Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe

Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe (SISECSE) is a two-week residential workshop that provides scholars of Eastern Europe time and space to dedicate to their own research and writing in a collaborative and interdisciplinary setting. ACLS, in partnership with the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS), will convene leading scholars from Eastern Europe and North America for a two-week residency in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, from June 2, 2027, to June 18, 2027. 

SISECSE will also provide participating scholars with the opportunity to undertake local fieldwork, including archival or collections research, interviews, site surveys, or other forms of data collection. Fieldwork is not a requirement for participation. 
 
This program is made possible thanks to a generous donation by Carl and Betty Pforzheimer. 

Details

• The program will offer a stipend for travel to and from Bulgaria and cover accommodation and per diem expenses for the two-week residency. The travel stipend amount is based on your institutional affiliation location at the time of application.  
• Participating scholars will be expected to be in residence and to take part in all planned events for the duration of the institute. 
• Participating scholars may undertake local fieldwork, including archival or collections research, interviews, site surveys, and other forms of data collection. 
• There will be at least one weekend group trip. 

Discussions

In addition to conducting their own research, scholars will have the opportunity to participate in a series of discussions on a broad topic of shared academic interest. 

In 2027, the institute’s discussions will explore “Rethinking Spaces and Scales: Beyond the East-West Dichotomy.” The 2027 Institute seeks to critically engage with the spatial and scalar frameworks that define East Central and Southeastern Europe, moving beyond the conventional geopolitical and cultural dichotomies that have traditionally separated “East” and “West.” Contemporary geopolitical shifts, transnational democratic challenges, post-Cold War economic and cultural realignments, and other transforming social developments have steadily eroded traditional divisions, rendering the frameworks that depend on them increasingly obsolete. The emergence of alternative symbolic geographies—such as the “Western Balkans” and the “Global South”—further suggests the need to examine how regional identities are actively constructed and contested, and the uses to which they are put. 

Discussions will be held over several meals and in one seminar session. 

It is not required or expected that applicants’ research projects be connected to the workshop theme. Discussions are intended for the general enrichment of the participants. 

Supporting Documents

• 2026-27 Sample Application for SISECSE
• “Writing Proposals for ACLS Fellowship Competitions” by Christina M. Gillis

Eligibility

• Applicants must have a PhD degree conferred (officially awarded) by the application deadline. An established scholar who can demonstrate the equivalent of the PhD in publications and professional experience may also qualify. 

• The competition is open to scholars in any field or discipline in the humanities or interpretive social sciences pursuing postdoctoral or advanced research focused on East Central and Southeastern Europe, including Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Czechia, Croatia, Hungary, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine. 

• At the time of the application deadline, applicants must have an affiliation—preferably a long-term regular research or teaching appointment—with an institution (i.e., college, museum, university) in North America (Canada, Mexico, US) or East Central and Southeastern Europe (see the list above). Applicants who have an affiliation in North America or East Central and Southeastern Europe but do not have a long-term regular research or teaching appointment must include in the application essay a description of their future commitment to the field and to continued work in North America or East Central and Southeastern Europe. If you reside outside of North American or East Central and Southeastern Europe due to conflict or political displacement, you may apply if you had a previous affiliation—long-term regular research or teaching appointment— in East Central and Southeastern Europe within the last five years, and you must include in the application essay a brief description of your scholarly journey since displacement.  

• Applicants of any citizenship are eligible to apply.  

• The application must be submitted in English, but the written work produced may be in any language. 

You may use AI tools such as Claude or ChatGPT to write your application. However, you are responsible for any errors, omissions, hallucinations, or acts of plagiarism in your application. It is the responsibility of the named applicant to ensure that all content in their proposal is factual and that they have properly acknowledged and referenced all sources. We encourage you to indicate in your application where and how you used AI assistance for full transparency.

Evaluation Criteria

• The significance of the proposed research topic and its potential contribution to the study of East Central and Southeastern Europe. 

• The quality and innovativeness of the proposal, including its clarity, methodology, scope, theoretical framework, and grounding in the relevant scholarly literature. 

• The impact of the fieldwork or other activities to be carried out during the institute on the applicant’s project, and the likelihood that the applicant will make a positive contribution to the institute. 

• The feasibility of the proposed work and the likelihood the project will be completed.
• The applicant’s record of previous accomplishment and the likelihood of continued long-term contribution to the field. 

Application Requirements

Applications must include: 

• A completed application form. 

• An application essay (1100 words maximum, double-spaced in Arial or Helvetica 11-point font). The application essay should lay out the research project—the topic and its significance,  how the project relates to existing scholarship, what sources will be used,  what work is required to bring the project to completion, and the expected timetable for carrying out that work. Applicants who have an affiliation but do not have a long-term regular research or teaching appointment must include in the application essay a description of their future commitment to the field and to continued work in North America or East Central and Southeastern Europe. Recently displaced scholars, must include in the application essay a brief description of their scholarly journey since displacement. 

• An optional two pages maximum of images, musical scores, or other similar supporting non-text materials. 

• A bibliography (1000 words maximum, double-spaced between entries, in Arial or Helvetica 11-point font). 

• A list of the applicant’s publications (1000 words maximum, double-spaced between entries, in Arial or Helvetica 11-point font). Applicants should indicate if any of their publications resulted from prior ACLS funding. 

• An applicant’s statement of interest in the institute (600 words maximum, double-spaced in Arial or Helvetica 11-point font). The statement of interest should explain how participation in the institute and the work planned in Bulgaria will advance the project. It should specifically describe the research, writing, or fieldwork to be carried out, its impact on the overall project, and the applicant’s interest in participating in interdisciplinary conversation at the institute.  

• Applications must be submitted through the ACLS Online Fellowship and Grant Administration (OFA) System no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on October 28, 2026. 

ACLS is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of the fellowship application process. 

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Contact Information

Questions should be directed to  sisecse@acls.org. Please read the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) before making inquiries.