The University of Greifswald has received funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) for the International Research Training Group ”Baltic Borderlands: Shifting Boundaries of Mind and Culture in the Borderlands of the Baltic Sea Region” and now invites applications from well-qualified candidates for one of seven PhD studentships. This announcement addresses particularly applicants from history, art history, Scandinavian, Slavonic and Baltic languages and literature, political science, theology as well as cultural studies.
The International Research Training Group was initiated by the University of Greifswald, the University of Lund (Sweden), and the University of Tartu (Estonia) to provide a common programme for doctoral students and post-doctoral researchers. Currently, 20 PhD students and 5 post-docs are being trained in Greifswald, Lund and Tartu. In Greifswald, the subject areas offered include history, Baltic, Slavonic and Scandinavian languages and literature, political science, and systematic theology. Over and beyond history, theology, and Slavonic studies in Lund and Tartu, there are also offerings in ethnology, geography, and communication studies. Applications are invited from candidates willing to conduct research relating to bordering processes in one of the following themes:
- The emergence and transformation of historical borderlands
- The cultural contexts of cross-border action in borderland areas
- The economic permeability and persistence of borders
- New border regimes: The political dimension of border formation and dissolution
The programme of study within the International Research Training Group includes relevant courses held locally at each university as well as tri-national workshops/conferences in Greifswald, Lund and Tartu. Furthermore, it is obligatory that each PhD student will spend 6-12 months as a visiting researcher at the partner universities. The costs of such research visits will be partly covered by a mobility grant awarded in addition to the monthly payment.
Requirements:
- applicants should hold a good first degree and normally have, or be about to obtain, a Masters qualification in a discipline relevant to the PhD topic.
- exposé for a research project in the above mentioned fields (max. 10 pages)
- good written and spoken English. Knowledge of German, Estonian or Swedish is desirable but not essential.
The willingness and ability of the candidate to participate actively in an international research programme is a precondition. The programme of study is compulsory for all PhD students in the International Research Training Group. Applications of women are explicitly welcomed. In areas where women are underrepresented, they will be given pre-ferential consideration when candidates are of equal merit. Applicants with a disability will be given preference when candidates are of equal merit, as stipulated in SGB IX (§ 2, paragraph 2, 3).
The IRTG Baltic Borderlands is a family friendly institution and encourages young adults to apply.
Selected candidates are expected to take up residence in Greifswald.
Starting date: 1st January 2016 (subject to approval from the DFG)
Value of the contract: about € 18.000 p.a. (after tax, according to 65% TV-L 13, payment scale public service)
The contract will be awarded for two years initially, and can be extended for one further year.
Applications (with curriculum vitae, copies of educational qualifications and degree thesis, list of publications, a written reference from a university professor, and a research proposal) should be sent to the speaker of the International Research Training Group, Professor Dr. Michael North by 15 June 2015.
For further details:
Telephone: +49 3834 86-33 09/-3341
Fax: +49 3834 86-33 33
Homepage: http://www.phil.uni-greifswald.de/fk/borderlands.html and Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/IRTG-Baltic-Borderlands/311410042367670
Address:
Professor Dr. Michael North
Speaker of the International Research Training Group ”Baltic Borderlands: Shifting Boundaries of Mind and Culture in the Borderlands of the Baltic Sea Region”
Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Universität Greifswald
Rubenowstraße 2
17487 Greifswald
Germany