Transcript Sociology and Social Research

Graduate Training in Sociology at the
Department of Sociology/ICS
Utrecht University
Research Master’s program
Sociology and Social Research
ICS PhD program
Sociology in the Netherlands:
Substantive Features I
• Strong empirical orientation
• Quite some focus on the integration of theory
and empirical research
• Quite some focus on policy relevant research
that is theoretically and empirically informed
• Less fragmentation of the discipline (in a
theoretical / cognitive sense) than elsewhere
• More collaboration in research projects and in
teaching programs between scholars and
between departments than in other countries
1
Sociology in the Netherlands:
Substantive Features II
• Strong international orientation:
• Incentives to publish in English, many
publications in international journals and
volumes
• Dutch sociologists are rather visible at
conferences etc. outside the Netherlands
• Many international collaborations in
research and teaching
• Quite some non-Dutch scholars and
graduate students (Master, PhD) at Dutch
universities
• Graduate programs (Master, PhD)
completely taught in English; quite some
BA-courses taught in English, too
2
Research Master’s Program
“Sociology and Social Research”
• Two-year program (120 ECTS), full-time,
leading to an MSc degree (Master of Science)
3
Focus of the program
“Sociology and Social Research”
• Sociology as problem- and theory-guided
empirical science
• Topics and specializations:
• Social inequalities: migration and
stratification
• Trust and cooperation
• Households and employment, demography
• Social networks and social capital
• Policy studies and collective decision
making
4
Will You Enjoy “Sociology as Problemand Theory-Guided Empirical Science”?
The program has something to offer if you like one
or more of the following:
• Sociological theory à la Robert Merton and James
Coleman
• An empirical research project on how the network
of students develops after their studies, and how
this network influences their careers
• Social psychology, political science, microeconomics as sister-disciplines of sociology
• Philosophy of science à la Karl Popper
• A good statistics class
• An “analytical approach” to society: more interest
(as a scientist) in “Sein” than in “Sollen”; being
able to distinguish between science and political
engagement
5
“Sociology and Social Research”
First Year
6
“Sociology and Social Research”
Second Year
• Electives (15 ECTS)
• International summerschool (such as Essex,
Michigan, Ljubljana…)
• One or two additional courses, preferably
related to the master’s thesis project
• Brief traineeship (at UU, elsewhere in the
Netherlands, or abroad)
• Two research seminars (workshop for discussion
of progress of master’s thesis project with senior
faculty as well as peers)
• Master’s thesis (aim: a publishable research
article)
7
Combination of obligatory courses and
opportunities to study according to
individual interests
• Obligatory courses: most courses of the first year
(52.5 ECTS) – this provides a structured training
program and a sound basis for subsequently
pursuing individual interests
• Opportunities to study according to individual
interests:
• First year: Field orientation and skills-course (7.5
ECTS)
• Second year (60 ECTS):
• Electives
• Research seminars
• Master’s thesis
8
Typical Features of
“Sociology and Social Research” I
• A small group of students: 10-15 per year
• 50% of the students from abroad, 50% from
the Netherlands (UU Bachelor’s Sociology,
UCU, other Bachelor’s programs of UU or
elsewhere in the Netherlands)
• Students from different fields of study
(sociology, other social sciences like (social)
psychology, general social sciences,
economics, political science…)
• Much interaction between students (including
jointly preparing assignments, social
activities)
9
Typical Features of
“Sociology and Social Research” II
• Hands-on experience with social science
data-analysis
• Thesis as a publishable article (about 50% of
the theses are indeed published, often in very
good journals)
• Other special features
• Master class taught by a visiting professor
from abroad
• Mini-conference
• International summer school
10
Typical Features of
“Sociology and Social Research” III
• Careful and intense supervision
• Students are involved in the intellectual and
social life of the Department of Sociology and
ICS Utrecht (workshops, seminars, lectures,…)
• The program is demanding but doable: almost
100% of all students entering the program
complete it without any delay, often with very
good results
• Excellent labor market position of students
after completing the program
11
Typical Features of
“Sociology and Social Research” IV
• Students with very good grades from
previous studies are welcome
• Are very good grades a necessity? NO! Quite
some students entered the program with
reasonable grades (GPA > 3.0) and
completed it with very good results
12
Furthermore
• The program offers quality:
• In 2010, the program has been evaluated
as the overall best research master’s
program in the social and behavioral
sciences in the Netherlands.
• Very favorable results of teaching
evaluations (e.g., ELSEVIER)
• Department of Sociology / ICS-Utrecht no.
