Are you an outstanding scholar with an international reputation and expertise in the Anthropology of the State? Do you have strong commitment to teaching and research and have the desire to contribute to academic life in a vibrant anthropology department in one of Europe’s most exciting cities?

The Department of Anthropology at the University of Amsterdam invites applications for the position of Full Professor. We are seeking candidates with an outstanding record of scholarly achievement to fulfil an open professorship in the Anthropology of Power, Politics and the State.

The Department of Anthropology is one of the largest departments of anthropology in Europe with an excellent reputation in both research and teaching. The department currently has an opening for a Full Professor in Anthropology with expertise in Power, Politics and the State.

Research at the department is organized in three ‘programme groups’ - Moving Matters; Exploring Diversities; and Health, Care and the Body – under the auspices of the Amsterdam Institute of Social Science Research (AISSR). The position is embedded in the programme group Moving Matters: People, Goods, Power and Ideas. The group is home to political anthropology at the University of Amsterdam. Members of the group ethnographically investigate the relationship between the state, governance, borders, and mobility in a transnational perspective that strives to decenter Europe and North America.

What are you going to do?
The successful candidate will focus on an examination and analysis of contemporary challenges of governance and the state. In the research programme of the Professorship, power, politics, and the state will provide the empirical field for the exploration of political questions related to the ways that power is exercised in everyday contexts. You will address urgent questions of social inequality, political conflict, and related challenges to the contemporary state. You will incorporate a research agenda which builds on comparative ethnographic analysis to offer feminist/postcolonial theoretical insights into power dynamics and the perpetuation of inequality, both locally and globally. Geographical area of expertise is open, but a focus on or past experience conducting research in the Global South will be considered a plus.

In this position you will:

• develop and lead educational programmes in the field of anthropology, tailored to meet societal demands and the needs of students;
• teach and coordinate general, specialist and methodological courses in the BA, MA, Research Master’s- and/or PhD-programmes of our department and the research school AISSR;
• carry out core managerial tasks and make a positive contribution to the organisation and cooperation within the programme group and the department;
• carry out and supervise empirical anthropological research at a high academic level, further developing international leadership in this field, developing a research line in collaboration with junior staff members and other researchers working within the programme group, department, and AISSR;
• acquire and help to acquire external funding for research (also on behalf of junior researchers);
• actively contribute to the development of anthropology by publishing and participating in national and international research networks, educational and policy initiatives;
• seek (knowledge) exchange and (research) cooperation with professionals in their research area and engage with organisations and groups beyond academia;
• take a leading role in the public dissemination of research activities;
• contribute, through teaching, research and management, to diversity and inclusion within the Department, as well as the AISSR and the University.

In order to qualify for the position, you have:

• a PhD in Social Sciences;
• strong general knowledge in the fields of anthropology, interdisciplinary studies focusing the state, decolonizing, and/or comparative historical research, as well as knowledge and experience in combining these and other disciplines;
• a commitment to the research agenda of the AISSR in general and the Programme Group Moving Matters in particular, and commitment to enhance interdisciplinary collaborations in this specific field;
• outstanding track record in empirical research on themes that fit the research and teaching profile of the Moving Matters group – as exemplified in a strong publication record in international peer reviewed journals and/or books published by internationally recognized press;
• track record in securing external funding to support research;
• experience in superivising PhD students;
• research experience in the Global South is considered a plus;
• thorough mastery of anthropological research methods;
• knowledge of digital data analysis is considered a plus;
• a commitment to teaching general courses as well as specialist courses in the Bachelor's program in Anthropology and our MA programs;
• track record in administration and/or commitment to carrying out administrative tasks;
• track record of leadership qualities in teaching and/or research;
• track record in contributing to policy and/or public debate beyond of academia;
• demonstration of good academic/organizational citizenship, including issues of diversity and inclusion;
• the Dutch Basic Teaching Qualification or Senior Teaching Qualification, or are willing to acquire such a qualification on fairly short term;
• proficiency in Dutch and English; successful candidates will be expected to gain a high proficiency in Dutch within three years of appointment.

The position concerns permanent full-time employment of 38 hours per week, of which 60 percent is to be devoted to teaching and managerial tasks and 40 percent to research. Preferred starting date is 1 September 2024. For this position, the University Job Classification profile “hoogleraar” applies. The starting salary depends on past education and relevant work experience, with a minimum salary of €6,648 and a maximum salary of €9,680 gross per month, based on a 38-hour working week (in keeping with scale HL2, as per the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities).

We additionally offer an extensive package of secondary employee benefits, including a generous holiday scheme and year-end bonus. Because we value your continued personal development and professionalisation, we also offer excellent opportunities for study and development.

What else can we offer you

A stimulating work environment with a variety of tasks and ample scope for individual initiative and development within an inspiring organisation. Working at the UvA means working in a critical, independent, innovative and international climate, characterised by an open atmosphere and a genuine engagement with multiple stake-holders in Amsterdam and across the world. 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.

Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences

The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest range of courses. An intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 staff and 3,000 PhD students. Connected by a culture of curiosity. Teaching and research at the UvA are conducted within seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. Housed on four city campuses in or near the heart of Amsterdam, where disciplines come together and interact, the faculties have close links with thousands of researchers and hundreds of institutions at home and abroad. The UvA’s students and employees are independent thinkers, competent rebels who dare to question dogmas and aren’t satisfied with easy answers and standard solutions.

Curious about our organization and attractive fringe benefits such as a generous vacation plan and development opportunities? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam here.