Call for applications

PhD Scholarships in Digital Governance

The Hertie School is offering two three-year scholarships for exceptional candidates seeking to pursue full-time PhDs in the field of digital governance. The studentships starting dates would be from August 2024 onwards.

Successful candidates will be affiliated with the Centre for Digital Governance at the Hertie School. The Centre for Digital Governance is a gateway to governance of digital transformation, based in Berlin. We aim to promote digitalisation where appropriate to improve public well-being. To this end, the Centre enables and supports synergies between rigorous academic research, world-leading education and socially relevant policy insights on the challenges and opportunities of the digital era. Its research focuses on three areas: digitalisation of government, governance of social media and digital services, and the impacts of artificial intelligence and digital technologies more broadly on human social transformations.

Situated in the heart of Berlin, the Hertie School prepares doctoral candidates for academic careers in leading universities, and as highly-skilled professionals in government, business and civil society. Our doctoral education provides rigorous academic training and many opportunities to engage with international experts and scholars from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds. The Centre for Digital Governance offers its PhD researchers a unique opportunity to become part of a vibrant, interdisciplinary, and diverse academic community. Within the framework of the Digital Governance Research Colloquium, the Centre brings together scholars and practitioners to present their research on topics relevant to researchers at the Center, including PhD students. In addition, the Centre is part of international research projects, engages in consultations such as for digitalisation of government or the development of the Digital Services Acts and the AI Act, and organises public events on a variety of topics with high-level partner institutions from business, civil society as well as government. 

We invite candidates with exceptionally strong academic track records to apply. Candidates should hold a master’s degree (or equivalent) in the social sciences or other related fields to digital governance. Prospective candidates are strongly advised to explore the research profile of the Centre faculty as well as the research projects hosted at the Centre for Digital Governance before applying.

Please also visit the School’s website for further information about our community. For information about the required application documents and Doctoral Programmes at the Hertie School see here. We will accept applications until 31 January 2024.