We invite applications for TWO fully funded PhD positions, to begin in October 2026. Hired Doctoral Researchers will become members of MITIME, an EU-funded doctoral programme offering early-stage researchers international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral training in migration, time and urban inequalities.

Each MITIME Doctoral Researcher will be employed full-time on a 36-month contract and enrolled in a PhD programme at University College Cork. Successful candidates will conduct original research on migration, temporality, and urban inequalities, and participate in network-wide training and mobility activities.

Applicants to the programme must hold—or be close to completing—a Master’s degree in a relevant field (i.e. migration studies, anthropology, sociology, geography, urban studies, social policy, political science, or public administration). Candidates should show a strong interest in collaborative, interdisciplinary research and in working in international settings.

TWO DOCTORAL RESEARCHER POSITIONS

MITIME Doctoral Researcher 7:

Thesis topic: Temporal Home - Migrant Everyday Placemaking through Home

PhD Degree: Sociology
Host Institution: University College Cork, Ireland

Main Supervisor: Dr. Mastoureh Fathi (UCC) – mastoureh.fathi@ucc.ie
Co-supervisor: Prof. Peter Scholten (Erasmus University Rotterdam) –
p.scholten@essb.eur.nl
Secondments: Cork Migrant Centre and Erasmus University Rotterdam
This project aims to focus on the concept of placemaking, paying particular attention to the challenges that may arise in cases of radically conflicting temporalities of settlement for different groups of migrants, where restrictive regimes of migration (such as asylum systems, visa regulations, time limit permits) restrict the possibilities of inclusive placemaking for many. The project’s objective is to understand how and under such conditions, making a home is possible (or not). The project compares the ways in which different categories of migrants find housing in urban areas, settle, and move out and into different places they call ‘home’. It will explore similarities and differences in homemaking in domestic spaces and contextualize such settlements in cities where they live with a focus on the temporal dimensions of these practices. The candidate will study and contribute towards understanding the strategies and dynamics of everyday placemaking exploring homemaking practices and narratives by different groups of migrants in Cork and Rotterdam using multi-stage participatory, mobile, complexity theory, and creative ethnography in public spaces (neighborhood and city spaces) including physical housing conditions, different demographic information, and different migrant groups. Two secondments are planned: one with Cork Migrant Centre Organization (Cork, Ireland) and one at Erasmus University Rotterdam (Rotterdam, The Netherlands). It is expected that the student undertakes training in quantitative and qualitative research methods.

MITIME Doctoral Researcher 8

Thesis title: Crossing Time, Crossing Borders: Navigating Divergence and Convergence Across Political, Physical and Imagined Spaces

PhD Degree: Social Sciences
Host Institution: University College Cork, Ireland

Main Supervisor: Dr. Claire Dorrity (UCC) – c.dorrity@ucc.ie
Co-supervisor: Dr. Audrey Paradis (University of Oulu) – audrey.paradis@oulu.fi
Secondments: University of Oulu and INTERSOS (Greece)
This project explores the “relational, non-linear, and fluid nature of social processes” characterized by re-thinking the interstices between temporal, spatial, and experiential dimensions of borderscapes and their potential to create new innovative practices including shared imagined spaces and novel political vocabularies in response to migrant lives and placemaking. The project aims to move beyond mechanistic framings of migration and draw attention to the unfolding dynamics of spatial connectivity, convoluted journeys, migrant resistance and life trajectories, and the temporal, spatial, social, and institutional conditions that underpin them. Through active exploration, the project will investigate how migrant struggles and resistance have the potential to shape new knowledge through a better understanding of migrant mobility across time and space, and a recasting of borders in terms of liminality and porosity. This perspective unsettles defined political and institutional boundaries as fixed and unchanging and opens dialogue on spaces of reciprocity, mutual exchange, co-operation, and new urban transformations. The candidate will study the experiences of forced and irregular migration, and contribute towards: 1) Novel understandings of migrant im/mobility across time and space; 2) New insights into transnational processes as sites of convergence and divergence in shaping place, belonging, and the lived experience of migrants; 3) Enhance the theoretical landscape on the re-casting of borders as sites of liminality, porosity, and transformation. Two secondments are anticipated: 1) UOULU involving fieldwork and training on understanding the nexus of temporality, borderscapes, and everyday insecurity; 2) INTERSOS, Greece involving learning about innovative bottom-up solutions to migration issues across borders and conduct participatory research with migrants.

MORE ABOUT THE POSITIONS:

 Program Benefits

• A prestigious Marie Sklodowska-Curie position within a dynamic network of universities and societal partners in migration and urban studies.
• A comprehensive training programme combining courses in theory and method, with transferable skills.
• Joint international supervision by leading academic experts from two network partner institutions, offering interdisciplinary guidance and intellectual support.
• International and intersectoral secondments with non-academic and institutional partners across Europe.
• Strong career-development opportunities across academic, public, and private sectors.
• Structured mentoring, leadership training, and professional development.
• A competitive MSCA salary with mobility and family allowances, and, where applicable, special-needs support.

 Selection criteria

MITIME welcomes applications from highly motivated candidates with a demonstrated capacity for independent and collaborative research and a strong interest in the interdisciplinary study of migration, temporality, and urban inequality.

