Wits partners with Erasmus University in a new joint PhD Programme in Law.
UPDATE April, 14, 11:32am:
Applications for the joint ISS-WITS PhD programme have been extended to Sunday, May 15, 2016.
ORIGINAL STORY
Doctoral students in law will now have the opportunity to receive a joint PhD from Wits in Johannesburg and Erasmus University in the Netherlands starting in 2017.
Wits University has partnered with Erasmus University Rotterdam in a joint PhD programme which will be offered through the Wits Oliver Schreiner School of Law and the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) at Erasmus University. The fees of successfully admitted students will be waived at both institutions.
Wits Head of Law School, Professor Vinodh Jaichand says the programme will enable students to have a socio-legal approach to law.
“Erasmus is a renowned institution for social sciences and Wits is renowned for its Law department therefore the partnership between the two institutions will be mutually beneficial,” says Jaichand.
Wits Associate Professor of Law, Ntombizozuko Dyani-Mhango, says this is a four-year renewable partnership with Erasmus and students can still apply for the old PhD programme should they wish to do so. She highlights that in this programme, students will have to defend their research proposal at Wits and at the end will have to defend their research publicly at Erasmus University.
Evile Sombo, a second-year Law student said that this was an exciting opportunity for Law students and that she would definitely consider enrolling for the programme in the near future should the partnership be renewed.
Jaichand says discussions about this programme started in 2014 through interaction between the vice-chancellors of both universities. Applications for the first intake of the programme close on Thursday, March 31, 2016.