Postdoctoral position in Ancient Philosophy

The VU Philosophy Department, chair of History of Philosophy, invites applications for a postdoctoral position in the research project Logic in Action in Late Antiquity (LALA), funded by NWO and led by Marije Martijn.

Postdoctoral research position within the NWO-funded LALA project

You will be a postdoctoral researcher within the NWO-funded LALA project. You will conduct research on philosophical activities in late ancient Alexandria, specifically after the death of Hypatia and within the school of Ammonius. The thematic focus of your research may be in (philosophy of) logic, (philosophy of) mathematics or astronomy, metaphysics, religion, and/or history.

Your function

Your duties

• conducting research and publishing academic papers relevant to the overall aims of the LALA project
• taking part in research activities of the team
• organizing a workshop on the project's themes
• contributing to outreach activities

Your profile

• you have a PhD in history of philosophy, history of mathematics, history of astronomy, and/or ancient history
• you have research experience in the philosophy, logic, mathematics, astronomy, or history of Neoplatonism, late antiquity and/or Alexandria
• you have a very good command of Ancient Greek
• you are fluent in spoken and written English

We realise that each individual brings a unique set of skills, expertise and mindset. Therefore we are happy to invite anyone who recognises themselves in the profile to apply, even if you do not meet all the requirements.

What do we offer?

A challenging position in a socially engaged organisation. At VU Amsterdam, you contribute to education, research and service for a better world. And that is valuable. So in return for your efforts, we offer you:

• a salary of minimum € 3.706,00 (Scale 10) and maximum € 5.760,00 (Scale 10) gross per month, on a full-time basis. This is based on UFO profile Researcher 4. The exact salary depends on your education and experience.
• a position of 18 full time research months, or a part-time equivalent. Your employment contract will be for at least 0.7 FTE and will last at most 2 years.
• A full-time 38-hour working week comes with a holiday leave entitlement of 232 hours per year. If you choose to work 40 hours, you have 96 extra holiday leave hours on an annual basis. For part-timers, this is calculated pro rata.
• 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus
• contribution to commuting expenses
• the possibility to work partly from home
• space for personal development

About us

About the department, institute, project

The LALA project investigates the nature and historical context of activities in the fields of philosophy, especially logic, mathematics, and astronomy, in 5th-6th century Alexandria. The research team as a whole will consist of three postdocs and a PI. The current two postdocs and the PI conduct research on the philosophical heritage of Hypatia, on the principle of non-contradiction in Ammonius' school, and on the use of syllogisms in the commentaries, especially on Plato, of Ammonius' school. You, the third postdoc, will conduct research on a topic of your choice that fits the overall aims of the project. For example, you may focus on the presence of metaphysical commitments in the writings of commentators associated with Ammonius' school, or on the relation between the political and religious circumstances and philosophical activities in 5th-6th century Alexandria. We will take into consideration any project that we consider a good fit with the overall aims of the LALA project. Questions regarding the research project may be addressed to m.martijn@vu.nl.

The project is embedded in the VU Department of Philosophy, with strong ties with the Department of Art & Culture, History, and Antiquity.

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities

The faculty consists of nine academic departments within three schools: School of Religion & Theology (SRT), School of Social Sciences (SSc) and School of Humanities (SH).

Are you interested in joining Social Sciences and Humanities? You become part of a dynamic academic community with approximately 900 staff members, over 5,000 regular students and more than 5,000 course participants. In an inspiring and collegial environment, we work together on education and research with impact.

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam stands for values-driven education and research. We are open-minded experts with the ability to think freely. By joining forces across the boundaries of disciplines, we work towards a better world for people and planet. Together we create a safe and respectful working and study climate, and an inspiring environment for education and research.