Dissertation Prize
Dissertation Prize of the Association for Research in the Fantastic 2027
The GFF (Society for Fantastic Research) is interdisciplinary and aims to provide a forum for discussion surrounding fantastic culture as a cultural phenomenon, transcending specific academic disciplines. Fantastic culture is understood as an umbrella term encompassing horror and gothic genres as well as utopias, science fiction, fantasy, and speculative fiction, but also fairy tales, fables, and myths. The GFF views fantastic research as open in terms of media, modality, and methodology and promotes work from a wide range of disciplines. A particular focus of the society is the support of young researchers.
For this reason, the GFF has been awarding a dissertation prize every two years since 2016.
The prize is awarded as a publication cost subsidy of €1.000. Eligible for funding are completed doctoral dissertations written in German or English at a university in a German-speaking country (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), addressing a topic in the realm of fantasy (in a societal sense), and whose final approval falls within the application period (April 1, 2025 to March 1, 2027). The date of successful defense is decisive. Submitted dissertations will be reviewed by an international academic jury. Submissions should be sent by email as a single PDF file to the email address provided below. The dissertation manuscript must include the reviewers' reports and an abstract (maximum 400 words).
The prize will be awarded at the GfF Conference 2027. Travel and accommodation costs are covered by the GfF.
Applications should be sent to the following address, stating the subject “dissertation prize”: gff@fantastikforschung.de
Past award winners:
- 2016: Vera Cuntz-Leng
- 2018: Laura Fluter
- 2021: Corinna Lenhardt
- 2023: Murat Sezi
- 2025: Katharina Scheerer