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FACULTY RESIDENTIAL FELLOWSHIPS

Each year the Franke Institute for the Humanities awards a limited number of Faculty Residential Fellowships to members of the University of Chicago faculty who are engaged in interdisciplinary projects. The Franke will make up to eight awards for 2025-26; the deadline for receipt of applications is Friday, February 14th at 11:59 p.m. Applications should be uploaded to the Franke Institute's Call for Proposals for Franke Faculty Fellowships on the University's InfoReady platform; please see instructions below.

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Residential Faculty Fellows are relieved of all teaching responsibilities for all three quarters of the award year and are in residence at the Franke Institute for the full year. Department chairs are encouraged to free Fellows from regular committee and advisory responsibilities for the full year. The Institute provides $750 for research expenses connected with the proposal, quiet and isolated office space, and basic administrative support for all Fellows. In collaboration with the Humanities Collegiate Division, it also makes available a limited number of trained research assistants to aid Fellows with their projects. Fellows are encouraged to propose activities (symposia, visiting lectures, etc.) relevant to their research topics for possible funding by the Franke Institute during the year.

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The Franke Faculty Residential Fellowship comes with only one obligation (in addition to pursuing the stated research project): attendance at regular lunchtime workshops along with the other Residential Fellows. On each occasion one Fellow presents their project and the group discusses a pre-circulated paper or manuscript. These gatherings occur roughly every two weeks for ninety minutes and are at the heart of the intellectual community of the Institute. Under ordinary circumstances the workshops are in-person. 

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All tenure-track or tenured members of the Humanities and Social Sciences faculty are eligible to apply. Normally, we expect to appoint six or seven Faculty Residential Fellows from the Humanities Division and one from the Social Sciences. In the Humanities, we make an effort to balance awards between tenured and junior faculty, with some priority for the latter; in the Social Sciences, strong priority is given to junior faculty. The Residential Fellowship is understood to be especially useful for junior faculty midway to their tenure decision. With regard to the Faculty Research Leave program, and in conjunction with a regularly scheduled, two-quarter leave granted by your division, the Franke Residential Fellowship provides an additional third quarter of leave time; in the Humanities Division, it also fulfills the criterion of a ‘prestigious’ fellowship. 

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Applying for Faculty Residential Fellowships

Applications should specify, in no more than 1500 words, the intellectual project from which the proposal emerges and the specific goals that are expected to be accomplished during the period of fellowship. The applications should also include a current curriculum vitae, the cover and signature sheet, and two letters of reference: one from an appropriate colleague in the applicant's field (from outside UChicago) who is qualified to judge the merits of the project, the second from a UChicago faculty member (normally from the applicant's department) describing both the merits of the project and the applicant's potential and stature in the field. Applicants should confer with their Department Chair before deciding on referees; please note that the names of referees must appear on the cover sheet. Please also note that both your Department Chair and the Master of your Collegiate Division must sign this cover sheet as validation of your eligibility for a three-quarter divisional leave during the prospective year of a Franke Fellowship.

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Applications should be submitted by Friday, February 14th at 11:59 p.m. Please submit your proposal to the Franke Institute’s Call for Proposals for Faculty Fellowships on the University’s InfoReady platform. To log in to the University’s secure InfoReady portal, please use your CNetID and password.​

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