PhD PhD in Educational and Communicational Sciences
University of Milano - Bicocca
| Application deadline: | October 2010 |
| Start date: | January 2014 |
| Duration full-time: | 12 months |
| Languages: |
|
| Location: |
|
| Disciplines: | |
| Delivery mode: | On Campus |
| Project type: | Open, Predefined |
| Educational Form: | Academic |
Description
This doctoral research programme aims to effectively draw together resources from multiple disciplines, using a cross-disciplinary framework while continuing to respect the independence of individual branches of knowledge. Thus, topics of key interest to the human sciences will be examined from a number of different perspectives which have contributed valuable new theoretical and operational models in recent years. Specifically, the field of education has seen the emergence of innovative theoretical and practical perspectives capable of identifying, explaining and managing the various stages of educational processes. There has also been a greater exchange of views between pedagogy and other branches of educational science; however, there is still a risk that the diversity of approaches to theoretical research, educational processes, didactics and field research coexisting within education may lead to a lack of integration between the various areas of specialization as well as to difficulty in developing models which are sufficiently complex and permit rigorous evaluation. Similarly, the psychology of communication has been characterized by new developments regarding the acquisition of linguistic and communication competences, meaning construction and cognitive pragmatics. Much scientific interest in this area has focused on the development of new paradigms relating to intercultural communication, seen as providing the opportunity for mutual recognition, contact and exchange between individuals and groups of people from different cultural backgrounds. Within the field of psychology, special attention has also been devoted to health topics relating both to prevention and the promotion of good health in all its forms. Finally, a further topic of current interest is personal wellbeing, seen as regarding the person as a whole and defined as happiness, which is linked to the concept of eudaimonia and to characteristics of human behaviour promoting optimism and the development of positive emotions. Particular attention has been devoted to the socialization of very young children as the basis for their subsequent harmonious development. Physical and mental disability has been another area of research with particular reference to the topic of inclusion. Other studies have focused on adult education as a requirement for realizing potential and reaching a satisfactory level of self-efficacy.
The need for valid scientific instruments to analyse the development patterns of present day organizations has led a growing number of private and public sector organizations to initiate processes of change and transformation aimed at coping with the considerable environmental and technological discontinuities characterising our time and, in general, with the increased complexity of the current socio-economic context. This context, and the consequent challenges for organizations, has evolved in line with the massive development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). On the one hand, ICT have contributed significantly to the transformation of the economic and the social contexts that organizations operate within. On the other, they provide a range of instruments which can facilitate organizational change.
Contents
Year I The first year programme is designed to provide the PhD students with the basic training required in order to undertake postgraduate research within the social sciences and is structured as follows: 1) Epistemological Workshops (4-8 hour sessions, depending on the complexity of the topic)- Formulating a research question- Research designs - Alternative strategies for empirical research - Scientific writing- Use of data bases - Reading groups set up to review and discuss a multidisciplinary scientific debate (e.g. nativism vs. learning) 2) Methodology Courses - Data Analysis (Basic Course): 16 hours- Data Analysis (Advanced Course): 8 hours 3) Scientific English Course - Basic Course (60 hours)- Advanced Course (60 hours) 4) Individual Coaching sessions with supervisor in order to gradually identify the student´s own research questions and to initiate a comprehensive review of the relevant specialist literature. 5) Group Session at the end of Year I in which research proposals are presented to, and discussed with, an Advisory Panel. 1:1 sessions in Year I will be a relatively limited component of course work (around 40 hours) Year IIThe second year programme is principally devoted to developing participants´ knowledge of key thematic areas and contents pertaining to the different scientific disciplines and is made up of the following activities : 1) Seminars with guest lecturers. There will be a schedule of seminars taking place on a monthly basis and Supervisors/Curriculum Leaders will identify the seminars of interest to each particular disciplinary field and advise the doctoral students and the Programme Director accordingly 2) Courses or lectures devoted to major scientific paradigms and perspectives; these may also take place in other universities with which exchange agreements are in place. 3) Individual study under the guidance of the supervisor (e.g. identification of thematic bibliographies relating to the different disciplines and group sessions with the interested doctoral students) 4) Individual Coaching sessions with supervisor in order to refine the student´s own research proposal and to produce a position paper 5) Group Session at the end of Year II in which position papers are presented to, and discussed with, an Advisory Panel. 1:1 sessions in Year II will be a more significant component of course work (around 80 hours) Year III The third year is primarily devoted to carrying out the empirical research which will form the basis for the doctoral thesis. The course work will therefore mainly consist of an intense 1:1 exchange between supervisor and doctoral student, culminating in the presentation of the thesis and the final examination. In any case, first, second and third year doctoral students are free to attend all the training activities made available in a given year as well as having continued access to the relevant communication platforms (e.g. PhD web pages).
Requirements
The course work will take place through the medium of ITALIAN,ENGLISH,FRENCH, SPANISH
For info, please contact:
Dr. Barbara De Marco
Università di Milano Bicocca
Dip. Scienze Umane per la Formazione "R. Massa"
Piazza dell´Ateneo Nuovo 1
20126 Milano - Italy
E-mail: barbara.demarco1@unimib.it
IELTS
You are normally required to take an English Proficiency Test.
Most European Universities recognise the IELTS test.
Take IELTS testContact
Using the form on this page, you can directly ask questions to the contactpersons at the university.
Fill out your contact information and message. The information you fill out in this form will be sent directly to the university. They will reply to you on the e-mail address you provide here.
phdportal.eu cannot take any responsibility for the answering of contacts or for the content of their replies.
