The Center for Advanced Studies in the Humanities and Social Sciences (Kolleg-Forschungsgruppe, KFG) ‘Universalism and Particularism in European Contemporary History’ at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU) is seeking to appoint 3 Junior Fellowships with a research topic focusing on the economy or human rights or religion/secularity in contemporary European history. Applications with other research topics, connected to the overall agenda of the KFG, are welcome. Future Calls for Junior Fellowships will be following every term.
The Center is seeking for three junior fellows for the winter term 2025-2026 (October-March), with a preferred starting date on 1 October 2025.
Project description
Centers for Advanced Studies in the Humanities and Social Sciences (KFG), funded by the German
Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) are interdisciplinary research groups with exceptional funding conditions. They have an initial funding period of four years, with the possibility of prolongation for a second funding period, and offer an international fellowship program, which allows a large number of leading experts to convene and explore an innovative research topic over a long period of time.
The KFG ‘Universalism and Particularism’ investigates universalist and particularist models of order in European contemporary history from the 1970s to the present. Universalist claims aim to validate universally applicable rules. However, demands for such rules usually grow out of concrete interests. In contrast, particularist models reject any general claim and justify guiding principles that are oriented towards the construction of individual or group-related needs. The KFG research program asks how universalist and particularist claims were constructed in contemporary history and investigates the ways these claims helped conceptualize, justify, promote, or even prevent socio-political change. The goal of the Center is to better understand the complex ways in which universalist and particularist models of order were transmitted and layered on each other in European contemporary history.
Please find the full call for applications and programme description here.