sowi:docs Fellowship Programme

sowi:docs is the doctoral fellowship programme of the Vienna Doctoral School of Social Sciences (ViDSS). sowi:docs fellowships give outstanding doctoral candidates in the social sciences the opportunity to devote full-time effort to their research and to writing their doctoral thesis in the vibrant research environment of ViDSS. We welcome applications in the fields of communication, demography, development studies, nursing science, political science, science and technology studies, social and cultural anthropology and sociology.

The sowi:docs Fellowship Programme aims at recruiting the best candidates. All candidates are in direct competition with each other, regardless of their fields of research. Applicants need the support of a supervisor who is a member of the ViDSS, must provide a CV indicating their above-average qualifications in the discipline in which they intend to write their doctoral thesis and have to submit a research proposal that is forwarded to international experts for review.

sowi:docs fellows are employed with the University of Vienna for 30h/week according to the applicable collective bargaining agreement. The announcement is made for 3 years. The employment contract is initially limited to 1.5 years and is automatically extended to a total of 3 years, unless the employer submits a declaration of non-renewal after a maximum of 12 months.

sowi:docs fellows are members of the academic staff and enjoy all rights and duties that come with such a position. sowi:docs fellows receive travel funds from their departments and can apply for ViDSS Research Funds after the successful public presentation of their intended doctoral project at the Faculty of Social Sciences, which takes place in the first year. Additional funding for research related costs has to be acquired by the fellows themselves and is not covered by the fellowship.

sowi:docs fellows are enrolled on the doctoral programme in Social Sciences at the University of Vienna and become members of the Vienna Doctoral School of Social Sciences. As ViDSS students, fellows actively participate in the activities organised by the doctoral school and complete the milestones of the doctoral programme throughout their doctoral studies.