1 in research evaluations Sociology 2009
and Socio-Cultural Sciences 2001
(comparative evaluation of research
programs in sociology and the social
sciences in the Netherlands)
13
Life after the Research Master’s
“Sociology and Social Research”
• The PhD program of the Interuniversity
Center for Social Science Theory and
Methodology (ICS)
• Join another PhD program in the social
sciences in the Netherlands or abroad
14
ICS PhD Program in
Sociology and Social Science
• The Interuniversity Center of Social Science Theory and
Methodology (ICS): research center and graduate
school at the sociology departments of Groningen
University, Utrecht University, and Nijmegen University
• Four year Ph.D. program in sociology and the social
sciences; English as language of instruction
• A new cohort of 10-15 Ph.D. students is selected each
year in spring and starts in September, with full
scholarships (“AIO-positions”)
• Many Ph.D. students are non-Dutch, many have a nonsociology background such as economics, psychology,
mathematics, computer science, history,…
• “Life after the ICS”: Research and teaching positions in
universities, research departments of government
agencies, research institutes in the NL or abroad
15
ICS PhD Training Program:
Facts and Figures I
• Each year, the ICS selects a new cohort of 1215 PhD students
• Sociology background: +/- 60%; other:
+/- 40%
• From outside the Netherlands: +/- 35%
• Typically 150-350 applications per year
• Sociology background: +/- 35%; other:
+/- 65%
• From outside the Netherlands: 35-50%
16
ICS PhD Training Program:
Facts and Figures II
• PhD students have a salaried position for a
period of 4 years; no tuition fees; salary is
more than competitive with even the most
attractive stipends at, e.g., US research
universities (certainly so since there are no
tuition fees)
• Strong incentives for PhD students and
supervisors to indeed complete the PhD
thesis within 4 years
• Timely completion of thesis or completion
with a delay of less than 1 year: +/- 60%
(corresponding average in the Netherlands
for all behavioral and social sciences: 15%;
for all sciences: 28%)
17
ICS PhD Training Program:
Facts and Figures III
• 1990 – March 2010: 175+ defended PhD
theses
• Labor market position of ICS PhDs
• University positions: +/- 60% (meanwhile
many full and associate professors)
• Non-academic research: +/- 35%
• Other: +/- 5%
• Unemployed: negligible (< 1%)
18
ICS PhD Training Program:
Substantive Features
• Yeargroup: PhD students start together at
September 1st; students follow all courses
together
• Each PhD student has a team of (typically:
three) supervisors; supervision is regular and
intense.
• Each PhD student has applied for and is
assigned to a roughly defined project and is
expected to further design and specify the
project during the first year; at the end of the
first year, a complete project proposal is
submitted for evaluation and funding to the
Dutch Science Foundation (NWO).
19
ICS PhD Training Program: Courses
• Students follow three obligatory courses
during the initial 18 months of the PhD
program:
• Theory construction and modeling
• Writing a research proposal and a first
paper
• The integration of explanatory models
with models of analysis and measurement,
including a master class by a senior
scholar from abroad
Each course: several full-day class meetings;
students prepare 2-3 days each week for the
class meetings
• Students follow additional more specialized
courses depending on their specific project
20
ICS PhD Training Program:
Other “Ingredients” I
• Program completely taught in English
• At the respective location, each PhD student
is a member of a small research group of
some senior faculty, postdocs, and other PhD
students who work on related projects,
interact on a daily basis, and meet regularly
in workshops
• Thus: much interaction with supervisors,
other faculty, and peers
21
ICS PhD Training Program:
Other “Ingredients” II
• Traineeship abroad: 2-3 months during the
2nd or 3rd year of the project
• 3 “Forumdays” per year: all ICS PhD
students, faculty, and postdocs meet; PhD
students present their project and receive
feedback from peers, postdocs, and faculty
• PhD students are strongly encouraged to
present their work at conferences outside the
ICS, in the Netherlands and internationally
• PhD students are strongly encouraged to
publish in scholarly journals (or edited
volumes) while working on their thesis
22
ICS PhD Training Program:
Other “Ingredients” III
• Course offerings related to “soft skills”, e.g.:
• English for academic purposes
• Writing and presenting skills
• Career planning, labor market orientation
• Contributions to undergraduate teaching: +/15% of the time during years 2-4
23
ICS PhD Training Program: The PhD Thesis
• Typically, a PhD thesis is a collection of +/- 4
research papers, plus an introduction and a
conclusion chapter
• Very often, at least some of the papers are
published articles or they have at least
been submitted
• PhD theses in the form of a research
monograph have become less common over
the years
• Each PhD thesis includes empirical analyses
(more precisely: at least some quantitative
tests of hypotheses)
24
In addition...
• Both the Researchmaster’s-program and the
ICS Ph.D. program are small: favorable
student:staff ratio, intensive supervision,
faculty always “within reach”
• Both programs: strong international
orientation. Many students pursue some
course work and traineeships abroad. Many
students as well as faculty are non-Dutch.
Faculty maintains an extended network of
international contacts, publishes typically in
international journals
25
Conclusions: additional information
• Ask questions now
• Visit relevant web pages:
• www.uu.nl/programmes/sasr
• http://www.ics-graduateschool.nl/
• Department of Sociology UU
• Contact students who follow(ed) the
programs
27