NIAS-Lorentz Theme Groups: Bridging Humanities and Social Sciences with Technology
The next call for applications will be open: 1 June 2023. The submission deadline of the Pre-Proposals is: 1 September 2023.
What is a NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group?
A NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group (NLTG) is an international group of three researchers including the coordinator. All NLTG members hold fellowships at NIAS, providing them the opportunity to work as a team and engage in the kind of intensive interdisciplinary collaboration that is often difficult to realize in a regular academic setting. They specifically work as a group on cutting-edge research that bridges the divide between the humanities and/or social sciences and the natural and/or technological sciences. This can lead to concrete outcomes such as an edited volume, a scientific paper or a project proposal for external funding (e.g. ERC). Being part of an NLTG is particularly intended to benefit early/mid-career researchers who wish to explore and open a new interdisciplinary field of research through close interaction with theme group members from other scientific disciplines. An NLTG is imbedded within the Dutch academic community.
The NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group is:
- An international group of NLTG members made up of 3 persons for 5 consecutive months. The NLTG coordinator can apply for a NLTG in the second semester (Feb – June) of the academic year.
- All NLTG members hold individual fellowships at NIAS, including a study and daily travel expenses or, if from abroad, subsidized accommodation.
- NLTG members from abroad can apply for a stipend of €2,500 per month in case of loss of income due to the fellowship. NLTG members from a Dutch university can apply for a Dutch University Grant of €2,500 per month, which is given to their university to compensate part of the costs to replace their teaching or management responsibilities. More about what a NIAS Fellowship entails.
- NTLG members fully participate in the interdisciplinary community at NIAS, including weekly seminars and other academic activities.
- A workshop at the Lorentz Center on the NLTG topic, with full organizational support and a budget of € 10,000.
How to apply
A NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group is initiated by the coordinator. The coordinator has at least 3 years of postdoctoral research experience and is affiliated with a university or research institution. Researchers from abroad may also coordinate the NLTG provided they apply together with a researcher who is based in the Netherlands (co-coordinator).
The coordinator is the formal NLTG applicant and he/she puts forward the other NLTG members. A NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group is ideally a mix of researchers affiliated with universities from within and outside the Netherlands so as to be an international group imbedded in the Dutch research community. All NLTG members should fulfill NIAS eligibility criteria, which includes 3 years of experience after obtaining a Ph.D.-degree.
Application procedure:
- NLTG Pre-Proposal
Coordinators should submit a short NLTG Pre-Proposal for preliminary review. The Pre-Proposal is no more than three pages containing:- Title of the proposal.
- List of proposed NLTG members.
- Concise description of the interdisciplinary topic, with a brief description of the methodology and the expected research outcomes.
- Outline of the idea for the workshop, including a list of proposed participants.
The form for the NLTG Pre-Proposal can be downloaded here: NLTG 2025 Pre-Proposal Form Coordinator
Send the completed form to selection@nias.knaw.nl, with your name and the word NLTG in the subject.
NLTG coordinators will be informed of the outcome within six weeks of the submission deadline. Coordinators of Pre-Proposals that are considered suitable for further elaboration will be invited to compile a NLTG Main Proposal.
2. NLTG Main Proposal
The NLTG Main Proposal consists of:
- An expanded NLTG research proposal.
- An outline of the NIAS-Lorentz Workshop at the Lorentz Center.
- The individual NLTG fellowship application forms of all NLTG group members (including the coordinator).
The Main Proposal and the individual applications of all group members should be submitted through the NIAS website. Click here for the application page.
NLTG coordinators will be informed on the outcome of the review and selection is in.
- Full Workshop Proposal
The coordinator of the winning NLTG application will work with the Lorentz Center to prepare the Main NIAS-Lorentz Workshop Proposal. This plan will receive additional feedback from the NIAS-Lorentz Advisory Board as well as specific Lorentz Center Advisory Board(s) in the field(s) of the workshop topic.
Evaluation
NLTG applications are evaluated by the NIAS-Lorentz Fellowship Board.
Evaluation criteria include:
- The topic connects the humanities and/or social sciences with the natural and/or technological sciences.
- The research proposal is bold and original.
- The composition of the theme group is international and multidisciplinary.
- Individual members display excellent academic achievements, appropriate to their academic level.
- The topic will broaden the scope of the NIAS-Lorentz Program.
Contact
For information and advice on NLTG Fellowship applications, please contact Dindy van Maanen. For information and advice on the NIAS-Lorentz Workshop outline, please contact
Henriette Jensenius.
When is the next call for applications?
The next Call for NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group 2025 applications opens on: 1 June 2023
Submission deadlines for NIAS-Lorentz Theme Group applications are:
1 September 2023 – NLTG Pre-Proposal
1 November 2023 – NLTG Main Proposal
30 January 2024 – Detailed Workshop Proposal
