About PhD in Data Science 2024
Program Description
The field of data science is emerging as a critical discipline with high relevance to economic growth and development. This doctoral training program established by AIMS will provide emerging African scientists the opportunity to conduct research at the forefront of data science, and work towards a PhD degree within a high-quality training program in Africa, in cooperation with institutions internationally.
The program will focus on theoretical foundations of data science as well as applications of data science to improve the daily lives of Africans. It is built on the understanding that modern approaches in data science require a combination of expertise spanning the areas of mathematics, statistics, computer science, and the applied sciences.
AIMS will be offering up to seven fully-funded PhD positions in this prestigious new doctoral program. The recruited students will be based in Rwanda at AIMS Rwanda, or any of the other AIMS centers, in partnership with universities and research institutions across Africa and globally. The program aims to train future change-makers, who will have an impact across academia, industry, education, and government.
Candidates can choose from a list of proposed research topics, and AIMS will assist in building a supervision team around these topics. Alternatively, candidates can suggest their own research topics, together with a proposed supervision team. Selected students will start in October.
Eligibility criteria
- Master’s degree (completed by Sept) in mathematics, statistics, computer science, engineering, physics or other relevant fields;
- Sufficient theoretical foundations evidenced by prior work (courses/thesis/other training);
- Qualification for pursuing research on the chosen topic, including relevant programming expertise;
- Research potential evidenced by academic performance and involvement in relevant academic activities;
- Motivation for pursuing a PhD by research in the suggested topic;
- Being an African national.
Summary
- Length of program: 4 years
- Fully funded (stipend, equipment, health insurance, relocation costs, conference attendance, direct cost to graduating institution such as tuition fees and registration fees)
- International supervision teams from well-known research institutions
- Research topics that push the boundaries of data science (focused on AI/ML and/or health)
- Program start: October
Application Information
Questions should be directed to applications@quantumleapafrica.org
Research Topic Submissions
The call for submission of research topics for Cohort 2024 is now open. If you are interested in supervising a PhD student as part of this doctoral training program, please submit your topic proposal here. PhD candidates selected for Cohort 2024 are expected to start their research in October – December 2024.
Research Topic Submission Form
Deadline: 30 November 2023
Supervision teams will be contacted after the submission deadline on whether their topic suggestion has been selected to be included in the 2024 call of applications. Please aim to submit your suggestion well ahead of the deadline so that the QLA team can provide feedback on your submission as needed.
Instructions
- Topic description: please provide one paragraph of description that provides sufficient detail on the research to be carried out (see examples from past years). From this description it should be possible for potential candidates to assess whether the topic matches their training and interests.
- Required background & skills: Please mention which subject knowledge / academic background / skills are required for the PhD student to succeed in this topic area. Also mention skills that are not required, but beneficial to succeed at this topic. The information you provide here will be used for shortlisting candidates based on their application files. Please make sure to provide sufficient detail.
- In Phase 1 of the application process, information on supervision teams are not shared with candidates to emphasise selection of topics over teams. Do not include information in your topic description or required background that identify the supervision team.
- Only topic suggestions with a complete supervision team are accepted. Partial supervision teams may not be considered due to time limitations.
- Maximum 4 supervisors per team with one designated lead supervisor, and a supervisor affiliated with the institution of graduation in case the lead supervisor’s affiliation is different
For more details on the PhD program, see the section PROGRAM INFORMATION. For more details on the selection process, see INFORMATION FOR SUPERVISORS.
With several supervisors from different universities per student (typically 2-4), it is important to have a main supervisor taking the lead in mentorship on the research project. The lead supervisor is the main contact person for the student and QLA.
Only one application per supervision team is required. Please provide as much information as possible on potential co-supervisors, and indicate who is the lead supervisor. If you are looking for co-supervisors, please send us an email at (applications@quantumleapafrica.org) ahead of the submission deadline. We will do our best to facilitate the building of supervision teams with our partners.
Examples of past submitted research topics can be found here for TOPICS 2022 and TOPICS 2023.
