ISRF: Independent Scholar Fellowships Grant

The Independent Social Research Foundation (ISRF) offers Independent Scholar Fellowships aimed at advancing social sciences through innovative research. Funded by private philanthropists, these fellowships support independent scholars in Europe who do not hold academic appointments. Applicants, typically PhD holders, can seek funding for research projects addressing new empirical problems. The maximum grant is £28,750, which can cover research expenses and support for non-academic work for up to one year.

To achieve this objective the ISRF provide a series of funding opportunities, enters into partnerships with academic institutions and supports research activities that promote development across the social sciences and humanities.
Funding Philosophy
The ISRF seeks to fund innovative research which breaks with existing explanatory frameworks so as to address afresh empirical problems with no currently adequate theory or investigative methodology.
Innovation may also come from controversial theoretical approaches motivated by critical challenge of incumbent theories. Interdisciplinarity in the generation of new investigative initiatives may be achieved by combining and transforming empirical methods and theoretical insights from the social sciences. Projects ranging across the breadth of the social scientific disciplines and interdisciplinary research fields are welcome, and relevant applications from scholars working within the humanities and the natural sciences are also encouraged.
Independent scholars from within Europe are eligible to apply, and they will not hold an appointment – full-time or part-time, temporary or permanent – at an institution of higher education and research.
For the purposes of this competition, an ‘Independent Scholar’ is understood as someone, whether or not currently in (non-academic) employment, who is engaged in intellectual work of a nature and standard comparable to that of a professional academic scholar. Applicants will usually hold a PhD but other equivalent academic or professional qualifications may be considered. Evidence of scholarly achievement at a sufficiently high level can include publications in academic journals, edited collections and monographs, as well as pieces for professional journals and the popular media.
Independent Scholars intending to pursue or complete a piece of independent research and desiring an affiliation to an institution of higher education and research within Europe are eligible to apply. They may be in professional (non-academic) employment, including in the arts, full- or part-time, or in an unpaid occupation.
The awards are intended as providing a stipend to allow applicants full or partial support for academic research and relief from non-academic work (including domestic care) for a period of up to one year.
The research proposed may include, but is not confined to: initiation of a project or of research level work intended to draw on or contribute to one of the professions, completion of a project, or preparation of an article or monograph for publication, based on existing work.
Funding
The amount of an award depends on the nature of the work proposed and individual circumstances – the ISRF expects applications for grants up to a maximum of £28,750. Within that sum, reasonable support for research expenses will be considered. Reasonable childcare or other domestic costs may be considered.

Eligibility

Normally applicants will hold a PhD. Other academic or professional qualifications may be considered, along with publications usually in peer-reviewed academic journals. Monographs, professional journals and the popular media may also be considered.