CALL FOR PROPOSALS: IRISS-C/I RESEARCH GRANTS

* 8th IRISS-C/I call for researchers from the EU und Associated States
(funded by the Ministry for Culture, Higher Education and Research
and the European Commission)

* 4th IRISS-C/I call for US researchers (funded by the US National
Science Foundation)

CEPS/INSTEAD is a Luxembourg-based research centre and a
producer of micro-datasets for scientific use on households, persons
and firms. Since 1985, CEPS/INSTEAD  is the home of the Luxembourg
household panel study  (PSELL) and it also hosts the internationally
comparative databases LIS (Luxembourg Income Study), LES
(Luxembourg Employment Study) and PACO (Panel Comparability
Project). For more information on our activities, please turn to the
CEPS/INSTEAD web-site: http://www.ceps.lu.

TOPICS

IRISS-C/I promotes topical, problem-oriented research in economics
and the social sciences based on microdata. It particularly encourages
internationally comparative research.

The CEPS/INSTEAD data archive to which IRISS-C/I fellows are
granted access offers opportunities to carry out research in the
following fields:

* survey and panel data methodology,
* income and poverty dynamics,
* child well-being/poverty,
* persistent and new poverty,
* gender, ethnic and social inequality,
* family and household budgets,
* labour markets,
* unemployment,
* segmentation of labour markets,
* new forms of work/a-typical employment,
* education and training,
* continuing education,
* social protection and redistributive policies,
* family structures and change, child care,
* impact of ageing populations,
* intergenerational relations, effects of family-related policies,
* geographical mobility,
* regional development and structural change.

For the present call, we particularly encourage applications on the
following two topics:

* human capital formation, direct and indirect returns to educational
attainment
* multi-dimensional indicators of poverty and deprivation

DEADLINE

The deadline for submission of research proposals to the present call
for applications is 31 December 2000.

PERIOD OF STAY AT CEPS/INSTEAD

The duration of IRISS-C/I fellowships may vary between 4 to 12
weeks, depending on the nature of the research project. Shorter
research visits may be envisaged for candidates using the LIS/LES
data as they can continue accessing the data via the remote access
system in place. Researchers may interrupt their visits to return to
their home institutions and return at a later date to complete their
project.

For the present call, the preferred period of stay for successful
applicants is 1st February 2001-31st May 2001.

WHO MAY APPLY?

All nationals from EU and non-EU European states conducting
research in a research institution/team either inside or outside the EU.
For European candidates, access to the IRISS-C/I research
infrastructure is funded by the Ministry of Culture, Higher Education
and Research and the European Commission. Researchers from the
United States, whose access to the IRISS-C/I research infrastructure is
funded by the US National Science Foundation.

Prospective applicants from the US may contact Prof. Tim Smeeding
([log in to unmask]) if they wish to obtain further information,
whereas prospective candidates from Europe may contact Dr. Georges
Heinrich ([log in to unmask]).

Only researchers/research teams doing non proprietary research (who
are entitled to publish the results of their work in the open literature)
may apply.

Interested candidates who are not from Europe or the United States
may visit the IRISS-C/I research infrastructure under a separate
visiting scholars=92 programme. Decisions on access to the IRISS-C/I
research infrastructure will be made on a case by case basis.
Interested candidates should directly contact the IRISS-C/I co-
ordinator ([log in to unmask]).

REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCEDURES

Evaluation procedure for applicants from Europe: Each research
proposal is reviewed by a three-member User Selection Panel. The
User Selection Panel is composed of one external evaluator, one
internal (CEPS/INSTEAD) evaluator and the IRISS-C/I co-ordinator.

Evaluation procedure for US Applicants: Each proposal will be
evaluted by 3 members of the IRISS-User Selection Panel from the US .
The selection procedure will be co-ordinated by Prof. Tim Smeeding,
Director of the Luxembourg Income Study and of the Center for Policy
Research at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs,
Syracuse University, NY, USA.

Each proposal will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:

* scientific and technical quality of the project (scientific/technical
interest, originality, methodological approach,
cohesion/structure/clarity, potential for academic publication),

* appropriateness of host institution for research project (necessary
data available in CEPS/INSTEAD data archive, resident or visiting
research fellows with research interests in field of proposed project ).

Research proposals with a comparative dimension (cross-national
and/or inter-temporal) are particularly welcome.

FEEDBACK TO APPLICANTS

Applicants are informed of the result of the evaluation within 4-6
weeks after the deadline. If the User Selection Panel rejects a proposal,
it will indicate the reasons for the rejection and possibly make
suggestions for a revised proposal.

SEMINARS AND PUBLICATION

Towards the end of the stay, IRISS-C/I fellows should present their
research results at a CEPS/INSTEAD seminar. In addition, they may
make a brief presentation of their proposed research project at the
start of their IRISS-C/I fellowship (e.g., to discuss methodology, data
issues related to the proposed project), if they so desire.

The results of any research carried out either wholly or in part during
the IRISS-C/I fellowship should first get published in the IRISS-C/I
Working Papers Series. In subsequent publications or presentations
of their work, IRISS-C/I fellows should mention that all or part of their
research was carried out at IRISS-C/I.

TECHNICAL NOTE

Candidates may apply by e-mail, fax or ordinary mail. The application
form may downloaded from the IRISS-C/I homepage. A hard copy of
the application form may be obtained at the address indicated below.

CONTACTS FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Applicants from the United States:

Kati Foley
Luxembourg Income Study
426 Eggers Hall
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY 13244-1020
Tel.: 315-443-4526
Fax: 315-443-1081
E-mail: [log in to unmask]

Prof. Tim Smeeding, Director
Center for Policy Research
426 Eggers Hall
Syracuse University
Syracuse, NY 13244-1020
Tel.: 315-443-9042
Fax: 315-443-1081
E-mail: [log in to unmask]

Applicants from elsewhere:

Georges Heinrich, IRISS-C/I Coordinator
IRISS at CEPS/INSTEAD
Rue Emile Mark 44,
B.P. 48
L-4501 Differdange
Tel: (00352) 58 58 55 - 512
Fax: (00352) 58 55 88
E-mail: [log in to unmask]