Prerequisites
Intellectual curiosity, openness to other disciplines, and willingness to engage with topics beyond one’s own research specialty are decisive prerequisites for a fruitful Fellow residency.
The ideal candidates for Fellowships are able to articulate, reflect upon, and explore the basic assumptions of their disciplines on the basis of detailed, well-grounded research that meets the highest standards of those disciplines. The Wissenschaftskolleg seeks originality without eccentricity and solidity without stolidity.
Applications from early career researchers are welcome. We expect that they will have published at least one monograph (in the case of researchers in the humanities) or several articles in renowned periodicals (natural and social sciences).
There are special opportunities for early career researchers in the life sciences within the framework of the College for Life Sciences.
A doctorate is generally required from Fellows conducting scholarly and scientific research.
The Fellows live and work on the small campus of the Wissenschaftskolleg in the Grunewald district of Berlin. A premium is placed upon intellectual sociability, including participation in the weekly colloquium and meals with the other Fellows. Research that requires long-term absence (in laboratories, archives, or other external institutions) is thus not suited for a Fellowship.
The Wissenschaftskolleg is an international institution and at least passive knowledge of English is required. However, Fellowships are regularly awarded to scholars working and publishing in other languages.
Applications should include the following documents:
- a current curriculum vitae with a list of publications;
- one or two recent articles (in German, English, or French if at all possible) that are characteristic of the applicant’s most significant research work and/or related to the proposed research topic;
- a description of the project planned for the applicant’s stay in Berlin (3-5 pages); an introductory section (max. 200 words) should explain the project’s significance to readers from other disciplines. The description should also briefly summarize extant work in this area of research (state of the art) and how the project would advance the current state of knowledge.
Applications can be submitted via the Wissenschaftskolleg's electronic platform.