Postdoctoral Fellowship Program 2024 – 2025
Call for Applications
Download the Postdoctoral Fellowship Program 2024-2025 application as a PDF.
The International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation (IICSI) invites applications for one (1) twelve-month residential postdoctoral fellowship position to be held at the University of Guelph.
The International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation’s mandate is to create positive social change through the confluence of improvisational arts, innovative scholarship, and collaborative action. IICSI is a multi-locale research partnership hosted at the University of Guelph, with sites at McGill University; Memorial University of Newfoundland; University of British Columbia; University of Regina; Carleton University; 17, Institute of Critical Studies (Mexico City); and Queen’s University Belfast. IICSI seeks to contribute to interdisciplinary research and graduate training in the emerging field of improvisation studies.
Duration and Compensation
This will be a twelve-month residential postdoctoral fellowship for September 2024 to August 2025 (start time has some flexibility). The postdoctoral fellowship provides stipendiary support, valued at $40,500 CAD, to recent PhD graduates who are undertaking original research, publishing research findings, and developing and expanding personal research networks.
A teaching offer may also be made to the postdoctoral fellow, contingent on the candidate’s areas of expertise, budgetary restrictions, and the needs of the program. If such an offer is accepted by the candidate, a teaching stipend of $8,000 CAD will be added to the candidate’s annual salary. In addition, the College of Arts will provide an annual research stipend of $2,500 CAD.
Location of Appointments
Candidates will be expected to spend a minimum of 3 days per week on campus at the University of Guelph (Guelph, ON) to facilitate social, cultural, and intellectual engagement.
Application Criteria
Applicants are invited to submit a research proposal focusing on the social implications (broadly construed) of improvised artistic practices. Successful candidates will be chosen based on a rigorous application process, with IICSI’s management team serving as the selection committee.
Criteria for selection are the quality and originality of the proposed research, the fit with our institute’s overall mandate and objectives, the candidate’s record of scholarly achievement, and the candidate’s potential to benefit from activities associated with IICSI. Postdoctoral fellows will be eligible for competitive research stipends, logistical assistance for relocation (if required), office space equipped with computers, access to the services of the host institution (library, etc.), and administrative, placement, and research assistance as needed. In return, fellows are expected to pursue the research projects submitted in their application, to participate in the Institute’s research and community-engaged activities (colloquia, seminars, partnered projects), and to present their work in progress in the context of the Institute’s seminars and workshops.
Applicants should have completed a PhD at the time of application (to be conferred by November 1, 2024).
Application Requirements
Applicants must send the following materials via email as a single document by May 1, 2024:
- A curriculum vitae
- One scholarly paper or publication or one research/creation output produced in the last three years
- A statement (1,500 words or less) describing the proposed research project
- Graduate transcript(s) (unofficial transcripts accepted)
- A 250-word JEDI statement (justice, equity, diversity, inclusion)
- Indication of language proficiencies
Two confidential letters of reference must be emailed to IICSI directly by the candidate’s referees before the deadline.
Please note that we are unable to provide individual feedback to candidates not awarded fellowships.
Please send your application to IICSI’s Project Manager, Julia Busatto, at [email protected].
Notification of Award: July 2024
IICSI’s postdoctoral fellowship is supported in part by funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
See our FAQ page for questions about the application criteria and more.
