As India and Europe are becoming increasingly important to each other as economic, political, and strategic partners, sensitive issues arise in their encounters. Today, it is crucial to gain insight into the ways in which Europeans have understood India and how this has shaped their interactions with Indians in the past and present. The Training Schools of ESIND will examine the development of Europe’s representations of India and their impact on encounters between the two regions, using the expertise of both its experienced members and invited scholars. More details about the research focus of the Training School 2 can be found here.
The second Training School will build on experiences and reflections of the participants of the Training School 1, which was a success, according to them. Selection of two testimonials will give you a sense of their experiences:
Each presentation was not only insightful and meaningful but also highly relevant to my academic interests. I also had the pleasure of meeting many inspiring and like-minded individuals, which made the experience even more enriching.
The collegial atmosphere made the ‘school’ feel more like a community of practice, facilitating possible future collaborations, even beyond ESIND. I am grateful for the chance to participate and look forward to contributing further to the project in the future.
Although the Trainings Schools are conceived mainly as a forum for exchanges between the project’s Working Groups, with particular focus on their Young Researchers and Innovators, we welcome applications from other Ph.D. students and/or Early Career Investigators with relevant topics of their work. For more practical informations about the Training School, and how to apply, see further below.
Dates: February 23rdto February 27th 2026
Venue: Amrita Vishwa Vidypeetham
Amritapuri Campus, Amritapuri
Clapanna P. O. Kollam
Kerala 690525, India
Important notes:
Participants can be reimbursed according to the COST rules, please see the Annotated Rules, Annex 1. If you will be selected for financing from ESIND, your travel and daily allowance will be covered according to the rules.
Participants will have to arrange travel by themselves. Accommodation and meals will be provided in Amritapuri Campus, organized by the hosting institution. All participants should pay the accommodation and meals at the registration from daily allowance sum.
Please note that your expenses will be reimbursed only after completion of the training school and submission of all required documents.
Registration and selection process
Who can apply?
- MA students, PhD students, Early Carrier Investigators (who completed their Ph.D. no longer than 8 years prior to the application) belonging to a COST country (go to https://www.cost.eu/am-i-eligible/ ), whose research is conducted in all areas of the India studies. Typically, those will be researchers from the following disciplines: Indology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, geography, psychology, political science, study of religions, history, etc.
Selection criteria:
- Young Researchers and Innovators (up to the age of 40) or Early Carrier Investigators (within a time span of up to 8 years from the date they obtained their doctorate) in all areas related to the European studies of India
- relevance of applicants’ studies and research experience to the topics of the ESIND project (as described in its MoU) and the research focus of the Training School
- background balance (e.g., balance of academic disciplines, gender balance, country and institutional spread)
- quality and clarity of your research project description
- preference will be given to applicants from the ITC countries (link to https://www.cost.eu/uploads/2021/03/ITC.pdf )
- preference will be given also to applicants from the ESIND Working Groups (especially the Young Researchers and Innovators in terms of COST rules)
How to apply?
STEP 1
- Fill in the application form by January 25 2026:
2nd ESIND Training School February 23-27, 2026 Amrita – Vyplnit formulář - Be prepared to upload in the application form:
- CV (2 pages max.)
- your current M.A./Ph.D./post-doctoral research project description together with expression of your interest to take part in the Training School, and at least a paragraph describing the link between your research and the research focus of ESIND, up to 2 pages in length
STEP 2
- You will get the confirmation email by January 31, 2026.
- Sign-up on e-COST platform: https://e-services.cost.eu/user/login
- Accept or decline the invitation by February 2, 2026.
STEP 3
- We strongly suggest that you plan your trip carefully in order to arrive on February 22 at latest, otherwise you will have difficulties to check in for your accommodation, orient yourself in Amritapuri campus, and come to the festive opening of the Training School in time.
- During the Training School, please make sure you sign the attendance list for each individual day. Your expenses cannot be reimbursed for days when you are not signed in.
- Fill in the reimbursement claim in e-COST, no later than by March 14th, 2026
