Some of the criteria the Board considers important for a Summer School site are:

–          A leadership group with firsthand experience for several of its members at a previous Summer School as well as attendance at ESERA conferences.

–          A site that is not located in a distracting location (often, large urban areas can be distracting) and that includes use of university facilities (meeting rooms, a lecture hall, dormitory rooms, dining halls) to reduce costs to the PhD students and create a community. Where university facilities are not possible, other venues of comparable cost will be fully considered.

–          Affordable travel costs to the site for PhD students.

–          An early summer availability of facilities and organizing staff.

ESERA Summer Schools are funded by fees from each of the 49 PhD studentsto pay for room, board and perhaps an excursion. The Board provides about 10,000 euros to the host institution for various expenses, including room and board for the staff of approximately 16. In addition, for each coach/speaker real travelling costs are reimbursed, to a maximum of EUR 500.00. Additional local funding sometimes supplements the budget.

Suggestions for a proposal:

• Identify the organizer or organizing team and discuss the qualifications of this individual or group.Members of the organizing team should be current members of ESERA.
• Identify the host institution.
• Discuss its capacity and commitment to host the Summer School.
• Discuss why the proposed institute would meet Summer School goals. Past SS reports on the ESERA website may be helpful with these goals.
• Describe facilities to be used as a part of the proposed institute. This description should include rooms that will be used for the daily meetings of the seven groups of nine, two simultaneous workshops and a daily plenum meeting for 70. Also, describe lodging arrangements for student and staff participants as well as dining, transportation from train stations, airports, etc. to the venue.
• Assurance that the organizing group will not be working with any commercial conference promoting group, but will plan and run the Summer School with only members of its university community.
• Two group leaders for the SS must be available to attend the 2018 Summer School in Jyväskylä, Finland from Monday June 25th to Sunday July 1st. Both will be funded by the Board and will have roles in the SS.
• Curriculum Vitae: A 2-page curriculum vitae (CV) should be included for each member of the organizing team. Each CV should highlight the individual’s research and mentoring experiences since these experiences are relevant to organizing a Summer School.

Submission and review process:

• Submit a proposal letter via e-mail by January 30 to Bob Evans (evans@ind.ku.dk). You will receive a letter confirming receipt.
• Clarifications on the proposal may be requested during February.The ESERA Board will consider submitted proposals decide at its spring meeting on the site. The two lead organizers will attend the JyväskyläSummer School to participate and to begin planning for 2019.