Call for Applications: for PhD Positions in Political Science/Conflict Studies/African Studies (two full-time positions)
Closing date- 15 March 2025
PhD Positions in Political Science/Conflict Studies/African Studies (two full-time positions, each 1.0 fte)
The Institute of Political Science of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences invites applications for two fully-funded four-year full-time PhD positions, starting in September 2025, to work on the project “Countering Jihadi Insurgencies in Africa: Repress, Resist & Reorder (COUNTERRR)”, funded by the European Research Council (ERC) and led by Dr. Corinna Jentzsch.
What you will do
About the project: COUNTERRR examines domestic responses to jihadist armed groups in Africa, analyzing variation in state repression, community resistance, and the evolution of security across Mali, Nigeria, and Mozambique. Violence by jihadist armed groups poses a distinct threat to social, political, and economic orders across Africa. This project focuses on how domestic actors—governments and affected communities—counter jihadist armed groups operating in three countries. The project explores why these domestic actors choose varied strategies—such as state repression, foreign intervention, nonviolent or violent community resistance—when countering jihadist threats and examines the effects of these strategies on conflict stabilization or escalation. The research methods will combine qualitative cross-country and subnational comparisons with extensive fieldwork in the project countries
Want to apply or find out more?
If you want to apply straight away, please click the application button. If you would like more information about what the job entails, please contact Dr. Corinna Jentzsch ([email protected]). You can also consult the PhD handbook of the Institute of Political Science for more information about doing a PhD in Political Science at Leiden University. You can apply until 23:59 CET on 15 March 2025.
Applicants should submit online:
- A letter of interest expressing the motivation for pursuing a PhD and for working in the COUNTERRR project, indicating a preference for working on Nigeria or Mozambique (2 pages maximum);
- A Curriculum Vitae;
- Copies of academic transcripts from prior study at Bachelor’s and Master’s levels;
- A writing sample such as the applicant’s Master’s thesis or another academic paper;
- Evidence of the ability to conduct fieldwork in the selected country (such as prior experience, relevant networks etc.);
- The names and contact details of two academic referees who can contacted and asked to comment on the candidate’s professional qualifications and suitability for the position (no recommendation letters required at this stage).
For more details, refer here
