Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Asia

The German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) / Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien is an independent social science research institute based in Hamburg. It analyses political, social, and economic developments in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, and links this knowledge to questions of global significance. It combines region-specific analysis with innovative comparative research on accountability and participation, growth and development, peace and security, and power and ideas. The GIGA seeks to appoint a 

Postdoctoral Research Fellow (M/F/D)

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Asia 

Applications are invited for a 75% position, coming with a three-year contract, starting 1 October 2024. The salary is commensurate with EG 13 TV-AVH / TVöD. 

The successful candidate will work in the second phase of the project “World Order Narratives of the Global South,” pending confirmation of external funding. His or her research agenda will straddle the MENA and Asia regions and the interaction between them in the fields of international relations, world-order narratives, and/ or economic cooperation. A research team made up of four postdocs and several senior researchers as well as visiting fellows will investigate what world-order narratives have emerged in the Global South since the end of the Cold War, also examining how they are reflected in respective countries’ positions within a changing geopolitical landscape. 

Tasks will include: 

• Pursuit of relevant individual research and publication agenda
• Research-related travel (travel funds will be provided)
• Cooperation with the research team on conferences and an edited volume
• Participation in outreach activities, such as writing policy briefs and organising workshops and events 

Mandatory qualifications: 

• Outstanding academic record
• Individual research proposal for the project
• A doctoral degree in the Social Sciences or History, or submission of one’s PhD thesis coming no later than July 2024
• Fluency in local languages required for research (e.g. Arabic, Farsi, Hindi, or Chinese)
• Proficiency in English 

Desired qualifications: 

• Knowledge of innovative research methods and related software
• Team-oriented personality
• Fieldwork experience 

Other part-time options will be considered, if so desired by the successful candidate. Diversity and the reconciliation of work and family life are of great importance to the Institute. The GIGA promotes the equality of all genders. 

Please fill out the GIGA application form and send it together with your full application (Ref.-No. GIGA-24-13) including relevant supporting documentation (cover letter, CV, credentials/diplomas/certificates, names and contact details of two references, list of publications, max. two work samples, two-page sketch of individual research project) as one document (except for the completed GIGA application form) to: 

German Institute for Global and Area Studies,

Neuer Jungfernstieg 21, 20354 Hamburg, Germany

Email: Jobs-24-13@giga-hamburg.de (email applications are particularly welcome). 

Screening of applications will begin on 1 September 2024. 

For further information, please visit the GIGA homepage (www.giga-hamburg.de) or contact Daniela Wald (daniela.wald@giga-hamburg.de).