Categories of researchers
A number of different categories of researchers work together within the Faculty Institute (fellows, PhD candidates, visiting fellows and other guests, and students).
- A number of different categories of researchers work together within the Faculty Institute (fellows, PhD candidates, visiting fellows and other guests, and students).
The PhD candidates will be addressed in more detail later.
- Fellow
- In order to be able to work as a fellow, the researcher must meet strict requirements relating to academic standing: he or she must hold a doctorate (or have performed equivalent research work) and be able to demonstrate high productivity: experience in attracting research funding from second and third sources, and a network of international contacts are recommended. Fellows are attached to the Institute, within one of the five Faculty departments.
- The VSNU indicated in its publication Onderzoekscholen en faculteiten, een plaatsbepaling (1995) (Research Schools and Faculties, an Orientation (1995)) the difficulty of linking initial with post-initial education, in view of the diverse origin of the researchers and the variety of wishes within research schools. Appointing academic staff within a department, but affiliating them to the Institute as fellows, could provide a solution to this problem.
- Visiting fellow
- The Institute offers the possibility of a fellowship to researchers from outside the Faculty (visiting fellows). To date there have been some eight visiting fellows. They participate as far as possible in the various projects of the Institute. Within the Institute’s budget, in recent years 1.0 FTE has been reserved for accommodating eminent foreign researchers for a period of time. Attempts have been made to attract those researchers in particular who are able to contribute to one of the research programmes. These foreign visiting fellows are also deployed where possible in the educational programmes given both within and outside the Institute. Obviously, most visiting researchers have worked within the international legal programme Securing the Rule of Law in a World of Multilevel Jurisdiction. Financial shortages make it difficult to invest large sums in visiting fellows.
- This relatively large number of visiting fellows, guests and academic trainees – some 60 persons since 1996 – has added to the dynamism of the Institute and therefore also the Faculty. After the relocation to the renovated Kamerlingh Onnes Building, all visiting researchers, including the students, are accommodated within the different departments.
