ViDSS Completion Scholarship

Call for the academic year 2023/2024
Application period: 3–31 May 2023
Start of the scholarship: 1 September 2023 to 1 March 2024

Requirements

With the ViDSS Completion Scholarship, the Vienna Doctoral School of Social Sciences supports doctoral candidates in the final phase of their doctoral studies. The funding period is up to six months during which the doctoral candidates should complete and submit their doctoral thesis. Successful candidates receive € 1,200 per month for a maximum duration of six months. The scholarship does not entail employment with the University of Vienna nor a working space. The scholarship holder is responsible for paying insurance and taxes which may arise in connection with the scholarship.

Applicants must have successfully passed the public presentation at the Faculty, concluded the doctoral thesis agreement and, since then, submitted progress reports on a regular basis (at least annually). Applicants need to be student members of the ViDSS.

Applicants should have an excellent study record (duration of studies, grades) and provide evidence of relevant academic achievements (conference presentations, publications, etc.). The doctoral thesis should be completed and submitted within the duration of the scholarship of up to six months. At the time of the application, approximately half of the doctoral thesis should be finalised.If candidates conduct an empirical doctoral thesis project, data collection must be completed upon submission of an application for the ViDSS Completion Scholarship.

The net income of the applicant (including other grants and fellowships) must not exceed € 715 per month during the scholarship period. Scholarship holders must not be employed at the University of Vienna during the time of the fellowship. If applicants have been employed with the University of Vienna before, there needs to be a period of six months between the end of the employment and the start of the scholarship. This includes any sort of employment, also a teaching contract.

Application documents

1. Completed online application form (The application form is available between 3 and 31 May 2023.)
   
2. A report on the current status of the doctoral thesis including an abstract (1,000–3,000 characters without spaces), a tabular overview of the chapters including information about the completion status of each chapter, and a work schedule for the completion of the doctoral thesis (no more than ten pages including a list of references, font size of 11pt, 1.5 line spacing), in PDF format. Please use this template.
   It has to be convincingly explained that the doctoral thesis project can be completed within the duration of the scholarship. It is expected that the final version of the doctoral thesis is submitted at the end of the scholarship.
   
3. CV in tabular form (no more than three pages including a list of publications and conference presentations, if available), in PDF format. Please explain any gaps in your CV.
4. Doctoral thesis agreement (a copy of the approved doctoral thesis agreement), in PDF format
5. Annual progress reports (copies of all approved progress reports), in one single PDF file
6. Transcript of records (“Sammelzeugnis”), in PDF format
7. Last draft version of the doctoral thesis, in PDF format
8. Positive statement/s from your supervisor/s: Following the submission of the online application form, your supervisor/s at the ViDSS will be asked to complete and submit a form containing a set of questions about you and your doctoral thesis project. The deadline for the submission of this statement is 25 June 2023. Please note that your application is not complete and will not be considered without a statement from one of your supervisors at the ViDSS.

All documents except for the doctoral thesis have to be written in English.

Only complete applications that fulfil the formal criteria will be considered for assessment. It is not possible to make amendments once an application has been submitted.

Applications have to be submitted via the online application form between 3 and 31 May 2023. Later submissions will not be considered for funding.

Selection

A jury, consisting of experts who are members of the ViDSS, will review all applications that fulfil the formal criteria. The jury will discuss and compare the applications and decide which projects will receive funding.

The main criteria for funding are:

• The current state of the doctoral thesis project and the timeline for completion: Has the applicant convincingly made clear that their doctoral thesis can be completed within the funding period?
• Statement from the supervisor at the ViDSS: Does the supervisor fully support the application?
• Study record: Has the candidate continuously made progress during their doctoral studies and made first academic achievements, such as conference presentations or publications? The ViDSS’s commitment to equal opportunities also means that the jury takes into account breaks or delays in the applicant’s study progress (e. g., due to parental leave, long-term or chronic illness or caring responsibilities).

The ViDSS Completion Scholarship will be awarded competitively on the basis of the submitted documents and within the financial limits of the funding scheme.

All applicants will be informed about the jury’s decision after the jury meeting.

If your application is rejected, you can apply for the ViDSS Completion Scholarship again at a later time. If you resubmit an application, the report has to include a statement about the progress of the doctoral thesis project since the last application and an explanation why the scholarship is still needed.

Applicants do not have recourse to legal action.