Намуна Cover Letter

(Намуна)
Cover Letter
To whom it may concern,
I am writing to apply for the PhD position announced on the website of the Lund University. I believe that my academic qualifications and the proposed research project would be a good fit to the PhD Programme in Sociology of Law at Lund University.
Before elaborating on my research interests, I would like to briefly describe my academic background and its relevance to the sociology of law. To begin with, I received my bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Bucharest in Romania which provided me with a basic training in research methods in social sciences, sociology, legal theory and comparative law. Due to my education in Romania I speak Romanian language fluently which is pivotal my proposed PhD project where I intend to study (Romanian) Roma migrants’ legal culture. Regarding my graduate studies, I will soon complete my Master’s Programme in Public Policy (major in Conflict Studies and Management) at the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy, University of Erfurt, Germany. I am currently working on my master thesis entitled “Rethinking Conflict in Post-Soviet Central Asia: Legal Anthropological Study of Everyday Micro-Level Conflicts in Uzbekistan”, which will be submitted for examination by June 16, 2017. My master’s thesis has direct relevance to socio-legal studies as I am utilising the socio-legal methods to investigate the everyday micro-level conflicts in Central Asia.
My main research interests revolve around the areas of socio-legal studies, migration, law and society, and legal pluralism. I am especially interested in conducting ethnographic studies and socio-legal research focusing on law and social change in non-Western societies that are making transition from traditional to modern (Western-style) forms of governance. My proposed research project on Roma migrants and their families is the starting point of this endeavour. In my proposed project, I draw on the case study of Roma migrants in Sweden and thereby aim to explore the impact of migratory processes on Romani legal culture. I also explore the role of social media and ICT in these processes as the livelihood of Roma migrants are becoming increasingly transnational due to technological developments.
My research project also contributes to the research agenda of the Department of Sociology of Law where there is a longstanding focus on the study of legal cultures. More specifically, the research project I propose lies at the intersection of the department’s four research themes: (a) legal cultures, (b) socio-legal perspectives on migration, (c) Internet and social media research and (d) research on Roma-related court cases. Therefore, one of the important reasons I plan to do my PhD at Sociology of Law Department is the possibility to collaborate with its faculty that is deeply focused on the issues that are directly relevant to my research interests.
In conclusion, I put myself forward as a future scholar specializing in socio-legal research. I have enclosed my curriculum vitae in order to provide you with detailed information about my academic background and qualifications. I will gladly provide any other supporting materials upon request. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,