Post-Doctoral Researcher (m/f/d) Digital Identities country case Sierra Leone

The University is looking for a responsible, motivated and committed person in context of the project “DigID – Doing Digital Identities” which has been funded by the European Research Council (ERC) and is led by Prof. Stephan Scheel, Chair of Political Sociology, at the Institute of Sociology and Cultural Organization of the Leuphana University Lüneburg.

You will be working as a Post-doctoral Researcher in context of the internationally renowned Centre for Digital Cultures (CDC). Your main task will be to implement and support research activities in context of the ERC-funded project ‘DigID – Doing Digital Identities’ (2023-2028; in the following: DigID). The project investigates – in five country case studies – how the shift towards digital identification technologies changes the relations and interactions between state institutions and citizens. It engages with this research question in three sites in which digital methods of identification are increasingly used: (1) birth registration, (2) mundane citizen-state transactions for enacting social and political rights and (3) border controls. The person hired for this position will be in charge of the country case study of Sierra Leone. The position is supposed to start on 1st September 2023 or according to a negotiated starting date.

You can find more detailed information about the DigID-project under following link: https://www.leuphana.de/en/institutes/isco/political-sociology.html

Your tasks:

• to autonomously organise, plan and conduct ethnographic fieldwork in context of the DigID-project, in particular for the country case study of Sierra Leone;
• to contribute to collaborative ethnographic research on the international case study of the ‘transnational field of identification’ (see project description for further details);
• to actively contribute to the build-up of project-owned databases for research data (in particular field notes and interview protocols etc.), relevant primary sources as well as academic publications with a particular focus on the assigned country case study;
• to develop – in close collaboration with the project team – a set of distinct methods and working practices as may be necessary to achieve the objectives of the research, particularly regarding data collection, data management and analysis and fieldwork and interview protocols;
• to write and/or contribute to single and co-authored publications in English in leading peer-reviewed international journals;
• to actively contribute to the planning, organisation and implementation of workshops, conferences, working meetings of the advisory board and other events in context of the DigID-project and the working group for Political Sociology;
• to prepare and actively participate (in person) in project team meetings; initially, these will be held on weekly basis, subsequently in a bi-weekly rhythm.

• a completed PhD in the field of social or cultural sciences (e.g. anthropology, sociology, political science);
• demonstratable knowledge of central approaches and debates of at least one of the following fields of study: citizenship studies, critical data studies, science and technology studies (STS);
• proven experience in autonomously conducting ethnographic research (in particular semi-structured interviews and (non-)participant observation);
• very good command of English in both speaking and writing; willingness to (co-)author and to contribute to project-related publications in English language;
• interdisciplinary understanding of research and willingness to cooperate with an interdisciplinary and international team of researchers;
• ability to work both independently and team-oriented; excellent organisation skills and time-management;
• willingness to travel internationally and to spend longer periods in Sierra Leone for conducting fieldwork for the project;
• demonstratable research experience in Sierra Leone or another west-African country is a plus;
• experience with publishing in international peer-reviewed journals are a plus;
• good knowledge of a local language spoken in Sierra Leone (e.g. Krio) is desirable; experience with working with research assistants and/or interpreters is desirable.

The position is temporary for a period of 3 years. Starting date: 1st September 2023 (or by arrangement).

Our offer:

• opportunity to conduct research and advance your academic career in the context of an internationally renowned research project;
• an inspiring working environment as part of the university community of researchers, lecturers, students and staff in technology and administration;
• a workplace at one of the most beautiful university locations in Germany in a true campus university with an internationally acclaimed central building by Daniel Libeskind and the directly adjacent nature reserve Wilschenbruch;
• a high level of job security as part of the public service;
• an additional company pension plan through the Versorgungsanstalt des Bundes und der Länder (VBL);
• flexible and family-friendly working hours within a flexitime framework from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.;
• flexible and family-friendly options for alternating between presence work and mobile work;
• an extensive internal and external continuing education program;
• a wide range of sports activities sponsored by the university, which employees can take advantage of for one hour per week during working hours to promote their health; a university-sponsored catering service for lunch and dinner in the cafeteria;
• a job ticket for the Hamburg public transport system sponsored by the university.

As a humanistic, sustainable and action-oriented university, Leuphana University of Lüneburg stands for innovation in education and science. Methodological diversity, interdisciplinary cooperation, transdisciplinary cooperation with practice and an overall dynamic development characterise its research profile in the core topics of education, culture, management/technology, sustainability and state. Its international study model with the Leuphana College, the Leuphana Graduate School and the Leuphana Professional School is unique in Germany and has won many awards

Leuphana University of Lüneburg promotes professional gender equality and heterogeneity among its members. Applications from people with severe disabilities will be given preferential consideration if their qualifications are equal. Please also note our data protection information for applicants.

We look forward to receiving your application. The required application documents should be submitted in English and include the following:

• a two-page motivation letter in which you outline (1) why you are interested in contributing to the DigID-project, (2) with what kind of expertise and skills you want to contribute to the project; (3) what will be the aspects of the digitization of statist identification practices and their impact on citizen-state relations you would like to focus in context of the DigID-project and what kind of concepts and approaches would you like to mobilise to analyse them?
• a detailed CV including a publication and teaching record;
• copies of any relevant certificates (in particular university degrees);
• a writing sample (in English language), preferably a book chapter or a journal article (max. 25 pages). This can also be a chapter from your PhD-dissertation (in this case please also include the introduction and chapter outline of your dissertation).

Please send these documents (without photo) in one PDF-file by 22nd May 2023 via the application button or as in hard-copy format by post to:

Leuphana University of Lüneburg
Human Resources and Law / Application Management
Password: DigID Sierra Leone PostDoc
Universitätsallee 1
21335 Lüneburg