Faculty Research Fellow

Heterodox Academy (HxA) is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that advances the principles of open inquiry, viewpoint diversity, and constructive disagreement to improve higher education and academic research. With an international membership of over 7,000 professors and other academic insiders, HxA helps colleges and universities live up to their highest ideals — and resist the destructive temptations of groupthink and tribalism. Working for change in higher education, HxA communicates and engages with faculty, students, administrators, philanthropists, journalists, and the general public; develops research, tools, trainings, and events; and facilitates online and on-campus communities.

Thanks to the generous support of the Mike and Sofia Segal Foundation, the Templeton Religion Trust and other donors, HxA is pleased to announce a call for residential faculty research fellowships at the Segal Center for Academic Pluralism.

The Segal Center hosts researchers to explore and disseminate research insights concerning the philosophy, law, history and science (broadly construed) of open inquiry, viewpoint diversity, and constructive disagreement in higher institutions of research and education. For further details on what precise areas we are interested in, please visit the fellowship advertisement at our website at https://heterodoxacademy.org/jobs/segal-center-faculty-research-fellowship-call-for-applications/

Faculty Research Fellows are awarded up to $100,000 as part of their fellowship, which funds may be used for course buyouts, to supplement a Fellow’s existing salaries, or to hire research personnel (such as a graduate assistant) to help with the proposed research; however, this award cannot be used for fringe benefits, which should continue to be supported by the Fellow’s home institution. Fellows will also receive office space in CAP’s office in Manhattan for their use and a generous budget, over and above the $100,000 cap, for research costs.

We offer two fellowship lengths.

• Applicants desiring a fellowship for a full academic year may receive the maximum award of up to $100,000.

• Applicants desiring a fellowship for one academic semester (or the equivalent of one half of the academic year) may receive a prorated maximum award amount of up to $50,000.

Applicants must state their preference for either a full-year or half-year fellowship in their application materials.

Faculty Fellows will be expected to:

• Conduct original research in accordance with their research proposals

• Participate in the Segal Center’s weekly discussion and research seminar in its Manhattan office

• Participate in a special workshop in New York in May 2025 to present their research project proposals and meet the 2024-2025 Fellows

• Write and present for public audiences about their research in HxA outlets and at HxA-sponsored events

• Become a member of Heterodox Academy (there is no cost to join)

• Give advice and feedback, where appropriate, on HxA’s internal research projects

• Contribute to a collaborative annotated bibliography of scholarly and popular resources on pluralism in academia

• Be available to engage with HxA’s Campus Community Network and present as a member of HxA’s Speakers Bureau.

In order to apply for a Segal Center Faculty Fellowship, applicants must hold a tenured, emeritus, tenure-track, or otherwise permanent position at an accredited institution of higher education or a well-established research institution such as a think tank (e.g, Brookings Institute, Hoover Institution, Center for American Progress, AEI, etc.). Applicants must also either be members of HxA or have applied for membership before submitting their application. Membership in HxA is free, so please apply today.

To apply for the Faculty Research Fellowship, applicants should assemble the following:

• An up-to-date CV.

• A cover letter outlining your general interest in the Segal Center’s mission, and how a term at the Segal Center would fit into your academic goals.

• A rough budget breakdown of how the award money would be spent.

• A research proposal not to exceed 2,000 words. Proposals should identify specific questions to investigate, briefly contextualize those questions in relation to existing research and the Segal Center’s mission, explain how the applicant’s own plan might yield progress on those questions, and enumerate specific deliverables and outputs of the research plan.

• A letter from the applicant’s department chair or Office of Sponsored Research (or equivalent authority) supporting the applicant’s project proposal and acknowledging that the financial terms of any possible award are understood.