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The Institute of Security and Global Affairs of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs is looking for a post-doctoral researcher in the field of countering violent extremism.

Description of the vacancy
Leiden University’s Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) is looking for a post-doctoral researcher to join the research group ‘Terrorism and Political Violence’ (TPV) for a period of 22 months at 1.0 FTE. This position is made possible by an Internal Security Fund grant from the European Commission for the project ‘PROTONE: Protect the Places of Worship—Harmonizing Diversity'. The project is led by The Dialogue Platform in Brussels, and Leiden University is the research lead. The project focuses on mosques, churches, and synagogues in several major European cities, and its methodology combines anthropological and observational methods with knowledge of the vulnerability assessment model.

Key responsibilities

• Conduct independent and collaborative research on protective security concerns at religious institutions in the public square.
• Independently conduct fieldwork to support the research across the other four fieldwork countries in the project.
• Disseminate the project’s findings as co-author in high-ranking international peer-reviewed journals, conference presentations, policy reports, and other relevant formats.
• Represent the project to key stakeholders such as the European Commission, academics, and policymakers and practitioners working on the prevention of extremism and polarisation.
  

Selection criteria

• A PhD in sociology, political science, criminology, psychology, history, or any other relevant discipline.
• You should have experience and knowledge of ethnographic research, and it would be an advantage if you have conducted ethnographic studies on places of worship, religious groups, or a comparable topic.
• Familiarity with the vulnerability assessment model would be an asset. Possessing proficiency in at least two European languages as well as Arabic or Turkish would be ideal.
• Proven ability to communicate research findings to non-academic audiences, e.g., through professional learning courses, publications aimed at a broader audience, media work, etc.
• The entrepreneurial and social skills necessary to engage in fieldwork across Western Europe to find access to respondents and utilise personal information collected through observations and interviews.
• Methodological experience with dataset creation (Excel), working with descriptive and analytical statistics (SPSS or R), or carrying out qualitative data analysis (Nvivo or Atlas Ti);
• Demonstrated ability to work in a highly independent manner.
• Excellent command of English.
• A ‘can-do’ mentality and a team-player spirit.

Our organisation
Science for and about society is the domain of the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA). FGGA provides high-quality interdisciplinary education and research on social and governance issues such as terrorism, organisation of public administration, climate change and economic crises.

Contemporary issues are approached from an administrative, political, economic, legal and sociological perspective. This interdisciplinary approach gives the faculty's education and research a cross-border character.

The Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs (FGGA) is one of the seven faculties of Leiden University and is based in The Hague.

The FGGA is a young, enterprising and innovative organisation that is growing rapidly. The faculty has three scientific institutes, two centres, 3500 students and 330 staff members.

For more information about the faculty click here.

Our institute
The Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA) is a scientific institute that focuses on multidisciplinary research and education within the international field of security studies. The approach to issues of security is glocal, that is, the local, national, transnational, and global impacts are studied and analysed in conjunction with each other. ISGA operates from The Hague, the third-largest city in the Netherlands and the centre of national governance and the International City of Peace, Justice, and Security.

See https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/governance-and-global-affairs/institute-of-security-and-global-affairs

Research group: Terrorism and Political Violence
The appointment is specifically within ‘Terrorism and Political Violence’ (TPV), one of the research groups at the heart of ISGA. TPV is among the few dedicated European centres for research on terrorism and related subjects such as radicalisation, (online) extremism, and political violence more broadly. Over the coming years, TPV aims to continue conducting internationally recognised research and high-quality teaching for both students and professionals.

Terms and conditions
The position starts as soon as possible, but no later than May 1, 2021. The appointment will be made initially on a one-year full-time basis, with an extension to 22 months after a positive evaluation. This role may be considered a job share where 2 days a week would be focused on research management and administration and 3 days a week would be focused on fieldwork and analysis in the respective countries where the work will be conducted. The appointment will be under the terms of the Collective Labour Agreement (CAO) of Dutch universities. The gross monthly salary ranges from €2.960,00 to €4.670,00.

Excellent benefits
Leiden University offers an attractive benefits package with additional holidays (8%) and end-of-year bonuses (8.3%). Our individual choice model gives you some freedom to assemble your own set of terms and conditions. For international spouses, we have set up a dual career programme. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for a substantial tax break.
See https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/working-at/job-application-procedure-and-employment-conditions.

Diversity
Diversity and inclusion are core values of Leiden University. Leiden University is committed to becoming an inclusive community which enables all students and staff to feel valued and respected and to develop their full potential. Diversity in experiences and perspectives enriches our teaching and strengthens our research. High quality teaching and research is inclusive.

Enquiries
Enquiries can be made to Professor Dr Tahir Abbas via email at t.abbas@fgga.leidenuniv.nl.

Applications
Please submit your application online no later than April 4, 2023 via the blue button in our application system. Please ensure that you upload the following additional documents in PDF format:

• Motivation letter;
• Curriculum vitae, including a list of publications;
• A copy of your completed PhD degree (or a supervisor’s declaration that the PhD thesis is deemed defendable);
• The names and contact details of three potential referees (no actual recommendation letters are required at this stage).

Enquiries from agencies are not appreciated.

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