Application Deadline: September 15, 2021
Apply for a Fulbright grant to Poland, a modern country with a centuries-old scholarly tradition, diverse educational opportunities, low living costs, and a unique location in the heart of Europe! The Polish-U.S. Fulbright Commission offers approximately 15 U.S. Scholar grants in the research, teaching, and distinguished chair categories.
Poland boasts nearly 400 diverse higher education institutions. These include universities, technical, agricultural, theological, and pedagogical higher education institutions, medical universities, academies of physical education as well as higher education institutions of economics, arts and maritime studies. Polish higher education institutions provide a wide choice of 1st cycle, 2nd cycle and 3rd cycle studies as well as uniform long-cycle master’s programs, with over 800 programs offered in English.
Poland follows the Bologna framework of higher education, with a goal to facilitate comparability of qualifications and, as a result, student and academic mobility to and from other European countries. The quality of education and research offered at Polish higher education institutions is widely recognized and reflected in a growing number of international students representing 170 countries.
Over the recent years, the number of R&D institutions in Poland has grown by over 60%. Currently, there are ca. 120 public research institutes and laboratories, and 79 establishments of the Polish Academy of Sciences, an independent state research institution with units all across the country. With the goal to enhance Poland’s commercial potential, research institutes have recently established “The Łukasiewicz Research Network”, Europe’s 3rd largest research network (source: Euraxess)
The Fulbright Program in Poland
In Poland, the Fulbright Program was initiated in 1959, at the height of the Cold War. Poland was the first country in Eastern and Central Europe to participate in the Fulbright Program and to this day remains one of the largest and most vigorous in the region. Approximately 5000 American and Polish alumni have benefited from the program since its inception. Over 100 grants are currently awarded each year by the Polish-U.S. Fulbright Commission to both, American and Polish grantees, with approximately 15 offered to American scholars.
Within the U.S. Scholar Program, American scholars are provided with the opportunity to teach and/or pursue research in Poland. Affiliations are possible with a variety of higher education and research institutions; opportunities also exist for collaboration with public officials and professionals at other institutions. Scholars may be invited to give occasional lectures. English is widely used at the university level. Polish language ability, if applicable, must be commensurate with the project’s requirements. The program is open to scholars and professionals from all disciplines.
Applicants are encouraged to view the Polish-U.S. Fulbright Commission’s website for current information about program offerings, recent initiatives, and program alumni. For any additional information, please contact Commission’s Program Officers.
AWARD ACTIVITY
The award is dedicated to researchers in the humanities and social sciences who are looking for a stimulating scientific environment to conduct their research while freed of their regular teaching and administrative duties. Innovative research projects are especially welcome. The Host Institution is open to a variety of research methods, including theory, analyses of original sources, and analyses of large secondary data sets.
Grantees will be part of a fellowship program at PIASt, dedicated to outstanding researchers from all regions of the world, who want to pursue self-directed work in fine research conditions. They will form a small but stimulating community, which will benefit from its multi-disciplinary composition and will allow for a free exchange of ideas and opinions in a spirit of cross-disciplinary dialogue.
Apart from independent and individual research, the grantees will be expected to take part in seminars at PIASt, usually conducted twice a week, and in daily lunches, which will provide opportunities to exchange ideas among the current fellows.SCHOLARS SELECTED FOR THIS AWARD WILL BE REQUIRED TO:
- Conduct a research project of the applicant’s choosing
AWARD LENGTH: Five or ten months
AWARD DATES
The earliest grant start date is October 2022. The grant shall be completed the latest by the end of July 2023.
LOCATIONS
Polish Institute of Advanced Studies (PIASt)
FLEX OPTION: No DISCIPLINE
TYPE: Applications are sought in all disciplines
Application Requirements
INVITATION REQUIREMENTS: letter of invitation should not be sought.
LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY REQUIREMENTS: None, English is sufficient.
Applicant Profile
ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATION INFORMATION
Fellowships at PIASt are offered mainly to scholars active in the fields of humanities and social sciences, but projects where these disciplines interface with life and exact sciences are also welcome. The award is offered to outstanding researchers who want to pursue self-directed work in fine research conditions.
Applications are welcome from researchers of high scientific standing. They may be both leading senior researchers (at least 10 years after PhD) and promising younger scholars (at least 3 years after PhD) who are offered the opportunity to devote themselves full-time to their research at the early stage of their careers. Applicants shall be able to present in the application form their former achievements on the international stage, demonstrated by high-quality publications. The Institute also welcomes applicants with the potential to build ties and collaborate with research institutions and individual researchers in Poland.
Additional Information
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
The Polish Institute of Advanced Studies PIASt is an independent research center located in Warsaw.
It was launched on 2nd January 2017 within the structure of the Polish Academy of Sciences. It aims to support advances in knowledge and research innovation and to contribute to the promotion of scientific development in Poland, with the ambition to complement the national institutional and scientific landscape. The Institute focuses on a wide diversity of disciplines within Humanities and Social Sciences while being also open to cross-cutting projects with an interdisciplinary perspective, thus creating a multidisciplinary and international learning community for these disciplines.
The objective of PIASt is to promote scientific and intellectual exchange and create an international and multidisciplinary learning community of researchers who jointly reflect on and develop ideas in the given academic year. Prospective fellows, released from their usual teaching obligations and administrative activities, will pursue their projects in an environment that fosters reflection and innovation. They will benefit from the stimulating environment of a multi-disciplinary and international community of scholars.
PIASt contributes to scientific outreach by promoting various activities (e.g. guest lectures and open seminars) to ensure that the knowledge produced impacts not only the scholarly communities but also the public and private sector as well as civil society organizations (e.g. cultural centers) and media.
PIASt fosters intergenerational scientific dialogue by creating annual groups of fellows as multidisciplinary research communities, involving both senior scholars (2/3) and postdoctoral scholars (1/3).
PIASt is a proud member of the Network of European Institutes of Advanced Study (NetIAS).
For further information, you may also contact the Polish-U.S. Fulbright Commission’s Senior Program Officer, Ms. Paulina Kubylis at paulina.kubylis@fulbright.edu.pl.In addition to being a prestigious academic exchange program, the Fulbright Program is designed to expand and strengthen relationships between the people of the United States and citizens of other nations and to promote international understanding and cooperation. To support this mission, Fulbright Scholars will be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host community, in addition to their primary activities.
HELPFUL LINKS
Polish Institute of Advanced Studies (PIASt)
Polish-U.S. Fulbright Commission
Regulations of the Fulbright Award Programs
Information about 2019-20 U.S. Scholars in Poland
Testimonials by Fulbright grantees to/from Poland, including U.S. Scholars
Useful websites on higher education in Poland:
Official Website: Polish Institute of Advanced Studies
