New Generation – Fieldwork – Research
Application deadline:
11 October 2026
Purpose and description of the UTAK Programme
The UTAK (New Generation – Fieldwork – Research) Programme launched by the Hagyományok Háza aims to involve students of ethnography and cultural anthropology at participating universities in the preparation and implementation of fieldwork in Hungary and abroad. It also aims to ensure that the results of fieldwork are archived in an appropriate place and manner and, in the longer term, made accessible and available for research.
The Programme funds long-term fieldwork projects connected to the core activities of the institution, which lay the foundations for research engaging in dialogue with the existing findings and theories of ethnography and cultural anthropology, and whose results contribute to the development of these fields of study.
The UTAK Programme specifically supports the implementation of fieldwork; therefore, it does not fund exclusively online or archival research. Beyond this, it does not give preference to any particular topic, methodology or research location.
Eligible applicants and participation requirements
The application procedure is open to undergraduate or PhD students in ethnography or cultural anthropology who, at the time of submitting their application, have active student status at one of the departments of ethnography and/or cultural anthropology of Hungarian or Hungarian-speaking higher education institutions that cooperate with the Hagyományok Háza.
The higher education institutions and departments participating in the Programme and cooperating with the Hagyományok Háza are:
- Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Letters, Institute of Hungarian Ethnography and Anthropology
- University of Debrecen, Faculty of Humanities, Institute of Ethnographic Studies and Museology
- Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Humanities, Institute of Ethnography
- Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Cultural Anthropology
- University of Miskolc, Faculty of Humanities, Institute of Applied and Visual Anthropology, Department of Cultural and Visual Anthropology
- University of Pécs, Faculty of Humanities, Institute of Cultural Studies, Department of Ethnography and Cultural Anthropology
- University of Szeged, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Ethnography and Cultural Anthropology
The UTAK Programme operates through two sub-programmes: one supports research in Hungary, while the other supports research outside Hungary. Undergraduate and PhD students may apply separately within both sub-programmes.
The expected duration of fieldwork is:
- undergraduate students: minimum 3, maximum 6 months;
- PhD students: minimum 6, maximum 9 months.
The Programme funds a maximum of 8 applicants per year.
The maximum amount that may be applied for is HUF 3,000,000, while the total budget of the Programme is HUF 12,000,000 gross.
How to submit an application
Applications may be submitted by completing the application form available on the following online platform and uploading the following 6 attachments:
- Academic CV
- Abstract
- Detailed description of the research plan
- Detailed budget
- Statement by the supervisor
- Confirmation of student status issued by the educational institution
The application form contains information relating to the applicant, the supervisor, the fieldwork plan and the budget. In the application form, applicants must name their supervisor (academic consultant), who will assist them with the application and the implementation of the fieldwork.
The supervisor monitors the applicant’s work and provides professional support on relevant issues, then oversees the professional implementation of the project and provides confirmation at specified intervals.
Detailed information and guidance concerning the attachments is provided in the document “Application Documentation – Content and Formal Requirements.”
Evaluation of applications
Applications received will be evaluated by a five-member Board of Trustees.
An application is considered invalid if:
- it does not comply with the requirements of this call for applications;
- the application form or submitted application is incomplete or contains information that is not true;
- it is submitted after the deadline.
Following the formal examination of the application documentation, the Board of Trustees may, on one occasion, invite applicants to remedy deficiencies. If the applicant fails to comply with the request within the deadline specified in the notice, the application will be deemed unsuitable for evaluation and will be considered invalid.
Applications that are formally complete and have been submitted without deficiencies will be evaluated by the Board of Trustees on the basis of the opinions of experts invited in advance.
Evaluation criteria
- the professional quality of the research plan (project);
- presentation of a field or activity that has so far been insufficiently explored;
- the soundness and feasibility of the submitted budget;
- the innovative and novel nature of the submitted plan;
- the applicant’s previous professional work;
- feasibility and cost-effectiveness;
- other professional considerations.
There is no possibility of legal remedy against either a decision concerning the invalidity of an application or a decision on the substantive evaluation of a valid application.
Planned date of announcement of results
18 December 2026
Applicants will be notified of the outcome of the evaluation by e-mail.
Contracting and payment
In implementing the Programme, the Hagyományok Háza cooperates with the Museum of Ethnography and the Institute of Ethnology of the HUN-REN Research Centre for the Humanities at Eötvös Loránd University. Both institutions delegate members to the Programme’s Board of Trustees. In addition, in the case of successful fieldwork plans related to the collecting scope of the Museum of Ethnography, the Museum may also enter into a contract for services with the successful applicants.
The Hagyományok Háza/Museum of Ethnography enters into a contract for services with successful applicants and pays them a service fee for carrying out the fieldwork and for the use of its results (research plans, reports and, subject to agreement, photographs, audio and video recordings, studies, etc.).
The gross amount of the service fee is calculated by the Hagyományok Háza/Museum of Ethnography on the basis of the amount requested in the application and the data and information provided by the applicant in a separate declaration, which are necessary for the calculation of taxes and contributions.
During payroll processing, the Hagyományok Háza/Museum of Ethnography deducts the taxes and contributions prescribed by the applicable legislation from the gross amount of the fee. The applicant will receive the net service fee after these deductions, which will be approximately equivalent to the amount requested in the application.
Further information and the full call for applications are available among the downloadable attachments.
Contact
Laura Lauber
Phone: +36 30 203 9496
E-mail: utak@hagyomanyokhaza.hu
Contact person:
Laura Lauber
Phone: +36 30 203 9496
E-mail: utak@hagyomanyokhaza.hu
Attachments
For English-language application templates and documents, as well as for further information, please contact our colleagues at the e-mail address provided above.
(The photograph shown in the header was taken by Pamuk Lili Judit)