Scholars who have received their Ph.D. degree after June 2022 in any field of inquiry in the humanities or humanistic social sciences broadly conceived are invited to apply for a postdoctoral fellowship made possible through a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to Wesleyan University.
The purpose of this Fellowship is to provide scholars who have recently completed their Ph.D.s with free time to further their own work in a cross-disciplinary setting and to associate them with a distinguished faculty.
Two Mellon Postdoctoral Fellows will be appointed to the Wesleyan University Center for the Humanities for the academic years 2026-2027 and 2027-2028 and will be awarded a stipend of $70000 (with anadditional$3000 of research funding). Each will teach a one-semester undergraduate course;participatein the collegial life of the Center for the Humanities which sponsors conferences lectures and colloquia; and give one public lecture. The Fellows will be provided with an office at the Center for the Humanities and will be expected to work there on weekdays while the university is in session and toresidein Middletown CT.
Special Instructions to Applicants:
You will be asked to upload electronic versions of the items we require which are (1) a cover letter of application including a statement of current research interests and a brief proposal for a one-semester undergraduate course indicating how they relate to the Center for the Humanities organizing theme for academic year 2026-27 (2) a full curriculum vitae (3) a writing sample of published work extracts from the dissertation or drafts of work in progress (not to exceed 25 pages). Please apply at: information on the Centers organizing theme can be found here: the cover letter applicants should describe how they will embrace the colleges commitment to fostering an inclusive community.You will also be asked to provide the email addresses of three references from whom we may obtain confidential letters of recommendation (please double-check the accuracy of the email addresses of the references you name to ensure that you have the most up-to-date email addresses for each one).After you have submitted all of the required documents you will see a confirmation number.At that point each of the three references whose email address you provided will receive anautomatically-generatedemail requesting a letter of reference for you.
Minimum Qualifications: Candidates do not need to have their PhD in hand at the time ofapplication butwill need to have it by June 30 2026.
Additional Information: We regret that we cannot reply to individual inquiries concerning the Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship Program at Wesleyans Center for the Humanities. All information that applicants may need is availableatthis website.
There is no official application form. Interviews will be held via Zoom during late February 2026 or early March 2026.
Note forInterfoliousers:
We gladly accept letters of recommendation fromInterfolio. From yourInterfolioaccount please use the web delivery method to upload your letters directly to our online application.
All offers to external applicants are contingent on the candidates completion of a pre-employment background check screening to the satisfaction of Wesleyan University.
Wesleyan University located in Middletown Connecticut does not discriminate on the basis of race color religious creed age gender gender identity or expression national origin marital status ancestry present or past history of mental disorder learning disability or physical disability political belief veteran status sexual orientation genetic information or non-position-related criminal record. We welcome applications from women and historically underrepresented minority groups. Inquiries regarding Title IX Section 504 or any other non-discrimination policies should be directed toVice President for Equity and Inclusion Title IX and ADA/504 Coordinator.
Wesleyan University complies with the Clery Act and maintains records of campus crime statistics and security policies. Copies of Wesleyan Universitys Clery Act Report are available on request and online at is taken into consideration in the determination of salary offers. For more information visit offers a broad range of employee benefits and development opportunities including comprehensive group insurance plans wellness programs and incentives generous paid time off and retirement plans flexible work schedules employee and dependent tuition programs for those who qualify.
Detailed information on the benefits of working at Wesleyan is located at:
Founded in 1831, Wesleyan University is a leading liberal arts and sciences university located in the heart of Connecticut.