Starting 1 October 2020, the Hamburg-wide graduate programme on “Democratising Security in Turbulent Times” will take off. The graduate programme is a collaboration of Universität Hamburg, the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH), Helmut-Schmidt-University of the German Armed Forces and the German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA). Over the course of the next few years, it will form an intellectual hub for innovative and critical peace and security research in Hamburg and provides doctoral qualification in an interdisciplinary setting. The graduate programme is now recruiting and more information on the application process can be found here.
The graduate programme’s overarching topic is of outmost relevance: How is security provided in today’s turbulent times and how does this affect the relationship between democracy and security? The interdisciplinary graduate programme examines fundamental reconfigurations of the relationship between security and democracy against the backdrop of growing political and societal polarisation in the face of a global pandemic and the rise of antidemocratic forces, the advent of new digital technologies and the rescaling of security to arenas below and beyond the state.
Prof. Dr. Ursula Schröder, IFSH director and co-ordinator of the graduate programme: “I am looking very much forward to see this inter-disciplinary collaboration starting. It will make an important contribution to further research activities in a state-wide context and provides much needed opportunities for enhancing graduate qualification in the field of peace and security studies.”
The graduate programme is dedicated to a structured and rigorous training that enables PhD researchers to complete their doctoral research in a supportive environment. It combines training in theory and research methods with key professional skills training and individual career mentoring. Additional events, such as method schools and public lectures, as well as guest speakers and visiting fellows will contribute to the intellectual environment of the graduate programme.
The graduate programme is funded by the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg as part of a state-wide research funding scheme (Landesforschungsförderung).
Further information can be found on the program's website.