Are you a researcher, policy expert, or think tank professional working on Turkey-related issues? Here is a powerful, paid opportunity that belongs right at the top of your application list. The Centre for Applied Turkey Studies (CATS) is now calling for applications for its prestigious CATS Fellowship 2026–2027 — a fully supported research fellowship based in Berlin, Germany, offering a monthly grant of €3,000 plus travel and research budgets.
This is not just a fellowship. It is a platform to produce high-impact, policy-relevant research on one of the most geopolitically significant countries in the world — Turkey — at one of Germany’s most respected think tanks.
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🌍 Fellowship Overview
| Detail | Information |
| Host Organisation | Centre for Applied Turkey Studies (CATS) at SWP |
| Location | Berlin, Germany |
| Fellowship Duration | 6 to 12 Months |
| Monthly Grant | €3,000 |
| Earliest Start Date | September 2026 |
| Application Deadline | 30 April 2026 |
| Application Language | English or German |
| Eligible Candidates | Post-doctoral researchers, think tank members, practitioners, advanced researchers |
| Working Languages | English and German |
🌍 About CATS and SWP
The Centre for Applied Turkey Studies (CATS) is hosted at the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP) — the German Institute for International and Security Affairs — one of Europe’s most influential foreign policy think tanks, based in Berlin. CATS serves as a dedicated research and analysis hub focused on Turkey’s domestic dynamics, foreign policy, and its relationships with Europe, NATO, and the broader international community.
Fellows at CATS work alongside experienced SWP researchers and contribute to publications that directly inform German and European policymaking. If you want your research to actually matter beyond academia, this is precisely the kind of platform that delivers that reach.
🌍 Fellowship Research Topics for 2026–2027
CATS is offering fellowships under four thematic pillars for the 2026–2027 funding period. Each represents a strategically important and underexplored area of Turkey-related research:
📌 1. Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Turkey has invested heavily in digital infrastructure and laid out a national AI strategy, yet its capacity in this space significantly lags behind major powers like China, the US, the UK, and Gulf countries. For European and German policymakers, understanding Turkey’s digital trajectory — as a key NATO ally and trading partner — has direct implications for regulatory standards, economic interests, and security.
Key research themes include:
- Turkey’s national digitalisation and AI strategy: objectives, gaps, and limitations
- AI’s role in Turkey’s defence industry, cyber resilience, and hybrid warfare readiness
- The relationship between AI, surveillance, and state authority inside Turkey
- AI’s impact on Turkey’s economic growth, industrial policy, and labour markets
📌 2. Critical Raw Materials (CRMs)
Turkey is said to hold the world’s second-largest rare-earth element deposit — a fact that places it at the heart of global competition over green transition minerals. Turkey is a member of the Minerals Security Partnership (which includes the EU and US), and in 2024, it signed an MOU with China on critical minerals cooperation. Yet Turkey’s CRM policy remains significantly understudied.
Key research themes include:
- Turkey’s strategy for extracting and processing critical raw materials
- How Ankara navigates geoeconomic competition over CRMs between the US and China
- The role of CRMs in Turkish foreign policy across Africa, the Western Balkans, and South Caucasus
- Opportunities and challenges for EU–Turkey cooperation on critical minerals
📌 3. Energy Transition and Climate Change
Turkey will host COP 31 — the UN Climate Change Conference — this year, placing it at the centre of global climate diplomacy. At the same time, Turkey faces deep structural challenges in its own energy transition while dealing with accelerating impacts of climate change including water scarcity and extreme weather.
Key research themes include:
- Turkey’s energy transition roadmap: actors, assumptions, constraints, and EU implications
- Friction between Turkish energy security policy and international climate commitments
- How climate change is reshaping state-society relations and governance in Turkey
- Water scarcity as a political, social, and security challenge in Turkey
📌 4. Turkish Foreign and Security Policy amid Geopolitical Turmoil
Turkey is NATO’s second-largest military power, an EU membership candidate (though accession talks have been suspended since 2016), and a uniquely positioned regional actor between Europe, Eurasia, and the Middle East. Its foreign and security policy reflects a complex balancing act between strategic autonomy, alliance commitments, and regional activism.
