reference number MWK_01/2025

The Max Weber Centre for Advanced Cultural and Social Studies of the University of Erfurt (Max-Weber-Kolleg) announces Fellowships for the academic year 2026/27:

Distinguished Fellowships (f/m/x)
Art of contract and financial remuneration depending on the personal situation.

Area of Responsibility

• excellent interdisciplinary research within the framework of our Weberian re-search programme "Comparative Cultural Analysis of Weltbeziehungen " (see website) from sociology, religious studies, history, economics, law, philosophy and theology or related disciplines
• interdisciplinary cooperation with scholars from different regions, cultures and generations

What we expect

• PhD degree and – if applicable – habilitation or equivalent
• excellent research record
• experience and interest in interdisciplinary research
• scientific curiosity and willingness to exchange ideas

What we offer
Fellowships can be awarded for 3 to 10 months; they should be scheduled to start 1 October 2026 or 1 April 2027 until end of July 2027.

The financial agreement aims to enable the invited Fellows to stay at the Max-Weber-Kolleg based on the principle of “no gain, no loss”. The fellowship programme manager will work with successful candidates to determine the exact terms of their appointments. As a rule, university professors are given paid leave of absence from their home institution for the period of their activity at the Max-Weber-Kolleg. If necessary, the Max-Weber-Kolleg reimburses the Fellow’s home university for the costs of a substitute – up to the amount of the Fellow’s salary or up to the maximum of 7.500 EUR/month incl. taxes, whichever is lower.

Fellows will be provided housing, if possible, in the International Guest House of the University of Erfurt. Costs related to the stay in Erfurt (travel costs and a lump sum) will be reimbursed.

Comments/Remarks
Fellows will be selected in a multi-level procedure:

1. Eligibility check by directors

2. Reviews by experts

3. Interviews with the selection committee

4. Shortlist by selection committee

5. Pre-selection/advice by advisory board

6. Decision by Kollegrat

The Fellows will find a supportive research and working environment; the staff helps concerning administrative issues (mobility, proofreading, organisational matters etc.); student assistants may help concerning academic issues (bibliography, editing, copying, organisation of workshops etc.).

If you have a foreign university degree, it is necessary that you apply for a certificate application at the Central Office for Foreign Education (Zentralstelle für ausländisches Bildungswesen, ZAB). We recommend that you attach the corresponding certificate to your application documents, but you can also provide this certificate at a later stage of the process. Please note that this is a chargeable service provided by the ZAB. For more information, please visit https://zab.kmk.org/de/zeugnisbewertung (https://zab.kmk.org/de/zeugnisbewertung) .

The University of Erfurt sees itself as an open-minded employer that values diversity. It is committed to diversity and gender equality and welcomes applications that contrib-ute to this. The University of Erfurt has successfully passed the "shaping diversity" audit, has been audited as a "family-friendly university" and regulary participates successfully in the female professor programme of the federal and state governments. One of the university's strategic goals is increasing the proportion of women in research and teaching. Qualified female scientists are therefore particularly encouraged to apply. Severely disabled persons and those with equal status are given preference in the case of equal suitability, professional performance, and ability. It should be noted that even in the case of a repeated application or previous employment at the University of Erfurt, explicit reference must be made to the severe disability or equal status in the application, as this information is not automatically taken into account in the present procedure for data protection and organizational reasons.

For questions regarding content, please contact apl. Prof. Dr. Bettina Hollstein: bettina.hollstein@uni-erfurt.de (mailto:bettina.hollstein@uni-erfurt.de) .

Application and Deadline
Please send your complete application (curriculum vitae, list of publications, files of either two peer-reviewed journal articles or your own monograph, letter of motivation including the name of a member or alumnus of the Max-Weber-Kolleg who could make a recommendation, exposé of a research project (up to 3000 words) with work plan and overview of the most important project-specific publications) exclusively online (https://jobs.uni-erfurt.de/en/jobposting/575a748a01d22412d826b4feff4e644cdd60ce960/apply) via the application management system of the University Erfurt by 31 August 2025 .

Reimbursement of Expenses
The University of Erfurt does not refund any costs incurred in the application process.

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