6 Academic Staff Members (PhD Researchers) at the International Research Training Group Cultures of Repair (IRTG 3195)

6 Academic Staff Members (PhD Researchers) at the International Research Training Group Cultures of Repair (IRTG 3195)

Job Announcement

The University of Potsdam was founded in 1991 and has firmly established itself within the scientific landscape and developed into an outstanding economic factor and growth engine for the region. The university excels in acquiring third-party funds, has received multiple teaching awards, has a very service-oriented administration, and has been honored several times for its family -friendly culture. About 2 0,000 students and 3,000 employees study and work at three campuses – Am Neuen Palais, Griebnitzsee and Golm – at one of Germany’s most scenic institutions of higher education.

The International Research Training Group Cultures of Repair (IRTG 3195) is jointly funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and The University of Melbourne, and is jointly operated by University of Potsdam and The University of Melbourne. Together, the partner institutions offer 12 fully funded PhD fellowships within this international research and training programme ( https://www. uni -potsdam.de/en/irtg -cultures -of-repair) .

The University of Potsdam invites applications for the following positions, commencing on 1 February 2027 and funded for a period of 3.5 years:

6 Academic Staff Member s (PhD Researchers) ID no. 332/20 26 The successful candidates will be employed for 26 hours per week ( 65 %), which is the stand- ard employment arrangement for doctoral researchers in the humanities in Germany . The po- sition is classified within remuneration group 13 of the collective wage agreement among the German federal states (“Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst der Länder” – TV-L). The fixed term of employment is in accordance with Section 2 subsection 1 of the German Act on Fixed- Term Employment Contracts in Science and Academia (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz or WissZeitVG) .

The IRTG understands Cultures of Repair as

• practices of care, maintenance, and re/pairing that sustain social, cultural, and ecological life, while critically engaging with modernity’s entanglements with violence, exploitation, and environmental degradation;
• not the restoration of an intact past, but a generative, future -oriented practice that creates new relations, imaginaries, and modes of survival;
• an analytical concept, an interdisciplinary method, and a transformative practice. Research within the IRTG is organised around three interconnected research areas:
• The research area Environments of Repair brings together media studies, science and tech- nology studies, and the environmental humanities to examine repair within the damaged ecologies and social worlds of the Anthropocene. It understands repair as emerging from disruption and irreversible loss while remaining oriented towards more liveable futures.
• The research area Reparative Readings draws on debates in literary studies, queer theory, and postcritical approaches, to investigate practices of reading that sustain, nurture, and create spaces for (minoritised) communities.

• The research area Repairing Relations is informed by postcolonial theory as well as Indig- enous and Afro -diasporic thought. It analyses historically specific practices of communal repair and critically examines their possibilities and limitations in fosteri ng more equitable relations.

All doctoral researchers will be enrolled at both the University of Potsdam and the University of Melbourne. As part of the joint qualification programme, they will spend one full year at the respective partner institution: doctoral researchers from the University of Potsdam will under- take a research stay at the University of Melbourne from July 2027 to June 2028, while doctoral researchers from the University of Melbourne will spend a year at the University of Potsdam from July 2028 to June 2029. The employer provides grants for the period spent abroad. The programme includes jointly taught research seminars, colloquia, summer schools, and work-shops at both institutions, complemented by targeted training in research integrity, academic publishing, and public engagement. Upon successful completion and defence of the doctoral thesis, researchers will receive a jointly awarded PhD qualification from both institutions. Your Qualifications: The IRTG welcomes proposals from highly motivated candidates. Successful applicants should bring:

• excellent qualifications in relevant fields, such as literary studies, gender studies, queer studies, cultural studies, media studies, or history, demonstrated through a previous post- graduate degree with a substantial research component (e.g. an MA degree, )
• an innovative individual research project that is situated within at least one of the Research Areas of the IRTG Cultures of Repair
• a high level of proficiency in English
• a strong commitment to collaborative and interdisciplinary work within the IRTG’s qualifica-tion programme
• the ability and willingness to spend one year of the doctoral programme at the respective partner university
• a commitment to the values and principles of the IRTG as outlined in its Mission Statement.

What We Offer: As a university, we combine the strong potential for development of a teaching and research institution with the attractive working conditions of the public sector. The University of Potsdam is a reliable employer that supports its employees with a variety of offers and benefits:

• Make the most of the various continuing education and networking opportunities offered by the University of Potsdam to refine your subject -specific and interdisciplinary competencies for professional as well as personal growth.
• All campuses have good transport connections. You can receive a monthly subsidy for the public transport job ticket and use our campus bicycles.
• Benefit from a company pension scheme, a special annual payment, and capital -forming benefits.
• Take advantage of the various offers from our Occupational Health Management unit as well as the Academic Sports Center.
• To improve employees’ work -life balance, the University of Potsdam offers family -friendly flexible working hours and a defined share of remote working hours (e.g. work from home).
• You have 30 vacation days per year (with a 5 -day week) and are also exempt fr om work on December 24 and 31.

You can find more information about working at the University of Potsdam at https://www.uni - potsdam.de/en/arbeiten- an-der-up/employer -up/overview

Information on how to apply can be found here: https://www.uni -potsdam.de/en/irtg -cultures -of-repair . Applicants will be asked to submit the following documents:

• a letter of motivation (1- 2 pages)
• a current CV
• copies of academic transcripts and degree certificates
• proof of English language proficiency
• a project proposal outlining the planned doctoral research project (maximum 3,500 words, excluding bibliography)
• a proposed work and time schedule covering a period of 3.5 years
• a writing sample in English (e.g. a thesis chapter or independent academic publication, approximately 5,000– 7,000 words)
• contact details for two referees.

The deadline for applications is July 12, 2026. Invitations for video (z oom) interviews will be sent out by July 31, 2026. Interviews will be conducted online between August 24 and 28, 2026.

The University of Potsdam values the diversity of its community and pursues the goals of equal opportunity regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion/belief, disability, age, and sexual orientation and identity. Applications from abroad and from persons with a migration background are expressly encouraged. The university strives for a balanced gender ratio in all employment groups; in areas where women are underrepresented, women are given preference in case of equal suitability (Section 7 paragraph 4 of the Brandenburg Higher Education Act). People with disabilities are given preferential consideration in case of equal suitability . In aptitude tests and selection interviews, individual compensation measures for disadvantages are granted, taking the specific disability into consideration. If a person with a disability would like to make use of individual compensation measures, pleas e state this in the application letter . Potsdam, June 25, 2026