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Published: 03 Feb 2023 820 views
As the joint institute for advanced studies of the University of Zurich, ETH Zurich, and the Zurich University of the Arts, the Collegium Helveticum facilitates research and artistic work across all disciplines. Located in the former Semper Observatory, the Collegium Helveticum provides a thriving intellectual atmosphere and ideal working conditions for its fellows and promotes exchange with the local scientific and cultural communities.
The application window for the fellow year 2023/24 is open until March 1, 2023. We look forward to receiving your application!
Our fellows are free to pursue their individual projects as outlined in their application and receive support from the Collegium’s team. Projects carried out at the Collegium may convince both by their relevance and originality, from applied science to blue-sky research. With its junior fellowship program, the Collegium Helveticum aims to support outstandingly promising academics and artists at a critical stage of their career. The program is designed to encourage work that transgresses disciplinary boundaries in unconventional ways. We also encourage small interdisciplinary teams of up to three people to apply with a joint project.
Junior fellows are early-career researchers working in academic or artistic disciplines at postdoctoral or equivalent level for art school graduates. We invite international applications as well as application from scholars and artists currently affiliated with one of the Collegium Helveticum’s supporting institutions, ETH Zurich, the University of Zurich (UZH), and the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK). The Collegium is a family friendly workplace. Therefore, applications proposing joint research in job-sharing will be considered.
A brief overview of more than 150 years of ETH Zurich history Established in 1855 as the Federal Polytechnic School, ETH Zurich has, from the outset, been a national centre for education with international appeal, attracting talent from all over the world. The successful combination of a cosmopolitan outlook with national roots made the young educational institution one of the driving forces behind industrialisation in Switzerland: it brought the necessary expertise into the country, trained technical specialists and helped set up groundbreaking national infrastructures. ... continue reading
| Application Deadline | 01 Mar 2023 |
| Country to study | Switzerland |
| School to study | ETH Zurich |
| Type | Fellowship |
| Sponsor | ETH Zurich |
| Gender | Men and Women |
Junior fellows receive a grant in the form of a 100 percent postdoctoral position at ETH Zurich for the duration of the fellowship paid in monthly instalments. The amount is based on ETH salary rates for postdoctoral researchers. As ETH Zurich employees, junior fellows who take care of children of minor age or children in education receive a family allowance in accordance with basic legal principles.
Junior fellowships are awarded to candidates who do not have a permanent academic position but do have a proven track record.
To be eligible, applicants need a doctorate in an academic discipline or a master’s degree from an art school.
The degree must have been obtained no longer than five years prior to the start of the fellowship.
An official confirmation of completion of degree from the respective university or art school is required and must be submitted with the application.
If you do not have a certificate by the time of application, please submit:
Care work (twelve months per child), career breaks, or parttime employment count against the five-year threshold and need to be documented and indicated in the CV with a brief explanation.
Junior fellowships at the Collegium Helveticum are not intended to support doctoral dissertations.
Timeline
- 7.th of March: Deadline (23:59 Central European Time)
- 7th of April: Information about invitation for interview
- 11./12th of April: Interviews, reserve dates!
- By 1st of May: Information regarding offer of Junior Fellowship
- By 15th of May: Confirmation of acceptance of offer by applicant
Selection procedure
The primary aim of the selection procedure is to select outstanding personalities with outstanding research projects. The secondary aim is to achieve a distribution of disciplinary backgrounds that reflects the breadth of the supporting institutions (ETHZ, UZH, ZHdK). Typically, this implies three junior fellows from the Natural Sciences / Engineering / Medicine, three junior fellows from the humanities and social sciences, and 2 junior fellows from art / design / music / architecture. The third aim is to assemble a group of fellows that is expected to benefit from each other.
1. Eligibility Check based on formal criteria
2. Internal Assessment by the directorate of the Collegium Heleveticum based on research project, proposed event, CV of applicant and support letter by potential Associated Fellow. This results in the creation of a longlist.
3. External Assessment of longlisted candidates by experts from the relevant disciplines. Assessments will be sought from experts within the supporting institutions (ETHZ, UZH, ZHdK) as well as outside. With the help of external assessment, the directorate of the Collegium Helveticum will compile a shortlist of 12-16 candidates. 4. Interviews of shortlisted candidates (30mins, online) by the directorate for personal impression and clarification of questions.
5. Proposed final list of Junior Fellows by the director of the Collegium Helveticum will be submitted to the Board of Trustees (ETH, UZH, ZHdK).
6. Final selection of Junior Fellows nominated by the Board of Trustees.
Duration and start date
Junior fellows spend ten months at the Collegium Helveticum, starting on September 1, 2023.
Please complete the form on the online application portal and upload the following documents in PDF format. We ask for your understanding that we can only accept complete applications.
1) Description of project and event: Please provide details about the project and the event you want to carry out within your fellowship using the PDF application form.
2) Letter of support from associate fellow: Letter of support as outlined in the information letter below. Please forward the instructions to your associate fellow. Note that you are responsible for uploading the completed letter of support.
3) Curriculum vitae including full list of publications and other relevant output.
4) Passport or ID: Copy of the first relevant pages of your passport. Swiss and EU/EFTA citizens can alternatively submit a copy of their ID (front and back).
5) Copy PhD/master certificate: Please upload an official certificate or official preliminary confirmation of your doctoral degree or equivalent artistic master’s degree (from an art school).
6) Supplementary information: Supplementary files as deemed necessary by the applicant.
Questions & contact
As we receive large numbers of applications, we ask for your understanding that we are limited in our ability to respond to questions. Hence, prior to contacting us at info(a)collegium.ethz.ch, please make sure to have read all available materials carefully. The clearer your question or needs, the easier and faster we can assist you.
We will not be able to answer questions about exceptions from eligibility criteria. If you have strong reasons why exemptions from the eligibility criteria should be made, please justify these reasons in a supplementary document and upload it with your application.
Further instructions
Please find below the documents with information and instructions that will help you with your application as a junior fellow at the Collegium Helveticum. You can also click the following link to download a zipped folder containing all documents.
Application form (PDF) Please use this PDF form to describe in detail your proposed project and event. We ask for title, aim (max. 600 characters), summary (max. 2’500 characters), and background (max. 3’900 characters) of the proposed project as well as a detailed work plan (max. 7’800 characters). In addition, we ask for a description (max. 3’900 characters) and approximate budget (max. 1’500 characters) for the event you would like to organize at the Collegium. To estimate the budget for the event, you can use the figures provided in this document for orientation. Finally, we ask you to describe why you think that the Collegium Helveticum is the right place for you and your project (max. 2’000 characters).
Please make sure to stay within the character limit—otherwise the PDF form will not accept text that you copy and paste.
Applications for the fellow year 2023/24 can be submitted until March 1, 2023 (23:59 CET). Online interviews with the applicants advancing to the next stage of the assessment are scheduled for April 11 and 12, 2023. Be sure to reserve these dates. Please find details on the timeline of the process and the selection procedure here. Please note that we exclusively accept applications submitted through the online application portal (see link at the bottom of this page). Applications via email or postal services will not be considered.
For more details visit: ETH Zurich website.