Post-Doctoral Residential Research & Teaching Fellowship

Guidelines

The Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies at the University of Virginia invites scholars whose work focuses on Africa and/or the African Diaspora to apply for a two-year post-doctoral research and teaching fellowship, beginning August 25, 2010 and ending August 24, 2012. This residential fellowship is a two year appointment and carries an annual salary of $45,000 plus benefits.

Deadlines

Applications and application materials (transcripts and letters of reference) must be received by Tuesday, December 1, 2009 for consideration.

Fellowship appointment begins: August 25, 2010

Eligibility

The competition for the Woodson Institute fellowship is open to qualified candidates without restriction as to citizenship or current residence. Former employees of the University of Virginia may not apply against a deadline which falls within the twelve months immediately following the termination of their University of Virginia employment. Applicants for the post-doctoral fellowship must have been awarded their Ph.D. by the time of application or furnish proof that it will be received prior to June 30, 2010.  Post-doctoral applicants must have been awarded their Ph.D. no earlier than 2002.

Please note: Individuals may not apply for the Woodson predoctoral and post-doctoral fellowships at the same time.

Conditions

The post-doctoral fellow must be in residence at the University of Virginia for the duration of the award period, and must agree to teach one course per year in the African-American and African Studies program to be offered in the Fall or the Spring. Woodson fellows are expected to participate in the series of workshops (about twice monthly) and to make at least one formal presentation of their work to the University community.

How to apply

To apply, please submit a candidate profile through Jobs@UVA; search on Posting Number 0604560. Applications must be received and completed by Tuesday, December 1, 2009.

The following materials, with the exception of the letters of reference, should be uploaded to Jobs@UVA

• Letter of application (250-word maximum) stating interest in the program.
• Curriculum Vitae, which should include the following: personal information; date(s) and location(s) of degree(s) earned; honors and awards; lectures and conference presentations; publications; names of referees.
• The project abstract, including title, not to exceed 50 words.
• A project description, including title, not to exceed seven double-spaced pages (1,750 words). It should indicate the nature of the research to be completed during the period of the fellowship award, as well as the significance of this work. The project description should include a detailed plan of research and revision giving concrete objectives to be achieved during the award period. For post-doctoral candidates, the objectives should include a statement of publication plans for the proposed research and writing. Project descriptions exceeding seven double-spaced pages will not be considered.
• Working Bibliography not to exceed four double-spaced pages.  The bibliography should list those scholarly works that the applicant considers most important to the intellectual development of the project.
• Three confidential letters of reference (signed originals only) to be sent directly to the Woodson Institute by persons qualified to evaluate the proposal for which support is being sought.  The deadline for receipt of the letters is December 1, 2009.

Reference letters should be sent to:

Selection Committee
Residential Research Fellowships
The Carter G. Woodson Institute
108 Minor Hall
P.O. Box 400162
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4162

Review Procedure

All applications and supporting documents will be reviewed by a committee constituted of Woodson Institute Faculty and Affiliates according to the following research and teaching missions of the Institute:

1) We value research that is at the cutting edge of the fields of African American Studies, African Studies, and Afro-Caribbean Studies, and in those disciplines within the humanities and social sciences traditionally attuned to these fields.

2) Although candidates may be positioned critically in traditional disciplines, their work must be rigorously interdisciplinary without diminishing intellectual depth.

3) Such work should advance received scholarship in the fields of African American, African, and Afro-Caribbean Studies – its key theories, methods, themes, and problems.

3) We especially seek work that elucidates the trans-continental experiences and discourses related to the social, historical, and cultural construction of people of African descent through both traditional and recent approaches -- Pan-Africanism, Afrocentrism, Trans-Atlantic Studies, African Diaspora Studies, critical race theory, and cultural studies.

4) We seek work that advances theories on the construction of race, and race in relation to other social identities – class, gender, sexuality, nationality, disability – as well as that which focuses on refining methods of interdisciplinary scholarship on race.

5) We encourage research in these fields that engage the professions -- law, medicine, social work, public policy, education, architecture and planning -- in innovative ways.

6) We will favor candidates whose research can be readily adapted for the creation of courses and pedagogies directly pertinent to the Institute's curriculum in African American and Diasporic studies.

Proposals will be judged on the basis of the following criteria:

• The significance of the proposed work
• The qualifications of the applicant
• Familiarity with existing relevant research literature
• The research design of the project
• The promise of completion within the award period
• Preference will be given to applicants whose field research is already substantially completed.

Notification

Applicants will be notified by mail of the committee's decision in early March 2010.