University of Pennsylvania Katz Center for Judaic Studies Postdoctoral Fellowship

The Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies hosts an international fellowship program that is a unique and coveted opportunity to pursue new research in a supportive and collaborative environment. The fellowship has two goals—to support the work of individual scholars, and to draw them into a collaborative community bound together by a shared interest in a particular topic or theme. Scholars selected for a fellowship receive a stipend to support them for an academic year or semester, office space, access to Penn’s renowned library collections, and opportunities to share their work through seminars, conferences, publications, and more. In addition to advancing new research, the Center seeks to support early career scholars by creating mentoring and skills-building opportunities, and to connect scholars in North America, Israel, and other parts of the world.

Each year the fellowship has a distinct theme. The theme for the 2023–2024 academic year is The Sound and Music of Jewish Life. The call for applications and theme for the year will be posted each spring.

Stipends are $60,000 for the academic year.

Fellowship Eligibility

We invite applications from scholars at any level, working in the humanities, social sciences, and the arts. Advanced graduate students may apply, but must have the PhD in hand by the start date of their fellowship term. Applicants can apply for a full year fellowship (September–May), a fall term fellowship (September–December), or a spring term fellowship (January–May).The fellowship is open to all scholars, national and international, who meet application terms. International scholars are appointed under a J-1 visa only (Research Scholar status).

Fellowship Requirements

Fellows are required to spend the term of the fellowship in residence in Philadelphia at the Katz Center and are expected to pursue their proposed research projects. The Center’s requirements are residency in Philadelphia, attendance of weekly lunches on Mondays and weekly seminars on Wednesdays, one seminar presentation, as well as full participation in fellow-conceived colloquia and symposiums, among other special events. Fellows are provided with an office, computing and printing access, as well as administrative assistance and full library privileges to the University of Pennsylvania library system, including book delivery.