PhD in Social Anthropology

Academic Requirements

Students will be admitted to the program on the basis of the following requirements:

1. Applicants must hold a Masters’ or higher with distinction.
2. Preference will be given to students who hold a Masters’ or Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology. Students holding a Masters’ degree from other disciplines may be considered if they take and receive a grade of B or higher in a series of bridge courses lasting two semesters, including: Introduction to Anthropology (BA level); and the following Masters’ level courses: History of Anthropological Theory, Ethnographic Analysis, Indigenous Knowledge, Economic Anthropology, Political Anthropology. Bridge courses will be offered every year if there are bridge students. If the required courses are offered for BA and MA level students, they will attend those courses; otherwise, these courses will be offered specifically for the bridge students. The Department reserves the right to consider each individual student’s background and whether they need to take all or only some bridging courses. Students who pass these courses with a minimum grade of B in each class may initiate the doctoral Program of Study in the following year.
3. Applicants must have a minimum GPA of B or higher in MA-level coursework.
4. For those who did a thesis at MA level, a minimum grade of “good” on the thesis is required. Those without MA level theses must have at least one publication.
5. Applicants must demonstrate a clear interest in the study of anthropology and its ability to contribute to their longer-term career goals, and be able to articulate their research interests in writing.
6. English language proficiency is required. Students from other countries or from universities of programs in Ethiopia where the medium of instruction was not English must demonstrate English language proficiency by scoring a minimum of 80 on the TOEFL (with at least 20 on the speaking and writing portion), or a minimum band-width of 6.0 on IELTS (with no single band/score below 6.0). TOEFL tests must be administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and sent directly by ETS to the Department. For IELTS, students are responsible for requesting an official Test Report Form (TRF) of their IELTS and submitting this form along with their application. Test dates must be within two years of the application deadline.

 Application Requirements

To apply to the doctoral program in Social Anthropology, applicants must submit the following application materials:

1. A completed application form and fee;
2. A Statement of Purpose–Following the Postgraduate Comprehensive Guideline, the statement should be typed, single-spaced and between one and two pages. It should describe succinctly the applicant’s reasons for applying to the program; their preparation in the field of study and why the program is a good fit for the applicant; the applicant’s future career plans; and other aspects of the applicant’s background as well as interests which may aid the admissions committee in evaluating their motivation and preparedness for graduate study (UoG 2017: 29). The applicant is also encouraged to identify one or more potential supervisors in their Statements, and to contact the potential supervisors in advance to share his/her CV and a summary of doctoral research interests (UoG 2017: 30). In cases where existing faculty do not have relevant expertise to serve as the Lead Supervisor, students should identify potential Supervisors from other universities and solicit their willingness to serve in this capacity. In such cases, external Supervisors will be paired with a local supervisor, who will serve as co-chair of the doctoral committee and help ensure that all the requirements are met. An outsider supervisor should not be expected to know all the rules and requirements for UoG when they are already assisting by mentoring a student not at their own institution, and having a local co-chair helps to mitigate the effects of physical distance on the quality and regularity of mentorship.
3. Research Concept Note or Synopsis –The concept note summarizing plans for doctoral research, and identifying the sub-field of specialization.
4. An up-to-date Curriculum Vitae (CV) – The CV should summarize the applicant’s educational qualifications, relevant research and work experience, and any publications (with web links from where they may be accessed);
5. Copies of Bachelors’ degree transcripts and official Masters’ degree transcripts, each showing subjects taken and the results;
6. Three Letters of Recommendation – Applicants must submit two letters of recommendation, one from either their MA thesis supervisor or course instructor, and the other from a current or former employer (in the role of the immediate supervisor);
7. A sponsorship letter, for those who come from other institutions; and
8. In-person interview (short listed candidates only). Students will be asked to visit campus and make a formal presentation describing their background, reasons for pursuing a PhD at the University of Gondar and plans for doctoral research.

An effort will also be made to recruit and retain students of diverse class, gender, ethnic and other identities. Having a recruitment strategy explicitly emphasizing diversity is in line with affirmative action strategies of the Ministry of Education (MoE 2017), and is supported by scholarship pointing to the educational and societal benefits of a diverse student body (Bowen and Bok 1998; Chang 1996; Gurin 1999; Milem 1994, 2003; Sax and Astin 1997; Terenzini et al. 2001). It will also help build a faculty body with greater class, ethnic and gender diversity – which has also been shown to improve key learning outcomes associated with academic development and competencies needed to work in a diverse setting (Hurtado 2001).

Admissions Policies

To avoid the advising bottleneck identified in other doctoral programs in the country, the annual quota of students will be limited to those the Department can effectively advise. This will be determined each year by the Department Graduate Committee (DGC) for the subsequent academic year.  In the first year of the program, a higher than average quota will be set considering some students may become bridge students with their admission to the doctoral program delayed by one year. As the program matures and advisory relationships become primarily internal to the Department, the department will consider additional criteria for admission – such as a close alignment between the student’s area of interest and the expertise of existing faculty members.