Research Stays at PRIF
As Germany’s leading institute devoted to peace and conflict research, and one of the major European peace research institutes, PRIF is a top destination for scholars from all world regions. Convinced that international exchange and personal encounters are essential both to academic excellence and to developing common solutions for key global conflicts, PRIF welcomes international researchers at all career stages (Visiting Fellows and Visiting Professors) for research stays at our Frankfurt office.
Photo: Joshi Milestoner (https://joshimilestoner.com/), Unsplash
PRIF Visiting Fellows
PRIF’s Visiting Fellows programme is open to applicants enrolled in a doctoral programme or employed as an academic member of staff at a non-German university or research institute.
Researchers interested in a stay a PRIF are invited to submit their application to the coordinator for academic visitors at academicvisitors(at)prif.org.
There is no fixed deadline for applications, but given capacity constraints applicants are encouraged to apply at least 6 months in advance.
Your application should include:
- academic CV
- short (1-2 pg.) research proposal on the project that you intend to work on during your stay
Please also include information on the preferred date and duration of your stay, and – where applicable – who you would like to work with at PRIF. It can be useful to get in touch directly with PRIF colleagues in your area of interest before submitting your application, to ask about collaborative opportunities. Please also indicate how you are planning to fund your stay (see funding your stay) below.
Visiting Professors
Under the Visiting Professor programme, PRIF invites internationally renowned experts in the fields of international relations and peace and conflict research to spend a period of one to three months at PRIF. Visiting Professors receive accommodation and a monthly allowance from PRIF, and are invited to share their research and expertise with both senior and junior staff members through talks, workshops, or academic collaborations. There is no formal application process for the Visiting Professor programme, as PRIF usually reaches out directly to scholars whose work could make a particularly strong contribution to PRIF’s international profile and visibility. However, interested senior scholars may directly contact Research Department heads to discuss potential opportunities.
PRIF prides itself on its culture of intellectual and social openness. PRIF visiting fellows are invited to participate fully in the institute’s life, ranging from discussions with fellow experts in one of PRIF’s research departments to academic workshops and talks to regular brown bag lunch meetings on current political events. While PRIF’s main working language is German, English is an increasingly important second (given PRIF’s recent diversification of its own staff) and will be used whenever international researchers participate in meetings.
Doctoral Visiting Fellows are matched with a senior member of staff as academic advisor for the duration of their stay, and are invited to discuss their research with the vibrant group of PRIF’s doctoral researchers. Visiting fellows often develop and pursue joint publications or project proposals with PRIF staff, or contribute to one of PRIF’s house publication series (PRIF Blog, Spotlights, Reports).
While a typical research stay at PRIF runs over a period of three months, a shorter or longer duration can be agreed depending on individual needs and research projects. While some past Visiting Fellows have used their time at PRIF for concentrated work on manuscripts, others have used PRIF’s location in a major hub at the center of Europe to conduct fieldwork or reach out to colleagues located in other German and European institutions. With its Berlin office, PRIF is uniquely equipped to provide support to Visiting Fellows interested in conducting research trips to Germany’s capital.
At the Frankfurt office, visiting fellows are provided with office space and IT support and have full access to PRIF’s library resources.
While PRIF cannot currently offer direct financial support to visiting fellows, we support suitable candidates in applying for a variety of funding schemes, including fellowships offered by
- Humboldt Research Fellowships for postdoctoral researchers and experienced researchers, 6-24 months
- German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) short term grants primarily for doctoral students and early postdoctoral researchers, in exceptional cases also for graduates with a BA degree, 1-6 months
- European Commission Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, Postdoctoral Fellowships, 1-2 years or shorter “secondments” within the framework of a stay at other institutions, please note application deadlines on the website
In addition to hosting shorter stays, PRIF also welcomes expressions of interest from international researchers wishing to bring their own third-party-funded research project to PRIF.
Visa
Depending on your home country, you may need a visa for your stay at PRIF (see information provided by the German Federal Foreign Office). For longer stays, an additional residence permit may be required. Please inform yourself about requirements and start the application process well in advance of your trip.
Health Insurance
Academic visitors are legally required to have a health insurance that covers the entire duration of their stay, immigration authorities may ask you to prove your insurance status upon entering the
country. For short term stays, EU citizens may have sufficient cover under their European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). For longer stays, non-EU visitors and more extended coverage, we recommend that you take out an additional insurance policy in your home country or with a German insurance company (“incoming travel health insurance”) such as Allianz, Hanse-Merkur or Würzburger.
Liability Insurance
We strongly recommend that you take out liability insurance to insure you against any claims for damages you may accidentally cause during your stay. Examples of liability insurance policies include Huk Coburg oder Cosmosdirekt.
