The Ph.D. in Sustainability Science programme aims to produce scholars who will become key researchers in the area of sustainability science. In seeking to achieve and promote a better understanding of three of the most pressing issues on the UN agenda: global change, peace and security, and development, UNU-ISP through its postgraduate programmes takes an innovative approach to sustainability, bridging these cross-cutting themes through research, educational and collaborative initiatives.

The programme aims to equip graduates with a combination of broad comprehensive multidisciplinary knowledge to understand problems in a holistic sense and a deeper understanding of environmental sustainability in addressing current issues related to global change. The Ph. D. dissertation of students will be on one of the research themes of UNU-ISP with a focus on global change and sustainability bringing in perspectives from peace and security, or international development fields.

Thus the Ph.D. in Sustainability Science involves problem-oriented research that would enable students to acquire quantitative and qualitative analytical research skills to understand the underlying principles between various systems involved in sustainability issues and debates. Through coursework and research, Ph. D. students are able to gain critical thinking, problem solving skills and technical literacy in addressing sustainability problems.

Degree Requirements

Students who earn a total requirement of 14 credits, from taking 3 of the 4 core courses, Interdisciplinary Research Seminar 4, plus 3 optional elective courses out of which 2 can be from courses offered by UNU-ISP partner institutions, or a practical training at the United Nations University – Institute of Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA), successfully complete a doctoral dissertation and pass the final examination will receive a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Sustainability Science. The standard period is three years; the programme starts in September, with students expected to complete all the following degree requirements by July in the third academic year after enrolment.

For more details, please see http://isp.unu.edu/grad/degrees/doctoral/