The Newest Scholarships

The Cluster of Excellence “Asia and Europe’ in a Global Context: Shifting Asymmetries in Cultural Flows” at the University of Heidelberg is offering:

2 PhD scholarships (2 + 1 years)
2 Post-doctoral scholarships (12 months)
within the Research Project C4 “Making India a Global Health Care Destination: A Social Study of High-Tech Hospitals and Neo-Oriental Spas”, Research Area C (Health and Environment).

The candidates are expected to develop PhD or Post-doctoral projects within the Project C4’s research focus: This project addresses the fast growing sector of medical and wellness tourism in India, and attempts to understand the ways by which India is promoted as a global health care destination. It examines the social and cultural encounters which prevail in such situations, and comprises four main, interrelated research axes:
1/ National and international marketing strategies as they pertain to marketing networks, cost, and the use of high-tech representations and neo-oriental images;
2/ Transformation of infrastructure and the use of ‘place’. How are ideas of culture combined, transformed, erased or emphasized according to various clinical settings and their location?;
3/ Issues of ‘cultural translation’ as they pertain to the explanation of therapeutic action, and to the translation of biomedical or Asian medical terminologies. Matters of language and communication strategies are explored. Emphasis is given to examining the means deployed to facilitate cultural understanding between patients and medical practitioners in these contexts;
4/ Globalization and the transformation of therapeutic practices. What impact does trans-national healthcare have on preexisting biomedical and other therapeutic practices in India? The analytic baseline is concerned with the flows and mutual shaping of ideas, images, techniques, objects and bodies; patterns of self-representation (practitioners and patients); cultural stereotypes; the cultural dimension of health economics and the transformation of India’s health care sector. Please refer to www.asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de for further information on the Cluster and the Project C4.

Applicants for the PhD Scholarships are required to hold a Masters degree or equivalent for less than a year. Applicants for the post-doctoral scholarships are required to hold a PhD since no longer than three years. The fellowships are opened to scholars in anthropology, cultural geography and cultural economy. The subject can be explored from the perspectives developed in the social studies of medicine and/or in migration studies. The PhD projects should have their primary focus on biomedical tourism and biomedical health care. The Post-doctoral projects should cover either medical or wellness tourism.

Applicants are expected to have an excellent academic standing. They must be fluent in English, and have a good command of an Indian language. They are encouraged and expected to pursue independent research and will participate in the meeting of the research group, where we are developing a comparative theoretical and conceptual base for the project. Applications from women, ethnic minorities and individuals with disabilities are encouraged. The positions available are open to both EU and overseas students.

The PhD candidates are invited to use the research environment of the Heidelberg Cluster of Excellence and are entitled and encouraged to participate in the Graduate Program of the Cluster and the Research Group activities. The PhD projects will be supervised by the Project C4 Leader and the Coordinator of the Research Area C. The post-doctoral fellows will be based in Heidelberg, and are expected to participate in the activities of the Cluster and Research Group. They will be placed under the supervision of the Project C4 Leader and the Coordinator of the Research Area C.

The PhD candidates and the postdoctoral fellows are offered a monthly tax-free scholarship in accordance with the German academic standards (with supplements for children) and access to travel funds, technical equipment and institutional support. It is possible to apply for further financial help for language courses or similar. The PhD scholarships will be awarded for two years with a possible renewal for another year after successful evaluation. The Post-doctoral scholarship will be awarded for 12 months, non renewable.

The scholarships will start on 1st June 2009 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Applicants are asked to submit a CV, copies of university degrees (scanned), two letters of recommendation (to be sent directly by their authors to the Project C4 Leader), and a project in English. The research project should not exceed 9 pages, including a 300 words abstract, a detailed project (5 pages), a critical bibliography, the insertion of the individual project in the larger programme, a calendar and the expected results for the duration of the project.

Applications should be submitted by April 15th 2009. Interviews will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.

Please send your application by email to:
Laurent Pordié
Research Group Leader (C4)
Cluster of Excellence “Asia & Europe”
University of Heidelberg
Email: pordie@asia-europe.uni-heidelberg.de

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

Asiatisk Plads 2, 1448 København K - Tlf. +45 33 92 00 00, e-mail: um@um.dk
Bredgade 43, 1260 København K. – Tlf. + 45 33 92 97 00, e-mail: vtu@vtu.dk

COP15 Climate Conference: Denmark skips gifts and educates youth in stead

The Danish Government has decided to establish a ‘COP15 Climate Scholarship’ for money saved pursuant to its policy of not giving gifts to participants at the Climate Conference in Copenhagen later this year.

