Collaboration and creativity creates first Academic Career Development Fellowship in Philosophy

Collaboration and creativity creates first Academic Career Development Fellowship in Philosophy

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The Isaac Newton Trust, the School of the Arts and Humanities, Magdalene and Newnham Colleges and donors including Ross and Jane Reason have collaborated to establish the first Isaac Newton Trust Academic Career Development Fellowship in Philosophy.

We hope the collaboration generated across multiple University and College entities to produce this Fellowship will be used as a template for other early career fellowships and other appointments.

Ross and Jane Reason

Philosophy is one of the smallest faculties in Cambridge, with no College Teaching Officers. This new post will significantly enhance the teaching capacity for philosophy across Cambridge and provide excellent early-career training for a rising academic star, who will enjoy protected research time alongside teaching responsibilities in both the Faculty and the two Colleges.

Dr Cicely Whiteley will take up this new post in October.

Speaking about this new post, the Director of the Isaac Newton Trust (INT) said:

"The INT Trustees are delighted to acknowledge the positive and creative partnership with the Faculty, Colleges and donors that has enabled us to launch this new type of Early-Career Fellowship, which we hope will be an attractive and valuable complement to the Colleges’ well-established Junior Research Fellowships."

Speaking about their motivation for helping to create the new Academic Career Development Fellowship in Philosophy, a key Magdalene donor said, "the older I become, the more I appreciate how important philosophy is and making sure it is well supported for the modern world makes a lot of sense. I am glad to support teaching undergraduates in this important field".

Donors Ross and Jane Reason, whose gift supports Dr Whiteley's position in the Faculty, said: 

"Of particular interest to us was being able to facilitate funding this post across multiple entities, helping balance the various priorities of the funders whilst not losing sight of what time allocation between teaching and research would best aid the development of an Early-Career Fellow. We hope the collaboration generated across multiple University and College entities to produce this Fellowship will be used as a template for other early career fellowships and other appointments."

A second INT Academic Career Fellowship has been created in Politics and International Studies in collaboration with Lucy Cavendish College. The INT intends to open the programme to other Colleges and Faculties in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in 2022–23.

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