Posdoctoral Fellowship opportunity at the NRI
ISF/NRI
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY
The
Trustees of the Needham Research Institute, Cambridge
those
intending to carry out research in original source materials
relating
to any topic within the broad field of the history of science,
technology
and medicine in China without limitation of historical period.
Applicants
will be expected to hold the degree of PhD in a relevant
area,
and to be no more than three years from the time of the award of
the
degree at the time of taking up the fellowship.
The fellowship is
tenable
at the Needham Research Institute, whose library offers unique
facilities
for research in the history of science, technology and
medicine
in East Asia, located within a short distance of the rich
resources
of Cambridge University Library.
Scholars will be expected
to spend
most of their time in residence in Cambridge during their
tenure. The fellowship will be awarded for one year
in the first
instance,
renewable annually for up to a total tenure of three years,
subject
to satisfactory performance. The fellow
will be provided with
a
stipend within the range £27,428-£35,788, which will be subject to UK
taxation.
The
primary purpose of the fellowship is to enable the holder to pursue
academic
research. A unique and valuable feature of this fellowship is
however
a link with The Independent Schools Foundation Academy (ISF
independent
school with the mission to be “a community of learners,
independent
in thought and action, deeply rooted in Chinese culture,
global
in understanding and experience, and excellent in all
endeavors.†As a condition of the tenure of the fellowship, the
fellow
will be expected to assist in arranging and delivering a short
experiential
programme each summer in Cambridge for a small group of
senior
students of the school, who will be accompanied and supervised
by staff
of the Academy, and to visit the Academy by arrangement two or
three
times a year for further short periods of contact with students.
Applicants
should therefore be able to demonstrate strong
organisational
skills. All expenses for visits to Hong
Kong will be
paid by
The ISF Academy, who will also provide accommodation. While the
fellowship
holder is not expected to act as a professional educator, or
to teach
any formal courses, they must be prepared to interact
positively
with intelligent and energetic school students who will be
pursuing
individual research projects in the broad field of the history
and
culture of China. The ISF Academy
requires its students to be
bilingual
in both English and Putonghua (Mandarin), and the fellowship
holder
should therefore be able to operate in at least one of these
languages
to native or near native level, and to have good
communication
capabilities in the other. During the fellow's time in
Hong
Kong, he or she will be offered academic hospitality at the Hong Kong Institute
for the Humanities and Social Science (http://www.ihss.hku.hk/).
Further
details, together with the application form which must be
completed
by all applicants, are available from The Institute
Administrator
of the Needham Research Institute, Susan Bennett at
Applications
should be sent by email to the Institute Administrator as
soon as
possible, accompanied by a detailed curriculum vitae and the
names
and addresses of two academic referees and one personal referee.
The
closing date for applications is December 10th
2012. Applications
should
contain a clear description, in up to 1,000 words, of the
research
to be carried out during the tenure of the fellowship. This
description
should state explicitly what research questions will be
addressed
by the research proposed, what relevant work has already been
carried
out by the applicant or by other scholars to date, and what
source
materials will provide the basis for the research. All applications will be acknowledged.