Please be aware that it is extremely difficult to find accommodation in Frankfurt and the prices are very high as Frankfurt is an economically very busy city and space is limited. In many parts of Germany, it is quite common to spend 40% to 50% of your net salary on accommodation. Warning! Do not transfer any security deposit for accommodation before you have signed a contract or viewed the apartment/room. If you are unsure whether it is safe to transfer money, you should contact us before proceeding. Please be particularly cautious when asked to transfer money to a foreign country (not Germany). We are happy to give you advice on recommendable neighbourhoods.
Types of Accomodation
- Furnished: it is rather uncommon for apartments to be rented furnished, though, about 20% of the rental market (mainly one/two bedroom apartments) are furnished. These will also be more
expensive. - Unfurnished: If you stay in Frankfurt for a longer period of time you may consider renting an unfurnished flat.
- Shared accommodation: it is common to live in shared housing (Wohngemeinschaft/WG). In this case, you will have your own room but will share the bathroom and the kitchen with all the other occupants in the apartment. These rooms are usually cheaper than a furnished one-room flat and have the advantage of offering you the companionship of the other tenants from the beginning of your stay.
Where to Find Accomodation
- For shared accommodation: WG Gesucht
- Furnished flats: Homecompany, City residence, 9flats
- Apartment swaps: sabbatical home, homeexchange.com, homeforswap.com
- The real estate section of daily newspapers such as the “Frankfurter Rundschau” or “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”
- You can also post your own advertisement on the websites mentioned above, for example, or in local newspapers and on notice boards
- Agent: You can enlist the help of an agency to find accommodation. Note, however, that in Germany the tenant/purchaser usually pays the agent’s commission
Please note that you have to register with the municipality (Bürgeramt). Open a bank account (recommended for stays exceeding three months)
Arriving at PRIF
The PRIF headquarters are conveniently located very near to Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (Main Station) at Baseler Str. 27-31. On your first day, please go to the 4th floor reception desk, where you will
receive your keycard and will be shown your office and desk. The PRIF coordinator will arrange to meet you and give you an introductory tour of PRIF.
Join Goethe University’s intensive German courses! Visiting Researchers are eligible to take part in GU’s language courses.
Further details on the application procedure and residence can be found in the document PRIF Informationen for Academic Visitors.
Julian Neef
Julian Neef is a PhD researcher at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton. His research, Infrastructure-Led Development – The Contested Politics of Order-Making in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, focuses on infrastructure as a peace-building strategy and the different modes of state and non-state order-making in the context of infrastructure projects in eastern Congo. Julian is a three-month Visiting Fellow at PRIF.
Duration of stay: January – May 2025
- Suparna Banerjee, independent researcher
- Thomas Lord, University of Canterbury
- Skollan Elisabeth Warnck, Leipzig University
- Nicole Doerr, University of Copenhagen
- Selma Kropp, European University Institute
- Alex Kuehl, American University School of International Service
- Yury Terekhov, independent researcher
- Yuan Xinyu, Geneva Graduate Institute, Schweiz
- Xie Peixuan (Peking University/Lund University, China/Schweden)
- Zhou Yiqi (Shanghai Institut für Internationale Studien (SIIS, China)
- Mónica Chinchilla (Universidad de Navarra, Spanien)
- Christoph Humrich (University Groningen, Niederlande)
- Santiago Lopez Alvarez (Rice University, Vereinigte Staaten)
- Jusaima Moaid-azm Peregrina (Universidad de Granada, Spanien)
- Luciana Jáuregui Jinés (Autonomous National University, Mexico)
- Cecilia Ducci (Universität Bologna, Italien)
- Shimaa El Sharkawy (Universität Kairo, Ägypten)
- Lucy Maycox (University of Oxford, Vereinigtes Königreich)
- Nadine Sika (American University in Cairo, Ägypten)
- Steven Silva Salazar (Universität Externado de Colombia, Kolumbien)
- Celine Emma la Cour (Universität Kopenhagen, Dänemark)
- Manuel Herrera (King Juan Carlos University of Madrid, Spanien)
- Andrea Ribeiro Hoffmann (Instituto de Relações Internacionais, Brasilien)
- Prakash Bhattarai (Centre for Social Change, Nepal)
- Allan Bloomfield (University of New South Wales, Australien)
- Kavitha Suthanthiraraj (University of New South Wales, Australien)
- Nadine Abdallah (American University Cairo, Ägypten)
- Yoav Kapchuk (Kinneret College on the Sea of Galilee, Israel)
- Nayera Abdel Rahman (Arab Forum for Alternatives, Libanon)
- Nicolas Bouchet (The German-Marshall Fund of the United States, Deutschland)
- Gilber Khadiagala (University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa)
- Nicole Doerr (University of Copenhagen, Denmark)
- Anindya Sekhar Purakayastha (Kazi Nazrul University/School of Translation and Cultural Studies, Institute of Language Studies and Research (ILSR), India)
- Annika Björkdahl (Lund University, Sweden)
- Jonah Schulhofer-Wohl (Leiden University, The Netherlands)