Proposals for the Winter Term 2026-27
We are inviting proposals for an online laboratory on the memory of the Syrian war, which will be led by scholars at risk.
Off University and the Memory Studies Foundation are inviting scholars at risk to submit proposals for online labs focusing on the memory of the Syrian war. Together with registered participants, the scholars will design and conduct collaborative research on the topic, aiming to gather primary sources to be made available to the wider academic community and memory studies scholars. While proposals for the online lab can be submitted from all academic disciplines, there must be a clear focus on memory studies and the Syrian war.
Lab proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- the inclusion of key literature on the theory and methodology of documenting and representing the memories and experiences of populations affected by war and conflict;
- the inclusion of discussions and readings about the ethics, politics and methodology of researching the memory of war and conflict;
- the publication plan for primary data in digital archives, and planned measures for data and privacy security;
- the quality of the methodology for teaching and collaborative research, involving lab participants at all stages;
- the selection of the research method and the feasibility of the research project within a 20-week time frame for online/remote collaboration, data collection and dissemination will also be evaluated;
- the specification of the language of instruction and research.
We strongly encourage applicants who are not cisgender males to apply. They will be given priority over other applicants with equal qualifications, as will applicants with a disability.
The lab will take place on the Off University online learning platform during the 2026 winter term (14 weeks, October 2026 – February 2027) and can include the time up until April 2027 for data collection and analysis. The lab instructors are remunerated with a total of 4000,00 € as a honorarium. Off University’s online-learning platform Moodle offers a virtual classroom including chat options, video live streaming, virtual blackboard, file sharing and a whole range of collaborative learning activities. Over the last nine years, we have organized 83 interactive online courses certified by universities with recognized ECTS credits. ECTS credits can be transferred to a home university after completion. Off University is open for everybody to join, not only participants enrolled at a university.
This online laboratory will be organized together with and funded by the Memory Studies Foundation.
Application Requirements for Online Lab:
- Being politically (1) persecuted and/or displaced and (2) unemployed and/or in material need
- Ability to teach a self-organized undergraduate or graduate course in your field of research
- Holding (at least) a master’s degree
- Instructors are required to act in accordance with the Off University Code of Conduct, which can be found here in German, English and Turkish.
Application Materials for Online Lab (in English)
As course proposals will be selected by an international team of scholars, please submit your application material in English only. The online lab can explicitly be conducted in another language than English.
This link leads you to a questionnaire that asks:
- About your experience in teaching online and your knowledge on interactive e-learning methods. Please describe your approach to interactive online teaching and the research orientation of the proposed laboratory (max. 500 words)
- A short statement of persecution and material condition and/or immigration status (max. 500 words)
- Two-page-long outline of the online lab for 14 weeks. which includes readings and other preparatory material for the participants, describes the research objectives, the research design and the planned outcome including venues/archives/websites for publication. It should also clearly state requirements and expectations from the participants.
- Full-CV with detailed past teaching and research experience
Application Process
Your security as a scholar has first priority to us. We therefore save your data only on our own servers and only communicate with you in secure ways: The messaging app Signal and Proton Mail. In order to notify you about the outcome of your application, please leave your Signal-handle, the number you use on Signal or a proton mail address only.
Please answer the questionnaire and upload your CV and your course proposal HERE.
If you have questions, please reach out to us only via Signal with the user name @offuniversity.17 or our proton account mail@offuniversity.org.
All applications should be submitted by April 13th, 2026 at midnight (Central European Time).
You will be notified via Signal or Proton mail by May 3rd, 2026 about the outcome of your application.
