Are you passionate about research and teaching communication science, interested in how communication plays a role in the different key issues (e.g., climate change, misinformation, or polarization) high on the public and media agendas, how media and organizations relate to these issues, and looking for a challenging job in a dynamic setting? Effective immediately, we are looking for an Assistant Professor in Communication Science with a focus on strategic communication, organisations, and society.

The Department of Communication Science invites applications for an Assistant Professor in Communication Science with a focus on strategic communication, organisations, and society, starting no later than 15 August 2023. As an Assistant Professor, you will be a member of the Corporate Communication Group which is one of the four program groups in the Department of Communication Science at the University of Amsterdam. The Corporate Communication group applies a broad communication-science focus to understand communication around major societal issues. To understand these communication dynamics, this group specifically looks at the interplay of organizations with traditional and social media, other sociopolitical and economic actors (like politicians and journalists), and the general public. Important themes within the research and teaching of the program group include: (1) mediatization processes related to issue and corporate communication, (2) AI and other digital innovations, (3) diversity and sustainability, and (4) legitimacy and visibility of public and private organisations.

We are primarily looking for candidates interested in broad communication science questions who are willing to apply an issue-based approach to studying the interplay between organisations, media, and society.

Our courses focus on the interplay between media, organisations, and society. Courses we teach in the Master's program are the specialization seminars Strategic Communication and Organisations, Media, and Society; and electives like CSR Communication, PR, Media and the Public, Climate Change Communication, Sustainability Marketing and Communication, Digital Analytics and Shaping Society: How Organisations and Media Influence Public Issues. In the Bachelor's program, we teach the domain module Corporate Communication, elective courses like Organisations in the Media, The Language of Strategic Communication, and The Crisis of Trust: Organizations under Public Scrutiny, and graduation projects in which students write their Bachelor thesis.

Within the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Communication Science offers a Bachelor's and several Master's degree programmes. With more than 2,400 undergraduate and graduate students, the Department of Communication Science is among the largest departments at the University of Amsterdam with an outstanding international reputation. The College of Communication and the Graduate School of Communication offer a Bachelor and Master program, a European joint degree program in Journalism and a Research Master, the only of its kind in the Netherlands. The teaching in our Communication Science program is interdisciplinary and internationally oriented, offering tracks taught in both English and Dutch. The Amsterdam School of Communication Research (ASCoR) is the research institute for the Communication Science department, and formulated an ambitious Research programme. The Department is the home of several initiatives and it participates in several of the University and Faculty Research Priority Areas.

What are you going to do

As an Assistant Professor in Corporate Communication, you:

• teach regular courses in the programmes of the Bachelor and Master communication science in Dutch and/or English, including substantive theoretical coursework and statistical/methodological coursework;
• organize teaching in the field of Corporate Communication on different themes within the program, from first year's bachelor courses to courses in the master track Corporate Communication and the research master in Communication Science;
• supervise and evaluate Bachelor theses, Master theses and internships;
• conduct research on Corporate Communication within the ASCoR research program within one or more of the four research pillars of the group focusing on the relation between organisations and: (a) mediatisation, (b) legitimacy and visibility, (c) artificial intelligence (AI) and technology, and (d) sustainability and diversity;
• take part in outreach and impact activities;
• contribute to and lead applications for external funding;
• participate in committees, groups and projects in the program group Corporate Communication.

The job profile is UD (universitair docent), based on the university job ranking system.

You act with attention to quality, integrity and creativity, and:

• have a PhD in Communication Science or a related discipline in the Social Sciences;
• have demonstrable experience in academic teaching at BA and MA levels;
• have the ability to take care of teaching components independently;
• experience and willingness to teach methods courses is a plus, preferably experience with and knowledge of (a variety of) quantitative research methods and statistics commonly employed in communication science;
• experience with automated content analysis and computational and digital methods is a plus;
• have a university teaching qualification (BKO) or are willing to obtain one within two years;
• have the ability to carry out your own research independently and successfully;
• have developed an empirical-analytical line of research that fits well with the profile of the program group as evidenced in publications in prominent communication-science journals and/or journals from related disciplines;
• have the qualities and plans to apply for competitive grants - demonstrated grant-writing experience is a plus;
• adhere to the principles of Open Science;
• are capable to provide a stimulating teaching and research environment and are a good team worker;
• are able to identify opportunities for improvement in research and teaching and take responsibility for allocated units of study or teaching;
• are willing to carry out service and coordination tasks for the benefit of the program group and Department of Communication;
• have the qualities and plans to contribute to relevant social or scientific impact activities;
• are an active member of the Communication Science community or related communities;
• have proficiency in English and Dutch or a firm commitment to learn Dutch within two years;
• are a 'good citizen' in the corporate communication group and the department and act with the best interest of the program group and department in mind.

We offer a temporary full-time or part-time contract for the period of 1.5 years. For internal candidates, the contract will be for the period of 1 year.

Preferred starting date is August 15, 2023. Contingent upon positive evaluation and satisfactory performance, you will be offered a permanent contract.

The gross monthly salary based on full-time employment (38 hours per week) ranges from €3974 up to a maximum of €6181 (salary scale 11/till scale 12). This is exclusive 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% end-of-year bonus. The starting salary will be based on qualifications, expertise and relevant experience. The profile assistant professor is applicable in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities.

The UvA offers excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.

What else do we offer

• A position in which initiative and input are highly valued;
• An enthusiastic and warm department that is open to new colleagues;
• A stimulating research environment, in one of the leading departments in media and communication worldwide;
• Teaching in diverse, multicultural, and engaged cohorts of students;
• An inspiring academic and international working environment in the heart of Amsterdam;
• Access to some research funds to conduct studies and attend international conferences.

Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences

To work at the University of Amsterdam is to work in a discerning, independent, creative, innovative and international climate characterized by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with the city of Amsterdam and society. Here you can read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.

A challenging work environment with a variety of duties and ample scope for individual initiative and development within an inspiring organisation. The social and behavioural sciences play a leading role in addressing the major societal challenges faced by the world, the Netherlands and Amsterdam, now and in the future.