Two postgraduate students at LSE and UCT have the opportunity to spend two to three months at the partner institution every year through the School’sPartnership PhD Mobility Bursaries scheme. Students receive a bursary of £2,500 in support of travel and living costs.
While abroad, participants work informally with an advisor on their PhD thesis research and/or on related publications and presentations. The visits also introduce them to the academic culture, professional contacts and employment opportunities of another country. Students registered for PhD studies in any LSE department who have been upgraded to full doctoral student status are eligible to apply. A School selection panel assesses applications on their academic merit, including the rationale for visiting a particular partner institution and for working with their proposed academic advisor.
2012/2013 Academic Year
In the 2012/2013 academic year, Rachel Deacon (pictured left) of the Department of Social Policy was based in the AIDS and Society Research Unit at the University of Cape Town. For her PhD, Rachel looked at the impact of HIV/Aids and HIV/Aids intervention programmes on young people’s lives in South Africa.
Rachel said: “Being at UCT has provided me with opportunities that I would not have had otherwise. Whether it was through talking to leading academics in my field, further exploring data and archives previously out of reach, or simply attending the regular seminars and book launches, I have found myself being challenged and encouraged to view my topic with new eyes. The first rate facilities and the supportive staff who are never too busy to talk have led to not only a great personal experience, but also one which will prove academically invaluable as I move forward with my PhD.”
2013/2014 Academic Year
LSE » UCT
Emily Anderson, Department of International Relations, spent three months in the Department of Historical Studies at UCT in the autumn. Her thesis was entitled: “Impacts of taxation on state-building in postcolonial Angola and Mozambique (1975-2012).”
Taneesha Devi Mohan, Department of Geography and Environment, who was based at UCT’s Department of Environmental and Geographical Science for three months in the spring where she finished her dissertation which investigates ‘Labour tying arrangements: An enduring aspect of Agrarian Capitalism?’.
UCT » LSE
Katherine Hyman spent three months in LSE Cities in the Michaelmas Term while Mduduzi Differ Mthembu visited the European Institute during the Lent Term.
The latter (pictured left) said, “I spent the Lent term at LSE under the guidance of Professor Nicholas Barr. The broader area of my dissertation is on education economics. At LSE I was working on a chapter on models of higher education funding. I benefitted greatly from being at LSE as Professor Barr is very experienced in this field; therefore it was like tapping into an encyclopaedia of knowledge. He helped in shaping my research focus and I am sure that our sessions saved me a lot of potential stress.
"I also received a warm reception from the Economics department, particularly the administrator, Mark Wilbor who made me feel like a full time LSE PhD candidate. Working space and facilities were of the highest quality.”
2014/2015
TBC