Call for Applications: International Senior Fellowship Programme

The College for Social Sciences and Humanities is a new Institute for Advanced Study which was founded in 2021 under the umbrella of the Research Alliance Ruhr, a joint research initiative of the University of Duisburg-Essen, the Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University within the framework of the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr). Based in Essen/Germany and located in one of Europe’s densest and most vibrant academic landscapes, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities offers an excellent academic environment for outstanding international visiting researchers who seek to work on a research project of their own choice in close collaboration with local tandem partners from the UA Ruhr.

The International Senior Fellowships will be awarded for 6 months and may start on 1 March 2024 or 1 September 2024.

International Senior Fellowships will be awarded to advanced and highly established senior researchers (preferably R4 level) who

• are active members of a foreign university or research institution
• have an outstanding research profile in the social sciences and/or the humanities (proven primarily by a significant track record of excellent publications)
• have completed their doctorate at least 6 years prior to their application
• seek to initiate or enhance a research collaboration with a fellow colleague from the UA Ruhr

As all international senior fellows will collaborate with a fellow scholar from the UA Ruhr during the period of their residency, applicants are asked to identify a matching tandem partner from the UA Ruhr in the course of their application.

Tandem partnerships can be established with advanced, highly experienced senior researchers (at least R3 level) from one of the three member universities of the UA Ruhr (i.e., University of Duisburg-Essen, Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University) working in the field of the social sciences and/or the humanities. In addition to being an integral part of a joint research collaboration during the fellowship, the tandem partners will actively integrate the international senior fellows into the academic landscape of the UA Ruhr.

Depending on the fellow’s individual situation, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities is able to offer the following funding options:

• Fellows who are granted leave of absence with continued payment of their salary from their home institution receive a general allowance € 3,050 per month (pre-tax), a family allowance of € 250 per month (if applicable) and a mobility allowance of € 125 per month covering relocation costs.
• Fellows who are granted leave of absence without continued payment of their salary from their home institution can be funded by means of a compensation agreement within reasonable limits (usually equivalent to a W3 professorship with approximately € 7,100 pre-tax per month). Alternatively, fellows may receive a monthly grant of € 5,000 (pre-tax.).
• If required, the College can also cover the costs for a substitute of the fellow at the home institution within reasonable limits.

To support research collaborations between the international senior fellows and their tandem partners, each fellowship includes an individual budget of € 7,500 max. (€ 1,250 per month) for joint workshops, conferences, publications, etc.

Travel expenses for arrival and for departure after the fellowship can be partially reimbursed. Visa costs will be reimbursed entirely. Costs for accommodation, health insurance and other expenses need to be covered by the fellows.

All international senior fellows will be offered a single office space in the premises of the College for Social Sciences and Humanities. Facilities there include meeting and conference rooms equipped with modern technology allowing the organisation of (hybrid) events, such as workshops, lectures, and conferences. In addition to an individual IT support, there will also be a personal library service. Further support will be provided by a professional fellow management.

During their fellowship, the international senior fellows are expected to

• live and work in the Ruhr area
• be present in the premises of the College at least three days a week
• actively take part in the weekly colloquium of the College as well as in other academic activities of the College (conferences, lectures, reading groups, etc.)
• collaborate with the tandem partner on a regular basis
• organise at least one event (e.g., workshop, lecture, seminar) with the tandem partner.

The international senior fellows are also expected to mention the College for Social Sciences and Humanities in publications deriving from the residency.

The working language of the College is English, knowledge of German is not mandatory.

Based in one of Europe’s richest and most diversified academic landscapes, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities offers its international senior fellows various opportunities for academic exchange and networking. With more than 14,000 researchers, the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr) is home to 20 collaborative research centres, 13 research training groups and dozens of research projects funded by the German Research Foundation, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research or the European Research Council, to name but a few. The universities of Dusseldorf, Cologne, Bonn, Aachen, Munster, Siegen and Bielefeld are all in close proximity and may be reached easily by train, just as the cities of Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Antwerp and many other destinations in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. All member universities of the UA Ruhr maintain close ties with prestigious national and international research institutions, such as the Max Planck Society and the Leibniz Association, and European university networks, such as Aurora and UNIC. Fellows may also profit from various local collaborative research centres in the social sciences and humanities and research partnerships with regional institutions, such as the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen. A great variety of renowned museums, theatres, galleries, archives and many other cultural institutions also adds to the attractive environment of the Ruhr region. Furthermore, the international senior fellows will be in close contact with interdisciplinary research professorships and junior research groups which reside in the premises of the College as well.

Along with four new research centres focussing on “One Health”, “Chemical Sciences and Sustainability”, “Trustworthy Date Science and Security” and “Future Energy Materials and Systems”, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities is part of the Research Alliance Ruhr, a research initiative founded in 2021 by the University of Duisburg-Essen, the Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University under the umbrella of the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr). Funded by the Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Research Alliance seeks to establish the Ruhr area as a vibrant metropolis of knowledge and a hub for cutting-edge science. To this end, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities is currently hiring international top scientists and hosts a new Senior Fellowship Programme for outstanding international senior researchers who can use their residency in Essen for a research collaboration with fellow scholars from the UA Ruhr.

Applicants are asked to fill out an application form available via the following link:► APPLICATION FORM [At this time it is not possible to apply. Please wait for the next call for applications.]

Along with a brief outline of the planned research project and the intended tandem collaboration (written in English and with up to 10,000 characters incl. blanks max.), applications must provide information on:

• the preferred starting date of the fellowship
• the applicant’s preferred funding option
• the name of the potential tandem partner (incl. a letter of intent in which the potential tandem partner confirms the willingness to collaborate with the applicant during the residency)
• the desired outcome/goal of the fellowship and tandem collaboration (e.g., joint conference, publication, grant proposal)
• CV (incl. a list of the applicant’s five most important publications)

Deadline for applications is 27 August 2023 (midnight, CET).

The selection of fellows will take place in September 2023, selected fellows will be informed by October 2023.

For detailed information on the International Senior Fellowship Programme, please read the ► FAQs.

For questions in regard to the International Senior Fellowship Programme, please contact the Managing Director of the College, Dr. Mark Halawa-Sarholz (email: college@uaruhr.de, phone: +49 201 183-8224).

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