The Historical Institute of the University of Bern invites applications for a four-year position in History. The appointment will be at the level of PhD student or post-doc research fellow, depending on the successful candidate’s qualifications. The position is scheduled to start on November 1, 2018.
The research fellow will be a member of the project "Atlantic Italies: Economic and Cultural Entanglements (15th-19th Centuries)", funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (2018-2022) and directed by Dr. Roberto Zaugg. This project explores economic entanglements and related cultural phenomena (consumption, material culture, knowledge circulation) that developed between Italian-speaking territories and the Atlantic world. By focussing on connections linking European states without colonies to both sub-Saharan Africa and the Americas, the project embraces a decentred and trans-imperial approach to Atlantic history. At the same time, it contributes to current attempts to analyse early modern Italian territories in their global contexts. For more information, please refer to http://robertozaugg.ch/SNSF-Professorship.html
In this context, the research fellow is expected to develop an individual project on Capuchin missionaries and papal nuncios as actors of economic entanglements between Africa, Brazil, Portugal and Italy, from the seventeenth to the early nineteenth century.
The prospective research fellow is expected to have good knowledge of Italian, Portuguese and English, as well as (at least basic) Latin reading comprehension and practical experience in working with early modern manuscript sources. Previous knowledge of German language is not a necessary requirement. Graduate students applying for a PhD position have to hold a MA degree (or equivalent) in History or a related field by July 31, 2018. Doctoral students applying for a post-doc position have to earn their PhD by the same date.
In addition to the salary, the University of Bern/Swiss National Science Foundation will sponsor travel expenses related to research in European, Angolan and Brazilian archives as well as to international conferences. The research fellow will be expected to live in Switzerland during her/his contract.
Please, submit the following documents by e-mail as a single PDF-file to roberto.zaugg@hist.unibe.ch by June 15, 2018:
1) a letter of motivation: please explain what makes you a suitable candidate for this position and why you are interested in it;
2) a CV (with portrait picture);
3) a certificate of an MA (or equivalent) or PhD degree;
4) a transcript of records;
5) the names and e-mail addresses of two possible referees whom the University of Bern may contact;
6) your MA thesis (or a significant seminar paper) or your PhD thesis – if possible with examiners’ report;
7) if available: any scholarly publications.
The letter of motivation and the CV should be written in English.
The job interviews will take place in Bern on August 24, 2018. The selected candidates will be notified by July 15, 2018. Interviews with candidates from outside Europe will be conducted by skype.
For further information, please contact Dr. Roberto Zaugg: roberto.zaugg@hist.unibe.ch