The Ruhr area, one of Europe’s largest metropolitan regions, offers attractive career opportunities for excellent scientists and scholars from around the world. In 2021, Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University and the University of Duisburg-Essen established the Research Alliance Ruhr to bundle their cutting-edge international research on the most urgent challenges facing humankind. The Research Alliance Ruhr now comprises four research centers and a college. This is just the latest chapter in our long-standing collaboration as the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr), a community of 14,000 researchers and 120,000 students in the heart of Germany.
As part of the Research Alliance Ruhr, the College for Social Sciences and Humanities is seeking to fill the following position as soon as possible:
Professorship (W3) in Public Social Sciences and Humanities: Key Societal Debates
Your Responsibilities
The professor will be tasked with examining socially relevant topics and complex debates (such as, for instance, populism, identity politics, social cohesion, climate justice and global justice, the role of experts in society) in academic form, and engaging in debate with the general public to develop and share the resulting academic insights. Accordingly, this position is designed for an excellent researcher working at the interface between the humanities and social sciences whose research makes a significant contribution to the critical analysis of and public discourse about the concepts, ideas and developments at the center of pressing social debate. To ensure long-term relevance, this professor’s work should not be aligned exclusively with existing research projects and current trends; rather, it should be open enough to continuously engage in new and existing debates arising from and fueled by ongoing social developments and challenges (on both the national and international levels). Against this backdrop, framing a wide spectrum of social phenomena systematically and/or historically and reflecting critically on them will be a major requirement for this professorship. Candidates must show that they are particularly prolific in research at the interdisciplinary intersections between the humanities and social sciences.
Administratively, this professorship will be affiliated with one of the institutes at the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Offices will be made available at the College for Social Sciences and Humanities in Essen. As a member of the College, the professor will be expected to engage in its academic activities and to play an active role in the UA Ruhr’s interdisciplinary research. The required teaching load is four hours of classes per week.
Your Qualifications
The successful candidate is expected to have an excellent, internationally acknowledged research profile in the humanities which demonstrates a track record working at the intersections with the social sciences, particularly in the form of publications. We expect relevant publications in internationally renowned, peer-reviewed journals and publishing houses, experience in implementing projects with self-acquired external grants from national and/or international research funding bodies, and relevant teaching experience. Candidates will also be expected to provide documentation of significant contributions to non-academic formats (such as newspapers, magazines, blogs and podcasts) that are directly related to their research. In addition, experience in designing and implementing formats that help to advance science communication in the humanities and social sciences is desirable. The recruitment criteria of Sections 36 and 37 of the North Rhine-Westphalian Higher Education Act (Gesetz über die Hochschulen des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen, HG NRW) apply.
German language skills are desirable and can be acquired after the appointment.
Attractive Environment
The College for Social Sciences and Humanities is a joint research institution of Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University and the University of Duisburg-Essen. It is located in Essen. With funding from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the College was founded in 2021 as part of the Research Alliance of the UA Ruhr, which has been working since 2007 to establish the Ruhr metropolitan region as a hub for excellence in the German and international academic landscape. In addition to consolidating top-level research in the humanities and social sciences at the UA Ruhr, the College pursues the mission of enhancing the international networks and visibility of the research in the humanities and social sciences that is carried out within the UA Ruhr. To that end, the College’s interdisciplinary research professorships and early career research groups are complemented by a Senior Fellowship Programme, which is designed for distinguished international scholars who work on cutting-edge research topics and develop collaborative research projects with members of the UA Ruhr.
Further Information
Further information about the Research Alliance Ruhr and the College can be found at:
https://www.uaruhr.de/researchallianceruhr/index.html.en
https://www.college-uaruhr.de/
Research Alliance Ruhr
The Research Alliance Ruhr is a joint undertaking of the three major universities in the Ruhr area and was initiated by the Ruhr Conference. Its four research centers focus on One Health, Chemical Sciences and Sustainability, Trustworthy Data Science and Security, and Future Energy Materials and Systems. In addition, the Research Alliance Ruhr has established the College for Social Sciences and Humanities.
The Research Alliance Ruhr will appoint up to 50 research professors in the next few years and also offer numerous positions for research assistants. Join us now to create innovations for the world of tomorrow in Europe’s densest university landscape, where you can find a wide range of scientific and industrial partners right on the doorstep.
Your application
If you are interested in the position, please send your application in a single PDF file containing: (1) your CV including information on both your academic and professional experience; (2) a list of publications; (3) copies of relevant certificates; (4) an exposé of your research profile with reference to its relevance for the College and the UA Ruhr; (5) a list of successful external grant applications; (6) an overview of your experience in academic self-administration; (7) a teaching and learning concept including information on your previous teaching activities.
Please send your application in digital form indicating reference number 41017-24 by August 19, 2024 to: Prof. Dr. Dirk Hartmann, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Duisburg-Essen (bewerbungen-geiwi@uni-due.de).
Please address any questions about the appointment process to the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Duisburg-Essen: phone: +49 201 183-3375, email: dekanat@geisteswissenschaften.uni-due.de.
Our Welcome Services
Our Welcome Services are happy to assist especially international applicants and their families with relocating to the Ruhr area, an up-and-coming metropolitan region. We can advise you on housing in urban or more rural areas and help you find childcare if needed. Our Dual Career Service will be happy to help your partner explore their own professional perspectives in the region if requested.
We Welcome Diversity
The UA Ruhr promotes diversity and equal opportunities. We strive to significantly increase the percentage of women in research and teaching and therefore welcome applications from female academics. The faculty’s gender equality officer is available as the contact person at gleichstellung-geiwi@uni-due.de.
We give preference to severely disabled applicants if their qualifications meet the requirements.