Deadline: October 16, 2026
Applications are open for the Max Weber Programme (MWP) at the European University Institute 2027-2028. The Max Weber Programme (MWP) at the European University Institute (EUI) is a unique postdoctoral programme in the historical, humanities and social sciences.
The Programme is highly selective, with an annual acceptance rate of <2%. A cohort consists typically of around 65 Fellows across the different academic units of the EUI (Economics, History, Law, Political and Social Sciences, the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies or the Florence School of Transnational Governance). Preference is given to applicants who have only just completed their doctorate and have not had a postdoctoral fellowship before. Selected Fellows will benefit from the stimulating combination of a global programme located in the heart of Europe offering a broad menu of multidisciplinary and disciplinary activities.
Benefits
- The grant provided by the Fellowship is currently 2,500 EUR per month plus – when appropriate – family allowances. Further benefits include health insurance and mission and research funds. During the second year, qualifying fellows will have the possibility of applying for a Part-time assistant professor contract (level ASSPR6/3) for 12 months involving some teaching duties and mentoring Ph.D. researchers: net remuneration would be approximately 850 EUR in addition to the monthly grant.
- Fellows are required to live in the area of Florence for the duration of their Fellowship so that they may play an active part in the programme and in the academic activities of their academic unit.
Eligibility
- Candidates of any nationality are eligible for the Max Weber Fellowships.
- Candidates must have received their Ph.D. within the past 5 years or have official approval to defend their thesis by the time of the start of the programme (1 September). This means to apply for 2027-28 candidates should have received or submitted their Ph.D. between 01/09/2022 and 01/09/2027 and the Ph.D. defence should take place no later than 31/12/2027.
- Extensions to the five-year rule are allowed for applicants whose academic career has been interrupted for maternity or paternity leave, illness or mandatory military service. Cite circumstances in the application form in the field ‘Additional Notes’. Successful candidates will be asked to provide supporting documents.
- Early-stage researchers who are at the EUI at the time of the application deadline are not eligible for the Max Weber Fellowship. This refers to those enrolled in the EUI Doctoral Programme, or employed by or on a fellowship hosted by the EUI. Those who have formerly been at the EUI can apply for a Fellowship after having been continuously away from the EUI in a full-time occupation or fellowship for at least one year by the application deadline.
- The expected level of English proficiency is level C1 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). An English certificate is not requested as part of the application, but successful candidates will be requested to provide a certificate/supporting document on registration. This can be one of the international certificates listed below, or a document showing that the candidate has written the doctorate, or published an article or a book chapter of at least 6,000 words, in English, or has pursued post-graduate studies in an English language degree programme. Native English speakers are exempt from proof.
Application
Requested Documents include:
- CV with a list of publications in PDF.
- ‘Academic career statement’ (1 page) as a PDF. The purpose of this statement is for you to indicate why you think the MW Programme, particularly the Academic Practice Activities, will benefit you. It should indicate your research and teaching interests and experience, and career plans.
- ‘Research proposal’ (2 pages) as a PDF. The proposal must be clear and well structured, with well-defined and realistic goals that can be achieved within the duration of the fellowship. If you are applying for a 24-month Fellowship, you should indicate in the research proposal what you aim to achieve 1) in the first 12 months and 2) what you hope to do in months 13-24. Also include a reflection on how gender and diversity are relevant to your proposed research during your Max Weber Fellowship. In the context of the social sciences and humanities, this may involve examining how categories such as gender, racial or ethnic background, class, sexuality, age, religion, disability, or other dimensions of identity and inequality shape your research topic, questions, theoretical framework, methodology, sources, or expected findings. If such aspects are not central to your project, you are encouraged to briefly explain why or reflect on how they might relate to the broader context or implications of your work.
- A copy of your passport (JPEG).
- Use standard international fonts, do not use macros, special characters, password-protection.
- The Academic career statement and Research proposal should also meet the requirements established by the EUI Guidelines for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence for Research. In particular, candidates should refrain from having Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) autonomously write substantial or integral parts of the documents. When using AI to produce novel content, they must acknowledge and reference the parts of the content that have been AI-generated.
Letters of Reference:
- Applicants should provide the names of a minimum of two and a maximum of three academic referees and ensure that at least two letters of reference are submitted online directly by the referees by the deadline 16 October 2026 (14:00 CEST). References will not be accepted after the deadline.
- References from current full-time or part-time EUI professors will not be accepted.
For more information, visit Max Weber Programme.
