Membership criteria and application
The Kurt Lewin Institute distinguishes several types of membership: full, associate and Ph.D. student membership. Please find more information on membership criteria and application below.
Participation
All KLI members can participate in the KLI Teaching Program and the KLI conference. Full and associate members can submit research proposals and workshop proposals, and participate in the different KLI committees.
Membership fee
Full and associate members do not pay a membership fee, but they are expected to contribute to the teaching program and Research Group meetings. For PhD student members, a fixed sum of 1000,- euro per PhD per year will be paid by the university in question to cover expenses of participants in KLI activities. Payments will be calculated based on the membership on January 1st of each year. Additional activities outside the teaching program such as the KLI conference will be organized on a different basis; participants can be requested to pay a fee for additional activities.
[collapse title=”Membership criteria for full and associate members”]
I – Full membership
Researchers can become a full member of the KLI if they meet the following criteria:
| a. | The applicant should be a member of a Dutch university; |
| b. | The applicant must have a completed PhD; |
| c. | The applicant must have a publication track-record showing a regular output of at least 20 points* in peer reviewed international journals over the preceding 5 years, provided one has 40% research time per year; |
| d. | The applicant must (co)supervise a PhD student who is a KLI member, and/or actively contribute to the KLI in other ways. |
| e. | The applicant’s research must fit into the KLI’s mission statement. |
Members are also expected to participate in KLI teaching activities.
II – Associate membership
Applicants who do not meet criteria c and/or d can become an associate member for a maximum of 5 years. Associate membership of the KLI requires an appointment at one of the core universities participating in the KLI (UvA, VU, RuG, UL, UU, MU and TU) and a publication track record showing a regular output of at least 10 points* over the preceding 5 years, provided one has 40% research time per year. For the associate membership both published articles and articles in press qualify.
After 3 years of associate membership one should meet criterium c for full members. After 5 years of associate membership one should meet all criteria for full members (including d) and submit an application for full membership. When supervision of a PhD student is not yet realized after 5 years, the associate member is applicable for full membership if he/she is actively involved in the organization and shaping of educational purposes at his/her university. If these criteria are not met the KLI membership will be ended.
*Publications
Criterion c takes account both of the quality of the journal in which work is published and whether or not the person concerned is first author of the publication in question. Journals are classified into two categories. Only peer-reviewed international journals qualify. Journals in the category 1 are those with a mean citation impact score of at least 1.0 over the past 5 years. All other journals belong to the second category. Applicants and existing members receive points for publications as follows:
- first author of an article in a category 1 journal: 6 points
- first author of an article in a category 2 journal: 4 points
- second (or subsequent) author of an article in a category 1 journal: 4 points
- second (or subsequent) author of an article in a category 2 journal: 2 points
- author or co-author of an English-language monograph (max. one): 6 points
For researchers with a parttime position the required number of publications can be adjusted.
III – We do realize that not all scientists have the same career paths. If you would like to become a senior KLI member and you do not meet all criteria of either the full or the associate membership, we do encourage you to apply anyway, to see if a customized solution might be an option.
[/collapse]
Application form full or associate membership
[collapse title=”Membership criteria for PhD students”]
Criteria
The Research Committee evaluates each Ph.D. project in terms of the following criteria:
| a. | The PhD student should have at least two supervisors |
| b. | At least one supervisor must be a member of the KLI |
| c. | The theme or topic of the research must fit within the scientific mission of the KLI |
| d. | The proposal must be in a form that can readily be judged by the committee (i.e., in the KLI application form) |
| e. | Arrangements for the supervision of the project should be appropriate |
Applications that in the eyes of the Research Committee fall short of the desired standard with regard to content issues are returned to the applicants with a request to revise the proposal in the light of written feedback from the committee and to resubmit the proposal for consideration at a following meeting.
Important to know when submitting a research proposal
| a. | Only KLI members can submit a research proposal and apply for membership of their Ph.D. students |
| b. | A research proposal should be submitted within half a year after the PhD project started |
| c. | In case the Research Committee asks for revision of the proposal, the adjusted proposal should be submitted within two months |
| d. | A single research proposal can only be submitted twice (so one resubmission) |
When the research proposal is approved of, the Ph.D. student will be admitted as a KLI member as of the starting date of his or her Ph.D. project.
Expectations
1. KLI PhD student members are expected to join at least one of the research groups and to participate in their meetings.
2. At the end of the project, KLI PhD student members are expected to complete all required elements to finalize their membership: to participate in the KLI dissertation series, to fill out the final evaluation form, and to receive a KLI certificate.
[/collapse]
Application form PhD membership
Once you have applied for one of the memberships, the Research Committee will evaluate your application. You will receive a message on short notice regarding your application and membership status.