ICAS:MP is funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and has its main location in New Delhi, India, though the research conducted at the centre is not restricted to India and South Asia. It offers fellowships for senior researchers and a smaller number of outstanding postdoctoral scholars who work on at least one of the ICAS:MP research themes (TM=Thematic Modules).

Thematic Modules of ICAS:MP which offer Fellowships in 2021/2022:

TM1: History as a Political Category
TM3: Critiques and Renewals of Democracy
TM4: Normative Conflicts and Transformations
TM5: The Challenge of Gender
TM6: Political Economy of Growth and Distribution
TM 7: Media and the Constitution of the Political

We particularly encourage applications relating to the next cohort’s overarching theme „Crises and the Political“ by investigating the current pandemic, or other past or contemporary crises.

Additional notes: In TM 5, fellows conducting comparative research on the politics of gender and ways in which power and powerlessness are constructed in economic, social and cultural fields will be preferred, particularly researchers exploring gender dimensions of Religion, Performance, Reproduction, Violence or International Relations. TM 2 „Labour as a Political Category“ does not offer Fellowships in 2021/22.

Application Details and Fellowship Terms & Conditions:

The fellowships are open to applicants of all nationalities. We particularly welcome applicants based at German and Indian academic institutions. Interested scholars from related social sciences and humanities disciplines working on thematic fields relevant to ICAS:MP are invited to apply. The research project must be related to the research programme of a thematic module and to the broader ICAS:MP research agenda. For detailed module descriptions please consult the website of ICAS:MP (https://micasmp.hypotheses.org/).

Senior Fellowships are for up to 6 months. ICAS:MP will either pay a stipend or reimburse a teaching substitute in the home institution of the successful candidates. Fellows also receive travel costs and allowances for housing and other costs in Delhi. Senior Fellows are professors or have a record of at least ten years substantial (institutional or independent) academic work following the Ph.D., or a high-quality research and publications profile.

(Postdoctoral) Fellowships can be awarded for up to 7 months. ICAS:MP will pay a stipend which includes allowances for housing and other costs in Delhi. Fellowship recipients will also be reimbursed for their travel costs. Fellows must have a PhD degree, and shall have successfully completed all requirements for their PhD by March 2021.

Please note that this is a residential writing fellowship based at ICAS:MP in New Delhi. Fellows should work on a topic for which the major part of research is already completed by the beginning of the fellowship. During the fellowship period, absences for fieldwork or archival research outside of Delhi should not exceed one month for a fellowship with a duration of seven months.

Should travel still be restricted, or not advisable due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we may (partly) offer virtual fellowships or temporary additional work spaces at one of ICAS:MP’s partner institutions in Germany. Collaboration and exchange between Fellows would then be enabled through digital media.

Applicants are expected to possess adequate language skills in English as well as other languages that are relevant to their research proposal.

Application materials:
- Completed Application Form: Completed Applicant Information form (please download at https://micasmp.hypotheses.org/files/2020/08/ICASMP_ApplicationForm_2020-1.docx )
- Application: Single PDF comprising list of publications; project description of 3000 words including description of relevance and fit with ICAS:MP research theme; research schedule for the fellowship period
- Cover letter: 1 page, outlining your research experience and academic qualifications
- (Postdoctoral) Fellows should also provide (1) an academic reference letter (the referee should submit this directly to Prateek Batra: batra@mwsindia.org); (2) a copy of their Ph.D. degree or a letter from their supervisor/department head confirming that they will have completed all requirements for the Ph.D. degree at the latest in March 2021.

All materials should be sent by email to Prateek Batra (batra@mwsindia.org) by 31.10.2020. Late applications will not be considered.

Enquiries related to academic content:

TM 1: Prof. Shail Mayaram, CSDS Delhi (shail@csds.in); Dr. Indra Sengupta, GHI London (isengupta@ghil.ac.uk)

TM 3: Prof. Rupa Viswanath, CeMIS Göttingen (rupa.viswanath@gmail.com); Prof. Amita Basviskar, IEG Delhi (amita.baviskar@gmail.com); Prof. Srirupa Roy, CeMIS Göttingen (srirupa.roy@sowi.uni-goettingen.de)

TM 4: Prof. Rajeev Bhargava, CSDS Delhi (rbhargav4@gmail.com); Prof. Martin Fuchs, MWK Erfurt (martin.fuchs@uni-erfurt.de)

TM 5: Prof. Elisabeth Schömbucher-Kusterer, Würzburg (elisabeth.schoembucher-kusterer@uni-wuerzburg.de), Prof. Janaki Nair, JNU Delhi (nair.janaki@gmail.com); Prof. Jörg Gengnagel, Würzburg (joerg.gengnagel@uni-wuerzburg.de)

TM 6: Prof. Oliver Kessler, Erfurt (oliver.kessler@uni-erfurt.de); Prof. Sebastian Vollmer, Göttingen (sebastian.vollmer@wiwi.uni-goettingen.de); Prof. Malavika Subramanyam, IIT Gandhinagar (malavika@iitgn.ac.in)

TM 7: Prof. Ravi Vasudevan, CSDS Delhi (Vasudevan.rs@gmail.com ); Prof. Srirupa Roy, CeMIS Göttingen (srirupa.roy@sowi.uni-goettingen.de)

For all general enquiries, e.g. terms of conditions of the fellowship and financial compensation, please contact Mr. Prateek Batra, ICAS:MP New Delhi (batra@mwsindia.org).