International Center for Cultural Studies

MOST International Postdoctoral Fellowship Program LiFT, TAiWAN, Ministry of Science and Technology

2020-02-17

MOST International Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

LiFT, TAiWAN, Ministry of Science and Technology

Website: https://intlphd.stpi.narl.org.tw/

Overview

This trial program has been drafted by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in order to strengthen Taiwan's research capabilities and support all-round research by providing funding to attract high-achieving postdoctoral scholars from premier universities in the United States (U.S.) to come to Taiwan to participate in scientific and technological research projects in four leading universities. The goal of this program is to accelerate R&D in key technologies or in areas in which the country enjoys an advantages, as well as the diffusion of R&D results, to deepen manpower cultivation and linkage between Taiwan and the U.S., and to jointly foster new innovative technology R&D energies in Taiwan. Scholars will be given the title of “MOST Postdoctoral Scholar”.

Duration and Funding

●The scholar will receive $US 60,000 per year, including tax.

●Funding begins on August 1, 2020 as a rule, and each funding period shall be a term of 1 or 2 years.

●Applications for continued funding may be made upon the expiration of each funding period, and a maximum of 2 applications for continued funding may be made, with a maximum overall funding period of 4 years.

Eligibility

●Candidates must be citizens of the U.S.

●Candidates must hold a Ph.D. degree from a premier university in the U.S. For candidates who have not received their Ph.D. diplomat yet, please provide a provisional degree certificate to show the candidate has passed his or her dissertation defense.

Obligations

Scholars are required to participate in sponsored events and activities during the funding period. These events include but are not limited to:

●Academic exchanges event: Scholars need to be the speaker of one of the workshops or science and technology conferences held by Taiwanese universities or the MOST.

●Annual research presentation

●Cultural tour:

◎A 10-day LIFT O2O Conference, including visiting various research facilities and companies, social activities and sightseeing trips.

◎There are two options for the conference: 1) September 2nd, 2020 to September 11th, 2020, and 2) December 14th, 2020 to December 23rd, 2020.

◎Scholars can contact the Program Office for more information about the conference.

●Scholars should submit a report within two months by the end of the funding period.

Application

●Candidates need to register an account to create their own portfolio on the website and submit the application by April 30, 2020.

●Required documents:
(1) Research plan
(2) CV
(3) ID documents
(4) Ph.D. degree certificate
(5) One letter of recommendation from the Ph.D. supervisor

●Supporting documents:
(1) One letter of consent from a potential hosting supervisor
(2) Other documents requested by the Taiwanese university the candidate is applying to.

●The MOST will announce the result around mid-May, 2020.

●Scholars who receive the notice must obtain consent from a potential hosting supervisor at the Taiwanese universities and completing the hiring process with one of the four leading Taiwanese universities by November 30, 2020.

Contact Information of the Program Office

Tel: +886-2-2737-7196 Ms. Huang; +886-2-2737-7399 Ms. Chen

Email：lift@stpi.narl.org.tw

When is the deadline to submit the final report?

Fellows should submit a report within two months by the end of the funding period.

How to submit the recommendation letter from the Ph.D. supervisor?

Please upload the letter via the website or have it be sent directly to the IPFP Office【lift@stpi.narl.org.tw】 by your Ph.D. supervisor

Does the candidate be included in the selected result (which will announce around mid-May) means that he/she is accepted by an institution?

Scholars who receive the notice must obtain consent from a potential hosting supervisor at the Taiwanese universities and completing the hiring process with one of the four leading Taiwanese universities by November 30, 2020.

How to apply for continued funding?

Applications for continued funding may be made upon the expiration of each funding period, and a maximum of 2 applications for continued funding may be made, with a maximum overall funding period of 4 years.

NCTU - INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR CULTURAL STUDIES

JOB TITLE

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

QUALIFICATIONS

1. Ph.D. degree in the Humanities and Social Sciences of the top 20 universities of QS World University Rankings; U.S. Citizens.
2. Academic background: Philosophy, History, Literature, Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies, Anthropology, Cultural Geography, Sociology, Art, Cinema, Gender Studies, Critical Theory, etc.
3. Specialized research backgrounds in Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, or China-related studies are prioritized.
4. Research specializations in interdisciplinary topics: Such as Asia related critical issues, including Imperialism, Colonialism, Cold War Regime, Post-Cold War Era, Neoliberalism, Nationalism, Bio-politics, Memory Politics, Migration, Border Politics, Geo-politico-economy, Ethnic Conflict, Religious Conflict, Epistemic Decolonization, etc.
5. Experience in project planning and workshop organization is desirable.
6. Chinese reading and speaking competencies are preferred, but not required.

RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Conduct individual research projects to implement the ICCS’s long-term plan -- Conflict, Justice, and Decolonization: Critical Studies of Inter-Asian Societies.
2. Participate in the academic activities organized by ICCS, assist the planning of international workshop / conference, or editing journal / book publication.
3. Publish per year at least one journal article and one conference paper at home or abroad.

OTHER SUPPORTING MATERIALS

Submit electronic copy of the following materials by 8 March, 2020, to: iccs@nctu.edu.tw, with the subject line as “MOST International Postdoctoral Scholar Fellow— xxx (your name).” Email submission is complete upon the reception of the ICCS’s confirmation email.
1. Application covering letter for Post-doctoral Research Fellow
2. Postdoctoral Scholar Research Project proposal
3. Resume
4. Copy of doctoral diploma
5. Representative works within the past three years
6. At least two reference letters, sent directly to the ICCS (iccs@nctu.edu.tw ) by the referees.

LOCATION

HA Building 2, NCTU

NUMBER OF REQUIRED

2～3 positions

CONTACT INFORMATION

iccs@nctu.edu.tw

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Director, International Center for Cultural Studies, ICCS_NCTU

Joyce C.H. Liu

e-mail: joyceliu@nctu.edu.tw

About International Center for Cultural Studies, ICCS_NCTU, TAIWAN

The International Center for Cultural Studies (ICCS), based in National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) in Hsinchu, Taiwan, was established in 2012. ICCS aims to advance the multi-disciplinary, inter-university, and trans-national intellectual pursuit, focusing on Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, through joint research projects across the humanities and social sciences. https://iccs.nctu.edu.tw/en/index.php

Started from 2018, ICCS has been awarded financial support in The Featured Areas Research Center Program within the framework of the Higher Education SPROUT Project sponsored by the Ministry of Education. We have thereby launched the "Conflict, Justice, and Decolonization: Critical Studies in Inter-Asian Societies" research project. This project involves 36 scholars across universities and disciplines to work on five subprojects and 36 topics. Coming from National Chiao Tung University, National Tsing Hua University, and National Central University, our scholars specialize in sociology, anthropology, economic history, political philosophy, the history of thought, material history, gender studies, discourse analysis, and artistic practice. https://iccs.nctu.edu.tw/en/rm.php

The sub-themes of the joint-research project "Conflict, Justice, and Decolonization: Critical Studies in Inter-Asian Societies" are as follows:
1. The Politics of Memory and the Art of Governance: Inter-Asian Studies on State, Society, Ethnicity, and History
2. Inter-Asian Decolonization of Knowledge under the Shadow of Post/Cold War Culture
3. The Emerging Political Economy of the 21st Century: The New Rise of China, Neoliberalism, and Neocolonialism
4. Aging Modernity, Reconfiguration of Urban Space, Migration and Subalternity
5. Toward a Society of Equality and Coexistence in the Inter-Asian Context: Civic Participation, Legal Reform, Social and Artistic Intervention, Trans-local Free Association

In adjacent to this macro-project, ICCS also initiated a trans-national and cross-local joint research project on the theme: "Migration, Logistics and Unequal Citizens in Contemporary Global Context." This trans-national joint research project involves 35 researchers from 12 international research centers. It has been awarded by the Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes (CHCI) and the Mellon Foundation as a Global Humanities Institute (GHI). The themes of this GHI include (1) Conditions of Migration and Precarious Lives; (2) Geo-Economic-Political Zoning Politics, Global Logistics, and Local Infrastructure Initiatives; (3) Theoretical Issues Concerning the Questions of Citizenship Politics as well as the Increasing Cases of Contemporary Unequal Citizens and Modern Slavery. http://ghi2020.blog.nctu.edu.tw/

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