The Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IPS-BAS), in collaboration with the European Consortium for Sociological Research (ECSR) and the Institute of Sociology at Leibniz University Hannover (ISH-LUH), announces the Call for Applications for the Joint Fall School 2026 “Education and Employment in Europe”, to be held in Sofia, Bulgaria, 6–9 October 2026.
The event is organised within the framework of the ProSkills2Work (Progressing Promising Skills to Work) project, funded under the Horizon Europe programme (ERA Chair). The Fall School forms part of the project’s strategic activities aimed at strengthening research capacity, international visibility, and academic networking of IPS-BAS in the field of sociology of education, skills, and work.
The 2026 edition will focus on the relationship between education and employment in Europe, including transitions from education to work, social inequalities, institutional differences across countries, and the impact of automation, artificial intelligence, and new forms of work on occupational trajectories.
The School will host 18–20 doctoral students and early postdoctoral researchers (up to three years after PhD completion) from Central and Eastern European (CEE) and non-CEE countries.
The working language of the Fall School is English.
All application documents must be prepared and submitted in English.
Required application documents
– An abstract of the paper to be presented (up to 500 words)
– A summary of the PhD project or current research (up to 3 pages)
– A brief CV (1 page)
The application deadline is 1 May 2026.
Applications should be sent to: proskills2work@ips.bas.bg
The event is organised by:
Petya Ilieva-Trichkova (IPS-BAS)
Rumyana Zheleva (IPS-BAS)
Ogniana Glavoussanova-Mereteva (IPS-BAS)
Christian Imdorf (IPS-BAS & ISH-LUH)
Christoph Bühler (ISH-LUH)
For further information, please contact:
Petya Ilieva-Trichkova – petya.ilieva@ips.bas.bg
Christian Imdorf – c.imdorf@ish.uni-hannover.de
Participation is free of charge. Accommodation, lunches, and one social dinner will be provided. PhD students from Central and Eastern European countries may apply for travel support.