CORDIS

With a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities, the a.r.t.e.s. Graduate School for the Humanties Cologne has established a pioneering doctoral programme designed specifically around the needs of individual Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) in the Humanities. Since 2017, the programme has recruited 30 young scholars (10 per year in 3 calls) for a duration of 36 months to undergo an excellent research training in the Humanities. By offering a distinct international, interdisciplinary and intersectoral environment, the research conducted by the fellows of a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities facilitates a broadened and considerate understanding of societal processes and practices and the underlying historical contexts enabling the fellows to become aware of their pivotal role in shaping the future of Europe.

Located at the University of Cologne, a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities is integrated into an ideal institutional infrastructure and is offering a doctoral training programme with stable working conditions and a career orientated approach with regard to the “triple-i” dimension intending interdisciplinary and international orientation as well as intersectoral outreach of each ESR’s individual research and career development.:
- a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities relies on a structured but flexible bottom-up approach providing an interdisciplinary research environment bringing together a wide range of disciplines for the entire Humanities and offering each ESR manifold opportunities for disciplinary and interdisciplinary exchange and supervision regarding the individual research project.
- Best supervision and early network building are further guaranteed by compulsory international mobility phases: each ESR chooses one out of two mobility options intending either an at least 18-months research period out of Europe (a.r.t.e.s. global) or a 12-months mobility phase at up to two research institutions inside Europe (a.r.t.e.s. EU).
- Moreover, the programme comprises an intersectoral and public engagement strategy encouraging each ESR to initiate cooperation with non-academic institutions and actors to improve career opportunities in the non-academic sector and to make the research results available to non-academic audiences aiming at a stronger commitment of the Humanities in public discourse.

Established as part of the institutional structure of the a.r.t.e.s. Graduate School for the Humanities Cologne, a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities is complementing an interdisciplinary research environment integrating a wide variety of disciplines at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities By implementing the whole range of MSCA standards, a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities guarantees a sustainable impact on the whole institutional structure transforming a.r.t.e.s. into a pioneering graduate programme for the Humanities.

During the first reporting period, a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities has been established as the new pillar of the a.r.t.e.s. Graduate School’s existing structured doctoral programme, the so-called Integrated Track, offering a high-quality training concept tailored to the needs of early stage researchers in the Humanities:
- providing a high-class supervision concept in a vibrant interdisciplinary research environment with access to a graduate class structure for excellent guidance and peer mentoring.
- aiming at international mobility in cooperation with international partners: the conclusion of a co-tutelage agreement on joint supervision and examination is envisaged for each researcher.
- offering an intersectoral and public engagement strategy for career orientation and to facilitate the application of the research results to non-academic contexts and public discourse.

a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities awarded 30 doctoral fellowships in three calls in a transparent, multi-stage and merit-based selection and evaluation procedure involving international experts from a great variety of institutions and disciplines in a remote evaluation procedure and including on-site interviews. All fellows are employed full-time and under stable working conditions (including social insurance benefits) for a full duration of 36 months.

The selected research projects funded under a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities cover a wide range of disciplines and research questions from the Humanities relating to various academic and societal areas of application. A complete list of the funded projects is provided under the programme’s dedicated website (see below).

As fellows of a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities, the ESRs pass through a curriculum that combines research-oriented and transferable professional training activities offering both extensive disciplinary and interdisciplinary guidance in participation in one out of nine multidisciplinary Graduate Classes and additional training aiming at the acquisition and improvement of transferable skills and to support career development and orientation as integral part of the individual career development plans.

With the implementation of a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities into the existing structure of the a.r.t.e.s. Graduate School, both the individual careers of the programme fellows and the whole institutional structure will achieve a sustainable impact on the regional, national and international level.

First and foremost, with the research projects selected under a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities the programme is funding in-deep research on the most challenging contemporary questions in the Humanities, relating both to the most interesting research fields in the respective disciplines and to manifold areas of application in and beyond academia. The research results will be disseminated in form of academic and non-academic publications, through the ESRs’ participation in conferences, workshops and public events, as well as in individual intersectoral secondments and cooperation.
By offering an innovative and ambitious training programme that is integrating the “triple-i” dimension and a career orientation strategy into early stage research in the Humanities, a.r.t.e.s. EUmanities will enable the ESRs to become aware of the relevance and potential of their research to substantially enrich public debates towards the formation of more inclusive, innovative and reflective societies in the EU and worldwide. By improving transferable skills to convey complex research results to non-academic audiences, the ESRs will moreover be able to act as informed mediators in public debates und to contribute to societal debates by revealing new ways of interpretation from an anthropological, epistemological and ethical point of view and with regard to the most challenging ideas, for instance, on migration, technology, environment and populism.

In addition, the programme will have a sustainable and long-term impact on the whole institutional structure of the a.r.t.e.s. Graduate School, for instance with special regard to:
- The selection and evaluation procedures regarding the involvement of external experts, the eligibility criteria (minimizing the risk of background related bias and disadvantages during the selection procedure).
- The extension of the international partner network that will be further strengthened by concluding sustainable and long-time research cooperations.
- The vision of an intersectoral outreach of early stage research in the Humanities regarding both career orientation for the non-academic sector and towards the application of excellent research in the Humanities to non-academic contexts and challenging societal questions.