Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in Political Science

A research fellow is primarily expected to conduct team-based research on the main questions of the research programs at the V-Dem Institute: “Varieties of Autocratization” (V-Aut), and/or "Failing and Successful Sequences of Democratization" (FASDEM) in collaboration with the PI and the existing team members. Applicants can read about these projects and download various documentation from https://v-dem.net under “Our Work/Research Programs”. V-Dem data is used in the research for both these projects.

One of V-Dem’s strengths is the flexibility and collaborative spirit of everyone at the institute, focusing on reaching the goals of the data collection and research program. This includes a willingness to contribute to coding of data, quality control and/or data management during peak periods. Outreach and collaboration with institutions in society may also be part of the job, in particular with the “Case for Democracy” (also see the webpage). The Postdoctoral Research Fellow may also be asked to perform service and support functions for the Institute’s other activities up to one-third of full-time employment (FTE). 

Qualifications 

The position is open to candidates who (upon assuming the position) have a PhD in political science or related field. Priority will be given to candidates who have completed their degree no more than three years before the application deadline or are in the final stages of completing their degree. Those who graduated earlier may also be considered if there are special reasons.

Applications will be evaluated primarily on research excellence in comparative politics with a focus on areas of relevance to one of the projects listed above. Research at high international level in the field of comparative democratization, autocratization, regime breakdown, authoritarian regimes, and/or political development is required. Excellent English (orally and written) is required.

Candidates must have a strong record in one or more of the following areas:

• Explicit interest in further extending on the research agenda of the FASDEM program; or solving the scientific problems identified in the V-Aut project, with demonstrated abilities to provide original, state-of-the-art, and creative solutions to such research problems.

Strong competence in advanced time-series, cross-sectional regression techniques, sequencing algorithms, optimal matching methods, Monte Carlo chains and/or associated techniques.

Advantageous criteria include:

•     Prior use of V-Dem data in applied research or similar evidence of familiarity with the project.
•     Demonstrated resourcefulness, flexibility, and very good ability to do teamwork in different configurations.
•     Experience working collaboratively on a large-scale research project.
•     Documented experience of outreach, especially translating and communicating research to policy-makers/practitioners.

We will make an overall assessment of the applicants’ qualifications and select one or more judged to complement the rest of the team in the best way possible for the needs of the research programs. Personal qualities and team-working skills are highly relevant for the position and are of great importance. 

Employment 

Type of employment: Fixed-term employment, 24 months
Extent: Full time, 100 %
Location: V-Dem Institute, Department of Political Science, Gothenburg, Sweden
Employment: Starting as soon as possible, or latest by 2022-09-01

Contact information for the post 

If you have any questions about the position, please contact 

Staffan I Lindberg, Professor, Director & Principal Investigator
Phone +46 31 786 1226
Email: staffan.i.lindberg@pol.gu.se

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact,

Administrative manager Åsa Adin, asa.adin@gu.se
Phone: +46 31 786 6994