The Max Weber Programme for Postdoctoral Studies is the EUI’s residential fellowship for early-career researchers in the social sciences and humanities. Fellows join an EUI academic unit in Florence and combine individual research with multidisciplinary and academic-practice activities. The working language is English.
Awards last 12 or 24 months depending on the host unit and begin on 1 September 2027. EUI normally admits around 40 new fellows into a cohort of about 65.
Benefits & funding
- The basic grant is €2,500 per month; outside grant or salary income can reduce it to a minimum of €1,750 per month.
- EUI pays for its basic medical plan and provides €1,500 per year for eligible research expenses.
- Job-market fellows may request up to €1,000 for interview costs, while incoming and outgoing travel reimbursement is capped at €1,200 in total and visa-fee reimbursement at €250.
- Eligible fellows may receive up to €310 per month for a co-resident partner and €210 per month for each dependent child living in the Florence area.
- Law awards last 12 months; Economics, History, Political and Social Sciences, and the Robert Schuman Centre offer 12 or 24 months; the Florence School of Transnational Governance offers 24 months.
Eligibility
- Applicants of any nationality may apply in economics, history, law, political and social sciences, or related areas hosted by the Robert Schuman Centre or Florence School of Transnational Governance.
- For 2027–28, applicants must have received or submitted their PhD between 1 September 2022 and 1 September 2027; any later formal defence must occur by 31 December 2027.
- The five-year window may be extended for maternity or paternity leave, illness, or mandatory military service when documented.
- Current EUI doctoral researchers, employees, and EUI-hosted fellows are ineligible; former EUI early-stage researchers must have spent at least one continuous year away in full-time work or a fellowship by the deadline.
- English at CEFR C1 is expected, although proof is requested only at registration after selection and specified exemptions apply.
- Fellows must live in the Florence area throughout the award. Preference, rather than eligibility, favours very recent PhDs, applicants without a prior postdoctoral fellowship, and candidates on the academic job market.
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Application process
- 1Register in the EUI online application system and enter referee details early so referees receive their submission links.
- 2Upload a publication-list CV, a one-page academic career statement, a two-page research proposal, and a passport copy.
- 3Nominate two or three academic referees and ensure at least two letters arrive directly by the applicable deadline.
- 4Submit by 16 October 2026 at 14:00 CEST; only Economics applicants may use the second deadline of 1 March 2027 at 14:00 CET.
Program timeline
Application and reference deadline for all fields.
16 October 2026, 14:00 CEST
Results expected for all units except Economics.
End of January 2027
Second application deadline for Economics only.
1 March 2027, 14:00 CET
Economics recruitment expected to conclude.
End of March 2027
Fellowship starts.
1 September 2027