CfA: PhD fellowships "Urban Reconfigurations in post-Soviet space"

The Leibniz-Institute for Regional Geography (IfL) in Leipzig kindly invites applications from highly qualified and motivated individuals for 2 PhD fellowships to commence as soon as possible. 

The IfL is a non-university research institute and member of the Leibniz  Association with currently around 70 employees.  It is institutionally financed by the Free State of Saxony and the Federal  Republic of Germany in the context of a common research funding agreement. 

The fellowships include 

● a monthly stipend of 1400,00 € granted for six months plus financial support  for conferences and field research, 

● access to the academic service infrastructure of the IfL (e.g., the Central  Geographical Library; The Archive for Geography; cartographic and IT services, scientific seminars), 

● individual support in terms of exchange and discussions within the international research network of ira.urban and 

● flexible working arrangements in Leipzig. 

The fellowships will be financed within the framework of the international  comparative research project “Urban reconfigurations in post-Soviet space” (ira.urban). They aim at analyzing and explaining continuities and discontinuities in the reconfiguration of urban spaces in the light of traditional, reproduced Soviet and newly formed post-Soviet conditions as well as of changing global economic and social orders. On basis of transnationally comparative case study research,  the project focuses on the question to what extent urban development has become  part of a socially negotiated adjustment processes, and a mirror of a comprehensive modernisation process of urban societies in the republics of the former Soviet Union. 

The fellowships will be offered to researchers working in one of the following fields: 

Research field (1): 

Structural change of post-Soviet city regions: Comparative research on socio-economic dynamics and interregional linkages (subject: ira.urban_typologies). The awardee addresses in his PhD thesis the aforementioned topic (1), and deploys it empir-ically and methodologically for a single or multiple regional case studies in the post-Soviet space. In the context of the ira.urban project he contributes to the organization and analysis of an international database which comprises statistical indicators as well as further materials about the socio-demographic and economic developments of post-Soviet city regions. The database, including its visual compilation in terms of maps, represents the starting point for comparative, quantitative analysis as well as qualitative multiple case studies. Against this backdrop, the successful candidate will be in an advanced stage of his/her PhD project and show relevant experiences and skills in quantitative, structural analysis, cartographic methods as well as in urban research in post-Soviet space.
Research field (2): 

Peripheries of post-Soviet city-regions: Trends, Factors and Actors of the Post-industrial Transformation (subject: ira.urban_peripheries). The awardee addresses in his PhD thesis the aforementioned topic (2), and deploys it empirically and theoretically for a single or multiple case studies in the post-Soviet space, except the city regions of Moscow and St. Petersburg. The candidate analyses the contexts, processes and socio- and/or economic effects of the suburban transformations within the city region(s) under study from an actor-focused perspective. Thus, the successful candidate will be in an advanced stage of his/her PhD project, have gained relevant skills in social research methods as well as experiences in comparative urban research in post-Soviet space and/or have elaborated concepts for researching the aforementioned topic (2). 

Furthermore, we expect of both candidates geographic flexibility, fluency in English and in at least one language of the post-Soviet space, as well as working knowledge in Office software. The positions require hard working individuals with analytical strengths, communication skills, self-initiative and a strong team spirit. Please submit your complete application package in English or German as one pdf-file by e-mail to personal@ifl-leipzig.de. 

The deadline for applications is January 20th 2014. 

Please enclose the following documents: 

o CV 

o letter of motivation/ statement of purpose, including a short display of the links between your PhD project and ira.urban (2 pages max.) 

o exposé of your PhD project, including your time table and work progress ( 5 pages max, excluding sources) 

o list of your publications and presentations 

o Certificates, references etc. 

Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Isolde Brade (I_Brade@ifl-leipzig.de) or Dr. Carola Neugebauer (C_Neugebauer@ifl-leipzig.de). We are looking forward to your application!

For further Information about the Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography: www.ifl-leipzig.de. For further Information about the Leibniz foundation: www.leibniz-gemeinschaft.de