MDC · Migration, Diaspora, Citizenship

The COFUND Fellowship Programme “Migration, Diaspora, Citizenship” is part of the strategy of the University of Muenster (WWU) to further internationalise postdoctoral research and training in the social sciences and humanities and to strengthen their interdisciplinary and intersectoral dimensions. In the context of the proposed MDC Project, the WWU pursues four primary aims: first, to enhance the academic and non-academic career prospects of the fellows participating in this programme; second, to build a cadre of researcher-practitioners who are able to communicate, work and cooperate across national, sectoral and disciplinary boundaries; third, to share best practices within a large and growing international network of academic and non-academic partner organisations. Last but not least, the fourth, long-term aim of this project is to effect sustainable change in academic structures and human resource development by contributing to the creation of a new academic culture that fully supports and rewards interdisciplinary and intersectoral research. With its focus on the social sciences and humanities, this programme targets fields where interdisciplinary and intersectoral training and research are still relatively uncommon and underdeveloped, particularly in comparison to the natural and life sciences. In tackling these deficits, the WWU will rely on existing training programmes, academic networks and its long-term experience with high-profile research projects in the respective fields. By centring the programme around the ubiquitous and interconnected phenomena of migration, diaspora and citizenship, the MDC Project builds upon established research excellence among its partners and opens up research opportunities for scholars with a wide range of academic interests and backgrounds while also facilitating high-quality interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration among the fellows and partner organisations, which is key to accomplishing the above-mentioned aims.