PhD positions

Every year, new PhD positions open, among which there are two types:

  1. Regular positions: PhD students receive a state-guaranteed scholarship. The scholarship can be connected to partial employment with projects of pure and applied research.
  2. STARS positions: The aim of the STARS program is to provide excellent education and an adequate income to PhD students of the Faculty. PhD students receive a state-guaranteed scholarship, and they are also granted the STARS-scholarship. 

For the present academic year, we announce the availability of the following positions. Prospective students are encouraged to propose and engage in discussions with their supervisor(s) regarding their own research topics.

STARS positions

 

Regular positions:

 

Daily mobility and commuting within the Prague metropolitan region

The project is based on the main ideas of time-space geography, daily paths, rhythms, and commuting within the urban environment. As an alternative to traditional commuting data from population censuses, mobile phone data is employed together with questionnaires and qualitative methods of daily mobility pattern investigation. For the project, the mobile phone operator´s data is prepared.

The development and transformation of the Russian automotive industry

With more than 1.5 million vehicles made in 2017, Russia continues to rank among the twenty largest vehicle producers in the world. The Russian automotive industry has experienced a transformation from state-owned and domestically controlled to a market-driven and increasingly foreign-controlled industry over the past three decades. The goal of this research project is to analyse this transformation. It will combine quantitative and qualitative research methodologies.

Everyday life in a city: conception, experience and use of urban space

The project is focused on unique conceptions, experiences and uses of urban spaces. Using qualitative research methods, the experience and spatial practices of women/children/people with disabilities in urban environment are studied and the theories and concepts of feminist geographies/children geographies or disability geography are used to understand the experience and practices.

Examining Indian population structure through spatial analysis of personal names

Geographical differences in surname structure capture a great deal of ethno-cultural variation. Particularly in India personal names are interrelated with religion, occupation, caste, regions and various other socio-spatial characteristics. Surnames also have demonstrable utility as proxies for genetic information. This PhD project will utilize information on the spatial distribution of surnames in India to examine both the large-scale patterns and local specifics of Indian population structure and historical migrations. 

Gender gap in health from an international perspective

In developed countries females outlive males at all ages. However, females report worse health than males of the same age. This phenomenon is known as male-female-health-survival paradox. The research project will focus on analysis of to what extent gender differences in longevity can be attributed to biological, demographical, geographical, environmental, social, and behavioural factors. 

Geographies of crime and public policy

This research project provides an opportunity to explore and advance spatial criminology in Czechia. The PhD project can use open data on crime provided by Czech police or detailed crime data with GPS coordinates, which are available to all cities and municipalities on request. Thus, pilot studies on crime prevention and field research experiments with local stakeholders are enabled. The research activities should be focused on a) criminological theory, b) crime data analysis, c) crime prevention praxis and evaluation or d) related case studies.

Identification and interrelationships of health disparities: A geospatial analysis

Identification and understanding of health disparities is a research topic of growing importance. Health problems facing the world today exist in a geographic context and any analysis requires a comprehensive understanding of spatial aspects. A geographical information system (GIS) provides an excellent tool for identification of such disparities, including mapping at the small area level and spatial/spatiotemporal analysis of health outcomes of sociodemographic subgroups. 

The impact of border processes on socioeconomic development in the border regions in Central Europe

The process of economic and political integration in Europe implied fundamental changes in the nature of the EU’s internal and external borders. The project aims to study the changing nature of state borders and its impact on regional development and the socioeconomic performance of border regions. The main research questions are: What are the effects of border processes on socioeconomic development in different border regions? What are the determinants of these potentially heterogeneous effects? What are the underlying mechanisms behind the socioeconomic changes in the border regions, and what role do the key regional actors play?

