Assistant Professors in Political Science: Europe’s External Relations & Politics of the Global South

The Department of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) invites applications for two tenure-track Assistant Professor (Universitair Docent 2) positions in Political Science, starting January 2022 or as soon as possible thereafter.

What are you going to do?

Both assistant professors will be part of the research group ‘Political Economy and Transnational Governance’ (PETGOV). PETGOV explores the transnational integration of markets and economic transactions that have given rise to far-reaching transformations of governance both within and beyond the nation-state. It does so across a range of policy fields, from environmental protection and financial regulation to violent conflict. PETGOV’s exploration of transnational governance focuses on varying forms of contestation and regulation, including multi-level architectures for coordinated learning from local experimentation. For more information on the group and its interests, please consult the website.

Assistant Professor in Europe & Its External Relations

The successful candidate will teach core courses and electives in the Master in Political Science, in its track ‘European Politics and External Relations’, and in the Bachelor in Political Science, in particular in the Minor ‘European Politics and External Relations’. The Master and Minor focus on the wider history of Europe and the European integration and the various challenges Europe confronts in an increasingly globalized world. We are seeking candidates whose teaching and research focuses on the external dimensions of the EU and European policies, broadly defined, in the context of international realignments in both cooperation and competition regarding development, environmental, economic, and technical issues. The successful candidate should bring insights from contemporary debates on international relations and Europe’s place in the world. We are particularly looking for candidates who can help us expand our current geographical coverage with expertise on Europe’s relations with the post-Soviet space, with Sub-Saharan Africa, or with South or Southeast Asia or South America. The search is open with regard to theoretical approaches, including those which are underrepresented in the department, such as postcolonial theory. The search is also open with regard to methodological orientation.

Assistant Professor, Politics of the Global South

The successful candidate will teach core courses and electives in the Bachelor and Master in Political Science, and potentially in interdisciplinary programmes in which politics is a core component. We are seeking candidates whose teaching and research focuses on the international relations, political economy or comparative politics of the Global South, with a substantive focus on political economy (aid, trade, or finance), international organizations, social policy, environmental issues or regional development. The successful candidate should bring insights from contemporary debates on international relations, political economy, transnational governance, and/or postcolonial theory. In terms of regional orientation, we are particularly looking for candidates with expertise on Sub-Saharan Africa, but expertise on Central, South or Southeast Asia is also welcome, complementing the department’s existing strengths on Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and China. The search is open with regard to methodological orientation; we encourage applications from candidates employing innovative approaches ranging from ethnography and participant observation to mixed and quantitative methods.

What do we require of you?

• A PhD in Political Science or closely related field in the social sciences at the time of appointment is required;
• An ongoing research programme and publications, focused on internationally ranked, peer reviewed journals and/or books published by internationally recognized academic publishers;
• A demonstrated interest in the field of Europe’s External Relations (position 1) or in the Politics of the Global South (position 2), and a broad general knowledge of Political Economy, International Relations and/or Comparative Politics;
• Mastery of social science research methods appropriate for the candidate’s research agenda;
• We encourage applications from candidates with regional expertise in Russia and Central Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, complementing the department’s existing strengths on Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and China;
• Ability to provide excellent and inspiring teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels in the Bachelor and Master in Political Science;
• A capacity to teach in English, and a willingness to acquire passive knowledge of Dutch within three years;
• The basic qualification at Dutch universities in higher education (Basiskwalificatie Onderwijs; BKO) certificate, or a willingness to acquire such.

Job application

The University of Amsterdam is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from members of underrepresented groups. The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences strives for excellence in a caring institute. We wish to reflect society in all aspects, as we believe that this improves the dynamics in our organization. Therefore, we support and understand the need for a work/life/family balance and consequently varying working hours and places. We believe that doing good science goes hand in hand with an ambitious yet friendly culture. The Netherlands provides 16 weeks of pregnancy/maternity leave. The UvA offers staff additional paid and unpaid parental leave.

A complete application must be submitted through University of Amsterdam’s on-line recruitment portal. It should comprise the following documents:

• Cover letter;
• Curriculum vitae, including publication list;
• A teaching statement, including contributions to diversity;
• Two writing samples, at least one of which must be single-authored;
• Contact information for three references;

The committee will not review additional documentation at this stage. Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.

The deadline for applications is 22 June 2021. Interviews are expected to be held in late September 2021, if possible on-site. Candidates are kindly requested to be available during this period.