Gonda Fellowship

NIAS offers the fellowship together with the J. Gonda Fund of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). It allows the fellow to pursue their own research within the international and multidisciplinary community at NIAS, where daily contact with scholars from many fields gives them new perspectives on their work.

The fellowship is open to scholars whose work concerns or intersects with Indology, classical Indian languages, Indian literature or Indian cultural history, and who have at least three years of academic experience after obtaining their PhD by the closing date of the call. Applications from scholars affiliated with institutions in non-Western countries are especially welcome.

The working language at NIAS is English. Applicants should speak and write it well enough to take a full part in the life of the institute and to benefit from the responses of their peers.

The J. Gonda Fund offers one five-month fellowship each academic year, in the second semester from February to June. The fellow receives a personal stipend. For scholars affiliated with a Dutch university or research institute, a Dutch University Grant is paid to their institution instead. NIAS provides an office and research facilities and, where eligible, subsidised accommodation in Amsterdam or reimbursement of local public transport. The fellow takes part in the academic, community and outreach programme.

A fellowship at NIAS is a full-time commitment. Fellows are expected to be at the institute four days a week from the start to the end of their fellowship, including Thursdays for the weekly seminar. They are also expected to take part in the introduction period in the first two weeks, and to acknowledge NIAS in publications and other work resulting from it. More information is available under What NIAS offers and Commitment, rules and regulations.

Applications are submitted through the online application form by 15 March 2027 at noon (CET). An application consists of three parts:

• the completed form
• a project proposal of no more than 1,500 words, including footnotes and excluding references
• an up-to-date CV

The application form also asks two questions in which applicants reflect on how they and their research might benefit from and contribute to the multidisciplinary community at NIAS.

Applications cannot be changed once submitted. Within a few minutes of submission, a confirmation email is sent to the work email address given in the form. The application must be confirmed through the link in this email within 48 hours, and in any case before the call closes on 15 March 2027 at noon (CET). Applications that are not confirmed in time are ineligible. Applicants are therefore advised not to submit at the last moment. If the email does not arrive, please check your spam folder or contact partners@nias.knaw.nl.

NIAS checks all applications for eligibility. The board of the J. Gonda Fund then ranks the eligible candidates on two criteria, in consultation with the Fund’s advisory committee:

• the quality of the proposed research project
• its fit with and significance for the fields of study the J. Gonda Fund supports

The board returns its ranking to NIAS. The Fellowship Advisory Committee assesses it with a view to a cohort balanced in discipline, location, career stage and gender, and advises the NIAS Director, who makes the final decision. Applicants hear the outcome no later than the end of May.

The J. Gonda Fund, a foundation of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, supports the scholarly study of Sanskrit, other classical Indian languages and literature, and Indian cultural history. It is named after Jan Gonda (1905–1991), one of the most eminent scholars of South Asian and Indonesian studies, whose bequest to the KNAW led to its establishment in 1992. The Fund also supports research projects, scholarly publications and PhD students, and organises the annual Gonda Lecture.