General Summary
Call for applications for The Professor Sewankambo Global Health Security Fellowship: Fully Funded PhD Fellowship Opportunities for PhD fellows in Global Health Security tenable at Makerere University.
Summary
The Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) is excited to announce four (4) PhD Fellowship positions within the prestigious Sewankambo Global Health Security Fellowship Program. This 3-year fellowship aims to cultivate the next generation of leaders in Global Health Security (GHS) across Africa. IDI is a renowned Centre of excellence in infectious disease research, training, and patient care in Africa. Through our fellowship program, we are committed to fostering scientific excellence and leadership in global health security.
Key Responsibilities
Who Are We Looking For?
We seek candidates with a background in clinical, numerical, or biological sciences who are passionate about advancing global health security. Ideal candidates will leverage IDI’s rich resources, including datasets, mentorship, internet access, and state-of-the-art facilities, to engage in practical training and internships. The PhD fellows will be expected to develop PhD proposals with a focus on any one of the following 7 specialized program areas:
- Antimicrobial Resistance: Addressing the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance through innovative research and strategies.
- Laboratory, Biosafety, and Biosecurity: Enhancing laboratory capacity and implementing robust biosafety and biosecurity measures.
- Epidemic Intelligence and Surveillance: Strengthening early detection and response systems for infectious disease outbreaks.
- Case Management, Infection Prevention, and Control: Improving clinical management and infection prevention strategies to reduce disease transmission.
- Vaccination and Medical Countermeasures: Advancing vaccine development and deployment strategies to combat infectious diseases.
- Planetary Health and WASH: Integrating health with environmental stewardship and promoting Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) initiatives.
- Health Policy, Advocacy, and Economics: Influencing policy decisions and advocating for sustainable health solutions through economic analysis.
Benefits of the program
By joining the Sewankambo Global Health Security Fellowship program, you will:
- Gain access to cutting-edge resources and mentorship from some of the best mentors in the field.
- Conduct research that addresses pressing global health security challenges.
- Position yourself as a future leader in global health security in Africa.
- There are four (4) fully-funded PhD fellowships that will provide tuition and a stipend for a duration of up to 3 years after obtaining provisional Makerere University admission.
- Internship and hands-on experience within the Global Health Security department at IDI.
- Institutional IRB fees for PhD projects.
- UNCST fees for PhD project.
- Publication fees for up to 2 publications.
Key Responsibilities
- Candidates must be ready to commit as a full-time PhD student.
- Develop and defend a research proposal that is aligned to one of the seven GHS program areas (mentioned above).
- Secure full admission within one year of the fellowship offer.
- Successfully obtain ethics approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) and National approval from the Uganda National Council for Science & Technology (UNCST)
- Present your work at scientific workshops, conferences and research forum
- Successfully defend your PhD thesis
- Abide by the rules and requirements for attaining a Makerere University PhD
- Participate in GHS research groups and research seminar series.
Academic Qualification
- Masters in Medicine, public health, veterinary, biological, or numerical background
- Ability to leverage existing data (quantitative and qualitative) to answer research questions related to their PhD topic
- Atleast two first author publications
Person Specification
Candidate Eligibility
- Minimum qualifications: Applicants should have a bachelor’s and master's degree in Medicine, public health, veterinary, biological, or numerical background with at least an upper second. Candidates should have their undergraduate and master's training from a chattered University.
- Demonstrated interest in Global Health Security or mathematical modelling.
- A viable and innovative research concept in any of the above-mentioned areas.
- Ability to leverage existing data (quantitative and qualitative) to answer research questions related to their PhD topic.
- Ready to commit as a full-time PhD student.
Application Requirements:
- Certified copies of relevant academic documents.
- Reference letters from two academic referees. The letter should speak to the candidate’s academic maturity, academic ability, intellectual potential, creativity and originality, scientific writing skills, and interpersonal skills.
- Motivation Statement (up to 1000 words)
- Research Concept (no more than 2 pages, excluding references)
- Curriculum Vitae (CV) detailing education, work experience, conference presentations, and publications. Candidates are requested to include in their CV links their previous scientific documents authored, including manuscripts, reports, or grant awards.
- Cover Letter