Call for institutions 2019 – Scholarship programme

January 14, 2019

What are the programme’s background and objectives?

The programme aims at establishing and strengthening training and education capacities in the field of land management and land policy in Africa.
To this end, scholarships are granted for land policy related Master or doctoral studies.
Scholarships are awarded generally only for selected institutions that are affiliated with the programme. These will receive a maximum quota of scholarships (both In-Country and In-Region with an emphasis on In-Region scholarships) for (post)graduates programmes or individual doctorates. This call for applications is therefore aimed at African higher education institutions which are part of NELGA and wish to participate as host institution in the programme.
By training future academic and professional leaders, the programme contributes to the following long-term impacts:

  • Qualified professionals’ involvement in the solution of land policy related problems in African countries
  • Graduates strengthening education and research in African countries
  • Structural strengthening and regional networking of NELGA members
  • Strengthened linkages between research and policy decisions in African countries.

To achieve these long-term impacts, the following outcomes have been formulated as programme objectives:

Programme objective 1: Graduates are qualified to take on responsible positions in or for their region of origin
Programme objective 2: The participation of women and underprivileged groups is reinforced
Programme objective 3: Demand driven research on land policy issues is promoted
Programme objective 4: Scholars and researchers across Africa are connected through academic networks and inter-regional exchange

The target group for scholarships are graduates and postgraduates from Africa with a first academic degree if applying for a Master’s programme, or with a Master’s degree if applying for a doctoral programme who want to pursue Master’s or PhD courses in their home country (so called In-Country scholarships) or in another African country (In-Region scholarships). The last academic degree should be generally no more than six years old. Funding is generally granted for a period of up to 2 years for Master programmes or up to 3 years for doctoral programmes/individual doctorates. All further details regarding scholarship funding are listed in the respective call for applications.

How is the programme monitored?

With the aim of achieving the above-mentioned objectives, the programme will be monitored through a results-oriented monitoring. Selected institutions are expected to actively participate by submitting an annual report, for which a template is provided by DAAD. In addition, the DAAD carries out a graduate survey at the end of the scholarship and 3 years after the scholarship to gather data on the development of the scholarship competencies’ and careers. Participating higher education institutions will be asked to provide up-to-date contact details of their graduates.

Who is eligible for application?

African universities that are part of the NELGA and which offer high quality Master programmes, doctoral programmes, or individual doctorates.

Which subject areas are eligible for funding?

Master programmes, doctoral programmes, or individual doctorates in the field of land administration and management, land economics, natural resource economics, environmental economics, development economics, real estate development and management, environmental law, development studies, urban and regional planning, urban development and management, geomatics (GIS & Sur-veying), geography, natural resource management, agriculture economics and other land related fields.

Which measures can be funded in which time frame?

After being successfully admitted to the programme, the host institution receives a maximum quota of scholarships each intake (subject to availability of sufficient budgetary resources). The quota depends on the number of places offered by the respective institution, the overall number of applicants, and available financial resources.
The amount of In-Region scholarships generally needs to be higher than the amount of In-Country scholarships (generally 70/30).
The participation as host institution in the programme will generally take the form of a cooperation agreement between the DAAD and the host institution. The cooperation agreement lists the binding specifications and mandatory procedures regarding, among others, the monitoring of the programme, the execution of the pre-selection of the scholarship holders and the financial administration.
The scholarship funding (stipends in EUR covering the cost of living including accommodation, travel allowance, health insurance, and regular university fees) is generally paid directly to the scholarship holder. The mentioned university can also be paid directly to the host institution on basis of the above-mentioned co-operation agreement.

The amount of university fees needs to be appropriate for the country/region and adequate to the academic quality offered by the applying institution.
No additional funding is provided within this programme. Participating institutions are invited, though, to hand in applications for other NELGA programmes or other DAAD programmes to strengthen their institutional capacities and/ or to offer more focused support activities for the scholarship holders. Respective information will be provided after admission to the programme.

Which are the selection criteria for NELGA members?