Key research themes include:
- Key objectives, instruments, and constraints of Turkish foreign and security policy
- Turkey’s threat perceptions and strategy in the maritime domain
- Turkey’s positioning in the South Caucasus and Black Sea vis-à-vis Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, and others
- Turkey’s role in Caspian energy infrastructure and European energy diversification efforts
🌍 Benefits & Grant Details
This fellowship comes with a genuine, competitive financial package:
- 💶 Monthly grant of €3,000 for the full duration of the fellowship
- ✈️ Travel costs to and from Berlin at the start and end of the fellowship covered by CATS
- 🧳 Research trip budget included
- 👶 Additional support available for fellows accompanied by children during the fellowship period
- 🤝 Collaboration access with CATS and SWP researchers
- 📰 Publication opportunity — research results appear as peer-reviewed CATS and SWP publications with strong policy reach
🌍 Eligibility Criteria
CATS welcomes applications from a broad range of qualified candidates:
- 🎓 Post-doctoral researchers with a strong Turkey-related research track record
- 🏛️ Think tank members and policy practitioners working on Turkey-relevant issues
- 📚 Advanced PhD researchers who have not yet completed their degree but have significant publications and research experience in Turkey studies may also apply
- 📝 Significant publications and evidence of extensive research experience are required
- 🌐 Proficiency in English or German is necessary (working languages of the fellowship)
- 🏙️ Willingness to reside in Berlin for the full fellowship period (except during approved research trips)
🌍 Who Should Apply
Apply if you are:
- A researcher or practitioner with a strong focus on Turkey’s politics, foreign policy, economy, or security
- Experienced in policy-relevant research and publications
- Interested in working at the intersection of academia and real-world policymaking
- Ready to spend 6 to 12 months based in Berlin, Germany
- Able to contribute meaningfully to one of the four thematic areas listed above
Do NOT apply if:
- You have no prior publications or research track record on Turkey-related topics
- You are unable or unwilling to be based in Berlin during the fellowship
- Your research topic does not fall within the four themes specified for 2026–2027
- Your application is incomplete — CATS explicitly states incomplete applications will not be considered
🌍 Required Documents
Your application must be submitted as a single PDF document in the following order:
- 📝 Cover Letter
- 📄 Research Proposal (maximum 5 pages | 2 cm margins | 1.5 line spacing | 12pt Times New Roman) including:
- Discussion of your research topic and key research questions
- Academic and policy relevance of the project
- Overview of the state of research in the field
- Theoretical and methodological approaches
- Bibliography
- 🪪 CV with a full list of academic publications
- 🎓 Copies of academic transcripts and/or diplomas (translations not required)
🌍 Application Process
Step 1 — Prepare Your Documents Gather all required documents as outlined above. Ensure your research proposal fits within 5 pages and addresses one of the four CATS thematic areas for 2026–2027.
Step 2 — Compile into a Single PDF All documents must be merged into one PDF file in the exact order specified. Incomplete or multi-file applications will be rejected.
Step 3 — Submit by Email Email your single PDF to: CATSapplication@swp-berlin.org Subject your email clearly as a CATS Fellowship application.
Step 4 — Evaluation Applications are reviewed by a committee of CATS and SWP researchers alongside experts from CATS Network partner institutions. They assess academic merit, policy relevance, project coherence, and public outreach potential. In the case of equally strong applications, preference goes to applicants who have not previously received CATS funding.
Step 5 — Fellowship Begins Successful applicants are notified and the fellowship starts at the earliest in September 2026.
🌍 Important Dates
| Milestone | Date |
| Application Deadline | 30 April 2026 |
| Earliest Fellowship Start | September 2026 |
| Fellowship Duration | 6 to 12 months |
🌍 Why Apply for the CATS Fellowship?
- 🏛️ SWP is one of Europe’s most influential foreign policy think tanks — your research will reach decision-makers in Germany, the EU, and beyond
- 🌍 Turkey is at the centre of critical global debates on AI, energy, NATO, and geopolitics — your research will matter right now
- 💶 €3,000/month is a competitive, liveable grant for Berlin, especially with travel and research costs covered separately
- 🤝 You will collaborate with world-class researchers and build a lasting network in European policy circles
- 📰 CATS and SWP publications carry real credibility and visibility in international policy and academic communities
- 🏙️ Berlin itself is a global hub for research, diplomacy, and international organizations
🌍 Official Source & Contact
👉 Official CATS Fellowship 2026–2027 Page 📧 Applications: CATSapplication@swp-berlin.org 📧 Queries: CATS@swp-berlin.org 📄 Download the Official Call for Applications PDF
🌍 Fellowship Summary
| Feature | Detail |
| Organization | CATS at SWP, Berlin, Germany |
| Type | Research Fellowship |
| Monthly Grant | €3,000 |
| Duration | 6–12 Months |
| Location | Berlin, Germany |
| Eligible Candidates | Post-docs, think tank members, practitioners, advanced researchers |
| Research Focus | Turkey: AI, Critical Raw Materials, Energy/Climate, Foreign Policy |
| Application Deadline | 30 April 2026 |
| Language | English or German |
| Travel Support | Yes (to/from Berlin + research trips) |
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