PostdocLab | College UA Ruhr

Idea and Objective

The PostdocLab enables postdoctoral researchers from the University Alliance Ruhr to build up to three cross-university collaborative working groups. Each group will work on a research topic of their own choice. Funded for a period of 1.5 years, the working groups will be provided with financial resources for academic activities that allow aspiring postdocs to further develop their academic profiles and promote the establishment of sustainable academic networks within the Ruhr region and beyond. Each working group may consist of up to three members. The PostdocLab is fundamentally open for both discipline-specific and interdisciplinary working groups.

Funding Period

The working groups of the PostdocLab will be funded from 15 October 2024 until 14 April 2026.

Benefits

The PostdocLab offers attractive conditions for postdocs who strive for a long-term academic career and seek to expand their experience in both planning and carrying out collaborative research projects. During the funding period, each working group member will receive a budget of €11,500, which can be spent, for example, on joint events (conferences, workshops, etc.), collaborative surveys, joint publications, archival initiatives, formats for science communication, citizen science projects, student assistants, or research trips. Considered as associate members of the College for Social Sciences and Humanities, the working groups can hold their meetings at the College in Essen, whose representative facilities are equipped with high-standard technology for (hybrid) lectures, workshops, meetings, and other events.

Eligibility Criteria

The PostdocLab is open for applications from postdocs who

• are active members of a research institute in the social sciences and/or humanities within the University Alliance Ruhr (both at the time of application and during the entire funding period of the PostdocLab),
• are at R2 or R3 level (according to the EU’s categorisation of academic career levels),
• strive for a permanent career in academia and seek to expand their academic network within the Ruhr region and beyond,
• have obtained their doctorate with excellent results in a discipline in the social sciences and/or humanities,
• can ensure regular on-site presence in the Ruhr region during the funding period of the PostdocLab.

How to Apply

Applications must be prepared and submitted by the members of a prospective working group. Consisting of a maximum of three members, each working group is expected to represent at least two of the member universities of the University Alliance Ruhr (Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen). To ensure sustainable networking opportunities with international researchers, each working group is also expected to integrate at least one scholar from abroad into its research activities (e.g., co-organising a hybrid workshop/conference, conducting a collaborative study).

Applications must include:

• a brief outline of the intended research collaboration that provides information on the topic, objectives, and activities of the planned working group, the expected costs of these activities (e.g., conferences, publications, surveys, research trips), and the potential integration of at least one international scholar into the working group’s activities (written in English or German with up to 10,000 characters incl. spaces),
• a current CV of each working group member (including information on the grading of the doctorate),
• a letter of support issued by each group member’s supervisor, guaranteeing the free use of the allocated funds as well as the necessary freedom to participate in the intended working group at the PostdocLab.

Applications shall be submitted via e-mail in a single PDF (5 MB max.) to: application@college-uaruhr.de.

The application deadline is 12 August 2024 (23:59 CEST).

The selection of the working groups will take place in the beginning of September 2024, selected groups will be informed shortly thereafter. The selection committee may conduct interviews via video conference as part of the selection process.

With questions regarding the PostdocLab, please contact Dr Mark Halawa-Sarholz.