Deadline: May 25, 2024
Applications are open for the Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) Emerging Fellows Programme 2024-2025. This 12-month program helps emerging researchers in the Arab region, who have not received their doctorate for more than three years, pursue their research and plans to publish it, participate in research networks in the Arab region, and plan a research career in the Arab region.
In this type of fellowship, the Arab Council for the Social Sciences strongly encourages applicants to move around. During the fellowship period, they particularly encourage applicants to plan to reside in another country in the region, and to associate with an institution or mentor in a different country than their current country or country of residence; Applicants must submit a well-thought-out and robust plan for institutional engagement and mentorship; In all cases, they should look for new institutional connections and mentors other than those they have already worked with. This initiative complements the Council’s efforts to support and encourage social sciences in the Arab region, especially in terms of investing in a new generation of researchers in the field of social sciences.
This program is funded through a grant provided to the Arab Council for the Social Sciences from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Benefits
- The fellowship provides full support for 12 months (including living expenses as well as research expenses) ranging between $20,000 and $36,000. The total amount is linked to price levels in the country in which the candidate proposes to reside during the fellowship period, as well as whether the candidate has other sources of income during the fellowship period. If the applicant qualifies for shortlisting, he will be asked to submit a budget estimating the cost of living, the cost of research, and specifying whether he has other sources of funding and/or income during the fellowship period.
Eligibility
- Applicants must have the nationality of an Arab country (by Arab state they mean the country affiliated with the League of Arab States) or refugees and/or stateless persons from Arab countries currently residing in the Arab region. Arab researchers residing outside the region are eligible to participate in the program, but only if they hold Arab nationality or are refugees and/or stateless, and do not hold a permanent professorship and/or do not have access to the research resources of the institution where they work. and/or the countries in which they reside when submitting the application. All researchers, including those residing outside the Arab region upon application, are expected to spend the 12-month fellowship period in the Arab region.
- This program targets researchers who have not received a doctorate degree in the social sciences for more than three years (the degree may be obtained from Arab countries or abroad). Candidates must have a doctoral degree at the time of application. Candidates who obtained their doctorate before 2021 are not eligible for this program.
- Candidates must submit a project proposal (between 10 and 15 pages) that builds on their doctoral thesis. Proposals that are not based on or related to the doctoral thesis are not accepted. The proposal should demonstrate the candidates’ academic qualifications and identify an important research question. Candidates must also submit a publication plan that is realistically aligned with the fellowship schedule. Fellows must also write a three-year professional plan that defines their ambitions and expectations in pursuing their professional future. This should include details of the type of career (teaching or research), the types of institutions they plan to consider and the countries.
- When submitting the application, candidates must submit a letter from an academic advisor working at an institution in the Arab region expressing his willingness to provide administrative and academic support and supervision to the fellowship holder throughout the duration of the fellowship itself. In addition, candidates must submit a letter from the proposed host institution addressed to the Arab Council for the Social Sciences confirming the ability of this institution to host the candidate during the fellowship period.
Selection Criteria
An interdisciplinary selection committee consisting of distinguished Arab academics with established research and publication records and regional research and teaching experience will review and select the proposals that will be awarded funding. Selection procedures adhere to the highest standards of academic and ethical arbitration.
Final decisions are based on the following evaluation criteria:
- Contribution of the research proposal to knowledge (research questions, importance, quality and originality)
- Feasibility of the proposed research plan (realistic time frame and research methods)
- Candidate’s competence (academic qualifications, current and potential publications)
- Candidate’s postdoctoral plan (choice of mentor, institutional affiliation, and plans to conduct research during the pandemic)
- Expected outputs (planned publications and career plan)
Application
Candidates must register on the application platform of the Arab Council for the Social Sciences and fill out the information to create their own page, then fill out the electronic form for the Emerging Fellows Program, and attach it to the following supporting documents:
- A detailed CV including publications
- A one-page letter explaining the purpose of submitting the application
- Proof of Arab nationality or residency in the Arab region ( a copy of a valid passport or identity card)
- A project proposal (between 10 and 15 pages) explaining the activities that the candidate will work on throughout the fellowship period. We draw your attention to the fact that all proposals will be reviewed through an electronic system to monitor plagiarism.
- A letter from an academic advisor who works at an institution in the region expressing his willingness to supervise the candidate’s work and guide him throughout the proposed fellowship period.
- A detailed CV of the academic advisor.
- A copy of the doctoral certificate.
- An official letter from the proposed host institution, addressed to the Arab Council for the Social Sciences, confirming the ability of this institution to host the candidate during the fellowship period.
For more information, visit ACSS.
