MIASA offers different types of fellowships. Central to the thematic identity of MIASA is that the research topics must match MIASA’s umbrella topic of ‘sustainable governance’, ideally covering one or more of the three main thematic corridors - environment, democracy and peace - and/or the intersectional topics addressing our cross-cutting issues - landownership and acquisition, migration and mobility, restitution of colonially acquired cultural objects, African cities, and Human Rights.

Interdisciplinary Fellow Groups (IFGs): MIASA runs a substantial proportion of its fellow programmes in group formats, with early career fellows joining teams of senior fellows in so-called Interdisciplinary Fellow Groups (IFGs). MIASA funds two IFGs per year. IFGs bring together a group of up to six fellows, including two convenors (one international, one from the University of Ghana), for a duration of four months. The IFGs centre around a research question which necessitates the input of experts from different academic fields and backgrounds. Applications for IFGs follow a two-phase-system: (i) a pre-proposal submitted by one of the convenors, and (ii) a full application. Pre-selected candidates are invited to submit a full application with a set team. The final selection is based on the excellemce and the composition of group members, the fitting into MIASA's main theme and/or sub-themes, the originality of the research theme and the feasibility of the research plan.

Tandem Fellowships: In order to strengthen the research ties between Social Sciences and Humanities scholarship in Germany and Africa, MIASA offers up to two research tandems per year (for 3-5 months), each involving one fellow based at a German institution and one fellow based at an African institution who collaborate on a joint research project. Among the top criteria for the selection process are the fit of the proposed topic with MIASA’s overall aims and intellectual programme, and its contribution to a sustainable research alliance between Africa and Germany.

Individual Fellowships: MIASA offers up to ten classical individual fellowships for the duration of 3-10 months each per year. Applications are welcome from all disciplines in the Humanities and Social Sciences and will be judged, among other things, on the fit of the relevant research topics with MIASA’s thematic fields and overall aims. 

Artists in Residence: MIASA invites artists in residence to accompany Interdisciplinary Fellow Groups on a selective basis. Artists have the capability to express and present globally challenging topics in a way which can enrich the sciences by introducing disruptive ideas as well as vice versa, the scientific discourse can nourish the creative processes of the arts. Artist in residence stays are for 3 months each.

All fellows and groups are selected by MIASA's highly distinguished Academic Advisory Board. Former fellows can re-apply for a second research stay.