The Department of Media and Culture Studies (MCW) at Utrecht University is looking for an Assistant Professor with a Gender Studies & Critical Theory profile.

The candidate is expected to bring a broad expertise and will combine experience in teaching and research in the fields of transdisciplinary feminist and critical theory with a special focus on queer and trans studies. We welcome applications with additional areas of specialization in, among others, critical race theory, postcolonial theory, the Global South, indigenous studies, media studies, and critical-theoretical approaches to questions of diversity, inclusion and belonging from an intersectional perspective.

We are looking for candidates with a demonstrable motivation to teach, who have a flexible attitude, are willing to work inter and cross disciplinary with colleagues in the department, and who possess a proven commitment and talent for research. The position will consist of 70% teaching and 30% research.

As a tenured Assistant Professor you will teach in the Graduate Gender Programme Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Research Master’s curricula, Minors and Postcolonial Studies.

The candidate’s research adds to the Graduate Gender programme that consists of the following four thematic strands:

1. Cultural Critique
2. Colonial Legacies-Postcolonial Formations
3. Crossing/Contesting Boundaries
4. Critical Epistemologies

The Graduate Gender Programme is committed to upholding the values of equity, diversity, and inclusion in our living, learning and work environments. In pursuit of our values, we seek members who will work respectfully and constructively with differences and across levels of power. We actively encourage applications from members of groups experiencing barriers to equity.

• experience in teaching at Bachelor’s and (Research) Master’s level and with student supervision;
• commitment to inclusive education;
• vision on teaching and your own contribution to teaching;
• considerable research output, evidence of which include a finished PhD and publications at an internationally recognized level;
• experience with or good prospects for acquiring external funding;
• excellent communication skills, strength in interpersonal relationships and in being a team player;
• broad organizational awareness;
• basic Teaching Qualification (BKO) according to Dutch university standards (or to be obtained within two years);
• fluency in English, preferably close to near-native standard;
• if the candidate does not have a native command of Dutch the candidate is expected to obtain NT2-level spoken and written Dutch within two years of appointment.

We offer a temporary position (1.0 FTE), initially for a period of two years. Following a positive annual evaluation - based on the faculty performance indicators - your employment will become permanent after two years. In case the evaluation is not satisfactory, the contract will be terminated. The gross salary - depending on previous qualifications and experience  - ranges between €3,746 and €5,190 (scale 11/12 according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities) per month for a full-time employment. Salaries are supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and a year-end bonus of 8.3% per year. In addition, Utrecht University offers excellent secondary conditions, including an attractive retirement scheme, (partly paid) parental leave and flexible employment conditions (multiple choice model). More information about working at Utrecht University can be found here.

A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major societal themes. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Sustainability.

The Faculty of Humanities has around 6,000 students and 900 staff members. It comprises four knowledge domains: Philosophy and Religious Studies, History and Art History, Media and Culture Studies, and Languages, Literature and Communication. With its research and education in these fields, the Faculty aims to contribute to a better understanding of the Netherlands and Europe in a rapidly changing social and cultural context. The enthusiastic and committed colleagues and the excellent amenities in the historical city center of Utrecht, where the Faculty is housed, contribute to an inspiring working environment.

The Department of Media and Culture Studies provides education on and carries out research in the fields of film, television, games, new media and digital culture, theatre, dance and performance, gender and ethnicity, music and cultural policies. Culture is a dynamic mix of artistic, creative and everyday practices with which people shape their identities and actions, and within which societal structures and institutions take shape. Media (old and new) are crucial factors in these processes.

The Graduate Gender Programme is placed in the Department of Media and Culture Studies. Our research is embedded in the Research Institute of Cultural Inquiry (ICON) and focuses on processes of in- and exclusion and diversity in a broad range of media, cultural and artistic practices. Why, where and for whom is particular knowledge important? These are the questions that are key to every postcolonial and feminist project of the Gender Studies research group. Based on a feminist, queer and postcolonial perspective, our Researchers seek to identify, analyse, and rectify socio-cultural processes of exclusion and discrimination. Breaking open the relationship between self-evidence, truth, and power, the Gender Studies Researchers create new perspectives on art, culture, knowledge, and society for a more inclusive society. They are engaged in research related to social justice, equality and an affirmative understanding of difference at multiple levels (from the empirical to the symbolic). The Gender Studies research group actively participates in the UU Strategic Theme Institutions for an Open Society (IOS), and in particular in the Hub Gender and Diversity. UU Gender Studies also directs the Netherlands Research School of Gender Studies (NOG) and is the initiator of the Postcolonial Studies Initiative (PCI).