The Kone Foundation postdoctoral fellowship in the arts aims to develop new forms of cooperation and dialogue between art and scholarship. The positions are primarily intended for persons holding a doctoral degree in the arts. However, also persons engaged in artistic work but having completed a doctoral degree in a different academic field are eligible to apply.

There is an annual call for applications for the position of the postdoctoral researcher in the arts. The 2026 call opens on 21 August 2025 and closes on 11 September 2025 (at 23:59 local Helsinki time). You may find the instructions for applicants and the link to the electronic application form below.

The selection process is based on a high-level international competition. Applicants are advised to prepare their applications with care and in accordance with the guidelines explained below. Postdoctoral researchers in the arts will be based at the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies. The positions are primarily intended for persons holding a doctoral degree in the arts. However, also persons engaged in artistic work but having completed a doctoral degree in a different academic field are eligible to apply. Applicants must have completed their doctoral degree by the end of the application period. In addition to the doctoral degree, the requirements for the position include experience of artistic work or artistic research. Applicants for the position must demonstrate ability to produce high-quality artistic work at an internationally significant level. They should also explain why working in an academic community will enhance their proposed project. Should the applicant already have connections to a Finnish university in the field of the arts or to a department or discipline at the University of Helsinki, they are advised to mention this in their application.

Practitioners of all fields of art may apply for the position. The Collegium does not have nationality or gender quotas but, in accordance to the policy of the University of Helsinki, it is committed to promoting equality and preventing discrimination in its operations. Successful applications should propose a research project that brings together academic research and the arts and holds a promise of internationally significant results. Both artistic and academic publications and productions count as such results. The research proposal should include a publishing plan for the results of the project, which may include, for example, artistic events, exhibitions, or academic publications. The applicants must describe in their applications what kinds of facilities and equipment their project requires. The postdoctoral researchers in the arts must be committed to working at the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies. They are expected to be present 80% of their annual workload of 1,612 hours and to participate actively in the activities of the Collegium, most importantly the weekly Fellows' Seminars. They are also encouraged to organize, for instance, an artistic event or seminar during the research period. As no more than 20% of the research period may be spent working abroad, long trips should be arranged outside the academic year of the University. No leaves of absence will be granted for other duties. All research appointments will begin in August and may not be postponed. The postdoctoral researchers in the arts must submit a final report at the end of their term at the Collegium. Appointments may not be extended. Only individual researchers, not research groups, are eligible to apply to the Collegium.

The postdoctoral fellowship in the arts programme is funded by the Kone Foundation.   

HCAS invites applications for fixed-term appointments to begin in August 2026. We are looking for 10–15 Core Fellows representing the career stages of early career (post-doctoral researchers), mid-career (university researchers) and full professors (visiting professors). Professorial fellows are appointed for a term of six to twelve months, university researchers for one to two years, and post-doctoral researchers for one to three years, beginning in fall 2026. The Fall 2025 application period begins on 21 August 2025 and ends on 11 September 2025 at 23:59 local Helsinki time.

The Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies was established in 2001 as an independent institute of the University of Helsinki to enhance scholarly excellence in the humanities and social sciences, promote interaction between different fields of academic research, and to further international academic cooperation. The Collegium’s fellowships are open to researchers in the humanities, social sciences, educational sciences, theology, and law, and to researchers in other fields focusing on topics related to the human sciences. The applicant’s doctoral degree must have been conferred by the application deadline.

The Collegium appoints fellows at various stages in their academic careers and from different disciplines, but has no fixed quotas for seniority, discipline, nationality or gender. The Collegium is committed to promoting equality and preventing discrimination.

Applications must be prepared in accordance with the specified instructions (see link above). Successful applicants should provide evidence of their ability to work in an international, interdisciplinary research environment and of their ability to publish at a high international level. In the application documents, applicants must also indicate how they plan to participate in the interdisciplinary cooperation central for the Collegium as an institute of advanced study. Relevant evidence may be provided by reference to publications, academic activities or participation in research projects or posts at research institutes, or in the research proposal itself. Planned or existing cooperation with researchers of the University of Helsinki may be explained in the letter of motivation, in which the applicants are asked to explain why the University of Helsinki is a suitable environment for their research.

The Collegium does not consider research plans that propose to rewrite the applicant’s PhD thesis as a book. The Collegium will not grant two consecutive funding periods to one researcher. If an applicant has been at the Collegium before, at least five years must have passed after the previous fellowship term, and the applicant must justify why they ought to be accepted for another funding period.