The Zentralbibliothek Zürich is one of largest libraries in Switzerland. Its special collections (rare books; prints, drawings and photo archive; manuscripts; maps and panoramas; music; Turicensia) constitute a unique – and increasingly digital – source for research in the fields of humanities and the social sciences. The ZB Lab combines digital resources with future-forward research services, taking an experimental approach to the development of service solutions that address both the potential of its digital assets and the needs of user groups.
Through the Willy Bretscher Fellowships, which include a monthly stipend of CHF 4,000, the Zentralbibliothek Zürich supports researchers working on projects in the fields of the digital humanities or computational social science, focusing on the 20th century and using the library’s holdings or data. The fellowships cover the period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 and can last from 3 to 12 months.
Fellows are expected to relocate their research activities to Zurich, spend the most of their time engaged in these endeavours and present their findings to the public.
Applications include the following documentation:
a) Description of the planned project (project outline in accordance with guidelines)
b) Indication of the period to be covered by the fellowship
c) List of the IT infrastructure (software/hardware) required, as well as the metadata and digital copies to be provided by the Zentralbibliothek Zürich to enable the project to be successfully completed
d) Proposal for the public presentation of the project
e) Academic CV (incl. degree certificates and list of publications)
f) Doctoral candidates only: letter of recommendation
are to be sent in digital form (one PDF, max. 10 MB) to
bretscher-fellowship@zb.uzh.ch no later than 30 September 2023.
Further information:
• Willy Bretscher Fellowship: Website and guidelines in German
• The ZB 2024 strategy: a compass for handling knowledge in the digital world
