Fellowship opportunities for US scholars to conduct research on Iraq

TAARII is a consortium of American universities, museums, and other scholarly institutions dedicated to the furtherance of research in and on Iraq and to fostering mutual understanding and respect between American and Iraqi peoples. With support of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC), TAARII intends to establish a research center and hostel in Baghdad. However, under current circumstances, it operates mainly outside Iraq. For now, the programs in Iraq itself are limited to a fellowship competition for Iraqi scholars. A major part of our operations will always be a fellowship program for American scholars to conduct research focused on subjects in any legitimate academic field from ancient Mesopotamia to modern Iraq, giving priority to collaborative projects undertaken jointly by U.S. and Iraqi scholars.

The American Academic Research Institute in Iraq (TAARII) invites proposals from U.S. scholars for feasible research on Iraq-related topics to be conducted outside of Iraq. Such topics could include environmental studies, research in Ottoman records related to Iraq, social science projects that involve interviews with Iraqis living abroad, remote sensing studies of ancient Iraqi landscapes, or joint projects involving a U.S. scholar and an Iraqi living in the country.

Proposals for TAARII’s U.S. Fellowship program are invited from individual American post-doctoral and advanced pre-doctoral researchers for awards of up to $10,000. Applications must be received electronically by December 15, 2011. Awards will be announced in February, for projects that should not begin before March 15, 2011. Please visit the TAARII website (www.taarii.org) and/or contact Beth Kangas, Executive Director ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) for more information about the fellowships.

Applications must be received electronically by December 15, 2011. A complete application consists of the following:

• A completed application form (available from the TAARII office or this web site)
  • Application Form for US Scholars - English (MS-Word)
    
  • Application Form for US Scholars - English (PDF)
• A curriculum vitae
• A project narrative of no more than 10 double-spaced pages
• A project budget
• Two letters of recommendation (emailed directly to Beth Kangas at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )
• Evidence of any official permissions required to carry out the project, if applicable.

Awards will be announced in February, for projects that should not begin before March 15.

Eligibility is limited to U.S. citizens who are post-graduate researchers or who are full-time graduate students in recognized degree programs. Awards will be made on the basis of merit as determined by a review panel consisting of scholars from member universities.

Support for this program comes from a grant from the State Department's Bureau for Educational and Cultural Affairs (State/ECA) through the Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC).

For further information on how to apply, contact:

The American Academic Research Institute in Iraq
3923 28th St., #389
Grand Rapids, MI 49512
Tel: (773) 844-9658
By email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it