ACLS and the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia Will Convene Leading Scholars from Eastern Europe and North America for a Two-Week Residency in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria

NEW YORK, Sept. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) invites applications for the Summer Institute for the Study of East Central and Southeastern Europe (SISECSE) 2025-26 competition. In partnership with the Centre for Advanced Study Sofia (CAS), ACLS will convene leading scholars from Eastern Europe and North America for a two-week residency in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria from June 3 to June 19, 2026. Applications are due December 2, 2025 by 9:00 PM EST.

SISECSE will provide participating scholars with time and space to dedicate to their own research and writing in a collaborative and interdisciplinary setting. The program covers travel, accommodation, and per diem expenses. Scholars are expected to be in residence and to participate in all planned events for the duration of the institute.

In addition to conducting their own research, scholars will have the opportunity to participate in a series of immersive discussions on a broad topic of shared academic interest. In 2026, the institute's discussions will explore "Autonomy, Institutions, and Transnational Networks." There is no requirement that applicants' projects connect to the theme.  

Learn more about application and eligibility requirements.

Eligibility
The competition is open to scholars in any field or discipline in the humanities and social sciences pursuing postdoctoral or advanced research in East Central and Southeastern Europe, including Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine. We seek to foster conversations across generations and fields.

Scholars must be based at institutions in North America (Canada, Mexico, US) or East Central and Southeastern Europe (see the list above).

Applications must be submitted in English, but the written work produced by the grantee can be in any language. Work proposed must be in the humanities and social sciences and must employ humanistic approaches and methods.

This program is made possible thanks to a generous donation by Carl and Betty Pforzheimer.

Formed a century ago, the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is a nonprofit federation of 81 scholarly organizations. As the leading representative of American scholarship in the humanities and social sciences, ACLS upholds the core principle that knowledge is a public good. In supporting its member organizations, ACLS expands the forms, content, and flow of scholarly knowledge, reflecting our commitment to diversity of identity and experience. ACLS collaborates with institutions, associations, and individuals to strengthen the evolving infrastructure for scholarship.

The Centre for Advanced Study in Sofia is an independent institution with strong international and interdisciplinary orientation, promoting freedom of research and scholarly excellence in the humanities and the social sciences. Since its establishment in 2000, CAS has been attracting young talents and outstanding senior scholars by offering institutional conditions conducive to free pursuit of knowledge and dialogue in the framework of individual research fellowships or collaborative multi-disciplinary and cross-cultural enquiries. In partnership with other Institutes for Advanced Study, universities, scholarly and cultural associations, it works to re-establish the tradition of intellectual communities and to facilitate open critical debate and exchange of ideas on national and trans-national levels.

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SOURCE American Council of Learned Societies