“Trajectories of Change” addresses historical and current transformation processes in the European neighbourhood. The programme offers stipends and fieldwork grants for Ph.D. students in the humanities and social sciences studying political and social change in Eastern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East as well as Central Asia.

Argument

For 2016, research applications dealing with historical and current contestation processes leading to political and social change are especially welcome.

Political and social change begins with contestation. Popular revolts, mass protests, challenges by intellectuals and social elites as well as other forms of mobilization dispute institutions. They have a broader impact on the existing political, social and economic orders. How do past and present contestation processes in the European neighbourhood evolve through time? Where do they historically root in? Who do support them? Which dynamics and patterns do they follow? What are their political, social and economic outcomes?

Ph.D. students researching the dynamics of political change and their impact on societies are invited to apply for a scholarship. We encourage the following topics, but will also consider other approaches:

• historical and current dynamics of statehood
• different forms of mobilization
• actors and patterns of popular revolts, mass protests and social conflicts
• political, social and economic outcomes of contestation
• state reaction to contestation and governance of change
• containments of contestations and change

The programme seeks to support young researchers in social sciences and history in contributing novel insights into trajectories of change. It promotes both empirical research based on intensive fieldwork and projects centred on theoretical reflection. Innovative and challenging research questions as well as comparative approaches will be highly welcomed.

Scholarships

The programme offers flexible funding schemes for Ph.D. students at various stages of their dissertation research as well as for graduate students in the phase of Ph.D. project development:

• Ph.D. Scholarships
• Dissertation Completion Scholarships
• Pre-Doctoral Research Grants
• Fieldwork Grants

Requirements

Applicants must be Ph.D. students of social sciences or humanities. Prospective Ph.D. students can apply for Pre-Doctoral Research Grants.

Deadline 12 May 2016 for a stipend starting in September/October 2016

Please apply online at www.trajectories-of-change.de with Ph.D. proposal and two references.

Further information: www.trajectories-of-change.de

Prerequisites

In order to be eligible for a Ph.D. scholarship, the applicant must have obtained a university degree that qualifies him or her for Ph.D. studies. Proof of this qualification must be submitted together with the application. Students applying for the pre-doctoral grants should expect to complete their degree in the same year. The program is aimed exclusively at graduates who in the course of their studies have shown above-average academic aptitude and whose research project promises to yield inde-pendent and new findings. The Foundation reserves the right to admit qualified applicants who have other sources of income to the program without granting them a full scholarship to cover their living costs.

Application

The application must be submitted in English on the appropriate online form provided by the ZEIT-Stiftung before the deadline.

It must contain a research proposal (for doctoral students: max. 7 pages, for pre-doctoral candidates: 3-5 pages, references excluded, 1.5 spacing, 12 point font) outlining the dissertation project, a research plan with the time schedule (max. 2 pages), a copy of the university degree, the curriculum vitae as well as a photo.

Two letters of reference by university professors should be submitted through the electronic system provided by the Foundation. For the Pre-Doctoral Research Grants and the Fieldwork Grants the Foundation requests also an individual budget plan.

Selection Criteria

Scholarships are granted by the Board of Directors of the ZEIT-Stiftung on the basis of the application submitted by the candidate. The ZEIT-Stiftung reserves the right to instate a selection committee or obtain an additional external expert's opinion on the research project. No applicant may claim automatic entitlement to a scholarship.

Stipend and Methods of Payment

The stipend for the scholarships is € 1,200 per month. Supplementary payments for married scholar-ship holders will not be granted by the Foundation. The stipend is paid in three-monthly instalments, payable in advance, into an account stipulated by the scholarship holder.

In case of pre-doctoral grants the financial support is limited to max. € 5,000. This single grant should support the development of the dissertation project, including small scale preliminary research and funds for participation in academic conferences.

Fieldwork Grants support travel costs as well as research expenses and add up to max. € 3,000. The Foundation expects to be informed about the progress of the research. This will usually be in the form of a presentation of the work in progress at the students’ conference. In their first year, the Ph.D. students are required to present their project at the scholarship conference held annually in spring, having before submitted in writing a ten-page paper on a specific aspect of their dissertation. The continuation of the scholarship must be approved by the selection committee that is present at the conference.

The Ph.D. Scholarships end:

a) at the end of the granted period of time

b) within the granted period of time at the end of the month in which the scholarship holder submits his or her dissertation at the degree-giving university, or on the day that the schol-arship holder abandons his or her dissertation to enter into a contract of employment that runs counter to the regulations listed below.

Should the scholarship holder be unable to complete the dissertation within the granted period of time, a final report must be submitted to the Foundation. In any case, the scholarship holder is under obligation to submit a copy of the degree certificate to the Foundation.

Advisory Board

• Dr. Holger Albrecht, The American University in Cairo, Egypt
• Dr. Muriel Asseburg, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Berlin, Germany
• Prof. Peter Burnell, University of Warwick, United Kingdom
• Prof. Aurel Croissant, Universität Heidelberg, Germany
• Dr. Sonja Hegasy, Zentrum Moderner Orient, Berlin, Germany
• Ivan Krastev, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia, Bulgaria
• Prof. Marie Mendras, Sciences Po / Centre d'études et de recherches internationales, Paris, France
• Mykola Riabchuk, Institute of Political and Nationalities' Studies, Kyiv, Ukraine
• Prof. Frithjof Benjamin Schenk, Universität Basel, Switzerland
• Prof. Oliver Schlumberger, Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Germany