Applicants are expected to demonstrate the following:

• A strong commitment to conducting interdisciplinary and collaborative research in international and cross-sectoral contexts.
• The ability to take initiative, manage research tasks responsibly, and work both independently and as part of a team.
• The capacity to design and complete a doctoral research project within the framework of the assigned project description, leading to the submission of a PhD thesis and other academic outputs.
• Willingness to contribute to MITIME’s collective research, training, and dissemination activities, including workshops, summer schools, and other network events.
• Capacity to play an active role in conceptualizing, developing, and executing core MITIME project outputs, e.g. scientific articles, reports, conferences.
• Prior experience with the theoretical and methodological dimensions of qualitative and/or quantitative research.
• Academic or professional experience relevant to the thematic focus of MITIME.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills, attention to detail, and the ability to deliver high-quality written and oral outputs.
• Demonstrated academic writing experience in the social sciences or humanities.
• Excellent English-language communication skills, both written and spoken.
• Willingness and readiness for international mobility, including research secondments, training events, and conference participation.
• A record of scholarly publications (if available) will be considered an advantage.

UCC is an equal-opportunity employer. Applications to the MITIME posts are particularly welcomed from candidates belonging to underrepresented or marginalised groups, provided that they meet the eligibility criteria outlined below.

Eligibility criteria

 Candidates applying for MITIME PhD positions at UCC must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Academic qualifications: Candidates must hold a Master's degree (e.g., MSc, MA, or equivalent) prior to the commencement of the contract; please see relevant PhD position descriptions for any specific date requirements. The degree should be in a field relevant to the specific doctoral position, such as migration studies, anthropology, sociology, geography, urban studies, media studies, social policy, political science, public administration, or a related discipline.

In addition, applicants must have an honours primary degree (NFQ level 8) with a minimum of a 2H1 (second class honours, grade 1) to apply. Check here for international qualifications comparisons.

• PhD status: Candidates must not have previously completed or defended a PhD.

• Mobility requirements: Candidates may be of any nationality. However, candidates cannot have lived or carried out their main work or studies in the country of the hiring institution for more than 12 months during the 36 months before the position begins. There are a few exceptions, such as compulsory national service, short visits (e.g., holidays), or time spent in processes related to obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention.
• Language proficiency: Candidates must demonstrate proficiency in both written and spoken English. Check here for English language requirements for pursuing a PhD degree in UCC.

How to Apply

 Candidates applying for MITIME doctoral researcher positions must submit a single PDF file containing all required documents in the order listed below. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

1. Motivation Letter (maximum 1 page): Introduce yourself and your qualifications, outline your motivation for applying to the position, and describe your future career objectives.
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV): Include details of educational qualifications, grades achieved in relevant research modules or dissertations, and any other pertinent academic or professional experience.
3. Research Proposal: Outline how you would conceptually and methodologically approach the research for the specific project you are applying for, using the brief project description as a basis (3-5 pages, excluding references; 12pt font size).
4. Official Transcripts: Provide final grade transcripts for both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. If transcripts are not in English, include an official translation.
5. Degree Certificates: Submit copies of Bachelor’s and Master’s diplomas or proof of degree completion. If you are currently enrolled in a Master’s programme, include available transcripts and a statement from your supervisor confirming that you are on track to complete your degree by the commencement of the contract.
6. Proof of English Language Competence: See HERE.
7. List the names and contact details of two referees (references will only be requested for those candidates who proceed to the interview stage).

About MITIME

MITIME is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network focusing on how time shapes migration, inequality, and urban life in post-industrial Europe. We train early-stage researchers in cutting-edge theory, methods and transferable skills, and innovate approaches to understand human mobility as a multi-directional, contingent and relational process.

 Understanding migration through time

 Human migration remains one of the most pressing social, cultural, and political challenges of our time. Across Europe and beyond, the dynamics of migration are increasingly shaped by intricate temporal and spatial interrelations. While international organisations such as the United Nations and the European Union emphasise the importance of inclusion, sustainability, and resilience, the lived experiences of many migrants continue to be marked by uncertainty, precarity, waiting, and fluctuating mobilities.

In Europe’s post-industrial cities—urban environments transformed by economic restructuring, neoliberal austerity, and digitalisation—mobility takes diverse forms, ranging from forced displacement to highly privileged circulation. These conditions contribute to new forms of urban fragmentation and invisible segregation: subtle yet pervasive divisions among temporary, mobile, and precarious populations.

Despite a recent temporal turn in migration studies, the role of time—its governance, rhythms, ruptures, and inequalities—remains insufficiently understood, at the scale of both policy and research. Time profoundly structures migrants’ experiences, access to opportunities, and sense of belonging in a Europe marked by social stratification and accelerated change.

Aims and vision

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network MITIME: Entanglements of Migration and Time in Post-industrial Urban Europe has been established to explore how temporality shapes migration, inequality, and urban life in contemporary Europe.

The network aims to train a new generation of migration scholars, policy analysts, and practitioners who are equipped to critically examine and address the socio-cultural inequalities embedded in mobility and belonging. MITIME challenges conventional understandings of migration as a linear sequence—from departure to arrival to settlement—and instead approaches mobility as multi-directional, recursive, and contingent.

By integrating the analytical lens of temporality, MITIME contributes to advancing theoretical and methodological innovation in migration and urban studies. It seeks to deepen our understanding of how time intersects with governance, technology, and everyday life to shape migrants’ futures in post-industrial cities.

Through research, training, and public engagement, MITIME aims to generate evidence-based insights that inform policy, enhance social inclusion, and contribute to more equitable urban futures across Europe.