Yale Institute of Sacred Music Postdoctoral Associates Program┋LONG-TERM

Candidates are eligible to apply as postdoctoral associates if they have fewer than six years of related experience following the terminal degree and are not yet employed as full-time regular faculty. Like long-term fellows, they undertake a substantive and original project that relates to the ISM’s mission. 

Eligibility

Candidates are eligible to apply as Postdoctoral Associates if they have fewer than six years of related experience following the terminal degree and are not yet employed as full-time regular faculty. These fellowships are typically one-year in duration. Teaching one course is required for Postdoctoral Associates. Fellows are expected to live within a five-mile radius of campus.

General Expectations

Fellows commit themselves to meet weekly in the ISM Colloquium, with their cohort at weekly Fellows lunches, and at another working group or regular lecture series on Yale’s campus. Fellows are also asked to share their work in at least one public presentation per semester. One presentation during the year will be a public lecture, while the other may be work-in-progress shared in the smaller, less formal gathering of fellows. 

The fellowship period for Postdoctoral Associates normally lasts twelve months and begins on July 1. All fellows are expected to be free of commitments that would prevent them from devoting themselves full-time to the work outlined in their proposal and to live in residence within five miles of the Yale campus. 

Application Process

The application for Fall 2025 will open on August 1, 2025. The deadline for all materials to be submitted is October 15, 2025. Fellowship decisions will be announced in mid-March 2026. The application link will be posted here by August 1, 2025.

All materials must be written and submitted in English. The application requires:

• Personal data (including education and professional work).
• Curriculum vitae, not to exceed ten pages in length.
• A research statement of not more than 1400 words describing the proposed scholarly or creative project intended for the year. The body of the research statement should describe the project, explain the significance of the topic, and place the work within the context of relevant disciplines. This project must relate to the mission of the ISM. The research statement should describe in detail the relationship to the mission, and explain how a year’s residence would enhance this work. A brief bibliography should be included when appropriate.
• A 150-word abstract of the proposal.
• A sample of scholarly or artistic work. Scholars should submit no more than thirty pages of published writings. Religious leaders and artists should submit a roughly equivalent example of their creative work (for example, sermons, liturgies, artwork, plays, compositions, etc.).
• Postdoctoral Associate applicants are expected to teach and should include a brief description of one to three courses and the departments or schools in which these courses might be taught, as well as a  course title, weekly lecture topics, and short reading list. Additional information may be required later. 
• Three letters of reference from qualified leaders in the applicant’s field. Letters should include an evaluation of the applicant’s research proposal and his or her capacity to fulfill it. The online application requires a list of the names, positions, and contact information of recommenders who will be asked to submit their letters online. If a recommender has no access to email, the applicant should notify us at ismfellows@yale.edu

Clustered Applications. The Institute also welcomes applications from a cluster of qualified individuals who wish to work on a common project in addition to individual candidates. Each person must complete a separate application and note that the application is part of a cluster. The same guidelines apply in every other way.

Financial Support

Stipends for postdoctoral associates range between $68,500 and $79,500 (depending on teaching duties) plus health benefits. Fellows may apply for research funds, and the Institute will reimburse reasonable moving expenses.

Teaching

Postdoctoral associates are expected to teach one course per term. These are proposed as part of the application process and are reviewed by the relevant department. These may be newly created for Yale or they may have been previously taught at other academic institutions. Fellows may also be invited to lecture in classes taught by Yale faculty throughout the year.