Post-Doc Position in Political Science, Politics of Memory
(full-time, E 13 TV-L)
Reference No.: 2025/064. The team German Politics at the Department of Politics and Public Administration, one of Germany’s leading political science departments is hiring a post-doctoral researcher for two years, starting October 1st, 2025. In principle, this position can be divided into two part-time positions.
The University of Konstanz is one of eleven Universities of Excellence in Germany. Since 2007 it has been successful in the German Excellence Initiative and its follow-up programme, the Excellence Strategy.
The project “Nationalist Persuasion, Legacies of Transition, and Democratic Backsliding in Europe” (funded by the German Research Foundation) is seeking a Polish-speaking post-doctoral researcher with excellent qualitative methods skills. The project studies how illiberal elites use nationalist appeal to gain and maintain electoral support in post-fascist compared to post-communist European societies. A module on all European democracies is combined with qualitative case studies on Spain and Poland, East and West Germany and Croatia. The working language is English.
Your Responsibilities
- Coordinate and oversee all activities in the project’s qualitative module
- Conduct research on memory politics and nationalism in Poland
- Conduct focus groups in Poland and support the team’s research on Croatia, Spain and Germany
- Participate in dissemination and publication of project results
- Contribute to administrative tasks in the context of the project
Your Competencies
- Excellent PhD in Political Science, Sociology or a related social science
- Enthusiasm for democracy research
- Excellent knowledge of qualitative methods of social science research
- Experience with conducting focus groups (ideally)
- Native speaker of Polish (or comparable Polish skills)
- Strong command of English
We Offer
- A vibrant working group with enthusiasm for research in the field of comparative politics
- Funding for participation in conferences and support from student research assistants
- Affiliation with one of Germany’s leading political science departments
- Access to the university’s excellent academic staff development
- The beautiful environment of a University next to Lake Constance
Questions can be directed to Christina Zuber via e-mail: office.zuber@uni-konstanz.de.
We look forward to receiving your application until 6 April 2025 via our Online Application Portal. Please include your CV, a short letter of motivation, and a publication/writing sample.
The University of Konstanz is committed to ensuring an environment that provides equal opportunities and promotes diversity, as well as a good balance between university and family life. As an equal opportunity employer, we strive to increase the number of women working in research and teaching. We also support working couples through our dual career programme. Persons with disabilities are explicitly encouraged to apply. They will be given preference if appropriately qualified (contact sbv@uni-konstanz.de, + 49 7531 88-4016).