The Cogut Institute for the Humanities sponsors semester-long fellowships for Brown University faculty members who are eligible for a semester sabbatical that they wish to extend to an academic year of leave.
Fellows will receive a one-semester leave on special assignment, at full salary and benefits, to augment their sabbatical leave within the same academic year. Fellowsalso receive a research fund in the amount of $2,000. Fellows are expected to spend one semester in residence at the institute, to participate in the weekly seminar, and to teach a course related to their fellowship research at the institute within two years of holding the fellowship. Each year, up to eight fellowships are awarded, distributed evenly over the fall and spring semesters.
Eligibility
The fellowship is open to Brown University faculty members. Applicants must:
Be eligible for a one-semester sabbatical or scholarly leave. Recipients of the Henry Merritt Wriston Fellowship are eligible and can extend their awarded semester of leave with a Cogut Institute Faculty Fellowship within the same academic year.
Be a member of the regular Brown faculty (tenured, tenure-track, and lecturer-track).
Commit to teaching an HMAN course (which may be cross-listed with the home department) within two years, based on the research done during the fellowship year.
Have not received a Cogut Institute Faculty Fellowship to support or extend a sabbatical in the past six years.
Have the support of their department chair for the fellowship proposal and the eventual course offering. Department chairs should be aware that the institute does not supply funds for teaching replacement.
Have the approval of the Office of the Dean of the Faculty Affairs for the fellowship application.
Application
Applications for fall 2025 and spring 2026 fellowships will open on Monday, September 23, 2024 and close on Monday, December 9, 2024, 11:59 pm.
You must be logged into your Brown University email account to access the form. Applicants should submit:
A research project title and abstract (250 words maximum).
A statement (250 words maximum) addressing why you wish to pursue this work at the Cogut Institute.
A research proposal (1,200–2,000 words, excluding the bibliography). The proposal should outline the research that the applicant will pursue during the term of the fellowship. Applicants are also encouraged to submit a working bibliography for their project.
A tentative seminar title and abstract (100–200 words). We anticipate that seminar plans may undergo modification as your research project develops over the course of the fellowship year. The course will be primarily listed by the institute (HMAN), but may be cross-listed by the department.
A CV
A writing sample (a scholarly paper of 35 pages or fewer).
Letters of Recommendation and Department Chair Approval
In addition, applicants should request:
Two letters of recommendation from senior colleagues, at least one of whom should be external to Brown University. Candidates should send their research proposal to their recommenders, and letters of recommendation should include an evaluation of the candidate's research proposal. Referees should be instructed to send their letters electronically to humanities-institute@brown.edu. The Institute must receive all recommendation letters by the application deadline.
A formal approval of the application by their department chair(s), to be emailed to humanities-institute@brown.edu. Department chairs must approve: a) the possibility that the applicant may hold a one-semester fellowship at the Cogut Institute in the course of the next academic year, and b) the semester when the applicant would teach a Cogut Institute seminar.
Confirmation of application approval by the Office of the Dean of Faculty. Please email dean_of_faculty@brown.edu to indicate your intent to apply for the Cogut Institute Faculty Fellowship and extend your sabbatical. You will be asked to confirm your receipt of approval when submitting the application form.