Call for Tenders: Evaluation of the doc.funds Program

The purpose of the contract to be awarded is evaluate the FWF’s doc.funds program. The main question is whether the additional funding for doctoral training provided by the FWF has a demonstrably positive effect on structured doctoral training at the participating research institutions as a whole. The evaluations should take a critical look at FWF’s present doc.funds program to identify strengths and weaknesses, to quantify and qualify outcomes, output, and impact.Specifically, the evaluation team is expected to: • Provide an overview of doctoral training formats at Austrian research institutions• Assess the impact of the doc.funds program on doctoral training in Austria• Assess the structural impact of the doc.funds program on the participating research institutions and their non-FWF-funded doctoral training formats • Analyze the current selection procedures and funding conditions of the doc.funds program and optimization potential for future calls for applications• If necessary, provide an international comparison with other funding formats for doctoral students (not on an individual basis in the form of scholarships) that are similar to the Austrian conditions (focus on Northern and Western Europe, e.g. NL, SE, DN, NO but excluding the UK, DE, and CH)• Provide evidence-based recommendations to the FWF and its supervisory bodies on if and how the doc.funds program should be continued, improved or restructured• Depending on the data situation, provide a proposal for a concept for a complete or sample-based career tracking of completed PhDsThe final evaluation report is expected to be delivered by the end of 2025. The budget for the study is limited to €100,000.