ICLD Fieldwork Grant

ICLD considers applicants from within the framework of a social science, communication or humanities education at a Swedish university. A student who has been granted a Fieldwork Grant shall collect material for his or her master’s thesis at least five weeks on site in a low- or middle-income country. The field period shall be used for the collection and processing of data. The student must plan his/her field stay and, together with his/her thesis supervisor, contact a local supervisor and/or other necessary contacts abroad.

The thesis shall contribute to understanding how local democracy and good governance can contribute to achieving sustainable development and poverty reduction. In addition to the academic quality of the proposal, the project will be be assessed by the extent to which it shows relevance to the Sustainable Development Goals and to ICLD’s strategic areas: equity, participation, transparency and accountability.

Priority will be given to studies conducted in one of the following countries in which ICLD operates: Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Botswana, Colombia, Georgia, Guatemala, Honduras, Indonesia, Kenya, Kosovo, Moldova, Mozambique, Namibia, North Macedonia, Serbia, South Africa, Tanzania, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe. However, students conducting research on local governments in other parts of the world are also welcome to apply.

Recipients are required to participate in a preparatory course, but we may allow for some flexibility due to the pandemic. The course deals with Swedish development cooperation, ICLD’s work in more detail, and information on travel and health issues, safety and country information. The course will also deal with expectations and conditions for the studies.

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Eligibility

To be eligible to apply, you must:

• Be an International Master’s student enrolled at a Swedish University. Swedish students who did not receive a Minor Field Studies grant from Sida may also apply.
• Must be traveling to conduct research supporting a thesis or final project.
• Be preparing to write your thesis in your thesis semester

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Application instructions

Interested students submit a completed application via the online application form by October 31.

The application should include:

• Short but strong letter of motivation (maximum 1 page) in English to support the suggested activity and why it is essential for the applicant’s studies.
• Project Description (see Research Template)
• CV – Maximum 2 pages

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Information for applicants

• Funds will be transferred to the recipient’s account within six weeks of award notification.
• Recipients must notify the ICLD Knowledge Centre if the trip must be postponed or cancelled.
• Recipients will write a travel story (max 1 A4 side) to be submitted to ICLD within three months of returning to Sweden. High resolution JPEG images which capture the essence of the project (the research problem, methods and findings) are also required. The travel story may also be in digital (video) format.
• The award recipient agrees to be involved in dissemination activities to inform other students about the ICLD Fieldwork Grant.
• Award details, including text and images from reporting may be used in ICLD publications and its communications channels.
• The award recipients may be asked to present their study at ICLD at a mutually convenient date.
• If the recipient does not conduct his/her study trip, the grant must be repaid in full to ICLD.

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Data protection

Your information will be treated in the strictest confidence and will only be used in connection with your application, and will not be shared with any other third parties. If successful, information about your project, including names of participants and affiliated organisations, will be published on our website, kept as part of ICLD’s archive, and may be used to promote ICLD’s Fieldwork Grant programme. Information about unsuccessful projects will be entered into ICLD’s archive.