The Witteveen Memorial Fellowship in Law and Humanities aims to promote research and teaching on law and rhetoric, narrative, image, performance, sound, and/or culture. The fellowship enables a junior scholar (PhD or postdoc level) to share and develop their research in the field of law and humanities during a residency at Tilburg Law School for one month in February-May.

What do we ask? 
We expect the Fellow to participate actively in the academic life of Tilburg Law School by presenting their research in a research seminar and by teaching a guest class to students. Past Fellows have also introduced film screenings, have organized a reading of their play with students, have read their poetry, and have given a lecture performance, in addition to participating in various research seminars.

Eligible candidates:
Scholars who are in the final stages of their PhD research or who obtained their PhD in the field of law and humanities within the last five years are eligible. 

What do we offer?
Tilburg Law School offers shared office space and library access. Based on the fellow's situation, an adequate offer will be drawn up for travel and accommodation expenses within the fiscal possibilities. In principle, the fellowship only covers travel and accommodation and does not include an allowance for other expenses.

Tilburg University is committed to an open and inclusive culture, embracing diversity, and encouraging the mutual integration of groups of staff and students. We create equal opportunities for all our staff and students so that everyone feels at home in our university community. 

We work in a vibrant and lively (work) environment on our beautiful campus, close to the forest and easily accessible by public transport. We are committed to a sustainable society and challenge you to make an active contribution to this. 

Tilburg University

Tilburg University's motto is Understanding Society. Based on this vision, our almost 2,800 employees conduct research, inspire more than 19,000 students of 110 nationalities, and bring people from different disciplines and organizations together to learn from each other. In this way, we want to contribute to solving complex social issues. In doing so, we work from the fields of economics, business and entrepreneurship, social and behavioral sciences, law and public administration, humanities and digital sciences, and theology. We seek the connection between the various disciplines to find solutions to the major issues we face as a society. Our students are educated to become responsible and entrepreneurial thinkers, driven by solidarity, a sense of responsibility, and empathy, who are able to influence and give direction to a rapidly changing society in an innovative way. Tilburg University has a culture of collaboration and co-creation, at local, regional, national, and international level.

Since its founding in 1963, Tilburg Law School has become one of the leading law schools in Europe. Through top research and the provision of high-quality university education, the School contributes to society. Tilburg Law School is organized into five Departments: Public Law and Governance; Law, Technology, Markets and Society; Private, Business and Labour Law; the Fiscal Institute Tilburg; and Criminal Law. The mission of the School is to understand and improve the role of law and public administration in addressing the social problems of today and tomorrow. Through research and education, our scholars contribute to that mission. 

More than 4,000 students pursue a Bachelor's, pre-Master's or Master's degree at Tilburg Law School. Through this education, we train students in law, public administration, and data science. The Tilburg Educational Profile (TEP) is unique in the Netherlands. Central to it are three core concepts: knowledge, skill and character. A university education provides students with the latest substantive knowledge and trains them to be critical thinkers and resilient professionals. In addition, the School is committed to innovative educational concepts and, partly in response to the coronavirus crisis, has invested heavily in the quality of online education and in innovative didactic tools to make and keep students inquisitive. 

Tilburg Law School's research is highly regarded nationally and internationally. The Tilburg Law School Departments work closely together in their research in four signature research programs: 1) Global Law and Governance; 2) Law and Security; 3) Connecting Organizations; and 4) Regulating Socio-Technical Change. 

We invite you to apply online for this position by September 27, 2024. 
Candidates must submit a CV including a list of publications, a writing sample (article or chapter), a research statement explaining how their research relates to law and humanities, and one letter of recommendation.

More information can be obtained from contact Michiel Bot, Associate Professor of Law and Humanities: michiel.bot@tilburguniversity.edu.

The selection committee consists of: 

1. Dr. mr. Michiel Bot, Associate Professor 
2. Dr. Richard Clements, Assistant Professor
3. Dr. Emily Sipiorski, Assistant Professor
4. Prof dr. Elies van Sliedregt, Professor and Vice Dean for Research
5. Dr. Inge van de Ven, Associate Professor

Willem Witteveen (1952-2014) was a Professor of Jurisprudence at Tilburg Law School and a Labor Party Senator who practiced and promoted research and teaching at the intersection of legal scholarship and rhetoric, literary analysis, political philosophy, and cultural history, and who fostered an academic environment that revolved around thinking and discussing. After Professor Witteveen’s untimely death in the MH17 shoot-down, Tilburg Law School established the Witteveen Memorial Fellowship in Law and Humanities to commemorate his life and work.