Visiting Scholars 2008/2009

AKU-ISMC (www.aku.edu/ismc) invites proposals for two six-month visiting scholarships to begin in September 2008. Visiting Scholars will undertake research on one of the following two themes:

• Ethical dilemmas provoked by current advances in technology;
• Reforming and acclimatising religious and cultural traditions in keeping with changing lifestyles.

Description
The incumbent will pursue research within an intellectually stimulating and supportive environment with the opportunity to participate in a wide range of seminars, workshops and conferences; associate with distinguished faculty; interact with students on the Institute's programmes; and contribute to the Institute's innovative "Muslim Civilisations Abstracts" project.

Research Fellows will:

• Pursue research that sheds new light on a specific dimension of one of the above two themes (literature reviews will not qualify);
• Present a work-in-progress paper at AKU-ISMC seminars;
• Present a paper to the Institute's students;
• Write a research paper within the framework of the research theme to be published in the Institute's upcoming bi-annual journal, no later than the fifth month of the fellowship;
• Contribute to the "Muslim Civilisations Abstracts" (MCA) project by compiling abstracts of encyclopaedias from the Muslim world.

Funding
The Institute offers a stipend of £10,000 in addition a £250 research budget, the provision of office space, access to the Institute's library as well as to libraries of neighbouring academic institutions, and access to computer facilities where required. Expatriate scholars are given an accommodation allowance of up to £800 per month in addition to the stipend and a travel and relocation reimbursement of up to £1,200.

Application Criteria and Procedure
Candidates with a PhD in the Humanities or Social Sciences should submit their fully developed proposal to the address below. Consideration will be given only to topics of relevance to the major themes indicated above. Please contact ismc.personnel@aku.edu for further details.

Deadline for application is May 30, 2008 (postmark or fax/email date). Candidates should submit a cover letter, one-page research prospectus, full project proposal, complete curriculum vitae and names with contact details of three references to:

ismc.personnel@aku.edu (preferred) or mail to:

Human Resource Department
AKU-ISMC,
4 & 5 Bedford Square
London, WC1B 3RA
United Kingdom
or Fax: 00 44 207 907 1030

In submitting an application to AKU-ISMC you agree to revoke your rights under the Data Protection Act 1998 thereby permitting AKU-ISMC to share the contents of your application with relevant colleagues at our headquarters institution AKU Karachi; and with its nominated agents for the purpose of this recruitment exercise. AKU-ISMC will not communicate with candidates unless they are to be short-listed for interview.