Call for Papers

The Heidelberg Center for American Studies (HCA) invites applications for its annual Spring Academy on American Culture, Economics, Geography, History, Literature, Politics, and Religion to be held from March 22-26, 2021.

The HCA Spring Academy provides twenty international Ph.D. students with the opportunity to present and thoroughly discuss their Ph.D. projects. The HCA Spring Academy additionally offers workshops held by visiting scholars.

We encourage applications that range broadly across the arts, humanities, and social sciences and pursue an interdisciplinary approach. Participants can present papers on any subject relating to the study of the United States of America. Possible topics include American identity, issues of ethnicity, gender, transatlantic relations, U.S. domestic and foreign policy, economics, as well as various aspects of American history, literature, religion, geography, law, musicology, and culture.

Participants are requested to prepare a 20-minute presentation of their research project, which will be followed by a 40-minute discussion. Proposals should include a preliminary title and run to a maximum of 300 words. The accepted projects will then be arranged into ten panel groups.

The Spring Academy aims at creating a congenial atmosphere for scholarly exchange to inspire future collaborations and to foster networking opportunities for participants.

The Heidelberg Center for American Studies will provide accommodation.

Thanks to a small travel fund, the Spring Academy can subsidize travel expenses for participants registered and residing in developing and soft-currency countries. Applicants for the travel fund must document the necessity for financial aid and explain how they plan to cover any potentially remaining expenses. Additionally, a letter of recommendation from their doctoral advisor is required.