Postdoctoral Scholarships

Every second year the GCSC awards three postdoctoral scholarships.

The scholarships are offered for a period of two years with a monthly stipend of approx. € 1,500. The current round of scholarships was announced in late 2009 and will start in October 2010, the deadline for applications is March 1st, 2010.

Eligibility

Candidates applying for a post-doctoral scholarship should hold a PhD in the arts/humanities, cultural studies, or social sciences, have an excellent academic record, and pursue a research project relevant to the GCSC’s research areas. Fluency in either English or German is required.

Acceptance of a scholarship requires active participation in the GCSC research programme and the wide-ranging events offered by the GCSC. scholarship holders are expected to take up residence in or near Giessen.

How to apply

We are delighted that you are interested in applying at the International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture. In the following, we will provide you with some information on our two-stage application process for doctoral and postdoctoral scholarships. Should you have any further questions, please see our Frequently Asked Questions section. You, too, are welcome to contact our team at any time at gcsc-application@uni-giessen.de.

First Stage

To apply for GCSC-scholarships, you will first be asked to fill in and submit our online application form and to upload the following documents before the current deadline:

• a 1-2 page cover letter, explaining your motives for applying at the GCSC;
• a short abstract of your research project (approx. 500 words), including the title of your project and a brief outline of the methodology you will use;
• a curriculum vitae.
• Please compile one single PDF-document containing all of the above documents (1-2 pp. cover letter, abstract, and CV) . This document should then be labeled according to the following format: Lastname_Firstname.pdf.
• Once you have created the PDF-file, please fill in our online application form. You can then upload your PDF-file as a part of the online form and submit your application by pressing the “send” button. You will receive an email confirming the submission of your application. Should you not receive this email, please check your spam filter before resending your application form.
• In addition, we require two letters of recommendation provided by university professors. Please make sure that these references reach the GCSC the announced deadline. References should be posted to the following address:
  
  Director Prof. Dr. Ansgar Nünning
  International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture
  Alter Steinbacher Weg 38
  35394 Giessen
  Germany
  
  Your two referees (who you will already have specified in your online application) can also send us their letters of recommendation directly, or email them to gcsc-application@uni-giessen.de.

2nd Stage

In the 2nd stage, we will notify you of the success of your application. Should you have been selected for the second stage of the application process, you will be requested to submit further documents supporting your application: For this second stage you will be asked to submit the following documents in print (unstapled) to the Director of the GCSC (see address above) by the announced deadline (date of receipt). Please do not submit any original documents or certificates. Only copies are required:

• Copies of your school and university transcripts
• A project proposal including a short summary, an overview of the research conducted so far, your topic and methodology as well as a selected bibliography. In your proposal, you should explain the connection of your research project to the GCSC’s research profile. Proposals of candidates applying for postdoctoral scholarships should not exceed 20 pages.
• A detailed schedule describing the specific stages of your work over a period of  two years (postdoctoral scholarship).
• Postdoctoral applicants are expected to provide a copy of their dissertation as well as further publications supporting their application, if available (printouts are sufficient in all cases).

Please note that we cannot return any material to you. We would thus ask you to not submit any original documents!

Your entire application will be sent to two internal referees. Together with their evaluation comments, your application will be submitted to the Selection Committee of the GCSC, who will compile a shortlist. We will notify you by the end of May whether you have been accepted as member of the GCSC and whether you will be invited to an interview for one of the GCSC-scholarships. These interviews are scheduled for the beginning of June 2009 and will take place at the GCSC.

We hope that you find this information helpful for preparing your application. Should you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our team at gcsc-application@uni-giessen.de.

We look forward to receiving your application!

Selection Process

On the basis of the applications, the distribution of places will be decided by the Selection Committee.

The selection of candidates will be determined by their academic qualifications as well as by the quality of their research proposal and the suitability of the project to the GCSC research programme. Short-listed candidates will be invited to a 30-minute interview, which will be scheduled after applications have been submitted.