Dear All,

ACADEMY SCHOLARSHIP COMPETITION 2014

For the third year, the Institute of Ideas will be running the Academy Scholarship Programme for full time students of ANY academic discipline. Successful applicants will be eligible to attend the annual Academy weekend for only £60. Read on for details of how to apply.

WHAT IS THE ACADEMY?

The Institute of Ideas Academy is an annual three day residential retreat running from FRIDAY 18 JULY to MONDAY 21 JULY, in which we aim to get away and be unashamedly esoteric and intellectual for a weekend, in the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake. There are three parallel lecture series on Classics, Literature and History as well as a plenary History of Ideas series on moral thought.

If the idea of grappling with the complexities of moral thought through the works of Aristotle and Thucydides, Edmund Burke and Aquinas, Cervantes and Thomas Mann appeals, then the Academy is for you! Join us for a weekend of free thinking and discussion, in which everybody will have the opportunity to cultivate themselves in beautiful surroundings: with good books, good food and drink, and in good company.

This year we will cover texts as diverse as Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, and Virgil’s Aeneid, as well as Adam Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain and Edmund Burke’s Reflections on the Revolution in France. The lectures will explore moral thought throughout the ages, and consider whether it is possible for us to live a morally good life in a secular world.

In addition, prior to the main programme which will begin on SATURDAY 19 JULY, the successful Academy Scholars will have three additional lectures organised for them on the afternoon of FRIDAY 18JULY.

University students from ALL disciplines are encouraged to apply to the Scholarship Programme, and whether you are an arts, humanities or science student, you will be joining a diverse range of people from every possible walk of life; from Professors and academics, to other students, business people, barristers, film makers and writers to name just a few.

HOW TO APPLY

The scholarship programme offers full time University students the chance to attend for the heavily subsidised price of £60 for three nights’ accommodation and full board at the luxury Wyboston Lakes complex in Bedfordshire.

To apply for an Academy Scholarship, please submit a 500-word(max) essay on the question: “Can one be moral in a secular society?” Please also submit a 300-word(max) motivation on why you in particular deserve to attend The Academy.

Submit applications online by 11am MONDAY 31 MARCH 2014. Once we have successfully received your application, you will be sent the reading list so that you can start preparing while we evaluate all of the submissions.

All successful candidates will be notified on FRIDAY 2 MAY 2014

For more information on the Scholarship Programme, and for any questions that you may have, please email scholarship@instituteofideas.com.

To learn more about the Academy itself, and to see full details of the lectures and schedule, please visit: http://www.instituteofideas.com/academy2014.html

We hope to see you there.

Best Wishes,

Claire Fox; Director, Institute of Ideas
Angus Kennedy; Convenor, The Academy