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TUM SEED Center: Two Doctoral Scholarships in Sustainable Entrepreneurship

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TUM SEED Center

Announcement of Two Doctoral Scholarships
“Sustainable Entrepreneurship”

Call for Applications

The TUM SEED Center is an Excellence Centre for Exchange and Development, funded by DAAD and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development from 2020 to 2029. The TUM SEED Center conducts research and offers higher education at the intersection of Sustainable Energies, Entrepreneurship and Development (SEED) in the Global South. The TUM SEED Center consists of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and ten leading technical universities across the Global South, including Bahir Dar University (Ethiopia), Bandung Institute of Technology (Indonesia), Burkina Institute of Technology (Burkina Faso), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Ghana), Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (India), Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Kenya), Makerere University (Uganda), Namibia University of Science and Technology (Namibia), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (Peru), and Stellenbosch University (South Africa). Through its international and interdisciplinary doctoral program, the TUM SEED Center fosters academic exchange and facilitates excellent research.

This announcement invites master’s students from the Global South with excellent academic track records and strong motivation to apply for the two doctoral scholarships in “Sustainable Entrepreneurship”. The doctoral scholarships will focus on scaling and impact of sustainable enterprises in the context of the mini-grid sector, contributing to SDG 7, Clean and Affordable Energy for All by 2030. The selected and awarded doctoral scholars will be supervised by Prof. Dr. Frank-Martin Belz from the TUM School of Management at the Technical University of Munich.

The SEED doctoral scholarship includes a monthly stipend of EUR 1300, international mobility grants, insurance support, family support for a spouse and children, and annual support. The duration of the scholarship program is 4 years, starting from 1 June 2025 to 31 May 2029. SEED doctoral scholars are expected to:

  • Demonstrate a strong commitment to the work as a doctoral student.
  • Participate and contribute to the activities of the TUM SEED Center (e.g. annual symposia)
  • Engage in academic exchange (i.e., visit and collaborate with partner universities)

Application requirements:

  • Master’s degree in management or related fields (with a focus on entrepreneurship)
  • Excellent academic track record
  • Extracurricular skills, social engagement, and strong motivation
  • Nationality from one of the eligible countries in the Global South

Qualified women and individuals with disabilities are particularly encouraged to apply. Based on the applications, some candidates will be invited for a task assignment regarding research in sustainable entrepreneurship. The final candidates will be invited for an online interview with Prof. Dr. Frank-Martin Belz and his team. The Selection Commission of the TUM SEED Center will make the final decision in line with DAAD criteria.

To apply, please upload your CV, a strong letter of motivation highlighting the fit to the TUM SEED Center, and certificates, including the transcript of records through the online form:
https://wkf.ms/3YQbhq9 by 31 January 2025.

If you have any questions regarding the announcement of the two doctoral scholarships for “Sustainable Entrepreneurship,” feel free to contact Dr. Alessia Argiolas (Email: Alessia.Argiolas@tum.de).

TUM SEED Center, Technical University of Munich, Alte Akademie 14, 85354 Freising, Germany, www.seed.tum.de

Mak Editor

Health

Call For Applications: PhD Fellowship Training Position

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A newborn baby in an incubator in Neonatal Care Unit. Makerere University School of Public Health, Baylor Foundation Uganda, Adara Development Uganda, Nsambya Hospital, and the Ministry of Health with funding from ELMA Philanthropies national health systems strengthening initiative the Uganda Newborn Programme (UNP) launched 2022. Program uses regional approach to improve newborn care in three regions of Uganda namely Kampala, North Central and Western regions. Achievements 2025. Kampala, East Africa.

Background:

Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS), Kampala, Uganda and Global Health Uganda (GHU); in collaboration with other research consortium partner institutions, including, Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Kisumu, Kenya; Training and Research Unit of Excellence (TRUE), Blantyre, Malawi; University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands; and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), UK have been conducting clinical research on Malaria Chemoprevention. This research has focused on Malaria Chemoprevention in vulnerable patient populations, including children with severe anaemia, children with sickle cell anaemia and pregnant women. As an example, two of our recently completed studies are “The post-discharge malaria chemoprevention in children with severe anaemia [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33264546/] and Malaria chemoprevention in children with sickle cell anaemia [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39718172/]”.

