Newsletter 
A France-Finland joint PhD grant in Mathematics, Physics, Astronomy, Chemistry and Medical chemistry is supported by the Magnus Ehrnrooth Foundation. Applications can be submitted via the Foundation web site : https://www.magnusehrnroothinsaatio.fi/en/?noredirect=en_GB
Thesis cotutelle is a mechanism that promotes mobility of a doctoral student while encouraging scientific cooperation between a French and a foreign research team. Candidates conduct their research under the oversight of, and with guidance from, a dissertation adviser from each of the two countries involved in the program. Working jointly, both advisers provide a full measure of supervision for the candidate.
The candidate conducts his research in the two countries under the terms of the agreement governing the program.
General information about the cotutelle grant
How large, for how long, and who can apply?
The program is funded in part by the Magnus Ehrnrooth Foundation (the grant to the student, 24 000 euros and a contribution towards travel costs, around 2 000 euros) per year for three to four years, as long as it takes to complete the PhD-degree. The extra costs involved for the student, when he/she spends time in the other institution are assumed to be covered with French money, which we expect will be available. The grant is awarded always for one year at a time, with the option of renewal for a total of three or four years if the project develops as planned. The program is open to both Finnish and French candidates. The deadline for applications is November 30th. The terms of the grant will be negotiated with the successful applicants. At this point only one grant in the sciences supported by the Foundation is open for call, but there is the possibility that France might contribute with a second grant.
How is the application done?
The technical part of applying happens as follows. You go to the English language pages of the Magnus Ehrnrooth Foundation https://www.magnusehrnroothinsaatio.fi/en/?noredirect=en_GB. You should study the instructions for PhD-students, because they are valid also in the cotutelle case. On most pages there is a login-button to the application system. In this system you will have to create a username and a password for your account. If you do this from the English language pages the instructions and the application forms will be in English. If you use Google to find the web pages, you will probably land on the Finnish language pages, so you will need to change language. There is a button for that in the upper right corner of every page. On the Finnish language pages, you find the text “vaihda kieli”, Finnish for “change language”. Press that and make your choice. Make sure that your application is submitted before the deadline. It is not enough to save your application. After saving your work you may always return to it afterwards and continue working on the application up to the deadline. After submitting your application, it is received by the system, and you can no longer make changes to the application.
Your research plan should include a few sentences about the additional benefits of the cotutelle program to your research and a statement on why you are interested in doing the cotutelle. A letter of recommendation from both the Finnish and the French thesis supervisors must be included with the application.
If you have further questions, please feel free to contact:
Niklas Meinander +358-40-7213805 magnus.ehrnrooth@protsv.fi