The applications will be evaluated according to formal and content criteria, with an emphasis on relation to land policy issues and impact orientation. The following criteria, will be applied in the evaluation of applications:

  1. Academic expertise: The applying NELGA members provides high quality academic education through renowned faculty. It reflects cutting-edge research as well as application-oriented skills and know-how, makes use of the most up-to-date concepts, methods and methodologies in the field of land policy and shows strong motivation to continually develop and improve its academic portfolio. Doctoral programmes/individual doctorates are research-oriented and systematically integrate students in ongoing research projects.
  2. Relevance to land policy issues as described in the programme objectives: The (post)graduate programme/ individual doctorate is clearly related to topics relevant to land policy and land governance. This is demonstrated by explaining the institution’s contribution to the programme objectives (outcome-level of the results framework, see above). Land related courses must be well developed and complemented by relevant other courses in the applying institution. Curricula of land related courses should generally be in accordance with the AU curricula guide-lines*. The host institution should be willing to contribute to research and short-term trainings on land related issues.
  3. Interregional exchange/regional and continental excellence: The applying institution (or department hosting the individual doctorate) regularly pursues cooperation and networking activities within and beyond NELGA, fostering inter-institutional and international exchange.
  4. Professional training: The applying institution offers training in academic, mentoring and management skills that enable the students to apply their acquired knowledge in their subsequent academic or professional careers, stimulating change and development.
  5. Accreditation and quality assurance through results-oriented monitoring: The applying institution corresponds to the higher education accreditation standards of the respective country and has graduated at least the first student intake successfully. It provides an alumni concept comprising measures of preparing and tracking its students’ subsequent academic or professional careers. In addition, it takes effective steps to-wards continuous quality assurance and quality improvement as well as takes actively part in the DAAD monitoring efforts of this programme by committing to submit an annual report.
  6. Admission, equality and In-Region students: The applying institution demonstrates a transparent selection process, implementing measures to enhance participation of women, underprivileged groups related to, e.g., disability, social or regional background, and the admission of In-Region students. Its admission criteria/process takes into consideration that the amount of In-Region scholarship holders has generally to be higher than the amount of In-Country scholarship holders (generally 70/30) and that DAAD scholarships can only be awarded to applicants who:
    • have successfully completed generally a two-year university degree (Master candidates) or a three-year university degree (doctoral candidates) with above average results (upper third of class);
    • clearly show motivation and strong commitment;
    • have thorough knowledge of the language of instruction;
    • have completed their last university degree not more than 6 years ago at the time of application;
    • must be nationals of an African country.
  7. Infrastructure, management and staff: The applying institution provides sufficient infrastructure (space, equipment, service facilities, library, internet connection), a clear organisational structure and an efficient management. It has identified a member of staff who will oversee the financial administration and will act as contact partner for DAAD and scholarship holders. The host institution offers an experienced and sufficient number of staff to operate the study programmes and the scholar-ship programme.
  8. Target group orientation and support services: The applying institution (or department hosting the individual doctorate) follows a target group-oriented didactic approach and ensures efficient support services (e.g. administrative, social, and intercultural support), considering the heterogeneity of its students. The applying institution provides a concrete support concept for the scholarship holders (mainly for In-Region candidates), explaining the planned support services and listing up the planned support activities.
  9. Plausible cost overview: The applying institution provides a plausible overview of the requested university/institute/network fees and can verify that these fees are the regular ones being demanded from all students (Official fee structure needs to be included). It is not possible to ask for extra fees from DAAD scholars which will not be charged from regular students. Violation of this requirement leads to exclusion of the selection process and possible termination of the agreement between DAAD and the host institution.

Selection procedure

The selection of host institutions is carried out by an independent committee of international peers (university professors) to be nominated by DAAD and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit.
The selection of scholarship holders will take place after the selection of the host institutions. The host institution will screen, pre-select (according to DAAD selection criteria) and short-list up to three times as many applicants as scholarships are available. A complete list of all the applicants and a pre-selection report and lists showing the participants of the pre-selection and explaining the criteria employed, must be submitted to the DAAD. DAAD reserves the right of final selection.

Required application documents

  • Application form
  • Signed endorsement of the leadership of the applying university/ institute
  • Module book/ course plan/ research areas for future scholars
  • Official fee structure
  • If applicable, Charter certificate of the applying institution/ Accreditation certificate(s) of study programmes
  • If available, marketing samples (e.g., flyer)
  • If available, statistics on applications, students, alumni, graduation rates, dropout rates

Application closing date and submission

African NELGA universities, research institutes and research networks can submit their completed applications until February 8th 2019 to:

Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst e.V. (DAAD) ST32 – Jana Boemer
Kennedyallee 50 53175 Bonn
GERMANY

The selection of (post-)graduate programmes/host institutions will be completed in March 2019.

 

 

Contact and consultation

Before applying, a sufficiently prior consultation with DAAD is highly recommended. Please contact: Ms Jana Boemer – boemer@daad.de

 

 

For the full call for application, click here

For the application form, click here

For the annex, click here

For the FAQ, click here