VC International Scholarship in Social Sciences - Migration and non-monetary chronic poverty in Low and Middle Income Countries (January 2021)

Chronic poverty – that is prolonged exposure to the conditions associated with or caused by insufficient resources to attain a minimally acceptable standard of living – is a major global challenge, affecting the lives of hundreds of millions around the world. Governments, NGOs and UN agencies seeking to address chronic poverty have spent billions of dollars on anti-poverty programmes, and yet in far too many instances these have failed to raise people, families and communities out of poverty. Well known bottlenecks persist (including a range of bureaucratic, administrative, and cultural contexts) and these combine to keep people below an already low threshold, in poverty for much of their lives. This PhD will entail a mixed-methods approach, involving analysis of household survey data (DHS) to assess the extent and nature of chronic poverty over time in several regions of the world (South America, sub-Saharan Africa, south Asia, east Asia) along with an analysis of key anti-poverty policy documents and programmes and their formal evaluations over time; the aim is to show if reasons for failure or limited impact are consistent across time and place, and whether this information can inform programmes and policies going forward.

Applicants must be nationals of (or permanently domiciled in) from the world’s Least Developed and Other Low Income Countries based on the DAC list of ODA Recipients 2020 (list of eligible countries are listed below).

Part-time and distance-learning applicants will not be considered

Applicants must:

• meet the entrance criteria for your chosen PhD programme
• be liable to pay overseas tuition fees
• not have been awarded another scholarship covering both tuition fees and stipend.

For further information and eligibility on how to apply, please see: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/international/funding-and-fees/international-scholarships/vice-chancellors-international-scholarships-for-research-excellence

If you are an existing applicant to the School of Social Sciences and wish to be considered for this scholarship please contact the Graduate Office ([Email Address Removed]).

HOW TO APPLY
Please specify in the funding section that you wish to be considered for the ‘V-C’s International Scholarships for Research Excellence’

SCHOOL SELECTION PROCEDURES
To be considered by the School of Social Sciences, applicants must complete and submit the following documentation:

1. A fully completed application form for admission to doctoral study in the School of Social Sciences: submitted to the Academic Registry via the online admissions portal.
https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research/programmes/programme/social-sciences#

2. Academic references: all admissions applications require two references to be dated within the last 6 months. Please ensure that your chosen referees either provide a reference of letter headed paper that is signed and dated or complete the referee form found on the University’s application webpages and either upload to the online application portal or return them to the Graduate Office ([Email Address Removed]).
https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/applying/application-forms

3. Academic qualification certificates and transcripts: academic transcripts must be submitted via the online admissions application. The University will use these to verify your academic qualifications.

4. An extended proposal: applicants must submit a copy of an extended proposal (from 500 and 1500 words or three-page long approximately, not including bibliographic references) to supplement the summary proposal found in their application form. We suggest that you use the following five headings in your research proposal:

* Title, aims and purpose of the research;
* Brief overview of the academic literature relevant to your field;
* Proposed design/methods;
* Academic contributions of your research;
* Bibliographic references.

5. Copies of English Language certificates (if applicable): a minimum score of 7.0 IELTS (or equivalent) is required for postgraduate research at the School. Applicants whose first language is not English are required to pass an English test at a high level prior to their admission being confirmed. Conditional offers based on future results will not be made. For a list of recognised English language qualifications accepted by Cardiff University, please consult:
www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/applying/english-language-requirements

6. ALL Applicants must attach an academic CV e.g. https://www.vitae.ac.uk/researcher-careers/pursuing-an-academic-career/how-to-write-an-academic-cv

7. A Personal Statement that gives a strong statement of the research interest, preparation and understanding of the research context and significance https://www.vitae.ac.uk/researcher-careers/pursuing-an-academic-career/writing-a-statement-of-academic-research-interest