of independent dissertation research. Apart from their independent research, all programme participants are required to take part in content-oriented survey courses, colloquia on research methods, and multidisciplinary skills workshops.

Supervision

The BTS aims towards high standards of structured supervision. In accordance with their research topics, PhD students are supervised by a team of three supervisors. The first supervisor is a faculty member of the BTS. One of the other two co-supervisors can be external to the cooperating institutions (FUB, HSoG, or WZB). In frequent meetings, supervision is carried out along a previously agreed upon work plan. The work plan contains a timetable of when to submit parts or chapters of the PhD thesis and indicates supervision meetings accordingly. Also, work plans function as a track record of changes and amendments to earlier versions. The goal is to identify students' strengths and weaknesses and to develop strategies to support the students by completing the thesis. Additionally to this individual supervision, the BTS offers training in the field of professional development. This includes training in research management, knowledge transfer and education, publication strategies, and middle-, as well as long-term strategies for career planning. Altogether, the goal of the BTS is to promote its students to successfully finish their PhD projects within three years while being prepared for the next steps of their careers.

International

The further development of an international network consisting of renowned scholars and institutions constitutes the key element of the BTS internationalization strategy. The strategy is supported by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) as part of the program „International Promovieren in Deutschland“ (IPID), funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The awarded funds enable the BTS to enhance the international outlook of its programme by supporting the international mobility of its PhD candidates and expanding international recruitment of the most talented PhD candidates.
The international mobility, our PhD candidates can apply for mobility funds. The mobility funds grant financial assistance for conducting field research abroad and for participating at international conferences. Furthermore, international scholars of the partner institutions are regularly invited to the BTS to work with PhD candidates on individual subjects like research methods and English academic writing. For instance, the BTS in cooperation with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF) regularly organize workshops in Germany and Israel to give PhD candidates the opportunity to present their research and engage in a vivid discussion with renowned scholars to further improve their theses.

Active Research

PhD students are given the opportunity to cooperate with Associate Research Centres and projects. This includes the DFG-Research Centre 700 "Governance in Areas of Limited Statehood", the Center for Area Studies at FUB, the Berlin Center for European Studies (BEST), the Research College "The Transformative Power of Europe", the Centers for "Transnational Relations, Foreign and Security Policy" and "European Integration" at the Otto-Suhr-Institute of FUB, the research projects carried out at the HSoG, and the Research Units "Transnational Conflicts and International Institutions", "Migration, Integration, Transnationalisation", and "Democracy: Structures, Performance Profile and Challenges" at WZB.