Impacts of tourism on the most exposed destinations in Czechia

The PhD dissertation project will be based on research concerning the impacts of tourism (sociocultural above all) on the most exposed tourist destinations related to effects of overtourism, followed by tourist- and tourism-phobic perceptions. The mechanisms and tools for the consolidation of tourist flows and the prediction of tourism’s negative aspects based on analyses of the broadly understood tourism environment (a qualitative and quantitative survey of stakeholders) will be identified.

Migration processes and settlement system development in Czechia

The main objective of the project is to describe and explain contemporary development of migration processes within the settlement system in Czechia. The starting points for the theoretical basis of the proposed project would be theory of differential urbanisation and stages of urban development. The empirical analyses will first use data from migration database in the detail of Czech municipalities and then would be extended to selected case studies with more attention to qualitative research, mapping, and terrain work.

New Places of Immigration, Social Interaction and Integration

This doctoral dissertation project is framed within broader studies of the development and nature of segregation processes and places of social exclusion, interaction and integration in Czechia. The project focuses on foreigners living, working and studying in Czechia, specifically on immigrants from the so-called third countries (non-EU members). The research focuses on the most pronounced spatial concentrations of immigrants, places of risks of social conflicts and/or places of best integration practices. 

Student (mis)conceptions when working with maps

Maps are usually designated as an essential tool for geographic communication. It is, therefore, necessary to teach students how to work with maps and to understand their basic concepts in geography lessons at secondary school level. Within this context, we can talk about student conceptions related to map work or student misconceptions in the case of any inadequate understanding which can be caused by poorly developed map skills. The main goal of the research should be to identify any (mis)conceptions among secondary students when interpreting different types of maps (using a conceptual test, interviews, and eye-tracking technology) and to describe why they occur.

Student strategies for solving tasks with maps

The research project should focus on student map use strategies—the issue hasn’t been sufficiently investigated yet (not only in Czechia). Considering the importance of individual types of map skills, the project should aim to identify and characterise different secondary school students’ strategies when reading, analysing and/or interpreting maps (thematic, topographic, etc.). Furthermore, the research should aim to investigate which factors (gender, cognitive and learning styles, previous experience with a presented map, etc.) influence the choice of strategy when solving tasks with maps. 

Suburbanization in CEE countries: a comparative perspective

Suburbanization and population deconcentration are relatively strong regional processes that are transforming settlement systems in CEE countries after 1989. There are currently a number of publications that describe and explain suburbanisation in individual cities, but little attention is still paid to comparing size, intensity, distribution and impacts of suburbanization. The main goal of the dissertation project is to describe and explain the core common and different features of suburbanization in the settlement systems of CEE countries.

Trends in second home tourism market—Geographical approach

The PhD dissertation project will be based on the research of current trends in second home tourism. The commercialisation and internationalisation seem to be the crucial processes in development of second home tourism. Practices from leading European and non-European countries will be discussed followed by the specifics of Czechia as an example of a transition and post-transition society; methods of second home tourism research; the development of the second home tourism market, foreign investors and clients as well Czechs using second homes abroad; regional differentiation; the relationship to de-urbanisation and amenity migration processes and heterolocal society; and case studies from Czechia (Czech communities abroad).

Urban segregation of minority populations

Uneven distribution of social groups over space is a key characteristic of contemporary cities. Both position in social structure and residential location can have significant impact on daily life and life opportunities. Growth and diversification of minority population in Prague has been described, however, further insights into reproduction of segregation and complexities of segregation in daily life are needed. How do migrants look for housing? How are peer-networks developed? Do immigration experiences differ between generations and cohorts? Such research questions could be addressed for a selected minority population. 

Spaces of Social Exclusion: Socio-Spatial Inequality and Urban Change

This doctoral dissertation project is framed within broader studies of the development and nature of segregation processes and places of social exclusion and integration in Czechia. This call specifically seeks researchers pursuing international comparisons, specifically with the state and development of social exclusion and segregation in other European country (countries) and with the research focus on the level of urban localities. The research focuses on the most vulnerable population and its spatial concentrations in places of social exclusion.