The College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) and the University of Copenhagen/CERTIZENS Project announce:

Two scholarships for thesis research available for 2023/2024 within the Certifications of Citizenship in Africa (CERTIZENS) Research Project

CERTIZENS (Certifications of Citizenship in Africa) is an international collaborative research project including a partnership between the Department of Development Studies, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUSS) at Makerere University, the Centre of African Studies at the University of Copenhagen, and the Institute of African Studies at the University of Ghana Legon. It is concerned with the epidemic scale and implications of people on the African continent living without legal ID documents, who currently make up 50% of an estimated 850 million people worldwide living without formal proof of identity. With Ghana and Uganda as country case studies, CERTIZENS focuses on the complexities, challenges and effects of national systems of citizen classification certification and identification, and the forms of ID they generate. It considers how interweaving politics, policies and practices related to such systems – working at institutional, social and individual scales – shape both citizens and states and the relationship between them. See more at: https://teol.ku.dk/english/dept/certizens-certifications-of-citizenship-in-africa/

To complement the existing CERTIZENS research team of four senior researchers and five PhD scholars, additional funding is available for scholarships to support thesis research for two MA/MPhil students in their second year of study. These students may be taking their major degrees in such fields/departments as Development Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, History, Gender Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, and Law or any other relevant disciplines. The successful applicants will be directly attached to the CERTIZENS Project, while fully following and fulfilling the requirements of their degrees.

The scholarship will cover tuition fees for the second year of study, as well as supporting thesis fieldwork and participation in various CERTIZENS-related workshops and conferences.

Application requirements

Applicants are requested to provide the following documentation:

• Full name
• Updated CV
• Letter of motivation, indicating why the area of study covered by CERTIZENS is interesting and relevant for your studies
• 1-2 page outline of proposed thesis focus
• Evidence of previous academic degree with at least Upper Second Honours, and a B grade or above on the first year of the masters course
• Names of 2 academic references

Applicants are strongly encouraged to explore the CERTIZENS home page mentioned above while preparing their application, to gain a clear understanding of what themes, topics and analytical questions are of concern within the CERTIZENS project.

Application deadline

Applications should be submitted via email by midnight on Monday 28 August 2023 to Associate Professor Asiimwe B. Godfrey: god.asiimwe@gmail.com; Professor Amanda Hammar: aha@teol.ku.dk and copied to The Principal, College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHUUS): principal.chuss@mak.ac.ug

Assessment process

The applications will be assessed by a committee consisting of CERTIZENS senior researchers, and senior academic staff from the Department of Development Studies and the School of Liberal and Performing Arts (SLPA).

Final decision on awarding of scholarship

A short-list of prospective candidates for the scholarship will be identified for interviews. Interviews will be held around mid-September. A final decision will be made soon after.

Supplementary training in CERTIZENS-related concepts/approaches

Selected candidates will be provided with additional support by CERTIZENS in the form of short tailor-made seminars or workshops and prescribed reading lists, to deepen academic grounding for participation in the CERTIZENS Project.

Thesis topics and supervision

A relevant thesis topic for each scholarship student will be identified, discussed and agreed-upon in collaboration between the student, their respective departmental supervisor, and the CERTIZENS Project Coordinator.

Of the two thesis supervisors for each of the students selected, one will be the CERTIZENS Uganda Project Coordinator, Associate Professor Asiimwe B. Godfrey, based at the Department of Development Studies, and the other as lead supervisor will be from the student’s academic department. Additional mentoring will be provided by Professor Amanda Hammar, based at the Centre of African Studies at Copenhagen University, who leads the CERTIZENS project.

General inquiries

Any general queries about the application process can be directed to Assoc. Professor Asiimwe B. Godfrey: god.asiimwe@gmail.com tel: 0753210022; Professor Amanda Hammar: aha@teol.ku.dk; and Dr Naiga Resty (Head of Department, Development Studies): naigaresty19@gmail.com. Assistance can also be sought from the two Uganda-based CERTIZENS PhDs: Martin Buhamizo, martinbuha@gmail.com, tel: 0752787728; or Milcah Abasabyona, abmilcah@yahoo.com, tel: 0782622568