At similar international conferences, participants usually receive gifts and so-called conference-kits with various items from the host country. At the COP15 in Copenhagen the number of participants is expected to reach 15.000. As part of its efforts to reduce the environmental and climate impact of the conference, the government has decided to discontinue the practice of giving gifts. The DKK 4 million (app. USD 700.000) hereby saved will instead be spent on climate scholarships allowing 10-12 candidates from all over the world to carry out 2-year climate related master’s programs at Danish universities.

“Our 0-gift policy and the COP15 Climate Scholarship are good signals to send at a conference which requires innovation in terms of the way we use our resources. Although there is no doubt as to the good intentions behind giving gifts, we have often experienced how conference kits end up in garbage bins at conference venues and hotels. We want break that habit in Copenhagen and spend the money in a constructive way”, says Minister for Development Cooperation, Ulla Tørnæs.

“The COP15 Climate Scholarship puts a spotlight on Denmark’s strong position in climate related research and the good possibilities for qualifying yourself at Danish universities. Besides, the scholarship is in line with the Government’s goal to increase the exchange of students across borders. With this scholarship, we hope to welcome a group of clever young people from all over the world who will become highly motivated to make a difference, and furthermore will get an exhaustive knowledge about Danish technology and research”, says Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation, Helge Sander.

For more information on the COP15 Climate Scholarship: www.studyindenmark.dk/climate

For further inquiries please contact:
Chief Advisor Nis Gellert (Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. 33 92 02 77
or
International Advisor Christiane Mißlbeck-Winberg (CIRIUS), tel. 33 95 70 66

Masters Studentships in the History of Medicine
Centre for the History of Medicine

The School of Historical Studies at Newcastle University is pleased to advertise between 4 and 6 Masters Studentship Awards for postgraduate study in Newcastle’s Wellcome Trust recognised MA programme in the History of Medicine during the academic year 2009-10. The closing date for applications is 30 April 2009.

The stipends for these awards will be set as follows: Two studentships will be awarded at either £15,000 (including home/EU fees) for full-time home/EU students, or £20,000 (including international fees) for full-time non-EU students of outstanding merit; the other studentships will be awarded at either £5,000 (including home/EU-fees) for meritorious full-time home/EU students, or £10,000 (including international fees) for non-EU students. Part time studentships will be awarded to meritorious applicants at c. half the above rate per annum.

The studentships are funded by the Northern Centre for the History of Medicine and will be available as of September 2009. The Northern Centre is a partnership between the Universities of Newcastle and Durham, and is supported by the Wellcome Trust. Successful applicants will join the postgraduate community based at the School of Historical Studies at Newcastle University. Postgraduate teaching and research supervision in the History of Medicine at Newcastle is delivered by scholars with established international reputations in the field.

Eligibility: Applications for the studentship are invited from highly motivated
graduates from various backgrounds including the Humanities and Social Sciences (e.g. History, Classics, Philosophy, Literature, Religious Studies, Archaeology, Psychology, Sciences, Sociology etc.). Applicants require a good (or predicted) undergraduate degree result (1st or high 2:1) in such a subject. Candidates with a medical background are also strongly encouraged to apply, and the studentship is open to current stage 4 Newcastle medical students who have opted to take the MA in the History of Medicine as an intercalated degree after stage 4 MBBS. Applications from overseas candidates with equivalent qualifications are also very welcome.

Application procedure: Applicants are asked to send: i) a CV and list of academic qualifications and experience; ii) a personal statement and letter of application outlining reasons for wanting to pursue postgraduate study in the history of medicine at Newcastle and highlighting specific research interests (max 300 words), iii) copies of any relevant certificates and transcripts, and (iv) letters of recommendation from two academic referees. Applications should be sent to the Postgraduate Secretary, Ms Sandra Fletcher, School of Historical Studies, University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, to arrive no later than 30 April 2009.

For specific inquiries about the studentships and about the MA programme please contact: Prof. P.J. van der Eijk, Degree Programme Director, MA in History of Medicine, School of Historical Studies & Northern Centre for the History of Medicine, Newcastle University, Armstrong Building, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, tel: (direct) 0191 222 8262; email: philip.van-der-eijk@ncl.ac.uk

For information about postgraduate study in the School of Historical Studies contact the School’s Postgraduate Secretary, Mrs Sandra Fletcher, at: sandra.fletcher@ncl.ac.uk, tel. +44 (0) 191 222 7966