Call for Mentees

The Institute for Research on Male Supremacism (IRMS) is accepting mentee applications for its 2022-2023 cohort until April 20, 2023.

IRMS supports a community of researchers who are committed to exposing and challenging common narratives that uphold male supremacist ideology. Researchers connect and collaborate with organizers and media professionals to develop real-world impact. The IRMS framework of researching male supremacism expands on decades of work on white and Christian forms of supremacism and merges this with feminist scholarship on patriarchy. Male supremacist ideology is the belief in cisgender men’s superiority and right to dominate, control, or erase “others”: women, trans men, and non-binary people. Our research draws on intersectionality and reproductive justice frameworks in emphasizing the intersections of misogyny and transmisogyny with other axes of oppression, such as racism, xenophobia, antisemitism, and heterosexism. Our work spans a range of topics, from misogynist incel ideology and mass violence; to rape culture, Title IX, and men’s rights activists; to racist misogyny and violence toward Black women and Asian women. We emphasize structural change, shifting discourse toward investing in longer-term solutions such as comprehensive consent-based sexuality education and organizing at the local and state levels.

One of the ways we advance work on male supremacism is through mentoring an emerging generation of researchers conducting work in this area. IRMS supports mentees in furthering research and scholarship on male supremacism and connecting it to organizing and impact through webinars, policy briefs, opeds, books, media interviews, and consultations with social justice organizations and other coalitions and platforms.

The mentorship program is open to individuals from academic, journalistic, think tank, organizing, and other backgrounds who are new to researching male supremacism and its intersecting ideologies. We are seeking emerging researchers currently developing or working on a research project related to male supremacism, who would benefit from this research mentorship. This is a virtual mentorship that accepts candidates from across the globe. The 2023-2024 cohort will begin in July 2023.

Why Become an IRMS Mentee?

IRMS mentees are paired with one of our fellows, each of whom is an expert researcher in their field. Over the course of the year, fellows provide guidance to mentees as they conduct their proposed research projects. Additionally, mentees will participate in the Institute’s writing workshop, where fellows and mentees share works-in-progress and provide feedback to one another.

In addition to the formalized research mentorship and writing workshop, IRMS mentees join a virtual community committed to both advancing a common understanding of male supremacism as an area of theoretical and empirical relevance, and to connecting work on male supremacism with other forms of critical scholarship. Researchers support one another through sharing analyses and resources, finding grounds for collaborations, just venting about the challenges of this work, and exchanging support.

IRMS mentees also receive support from the institute in access to digital security training and resources to deal with the threat of online harassment and doxing.

How to Apply

Applicants should fill out the application form at this link, attaching a CV and a 1-2 page project proposal. The project proposal should clearly outline the research questions, data, methods, and goals, and identify its audience.

Applications should be submitted no later than April 20, 2023. Mentee applicants can expect to hear about interviews in May 2022.

Questions about the application process should be directed to: contact@theirms.org