With support from the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) body, the consortium is expanding these studies to children with severe acute malnutrition, by conducting a large multi-centre randomized controlled trial entitled “Chemoprevention of malaria in the postdischarge management of children with severe acute malnutrition in Malawi and Uganda”.

In Uganda, the study will be conducted at one or two of their study sites in Jinja Regional Referral Hospital, Hoima Regional Referral Hospital or Kitgum General Hospital. Makerere University College of Health Sciences (MakCHS) and Uganda and Global Health Uganda (GHU) seek to appoint a full-time PhD Fellow, on this study. This will be a 4-year post, tenured at Makerere University and hosted at MakCHS.

Expectations of the PhD fellowship:

The PhD fellow will:

  • Be a part of the main trial team, and participate fully in its implementation. However, he/she will be expected to design and develop his/her PhD research project, nested in the main trial.
  • The area of study will be around “interactions between anaemia and severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in children or the interactions between malaria and severe acute malnutrition in children”.
  • Conduct rigorous research, leading to high quality scientific publications.
  • Submit a full research concept and obtain registration in the University by end of year-one. As such, there be an initial appointment for one year, renewable upon satisfactory performance.
  • Academic mentorship and supervision will be provided by the research consortium (see above – composed of national and international researchers).
  • Doctoral scholarly support and training environment, as well as didactic training in research methods and scientific writing skills will be provided by Makerere University.
  • The funding support will cover tuition and a competitive monthly stipend for 4 years, scientific conferences fees/travel and other research-related costs.

Prospective candidates must:

  • Hold Master’s of Medicine in Paediatrics and Child Health from a recognized university, and licensed to practice medicine in Uganda by the UMDPC.
  • Possess undergraduate training in Medicine and Surgery (MBChB/MBBS/MD).
  • Willingness to fully commit time and effort to their PhD studies, expected to start immediately
  • Candidate should not hold other/concurrent fellowships
  • Having publication experience will be an added advantage.
  • Be highly motivated and willing to commit to a career in research and academia.

Application procedure:

Interested applicants should submit their application and supportive documents – listed here below, in one PDF document, in an email titled “PDMC-SAM–PhD Fellowship Application” to hr@globalhealthuganda.org [and cc – chdc.desk@mak.ac.ug] by 25th July 2025. The documents should include the following:

  • An application letter (Max. 1 page)
  • Motivation statement (Max. 500 words)
  • CV (Max. 2 pages), including a list of publications
  • Two (2) recommendation letters
  • Academic transcripts and certificates for all university qualifications
  • A synopsis focusing on the proposed PhD research work, describing briefly what is already known/burden, challenges, the gaps and potential interventions (include references) [Max. 800 words].

Mak Editor

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Directorate of Graduate Training concludes 9-day Phd Cross Cutting Training

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By: Moses Lutaaya

The Directorate of Graduate Training has completed a 9- day PhD crosscutting training course, inducting three groups of PhD students. The groups of students included those in Cohort 1, Cohort 2 and the Non Cohort PhD students. The number of PhD student participants were over 300 students learning via both face to face and online.

The training that started on Monday 2nd June 2025, took place in the New Library Building.

In his closing remarks, the Director of Graduate Training Prof. Julius Kikooma encouraged the PhD students to put up a spirited fight that would see them remain in the cohort up to the end of the three years of their doctoral studies.

“Get organized, show seriousness in your doctoral pursuit, stay together, make use of your supervisors as and when you need them. We will fully support you in your Doctoral academic journey.” Prof. Kikooma said.

Prof. Kikooma emphasized the need for PhD graduate training saying, “We need more research for the University and Country. This cannot be achieved without increasing the number of graduate students especially PhDs.”

At their different stages of PhD doctoral training, Prof. Kikooma encouraged the students to give feedback to the Directorate and the supervisors so that they are served seamlessly.

