Group of employees

Research staff

JU organisational unit (place of work performance)

Institute of European Studies

Faculty of International and Political Studies

Field of science

Social sciences

Discipline

Political science and public administration

Scope

An analysis of democracy support for neighbourhood countries and its contestation within the European Union.

Number of posts

1

Type of employment

contract of employment

Working time

¾

Planned duration of employment

18 months                  

Expected date of employment commencement

October 2023

 Remuneration

according to the Rules for Remunerating Jagiellonian University Employees

Requirements

The selection procedure is open for all individuals, who meet the requirements set out in Articles 113 and 116.2.3) of the Act of 20 July 2018 – Law on Higher Education and Science, and who meet the following eligibility criteria according to § 165 of the Statute of the Jagiellonian University:

• holding at least a doctoral degree;
• having relevant scientific achievements;

taking active part in scientific life.

Additional requirements

and expectations  

• PhD in social sciences (political science, international relations, sociology),
• advanced knowledge (C1) of English, good knowledge (B2) of Swedish and/or Polish will be an advantage,
• experience in qualitative research, documented fluency in qualitative data analysis (MAXQDA, QDAMiner)
• knowledge of democratisation, democracy support in the EU neighbourhood and EU democracy support instruments.

Project Title

„SHAPEDEM-EU. EU democracy support in its Eastern and Southern Neighbourhoods” (Z/HEU/00008)

Project description

SHAPEDEM-EU sets out to rethink, reshape, and review the EU’s democracy support policies in its Eastern & Southern Neighbourhoods. Amidst the increasing contestation of the EU and the weakening impact of its policies in the Neighbourhoods, SHAPEDEM-EU applies an entirely novel approach to democracy support. The approach conceives of democracy support as a social practice requiring the collective democratic learning of all stakeholders involved. The consortium will pilot test a Democracy Learning Loop to create new channels and tools for interaction between the EU and its neighbours and transfer these findings into policy recommendations for an improved EU policy toolkit.  SHAPEDEM-EU represents a multi-national and multifaceted research consortium of academic, think tank, and civil society institutions based in the EU and the Southern and Eastern Neighbourhoods. The consortium will apply mixed-methods to collect, assess, and generate policies related to democracy support in the six case countries of Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia, Ukraine, Georgia, and Armenia. We will investigate the role of EU member states, key EU institutions, third country actors, and international organisations. The project results will lead to improved EU practices in the region. In all project phases, the impact of gender equality & digital transformations in democracy support will be examined.

The position entails preparation and conduct of qualitative and quantitative research as part of the project 'SHAPEDEM-EU. EU democracy support in its Eastern and Southern Neighbourhoods' under the European Commission's Horizon Europe programme as part of the research tasks on the analysis of democracy support instruments in the EU Neighbourhood and contestation practices at the level of Member States and the European Union, as well as selected other international organisations and third countries.

Scope of duties

As part of the research assistant position in the project, you will be expected to perform the following duties:

• Collection of material and analysis of documents on the promotion of democracy in selected EU member states and in the European Union towards the countries of the Southern and Eastern neighbourhood.
• Planning and carrying out various research tasks (qualitative coding of documents in MAXQDA, database development, interviews with experts, interviews transcripts, reporting, etc.).
• Preparation of project publications and articles for high-scoring journals.
• Management of empirical databases.
• Contribution to project coordination and management.
• Communication with local and international project participants.
• Organising project seminars and conferences.

We offer

• stable employment based on an employment contract at the  renowned university,
• cooperation with the interdisciplinary academic community represented by well-known scientists,
• scientific support as well as the possibility of qualifications improvement and professional development,
• access to research infrastructure,
• benefits in the form of i.a. Multisport card, sports activities, medical packages, group insurance,
• additional social benefits.

lipiec sierpien Required application documents

1. 1-page motivation letter,
2. resume,
3. personal questionnaire filled in by the candidate,
4. copy of the master’s diploma or a doctoral diploma, if applicable,
5. information on the candidate’s scientific, teaching and organisational achievements,
6. declaration of the candidate, confirming that the Jagiellonian University will be their primary place of work, should they be selected in the selection procedure,
7. statement under Article 113 of the Law on higher education and science,
8. statement on acknowledging and accepting the rules and regulations concerning intellectual property management and commercialisation in force at the Jagiellonian University.

Declaration forms (no. 5-7) and personal questionnaire template (no. 2) can be obtained at:  

https://cso.uj.edu.pl/en_GB/konkursy

Additional application documents

1. a list of publications (indicating the publisher and the number of pages),

2. two letters of recommendation from persons familiar with the candidate's academic achievements,

3. copies of certificates of level of knowledge of English (excluding persons for whom English is their mother tongue or if the language of instruction during their academic education was English - please send a copy of your diploma indicating the language of instruction). Please attach the results of any other relevant language proficiency tests to your application.

The course of selection procedure

The first stage of the selection procedure is the formal assessment of the submitted documents. Applications which meet all formal requirements are the subject of substantive assessment, during which an interview with the Candidate may be conducted (directly or via electronic communication channels), upon settling the date of the interview with the Candidate. The Candidate has the right to appeal against the negative assessment by the selection board within 7 days from receiving the information about the results of the assessment.

Form of submission

by e-mail to the address: mm.gora@uj.edu.pl, title: SHAPEDEM-EUapplication documents

by mail to: Monika Nowak, Jagiellonian University, Institute of European Studies,  Władysława Reymonta Street 4, 30-059 Kraków, Poland
with the note: SHAPEDEM-EUapplication documents

Deadline for submission of applications

till the 30th of September 2023

Expected date of the selection procedure settlement

the 16th of October 2023

Method of communicating of the results of the selection procedure

by e-mail

Questions 

For further information please contact dr hab. Magdalena Góra, e-mail address: mm.gora@uj.edu.pl