Job description
As a PhD student you will participate in the VIDI-project The Power of the Family. Family Influences on Long-Term Fertility Decline in Europe, 1850-2010. This project is funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and directed by Dr Hilde Bras (principal investigator). See http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/the_power_of_the_family .
Over the last 160 years a remarkable decline of fertility has taken place in most European societies. Intriguingly, substantial national and regional disparities in fertility levels and reproductive change have been prevalent and remain existent. By combining previous economic and ideational explanations with theories on family influences and the cultural variation therein, the project aims at opening up new vistas for understanding long-term population change.
Together with the principal investigator and two other PhD students, you will study the relationship between family and reproductive behaviour across Europe and over time from either a qualitative or quantitative perspective, using micro and macro level data.
Key themes in the project are:
1. the composition and geographical dispersion of kinship networks;
2. the influence of kin support and competition on reproductive behaviour;
3. the intergenerational transmission of reproductive behaviour;
4. sibling interdependencies in reproductive behaviour;
5. husband-wife relations and reproductive behaviour.
PhD student 1 will explore the project’s themes through oral history and qualitative documents.
PhD student 2 will investigate the project’s themes on the basis of quantitative historical micro data for cohorts born between 1850 and 1920.
PhD student 3 will examine the project’s themes on the basis of quantitative contemporary micro data for cohorts born since 1920.
Requirements
You should have:
• a (Research) Master’s degree in history, anthropology or anthropological demography (PhD project 1) or a (Research) Master’s degree in history, demography, sociology or economics (PhD projects 2-3);
• a strong statistical background (PhD projects 2-3) or experience with oral history or ethnographic research and interpretative methods (PhD project 1);
• an outstanding record of undergraduate and Master’s degree work;
• excellent writing and speaking skills in English;
• proficiency in other European languages is considered an advantage.
Organization
Radboud University Nijmegen is one of the leading academic communities in the Netherlands, renowned for its leafy campus, modern buildings, and state-of-the-art equipment. It has seven faculties and enrolls over 17,500 students in approximately 90 study programmes. The university is situated in Nijmegen, the oldest city in the Netherlands, close to the German border, on the banks of the river Waal. Nijmegen has a rich history and its city centre is one of the liveliest in the Netherlands.
Your research will be embedded in the institute for Historical, Literary and Cultural Studies (HLCS) at the Faculty of Arts within the theme “Public and private lives: The history of politics and human life courses, see: http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/programma's/public-and-private/. You will be based at the Department of History, where the project is part of the department’s research programme “LIFE. The socio-cultural realities of human life courses in East and West”.
Website: http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/the_power_of_the_family
Conditions of employment
Employment: 0,8 fte
The gross starting salary is €2,042 per month based on full-time employment.
Duration of the contract: 4 years and 3 months.
Additional conditions of employment
You will be offered an initial contract for 18 months with the possibility of extension by 2.8 years. The sub-projects will start on September 1st, 2011.
Other Information
Please submit:
• a cover letter (including motivation for project 1, 2 or 3);
• a CV;
• transcripts of your qualifications to date (degrees and grade lists);
• two writing samples: a chapter from your Master’s thesis and a forthcoming or published article or presented conference paper;
• two referees.
Additional Information
Dr Hilde Bras, principal investigator
Telephone: +31 24 3655983, +31 6 83082001
E-mail: h.bras@let.ru.nl
Application
You can apply for the job (mention the vacancy number 23.09.11) before 15 May 2011 by sending your application -preferably by email- to:
Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, Faculty of Arts,
Department P&O
P.O. Box 9103, 6500 HD Nijmegen, NL
Telephone: +31 24 3612916
E-mail: vacatures@let.ru.nl
Faculty of Arts
Vacancy number: 23.09.11
Closing date: 15 May 2011
Application Deadline : 15 May 2011
Further Information
As a PhD student you will participate in the VIDI-project The Power of the Family. Family Influences on Long-Term Fertility Decline in Europe, 1850-2010. This project is funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and directed by Dr Hilde Bras (principal investigator). See http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/the_power_of_the_family .
Over the last 160 years a remarkable decline of fertility has taken place in most European societies. Intriguingly, substantial national and regional disparities in fertility levels and reproductive change have been prevalent and remain existent. By combining previous economic and ideational explanations with theories on family influences and the cultural variation therein, the project aims at opening up new vistas for understanding long-term population change.
Together with the principal investigator and two other PhD students, you will study the relationship between family and reproductive behaviour across Europe and over time from either a qualitative or quantitative perspective, using micro and macro level data.
Key themes in the project are:
1. the composition and geographical dispersion of kinship networks;
2. the influence of kin support and competition on reproductive behaviour;
3. the intergenerational transmission of reproductive behaviour;
4. sibling interdependencies in reproductive behaviour;
5. husband-wife relations and reproductive behaviour.
PhD student 1 will explore the project’s themes through oral history and qualitative documents.
PhD student 2 will investigate the project’s themes on the basis of quantitative historical micro data for cohorts born between 1850 and 1920.
PhD student 3 will examine the project’s themes on the basis of quantitative contemporary micro data for cohorts born since 1920.
Requirements
You should have:
• a (Research) Master’s degree in history, anthropology or anthropological demography (PhD project 1) or a (Research) Master’s degree in history, demography, sociology or economics (PhD projects 2-3);
• a strong statistical background (PhD projects 2-3) or experience with oral history or ethnographic research and interpretative methods (PhD project 1);
• an outstanding record of undergraduate and Master’s degree work;
• excellent writing and speaking skills in English;
• proficiency in other European languages is considered an advantage.
Organization
Radboud University Nijmegen is one of the leading academic communities in the Netherlands, renowned for its leafy campus, modern buildings, and state-of-the-art equipment. It has seven faculties and enrolls over 17,500 students in approximately 90 study programmes. The university is situated in Nijmegen, the oldest city in the Netherlands, close to the German border, on the banks of the river Waal. Nijmegen has a rich history and its city centre is one of the liveliest in the Netherlands.
Your research will be embedded in the institute for Historical, Literary and Cultural Studies (HLCS) at the Faculty of Arts within the theme “Public and private lives: The history of politics and human life courses, see: http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/programma's/public-and-private/. You will be based at the Department of History, where the project is part of the department’s research programme “LIFE. The socio-cultural realities of human life courses in East and West”.
Website: http://www.ru.nl/hlcs/the_power_of_the_family
Conditions of employment
Employment: 0,8 fte
The gross starting salary is €2,042 per month based on full-time employment.
Duration of the contract: 4 years and 3 months.
Additional conditions of employment
You will be offered an initial contract for 18 months with the possibility of extension by 2.8 years. The sub-projects will start on September 1st, 2011.
Other Information
Please submit:
• a cover letter (including motivation for project 1, 2 or 3);
• a CV;
• transcripts of your qualifications to date (degrees and grade lists);
• two writing samples: a chapter from your Master’s thesis and a forthcoming or published article or presented conference paper;
• two referees.
Additional Information
Dr Hilde Bras, principal investigator
Telephone: +31 24 3655983, +31 6 83082001
E-mail: h.bras@let.ru.nl
Application
You can apply for the job (mention the vacancy number 23.09.11) before 15 May 2011 by sending your application -preferably by email- to:
Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, Faculty of Arts,
Department P&O
P.O. Box 9103, 6500 HD Nijmegen, NL
Telephone: +31 24 3612916
E-mail: vacatures@let.ru.nl
Faculty of Arts
Vacancy number: 23.09.11
Closing date: 15 May 2011
Application Deadline : 15 May 2011
Further Information