NESCent

TRADITIONAL SABBATICALS

• Open to fellows of ALL nationalities.
• Terms of at least an academic year are preferred.
• Research projects should be carried out primarily on-site.

 

Sabbatical applicants can request stipends equivalent to one half of their salary while in residence at NESCent (matching contribution of home institution) to support ambitious, synthetic research on any aspect of evolutionary biology and relevant disciplines. Full-salary fellowships may be requested for applicants from historically minority-serving institutions and from senior researchers (see Targeted Faculty Sabbaticals). A housing allowance up to $1000/month can also be provided.  If there are questions about specific funding contact Karen Henry, 919-668-4574.  Proposals can include any type of synthetic project, but fellows should plan on mainly working on-site, to add to our intellectual community. Sabbaticals may be from 3 months to 1 year in duration.

Sabbatical Scholars are intended to, and will be evaluated on,

• address an important and outstanding evolutionary question,
• be "risky" endeavors but with a reasonable chance of success,
• reflect NESCent’s scientific mission to advance research that addresses fundamental questions in evolutionary science by integrating methods, concepts, and data within and across disciplines (For more on the context and a classification of synthesis in evolutionary science please read Linking Big: The Continuing Promise of Evolutionary Synthesis.),
• possess sufficient data to tackle the question,
• possess appropriate analytical tools or will develop them during the project.
• produce products that typically fall into three broad categories (but are not restricted to):
  • Synthetic papers and reviews
  • Databases allowing others to build on your foundation
  • Software or mathematical tools that solve a major analytical problem

NESCent will not support collection of new data or field research, but encourages the mining of public and private databases.  NESCent is committed to making data, databases, software and other products that are developed as part of NESCent activities available to the broader scientific community. Applicants should review the Data And Software Policy for NESCent.

Examples of recently supported sabbatical scholars can be found on NESCent’s funded project page.

Graduate Fellowships

The National Evolutionary Synthesis Center is now seeking to include graduate traineeship to our portfolio in facilitating broadly synthetic research to address fundamental questions in evolutionary science.   We are offering one-semester fellowships for graduate students to pursue research either with a NESCent sabbatical scholar or with a NESCent Working Group.  The research should be in line with the goals of the sabbatical scholar and/or working group and may include integrating datasets, developing databases, performing analyses, programming and software development, etc.  Support will not be provided to collect or generate new data.  When relevant, graduate students are expected to be full members of working group.  Ultimately we expect the graduate student to lead and author aspects of the research.  For further details see our graduate fellowship webpage. Interested graduate students should consult with the Principal Investigator of a Working Group or Sabbatical scholar before submitting an application through our online proposal system.  In the proposal, applicants should make explicitly how the fellowship will interface with the work of the sabbatical scholar or working group.

Before you Apply

All applicants are encouraged contact Allen Rodrigo, Director of NESCent or Susan Alberts, Associate Director of Science and Synthesis, for feedback on project ideas.  Please review our Conflict of Interest, Reporting Requirements, and Data And Software policies before applying.  For technical support, write

Proposals for Sabbatical Scholars

Proposals for sabbatical scholars are not to exceed 5 single-spaced (12-pt type) pages, plus a 2-page CV.  Proposals should be organized as follows:

1. Title (80 characters max)
2. Name and contact information
3. Project Summary (250 words max)
4. Public Summary (250 words max) - written for the public and visible on the NESCent web site
5. Introduction and Goals – A statement of the outstanding question in evolutionary science being addressed and a concise review of the concept and the literature to place the project in context.
6. Proposed Activities - A clear statement of any specific data (include citations or urls) and analytical tools that will be required for the project.  The proposal should also include a clear statement on how synthesis will occur.  Letters of support are required from the proprietor of datasets, analytical tools, or software not publically available or not owned by the applicant.
7. Rationale for NESCent support - Why can this activity be most effectively conducted at NESCent?
8. Collaborations with other NESCent Activities – We greatly encourage synergy between sabbatical scholars, short-term visitors, working groups, catalysis groups, and postdoctoral fellows.  If you plan for such collaboration please provide specifics.
9. Proposed Timetable - include start date, month, and year
10. Anticipated IT Needs - Briefly describe any needs for IT support that are important to the success of the proposed project. Please indicate whether development of a database or software will be required.
11. Anticipated Results - include a clear statement of anticipated papers, data and software products, and anticipated public release of data and products
12. Short CV of the applicant (2 pages)

Proposal Submission

Proposals will be accepted in digital format only as a pdf file. Graphics should be embedded directly into the proposal document. Note that proposals should be submitted as a single pdf file including all of the components listed above. Proposals are submitted electronically. Please login first if you have already created a profile.