Cogut Center for the Humanities Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships

In 2005, Brown University received a $1.16 million grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support two year postdoctoral fellowships in the humanities, humanistically-oriented social sciences, and new fields with close ties to the humanities. The Cogut Center has since received two renewals of this grant.  The Mellon grant enables us to invite two postdoctoral fellows to Brown annually, each for a term of two (2) years. Fellowships are awarded to postdoctoral scholars who have received their degrees from institutions other than Brown within the last five (5) years. For the 2017-19 cohort, the Cogut Center is pleased to be able to offer a third postdoctoral fellowship specifically aimed at encouraging proposals from centers and institutes in collaboration with academic departments. 

All Brown academic departments are eligible to submit proposals to the Cogut Center. The Cogut Center does not recruit postdoctoral fellows directly. Brown programs, centers, and institutes are also welcome to submit proposals jointly with Brown academic departments. Individuals may not apply to the Cogut Center for postdoctoral fellowships. After a departmental proposal is chosen by the Cogut Center governing board, that department recruits and hires a candidate for the position. Mellon Fellows are appointed to academic departments, where they teach one course per semester.

All fellows are affiliated with the Cogut Center, where they participate in Center activities as appropriate to their research. Fellows have the opportunity to interact with Brown faculty affiliated with the Center, to participate in fellows’ seminars, lectures, and conferences, and to participate in the planning of working groups and large-scale seminars on various topics. The Center seeks to provide a stimulating scholarly environment in which to pursue research, develop new interdisciplinary connections, and network with others. The program enriches the Brown curriculum by bringing visiting faculty working in new fields to campus and by providing students with new areas for study and research. It also gives recent PhDs  opportunities to gain teaching experience, to develop their research and to publish as they seek permanent positions.

The Cogut Center Governing Board reviews all departmental proposals and determines the placement of the two (2) new Fellows each year. Proposals should include a job description (written in accordance with the Dean of Faculty requirements for faculty postings) and a one-page statement outlining how the proposed area of teaching and research fits into the intellectual goals for research and/or teaching in the department, program, center, and/or institute.