Migration is one of Europe’s most critical socio-political issues. Yet much research views the migration process as a spatial process, as opposed to considering the temporal (or spatio-temporal) aspects of migrants’ lives. With societal transformations challenging traditional perceptions of time and forms of belonging, how can we equip a new generation of migration experts to use cutting-edge research methods, interdisciplinary theories and novel forms of societal engagement?

UNIC’s new interdisciplinary PhD programme, led by the University of Oulu, intends to address this question and more. Funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Doctoral Networks Call, the programme will equip 15 doctoral researchers with important cross-sectoral, transversal and interdisciplinary skills for studying critical issues around migration, integration and societal change currently faced by European cities. The consortium brings together seven UNIC universities and ten civil society partners to challenge conventional understandings of human mobility, and underscores UNIC’s position as a leading European hub for research and doctoral education in the field of migration and mobility studies.

“This funding gives us a rare opportunity to help shape the next generation of migration scholars and to find ways to encourage innovative research about migration,” says associate professor Roger Norum, the programme’s principal investigator (PI). “This could have a tangible impact on how human mobility and the migration experience is imagined, perceived, understood and addressed in Europe.”

MITIME will be the first MSCA Doctoral Network to be coordinated by the University of Oulu. The goal of the Doctoral Networks is to implement training programmes in partnership with organisations across disciplines, stimulate the creativity of doctoral researchers, enhance their innovation capacity, and promote long-term employability. In the 2024 MSCA Doctoral Networks call, the European Research Executive Agency (REA) received a total of 1,417 applications, of which 10.6 percent were funded.

Helping Shape the Next Generation

MITIME’s transdisciplinary, cross-sectoral training model hopes to influence future doctoral education processes across European universities, marking it as a long-term investment in how scholars and practitioners are trained in this vital field. “It builds on the work that UNIC has been spearheading to mobilize research-based teaching about pressing societal issues in urban spaces,” Norum adds.

This autumn, the consortium will begin to recruit doctoral researchers, design innovative training programs, build collaborations between universities and urban institutions, and co-develop research projects.

Learn more about MITIME at the University of Oulu’s website here.

Watch this space for open calls and future announcements from MITIME.

Photo Credit: Roger Norum