Purpose
Sometimes it is difficult to obtain access to books and other resources (for example, specialized online databases, corpora, library collection) necessary for research, especially for ESSE members on tight budgets. Therefore, ESSE will award up to €3,000 to its members for the purchase of books and resources in connection with specific research projects that contribute to achieving the goals of ESSE as defined in its Constitution, intending “to advance the education of the public by promoting the European study and understanding of English languages, literatures in English and cultures of English-speaking peoples”. Thus, ESSE welcomes applications from its members in disciplinary areas belonging to English Studies broadly understood, including but not limited to literatures, cultures and history, film and visual studies, gender studies, linguistics, applied linguistics, TEFL methodology, etc., pertaining to English-speaking countries.
Grants will be of a maximum of €300 per applicant for books and resources that meet the following criteria:
- Books and resources that are not held by the applicant’s university libraries and cannot easily and quickly be obtained by interlibrary loan.
- Books and resources that need to be available to the applicants over an extended period, longer than would be possible through a library loan.
- Books and resources whose price would place a strain on the applicant’s available financial resources, for example, because of the high cost of the books and resources concerned.
- Books and resources are relevant for the applicant’s research topic in the field of English studies.
ESSE kindly asks the successful applicants to donate the books and other resources (as far as possible and feasible) to their university libraries when their research projects have been completed, so that other scholars can benefit from them.
Eligibility
Applicants for book and resource grants must themselves be members of their national associations according to the official membership list submitted by their association in November 2023 to ESSE.
Grants are available for any research project, whether it is formally registered and recognised or simply normal individual academic research. However, it is not the intention to provide books for general academic purposes, e.g. as reference works to have on one’s bookshelf.
Applications
In your application, you should explain briefly why you feel you are eligible for an ESSE Books and Resources Grant. You should say why these resources are necessary for your research project, why purchase is the only viable way to obtain them for your purposes, and why it would be financially difficult for you to purchase them. Your application will be assessed on the basis of these criteria. You do NOT need to provide detailed financial information about yourself – it is sufficient to say something about the general financial situation of academics in your country – but any personal information you do provide will be treated in the strictest confidence.
For your application, please use the appropriate application form.
Questions about applications can be sent to: essegrants@gmail.com
Dates and Procedure
- The application deadline is 1 May 2024.
- Books and resources included in the application must be bought at the personal expense of the applicant between the application deadline and 30 June 2024.
- After purchasing the books and resources, the winners are requested to send the itemised receipts to the Treasurer of ESSE, esse.treasurer@outlook.com. The receipt(s) must include the name of the purchaser, the titles and the cost of the books and resources (even if the purchases are electronic).
- Grant money will be transferred to recipients’ accounts before 15 July 2024.
Selection Committee:
- Prof. Željka Babić (Chair)
- Prof. Nóra Séllei
- Prof. Vladimir Ž. Jovanović
- Prof. Jacek Fabiszak