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Postdoctoral Research Fellow position

There is a vacancy for a 4 year postdoc position at the Department of Comparative Politics, University of Bergen. The Department of Comparative Politics offers an exciting place for research and education on political institutions, organizations, processes and behaviour at local, national and international levels. The Department offers bachelor's and master’s programmes in comparative politics, as well as a bachelor's programme in European studies. The staff participates actively in national and international cross-disciplinary research. The Digital Social Science Core Facility (DIGSSCORE) is an infrastructure for advanced social science data collection and multi-disciplinary research at the University of Bergen.

Tentative starting date in the position is October 1, 2019

About the project/work tasks:

The successful applicant will conduct research within the research project “Strengthening Regional Democracy – Contributing to Good Democratic Governance” funded by the Trond Mohn Foundation (TMS) and the University of Bergen (UiB). This research project sets out to identify the conditions which facilitate good democratic regional governance. The project foresees the establishment of the Centre on Regional Democratic Governance (CREDGOV) which will expand, consolidate, and disseminate knowledge on regional elections and governments, and which aims to become the world leading institute on regional democratic governance.

We are looking for a postdoctoral research fellow who can contribute to the overall research project and conduct independent research linked to important questions of governance and democracy at the regional level. The project team will develop survey questions which enable the team to observe how citizen’s preferences and regional politician’s role-perceptions change under different contextual situations. The successful candidate will develop questions to be fielded through the Digital Social Science Core Facility (DIGSSCORE) at the University of Bergen (UiB) which maintains a Panel of Regional and Local Voters and a Panel of Regional and Local Politicians. There is ample opportunity for the successful candidate to field questions for own research objectives. The panels will be annually surveyed by a Research Cluster on Territorial Democracy and Reforms set up by the principal investigator (Arjan Schakel) and which connects local collaborators to the project team. There is plenty opportunity to collaborate with the other team members of CREDGOV, i.e. one postdoc, one PhD candidate, one research assistant and the principal investigator. The team will also integrate 410 regional elections surveys conducted in 68 regions in 8 countries into one trend file and will update and expand datasets set up by the principal investigator which include regional and national elections in 392 regions nested in 23 European countries held from 1950 to 2015.

There is ample opportunity for the successful candidate to develop their own research agenda within the broad framework of the project. Applicants are asked to write a research proposal of maximum three pages with an outline on how the applicant would like to contribute to the overall goals of the project and how the applicant would like to pursue an own research agenda. Funding will be dedicated towards the professional training of the successful candidate. This includes, for example, resources to cover expenses for summer school courses for training in statistical methods. The successful candidate will also have the opportunity to carry out visits to the Centre on Constitutional Change at the University of Edinburgh and the Wales Governance Centre at Cardiff University.

A full outline of the project can be obtained by contacting the principal investigator, Arjan Schakel, arjan.schakel@uib.no

Qualifications and personal qualities:

The successful candidate will be expected to relocate to the University of Bergen, participate in the scholarly activities of the Department, and conform to the regulations that apply to the position.

The applicant:

• Must hold a PhD within social sciences ((e.g. political science, public administration/policy, sociology, economics), or must have submitted his/her doctoral thesis for assessment prior to the application deadline. It is a condition of employment that the PhD has been awarded.
• Should be proficient in both written and oral English.
• Should be interested in applying quantitative methods and preferably has experience with mainstream statistical packages (e.g. SPSS, Stata, SAS, or R).
• Should be able to work independently as well as in a team.
• Has research experience within one or more themes that relate to the project, for example, democracy (elections, voting behaviour, political parties, representation) or governance (institutions, policy making, policy implementation, multilevel governance).
• Is willing to disseminate research results beyond the academic community.
• Is capable to collaborate on an international level and to contribute to building an international collaborative network.

Potential candidates will be invited for an interview in late August. Candidates will be asked to deliver a presentation during which they present their research plans and their potential contribution to the research project (see below).

Applicants are advised to familiarize themselves with the teaching and research profile at the Department. The teaching language is Norwegian, one of the Scandinavian languages, and English.

Proficiency in Norwegian or one of the Scandinavian language is not a requirement for this position.

About the position of postdoctoral research fellow:

The position of postdoctoral research fellow is a fixed-term appointment with the primary objective of qualifying the appointee for work in top academic positions. The fixed-term period for this position is 4 years of which 25 per cent of the time comprises duties for the department, such as teaching, supervision, or administration. Individuals may not be hired for more than one fixed-term period as a postdoctoral research fellow at the same institution.

The application must include a research proposal of maximum 3 pages. The proposal should outline how the applicant would like to contribute to the overall goals of the project and how the applicant would like to pursue an own research agenda. There is plenty of opportunity within the project for the team members to develop and advance their own research objectives. The proposal should contain a timeline and milestones as well as a publication plan. It is a requirement that the project is completed in the course of the period of employment. The budget of project enables the team members to enrol in summer school courses for training in advanced statistical methods. The successful candidate will also be able to visit the Centre on Constitutional Change at the University of Edinburgh and the Wales Governance Centre at Cardiff University.

We can offer:

• Exciting development opportunities as part of your role in a strong professional environment.
• Salary at pay grade 59 – 62 (code 1352) on the government salary scale upon appointment (equivalent to NOK 490.900 to 517.700 pr. year). Further promotions are made according to length of service in the position.
• Enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.
• Good welfare benefits.
• The city of Bergen - a unique mix of vibrant cultural life and extraordinary nature.

Your application must include:

• A cover letter detailing the applicant's research interests and motivation for applying for the position (1-2 pages).
• A CV.
• A research proposal (up to 3 pages).
• A list of a maximum of five publications to be considered in the assessment (co-authored publications must be accompanied by declarations of co-authorship).
• A reference list including all works of a scientific nature (e.g. PhD-thesis, blogs, etc.).
• The names and contact information for two references.
• Transcripts and diplomas and official confirmation that the doctoral thesis has been submitted.
• Relevant certificates/letters of recommendation.

The application and appendices with certified translations into English or a Scandinavian language must be uploaded at www.jobbnorge.no

The closing date is August 5, 2019, and the application has to be marked with: 19/524.

Applications sent by e-mail will not be evaluated.

General information:

Detailed information about the position can be obtained by contacting:

• Arjan Schakel, Department of Comparative Politics, University of Bergen: arjan.schakel@uib.no

Practical questions about the application process should be directed to Adviser - HR, Even Michal Endresen, e-mail: Even.endresen@uib.no

The state labour force shall reflect the diversity of Norwegian society to the greatest extent possible. Age and gender balance among employees is therefore a goal. It is also a goal to recruit people with immigrant backgrounds. People with immigrant backgrounds and people with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the position.

We encourage women to apply. If multiple applicants have approximately equivalent qualifications, the rules pertaining to moderate gender quotas shall apply.

The University of Bergen applies the principle of public access to information when recruiting staff for academic positions.

Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked not to be named on the list of persons who have applied. The applicant must be notified if the request to be omitted is not met.

Further information about our employment process can be found here.

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