Training & Support

Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research / AISSR

As a prospective PhD candidate, you are responsible for creating your own personalized training programme in consultation with your PhD supervisor. This program is part of your PhD Trajectory Plan and includes a selection of courses and activities based on your previous training and the requirements of your field. Methods Support offers additional crash courses in methodological innovations for research. Besides that, the AISSR PhD clubs provide a supportive environment for peer feedback and knowledge exchange.

PhD Training Programme

During your PhD journey, it is important to acquire sufficient training in Methods, Disciplinary, and Interdisciplinary Theory. We advise to follow courses for approximately 30 ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) credits throughout your entire PhD trajectory. The specific courses that are relevant to you will depend on your research focus and the program group you are affiliated with. The PhD Training Programme is a cooperation between AISSR and the Graduate School of Social Sciences (GSSS).

AISSR Courses Brochure 2025 - 2026 Semester II

AISSR Educational Committee

The AISSR Educational Committee ensures the quality of teaching and the educational process. They provide advice on the curriculum, regulations of the Training Programme and discuss the results of student evaluations. The committee also considers proposals for Short Intensive Courses (SICs) and addresses other education-related issues based on feedback from students, teachers, supervisors, and the PhD Sounding Board. Additionally, they prepare advisory or discussion notes for the annual meeting of the AISSR Scientific Educational Board.

Methods Support

Methods Support facilitates training in methods that match the research goals of our PhD students. Crash-courses, presentations, and accessible expertise on the web will contribute to a deeper understanding of methodological use within your PhD project.

Crash courses

LaTex
Introduction to R with regression analysis
Social Network Analysis

The courses are free to AISSR members and open to a limited number of Research Master students and teachers outside the AISSR. To register, please send an email to aissr@uva.nl. A confirmation will be sent once the registration has been approved.

AISSR PhD Clubs

The AISSR has several clubs for PhDs. These clubs meet to discuss research plans, design, data, manuscripts, etc. They offer a friendly environment in which to give and receive feedback on research, ideas and papers from a group of peers rather than the supervisory team. At the same time, these clubs offer an opportunity to learn from fellow PhDs about their research projects and to learn to give constructive feedback. PhDs are highly recommended to take part in one of the AISSR PhD clubs. There might not be a PhD club for your research interest, in that case PhDs are encouraged to start their own PhD club.

For information, see page 10 in the above AISSR PhD Courses Brochure.