UPF Dorcas Muthoni PhD Fellowship for African Countries 2024

The Dorcas Muthoni PhD Fellowship is a remarkable tribute to the extraordinary Kenyan engineer and entrepreneur, Dorcas Muthoni. As the CEO and founder of Openworld, she received the highest recognition from our university on 15th December 2017 for her significant contributions in promoting engineering studies among young women in Africa, mentoring young people and her social commitment to fighting poverty. The Dorcas Muthoni PhD scholarship is in line with our university’s institutional commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), with a special focus on quality education and gender equality for African women. The third edition of this PhD Fellowship will be launched in 2024, following the successful launch of the first and second editions in 2018 and 2020, respectively.

The primary objective of this fellowship is to promote gender equality by reducing the gender gap in ICT, facilitating more women to pursue careers in scientific, technological, and engineering fields and lowering the barriers women face when pursuing careers in STEM disciplines. During their PhD studies, African female researchers will be exposed to excellent research through our ICT department, which comprises more than 20 active research groups in international research projects. Our university is the only engineering department in Spain to have been awarded for a second time the Spanish Research Excellence Seal Maria de Maeztu. The fellowship is designed to contribute to future social impact in African countries. Applicants are expected to return to their African home country after completing their PhD studies to pursue a career related to ICT.

The university offers a predoctoral contract with a minimum gross monthly salary of 1.470,98€ for the 1st and 2nd year and a gross monthly salary of 1.576,05€ for the 3rd year. In addition, the fellowship includes a startup/Landing Fund of 2500€ to facilitate the fellow’s initial expenditure. Please note that the scholarship only supports one individual, and the university cannot assure financial, logistical, or administrative support to cover family members. The fellowship covers annual tutorship fees, but neither the administrative fees nor the fees for validations of degrees issued by a university outside the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) without homologation.

The selection process is based on the excellent academic record of the candidate and the motivation letter, which should detail the candidate’s expected contribution to the promotion of ICT gender equality and future social and economic impact in Africa. The application for the Dorcas Muthoni Fellowship and the UPF-ICT PhD programme must be submitted by 2nd May 2024, at 23:59 hours CET (Central European Time). Early applications are highly encouraged. If you’re interested in applying for this fellowship, please read the eligibility requirements and complete the application form for the ICT PhD programme at UPF, submit a support letter from your potential supervisor in DTIC, complete the application form for the Dorcas Muthoni fellowship, submit a motivation letter and a preferred teaching subject form with a digital copy of your passport to the email address provided.