Benaki Museum - Fellowships programme
One of the main activities of the Patrick & Joan Leigh Fermor House is the fellowships programme, which was launched in 2023-2024.
The programme runs in two periods. The first begins in early November and ends in mid December and the second period begins in mid February and ends in the end of March.
For a period of five weeks, four fellows reside at the Leigh Fermor House in order to work on their research in a peaceful environment.
For the Patrick & Joan Leigh Fermor House fellowships programme, the Benaki Museum collaborates with three universities, Freie Universität Berlin (Centrum Modernes Griechenland), Princeton University (Stanley J. Seeger ’52 Center for Hellenic Studies) and UCLA – University of California Los Angeles (Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture).
Applying coordinated selection criteria and review processes, each institution chooses two (1+1) fellows – one for each period.
| - Fellows Fall 2024 | |
| - Fellows Spring 2025 |
The Spring 2024 fellows share with us their experience from their stay at the Leigh Fermor House.
FELLOWSHIPS PROGRAMME FOR THE ACADEMIC YEAR 2025-2026
The Benaki Museum invites applications for two (1+1) fellowships for the academic year 2025-2026 from scholars who wish to spend time in residence at The Patrick & Joan Leigh Fermor House in Kardamyli, Messenia, Greece.
OPEN CALL
DESCRIPTION
Leigh Fermor House fellowships are offered to fellows whose research projects fall within subject areas connected to the collections and archives of the Benaki Museum.
The subject areas covered by the Benaki Museum cover history and culture in Greece and most parts of the globe (Islam, China, Africa, Pre-Columbian America, Korea, and more) as well as numerous other subject areas related to history of the art, literature, philosophy and more. Please check benaki.org and visit ‘Collections’.
Leigh Fermor House fellowships are residential, and fellows are expected to devote the major portion of their time in residence to research as well as compiling and writing the results of their research.
Fellowships for the academic year 2025-2026 are available for either the autumn or the spring term: autumn term appointments are from 5 November to 12 December 2025 and spring term appointments are from 11 February to 20 March 2026.
Before departure from the Leigh Fermor House, fellows submit a written review on their activities while in residence. They may also be invited in Athens to make a presentation to the ‘Patrick & Joan Leigh Fermor House Fellowships Academic Committee’ (Academic Committee), which consists of the academic director and the curators of the Museum, and to Benaki Museum staff as well as to members of the public, invited by the Academic Committee.
The Academic Committee reserves the right to select studies for publication to the Benaki Museum scholarly periodical,Mouseio Benaki.
LIVING ARRANGEMENTS
Fellows may be accompanied by one family member (children over 16 years old only) or spouse, who is hosted for free but should cover her / his meals.
Fellows are provided with a room with one double bed, personal workspace, one meal per day (for the fellow) and controlled access to the Leigh Fermor House library. The Benaki Museum Library and Archives in Athens are not accessible remotely and should be consulted, if necessary, outside the fellowship period.
The Benaki Museum cannot provide a stipend to fellows; therefore, they should cover their expenses during their stay and make their own travel arrangements to and from Athens.
Fellows are also responsible for arranging their own health insurance.
ELIGIBILITY
Applications are invited by:
- - scholars in all disciplines covered by the Benaki Museum collections (see above), who are affiliated with academic institutions, including universities, museums and research institutions, as well as emeriti faculty members, and
- - independent scholars (i.e. not affiliated with an institution) with a Ph.D. or equivalent and a distinguished record of publications or showing extraordinary research potential.
Fellows are expected to be fluent in English.
We regret that due to the location and terrain of the property, the House is not wheelchair accessible. Please contact the Benaki Museum for more information on accessibility for people with restricted mobility.
CRITERIA
Applications are reviewed by an interdisciplinary group of reviewers, specialists in the candidate’s academic discipline, appointed by the Museum. Reviews are examined by the Academic Committee. A phone or video interview may be requested from candidates during the review process. Academic Committee decisions and their subsequent approval by the Board of Trustees of the Benaki Museum are confidential.
The Academic Committee makes Leigh Fermor House Fellowship awards on the basis of several criteria:
- - scholarly accomplishment, overall academic excellence and promise,
- - significance and quality of the research proposal in definition, clarity, organisation and scope,
- - potential future impact through teaching and writing,
- - first-time applicants.
A period of at least five years must elapse between a successful fellowship award at the Leigh Fermor House and a new fellowship application from the same person.
HOW TO APPLY
For applications to be considered:
- The application form must be completed in full and submitted online.
- Τhe following supporting material must be sent by email to the address applicationslfh@benaki.org as pdf documents:
- - cover sheet with title and summary (200 words) of proposed research project and a brief bio (one paragraph),
- - research proposal (3 pages, 1,000 words maximum), including description of project, timetable, explicit goals, and a rationale for why it should be pursued at the Leigh Fermor House,
- - a standard, detailed curriculum vitae including a list of publications,
- - two samples of recent work (in the original language),
- - contact information for two referees.
All supporting material (except from the samples of recent work) must be submitted in either English or Greek.
PLEASE NOTE that all attachments to any email should have a maximum total size of 10 MB; files larger than 10 MB must be sent via WeTransfer or similar web-based services.
Once the Benaki Museum has received all the requested files, you will receive a confirmation message at the email address provided in your application.
DEADLINE
All materials submitted by applicants must be received by 16 December 2024. To ensure applications are received before the deadline, early submission is encouraged.
ANOUNCEMENT OF AWARDS
Awards will be announced in March 2025.
POSTPONEMENT DUE TO FORCE MAJEURE
By approval of its Board of Trustees, the Benaki Museum reserves the right to postpone the fellowships programme, due to force majeure (pandemic restrictions etc.). In this case, the awarded fellowships will be moved.