Prof. Kikooma further informed the students that going forward, they must cover all the three mandatory cross cutting courses meant to be taught under the three-year program of their doctoral studies.

“All three foundation courses including Scholarly Writing, Advanced Research Methods and Philosophy of Methods will be covered. Tighten your belts. We want to ensure that all these structured programs prepare you for the foundations you need for next two years of research. Success becomes easy when you undertake foundations.”

He challenged the students to use the program in guiding their research directions, making informed decision, improving their critical thinking and consumption of knowledge.

Dr. Dixon Knanakulya, one of the trainers of the doctoral students said, “At PhD level, it is no longer a normal research. It is at a level of knowledge production. The students must understand the main philosophical assumption behind the research methods they use and they must consider the ethical implications of their research. Philosophy of Methods enables them to go through that.”

“PhD students must be creative, innovative and start at the level of researching in the mind. This challenges them to think differently.” He added.

He further said that Philosophy of Methods helps in researches done at the different aspects of the national development plan. “Usually, the students question how the National plans are come up with and support improvement of government policies.”

Dr. Kanakulya added that the research output can be used by government for improvement because it is done by highly skilled researchers. Adding, “They come with very good insights which can be taken on to improve implementation of government programs such as Emyoga and Parish Development Model (PDM).”

He further said that policies are not enough without the social conditions and mindset of the people, saying that PhD scholars can help government know the social conditions and apply policies better.

The Cohort 1 PhD students’ president Mr. Wanyakoko Ebiru Moses said, “This training is extremely important for each student under taking doctoral studies and without it, they cannot acquire the fundamental skills they need to become independent researchers.”

He added that with the knowledge acquired in the Philosophy of Methods training, they will focus on research that aims to resolve societal and community problems.

Dr. Robert Kakuru, the President of Makerere University Academic Staff Association said that Philosophy of Methods is an important pillar in the doctoral journey of every PhD student.

“The Course, Philosophy of Method provides a critical foundation and Philosophical grounding for research methods that doctoral students use to undertake their respective studies. The course further underlines other critical issues that graduate students ought to know, integrate, adopt or adapt in their doctoral journeys.” He said.

Dr. Jim Spire Ssentongo, a senior lecturer and coordinator of the training said, “Philosophy of Methods builds a mass of critical researchers who are able to look at the world not from a narrow point of view but a holistic and broad based sense of understanding reality.”

He added, “Students understand how they can imagine the world to be. They take into account assumptions which inform the methods of research used, how they conduct themselves during research and how they approach respondents during the research process. Such assumptions are laid bear in this training and it helps participants to understand the things they have always held at the back of their minds without deliberately knowing that these are the assumptions they hold and this is how they affect and influence studies.”  

Dr. Ssentongo further said that once PhD students are engaged in reality in its broadness with right assumptions, they are then better placed as researchers to investigate such realities and that whatever they investigate, be it related to the National Development Plan and National Development Initiatives like Emyoga and Parish Development Model. This training positions, them at a more critical level as researchers not only in terms of assumptions but also being thinkers.

The Philosophy of Methods training was supported by the ICARTA – Institutionalization of Advanced Research Training in Africa, a NORHED II Project at Makerere University.

Mak Editor

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CARTA Early Career Researchers in Action

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A photo montage of Dr. Godwin Anywar at the project ‘Traditional medicine in Transition (TMT)’ at the Institute of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany (ISEB) and Botanical Garden, University of Zurich, Switzerland. 4th-12th June 2025. Photo: LinkedIn/Dr. Godwin Anywar

Godwin Anywar, cohort 6, facilitated a brainstorming session on grant writing and application during the research planning and conceptualization workshop and exhibition from a cooperative research and exhibition project, ‘Traditional Medicine in Transition,’ at the Institute of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany (ISEB) and Botanical Garden, University of Zurich, from June 4 to 12, 2025.

Within the month, Godwin also joined the Rising Scholars as a mentor. Formerly known as AuthorAID, Rising Scholars is a global network offering free support, mentorship, training, and resources to researchers across the Global South.

Source: CARTA Newsletter Issue 90

Mark Wamai

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