The Department of Political Science is recruiting a Postdoctoral Fellow (SKO 1352) with specialisation in Peace and Conflict Research. The successful applicant will be part of the research project ResilienceBuilding – Social Resilience, Gendered Dynamics, and Local Peace in Protracted Conflicts, which is funded by the European Research Council.The person appointed may be given either a three year-appointment with no teaching requirement, or an appointment for a period of four years with a 25 per cent teaching requirement, depending on how the candidate’s competence fits in with the Department’s teaching portfolio.
The ResilienceBuilding project investigates the causes and consequences of social resilience in protracted armed conflicts, with a focus on Nigeria, Central African Republic, South Sudan and Kenya. It asks how civilians and communities develop social resilience and adapt to conflict dynamics in ways that prevent or mitigate violence, how they maintain resilience and prevent renewed vulnerability to conflict re-escalation, and how social resilience impacts peacebuilding and development. The project further focuses on interlinking national and local dynamics of communal conflict and civil war to study the potential and limitations of international and local peacebuilding efforts and barriers to sustainable peace. The research into social resilience and multi-level conflict dynamics integrates a gender perspective. This means that research examines gendered coping mechanisms and women’s movements and peacebuilding agency on the national and local level.
The project is headed by Professor Jana Krause and is funded by an ERC Starting Grant from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. The project is part of the department’s research group on Comparative Institutions and Regimes. We encourage all applicants to read about ResilienceBuilding on the project website: https://www.sv.uio.no/isv/english/research/projects/resilience-building/
The main purpose of the fellowship is for researchers to qualify for work in higher academic positions. To this end, the main focus of this position is to conduct research, including publication and dissemination. In addition, the fellow is expected to actively contribute to the broader research agenda and environment of the ResilienceBuilding project. If teaching is included, the appointed postdoctoral fellows are expected to acquire basic pedagogical competency during their fellowship period.
Qualification requirements
- Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree (PhD) in Political Science or a closely related discipline before taking up the post.
- For applicants who have yet to receive their PhD degree, the Doctoral dissertation must have been submitted for evaluation before the application deadline.
Other qualifications:
- Applicants must have a very good command of English (written and oral).
- Previous research into and familiarity with one or more of the topics covered by ResilienceBuilding is an advantage.
- Applicants should have field research experience, including data collection and conducting fieldwork interviews.
- Quantitative research skills and experience in designing and conducting survey research and working with datasets are an advantage. Candidates without these skills should be willing to complete the necessary methods courses at the beginning of the fellowship.
- Field research experience in Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in one of the project’s country case studies (South Sudan, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Kenya) is an advantage, but not a must.
The evaluation of applicants is based on documented, academic qualifications and the research plan. Personal suitability, motivation, and compatibility with the rest of the project team are also considered. The most promising candidates are invited to an interview.
Click on the link below to read more and apply:
