Visitors

Senior or postdoctoral scholars interested in visiting the Institute of Islamic Studies to conduct research for up to a year may apply for the Visiting Scholar, Visiting Professor, or Visiting Fellow status.*

Those who hold a ranked academic position at another educational institution must apply as a Visiting Professor. Visiting Fellows hold an award conferred by McGill or another institution or agency.

The Visitors work independently, with occasional consultation with a sponsor, who is a faculty of the Institute; are accorded full library privileges in the Islamic Studies Library, including the use of a carrel (space permitting); assigned a mailbox in the Institute's main office; and may sit in classes, with the permission of the Instructor.

Please note that Visiting Professors/Scholars/Fellows receive no monetary compensation or salary from the Institute of Islamic Studies, nor are they provided with office space.

*Initial appointment is usually for one (1) year.  An invitation may be renewed for further periods provided that the duration of the initial invitation and the extensions thereof do not exceed, in aggregate, two consecutive years.

 

N.B.: Applications for visiting status and requests for re-appointments/extensions should be submitted to info.islamics [at] mcgill.ca no later than one week prior to scheduled Islamic Studies Staff Meetings, between September and April of the academic year; there are no faculty meetings during the months of May, June, July, August.

The Institute of Islamic Studies must be acknowledged in any publications written during the Visitor's period of residence at McGill.

Immigration Regulations (for non-Canadians who do not have Permanent Residence status in Canada)

In accordance with Canadian and Québec law, any offer of visiting status is conditional upon your obtaining the appropriate work authorization from any or all of the following, as applicable: Citizenship & Immigration Canada, Immigration Quebec and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC).

 


Application procedures:

Those interested in becoming a Visiting Scholar/Professor/Fellow at the Institute of Islamic Studies should email their application to info.islamics [at] mcgill.ca (Info Islamics).

Applications must include the following:

  1. A complete CV with a list of publications.
  2. Two letters of reference (from academics) on letter head, indicating the date and signed. 
  3. A letter from the applicant detailing his/her academic qualifications and current position, the research that he/she intends to undertake during the period in question, and the reason why he/she wishes to undertake that research at the Institute of Islamic Studies. Please specify the intended dates for your stay.
  4. A letter from the applicant's Department or Institution head stating that he/she is allowed to be a visitor at McGill, for how long and that the individual is expected to return to his/her position at the end of the residence at McGill. The letter should also include the name of the institution, the applicant's current title and/or rank and the date when the applicant started in the institution.
  5. Funding for your stay: information on funding could be included on the departmental or institutional letter mentioned at point 4 above or, if awarded a scholarship, in a separate official letter from the awarder. Letters in languages other than English or French must be accompanied by an official English or French translation.

Notes of the Letters of Recommendation:

  1. The e-mailed recommendation letters must be sent from a valid institutional or corporate e-mail address (domain) by the referees themselves.
  2. The electronic letters should include information that would aid the Faculty Committee in making an informed decision.
  3. The referee must indicate his/her position and full contact information at the institution.

Application deadlines:

Applications are reviewed by all the professors at the Institute at one of the Staff Meetings; Applications should be completed one week before the Staff Meeting. 

 

Postdoctoral Fellows

If you are within five years from obtaining your doctoral degree, you could be eligible for the status of Postdoctoral Fellow. Potential candidates should find a professor interested in their research (see this link for our faculty: https://www.mcgill.ca/islamicstudies/people/faculty-members) and then apply for the highly competitive postdoctoral scholarships administered by McGill (e.g., Banting, Mellon, PBEEE etc.). Unfortunately, the Institute of Islamic Studies does not offer its own funding for postdoctoral fellows.

For more information on external funding opportunities, and application information, please see these links:

Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies - Postdoctoral Funding Opportunities

Faculty of Arts - Postdoctoral Fellowships

Alternatively, you could apply for the Visiting Scholar status.  

 


Graduate Visiting/Exchange/Special Student Statuses and the Graduate Research Trainee Status

For detailed information on any of these options, please see this website.

The Visiting and Exchange statuses are for graduate students from other universities wishing to take courses at the Institute, with the latter presupposing a preexisting agreement between the universities. The Special Student status is for both graduate students from another university and for people with at least a bachelor's degree who wish to explore the field of Islamic Studies by taking up to 12 credits at McGill during one academic year. Note that taking graduate Islamic Studies courses does not guarantee further admission to our graduate programs.

The Research Trainee status is for graduate students from other universities who want to spend up to 12 months at McGill for research only, under the supervision of a professor working in their field of interest.

 

Undergraduate Visiting/Exchange/Special Student Statuses and the Undergraduate Research Trainee Status

For information on the status of Visiting/Exchange Student and the one of the Undergraduate Research Trainee, please see the information under Student Records.

The undergraduate Special Student status is for people holding a bachelor's degree with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 who want to gain knowledge in a field of study in which they are interested to pursue graduate work. The deadline to apply is May 1. This is a one-time status under which the student could take up to 30 credits in one academic year only. See this site for additional information. Note that taking undergraduate Islamic Studies courses does not guarantee admission to our graduate programs.

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