Selection Criteria

Students are selected on the basis of several criteria, as follows:

  • Applications are accepted until 8 January 2017 at 23.59 (GMT+2). They must include:
    • A letter of motivation
    • Curriculum Vitae
    • Copy of passport
    • Copies of relevant diplomas
    • A PhD project proposal for selected themes (see heading “Selected themes”)
    • Two letters of recommendation from qualified persons, preferably one from the master’s thesis supervisor (these must have original signatures and contain the contact details of the referees)
    • Proof of English proficiency (TOEFL minimum score of 237 (computer based), 580 (paper-based) or 92-93 (internet-based) or IELTS minimal average score of 6.5 without any category below 6)
    • Preferably at least one article submitted to and/or published in a peer-reviewed journal.
  • The doctorate programme is open to students from around the world with an academic master’s degree and at least 5 years (300 ECTS) of academic education and proven excellence in academic records. Candidates should have affinity with the call topic and fit with the proposed research project listed in the call. Student backgrounds must be relevant to the project: e.g. medical sciences, biomedical sciences, health sciences, medical anthropology, governance and health, health economics, etc.
  • The excellence of the programme is guarded by selecting only the top 10% of applicants for an interview. The final selection will be of the top 4-5%.
  • The applications are scored for their (1) personal profile (CV, international scientific activities, background, extracurricular activities, academic performance); (2) motivation (fit of the project with students’ competencies and interests); (3) appreciation/rating of the master’s thesis/research; (4) English proficiency; and (5) quality of PhD research proposal.
  • Based on the interviews, 5-8 students are selected for entry into the EMJD programme. The selection criteria in order of weight are: (1) quality of scientific background; (2) quality of reporting; (3) intellectual ability to take a system perspective; and (4) confidence to execute inter-/transdisciplinary research. The selection of PhD candidates by host and partner supervisors must be approved by the Steering Board.