Professor of Brazilian Studies, University of Leiden, Holland - vacancy post

 Full Professor - Brazilian Studies

Leiden University · Leiden University Institute for History 

Netherlands, Leiden

JOB DESCRIPTION

During the last decade Brazil has achieved an important position on the global stage. The country today represents the seventh largest economy in the world and has been able to strengthen its political presence at the international scene. Today Brazil is an important member of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), representing the largest emerging economies. In addition, Brazil is rapidly positioning itself in a leading position within the Latin American region.

Against this background Leiden University has decided to establish a Chair in Brazilian Studies. Candidates are invited to apply for a full Professorship Brazilian studies with a special focus on contemporary Brazilian society. The chair holder will be based in Leiden in the Institute for History and be in charge of the research and teaching activities in the field of modern Brazilian history, both in the Latin American Studies programme and in the International Studies programme. The appointment will start in January 2016.

Key responsibilities
The new chair holder is expected to make a solid contribution to the teaching programmes in Brazilian Studies and in International Studies at both the bachelor and master levels within the field of modern history. In addition, the chair holder will supervise PhD theses on Modern Brazil, design academic projects and apply for external funding for these projects. She/he is also expected to undertake managerial duties for the Latin American Studies programme, for the Institute of History or for the Faculty of Humanities.

The chair holder is preferably a generalist possessing a comprehensive academic knowledge and expertise on present-day Brazilian society. This includes expertise regarding general developmental issues such as poverty, inequality, access to public services, developmental strategies and the leading position of Brazil in Latin America and among the emerging economies. Relevant fields the chair holder in Brazilian Studies is expected to cover are Brazil in the global context (including Brazil foreign policies, Dutch-Brazilian relations and the BRICS context), Brazilian local politics, social policies and economics.

Due to the fact that the bachelor and master programmes of the Latin American Studies programme are based on an area studies perspective, these programme require a scholar with a background in either the humanities or the social sciences who can teach courses involving at least two of the topics mentioned above. The Institute for History welcomes a variety of inter- and transdisciplinary approaches to historical research and the social sciences, particularly in the interface between modern History, Politics, Economics and International Relations.

DESIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Selection criteria
Applicants will be expected to possess:

• many years of postdoctoral experience and a well-established name within Brazilian Studies world-wide;
• a broad experience in fulfilling leading positions within academic organizations; 
• a good record of academic publications on Brazil in international journals and publishers;
• an extensive academic network both in Brazil and among Brazil experts abroad;
• a profound and comprehensive knowledge of Brazilian history and development, with special emphasis on the contemporary situation;
• an active presence in key academic forums and at international conferences;
• a very good proficiency in Portuguese, Spanish and English. If the candidate comes from abroad, she/he must be prepared to learn the Dutch language within two years;
• a proven capacity to obtain external research funding;
• a potential to develop interdisciplinary research and teaching within the field of area studies in the Faculty of Humanities.

ABOUT THE EMPLOYER

About Brazilian Studies at Leiden
In recent years Leiden University has invested a considerable amount of resources in developing a limited number of ‘profile areas’, one of which is ‘Global Interactions of People, Cultures and Power’. The holder of the chair in Brazilian Studies is expected to make an important contribution to this ‘profile area’ by contributing expertise on Brazilian politics and social policies and on Brazil’s role as a player in global political and economic affairs.

At the same time the holder of the chair will be teaching courses for the Bachelor programme of Latin American Studies. In 2014 this programme started with a track on Brazilian Studies, which students can follow from the first year of the bachelor. Students can specialize in Brazilian Studies and in the Portuguese language. The other programme track is Spanish Latin America with a specialization in the Spanish language. The bachelor programme also provides courses on Brazilian culture and language and on Portuguese linguistics.

The Faculty of Humanities is rich in expertise in fields such as philosophy, religious studies, history, art history, literature, linguistics and area studies covering nearly every region of the world. Our faculty is home to more than 6,000 students and 800 staff members. For more information see
http://hum.leiden.edu/

The Leiden Institute for History is one of the six research institutes of the Faculty of Humanities. The institute is responsible for the main part of the historical research carried out at Leiden University, see http://www.hum.leiden.edu/history.

Terms and conditions
If the successful candidate has already held a full professorship or if she/he has successfully completed a tenure track, she/he will be eligible for a permanent, fulltime appointment. In other cases the appointment will initially be for a period of five years, convertible into a permanent position in case of satisfactory performance.

The gross monthly salary will be between € 5.103,- and € 7.431,-, commensurate with qualifications and experience. These amounts are based on a fulltime appointment and are in conformity with current salary scales under the collective employment agreement (CAO) for Dutch Universities.

An appointment at Leiden University includes pension build-up and other benefits, including an annual holiday premium of 8% and an end-of-year premium of 8.3%. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for a substantial tax break. More information about the terms of employment can be found at: http://staff.leiden.edu

Information
For more information, please contact the dean of the Faculty of Humanities, prof. dr. H.W. van den Doel, e-mail h.w.van.den.doel@hum.leidenuniv.nl

Applications
Applications should be written in English include four sub-documents, in the following order:

• A letter explaining the applicant’s interest in the Chair of Modern Brazilian History, the abilities and achievements that qualify her/him for this position, and a short statement concerning her/his views on the development of Brazilian Studies as an area study;
• CV including education and employment history, publications, courses designed/taught (including assessments), grants and awards, and linguistic capabilities;
• Names, positions and email addresses of three academic experts in the field of Brazilian Studies who may be asked to provide references (no reference letters are required);
• A research plan for the next three years including a brief outline of at least one individual or team projects (2 pages max.).

The deadline for applications is 22 October 2015. Please quote the vacancy number (15-331) in the motivation letter and in the subject line of the e-mail, and send it electronically via the "APPLY" button. All requested documents should be submitted together in a single PDF-document, named ‘Family name – given name – vacancy number’.

Interviews will be held on November 16th and 30th, 2015.

Reference number: 15-331

Disciplines: History