PhD Positions in Political Science/Conflict Studies/African Studies

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. Understanding how African countries and affected communities respond to jihadist insurgencies will help international actors to coordinate and adjust their responses to benefit from local knowledge and prevent further escalation of conflict.

About the positions: The PhD positions will contribute pivotally to the COUNTERRR research project and will make important theoretical and empirical advances regarding countering jihadi insurgencies in Africa. The PhD candidates will conduct research on government and community responses to jihadist insurgencies in a specific country; PhD candidate 1 will focus on the Al-Shabaab/Mashababos insurgency in northern Mozambique and PhD candidate 2 will focus on the Boko Haram insurgency in north-eastern Nigeria. The research team will comprise the two PhD candidates, a Post-Doctoral researcher (who will focus on Mali), and the project leader Dr. Corinna Jentzsch (who will focus on comparisons across countries). In addition, the project has an international advisory board with internationally recognized experts in conflict studies and in the country cases. The PhD candidates can expect from the project leader a supportive and empathetic supervision approach, accessibility and timely feedback, and clear guidance and advice for career development.

Candidates are expected to:

• Conduct research and write a PhD dissertation related to the aims of the COUNTERRR project (the dissertation can be article-based or monograph-based);
• Actively participate in the research, publication, and communication activities of the COUNTERRR project, including collecting and analysing relevant data, co-authoring academic and non-academic publications, and assisting in organizing and presenting at workshops and conferences;
• Take relevant courses and training including methods summer/winter courses
• Participate in PhD program activities and the general intellectual life of the Institute.

Where you will work

The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences consists of five institutes: Centre for Science and Technology Studies, Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology, Political Science, and Psychology. The faculty has approximately 7000 students and 1000 staff members. Within the institutes, not only education is provided but also groundbreaking research is conducted that pushes the boundaries of our understanding of human behaviour and societal structures. What makes our faculty unique is the diversity of research topics, the various styles of teaching, and the way professional support is organized; this provides you with the opportunity to explore and develop your interests and expertise.

Institute of Political Science

The Institute of Political Science has a strong research tradition in various areas of comparative, Dutch and international politics, as well as political theory. The Institute has around 85 academic staff, including many non-Dutch scholars, and houses a number of editorships of international refereed journals and book series. Members of the institute are also involved in a number of the university’s multi-disciplinary research centres, including the Europe Hub, Central and East European Studies, International Relations, Parties and Representation, Political Philosophy, Centrum voor Nederlandse Politiek en Bestuur and ReCNTR. The Institute is based in Leiden and in The Hague, where a large part of the teaching is done.

The Institute offers a range of programmes at the Bachelor and Master levels and also trains PhD students in political science. The BSc programmes include general Political Science (in Dutch & English, in Leiden), International Politics (in Dutch & English, in Leiden), and International Relations and Organisations (in English, in The Hague). The one-year MSc programme (taught mostly in English) includes five specialisations in Leiden and one in The Hague.

What you bring

Candidates are expected to have:

• A (Research) Master’s degree in Political Science (or Conflict Studies or African Studies with an evident interest in political science); they need to have written a Master’s thesis.
• An excellent command of and experience with qualitative methods (fieldwork including interviewing and participant observation, and the systematic analysis of qualitative data).
• A substantive interest in and extensive background knowledge of civil wars, conflict studies and African politics.
• An excellent command of English (need to meet the English language requirements of the Graduate School of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences). For the position on Mozambique, an excellent command of Portuguese. French language proficiency is a plus for both positions, as is knowledge of relevant local languages.
• Willingness and ability to travel to and conduct fieldwork in the project countries (both urban and rural contexts) for several months at a time; experience with fieldwork in African countries is a plus.
• Excellent study results and academic skills, demonstrated in the Bachelor’s and Master’s course transcripts.
• Strong critical thinking and writing skills, demonstrated in the writing sample.
• The ability to work independently, and as part of a team, demonstrated in prior research, work or internship experience.

If you immediately recognise yourself in this profile, or if do you not quite meet all the requirements, but you believe that this is the right job for you, we look forward to your application!

What we offer

Our goal is to work together to create a transparent and inclusive work environment in which everyone feels welcome and appreciated. Our organisation is always evolving and we need your ideas for improvement and innovation to take us further. We want to devote attention to your personal development.

You can expect an enjoyable job within the socially relevant world of education and research. The University's challenging and international work environment is located just steps away from Leiden’s lively city centre or the bustling city centre of The Hague. We also want to work with you to devote attention to your health and vitality, for example with the fun activities we organise through Healthy University.

We also offer:

• An employment contract for 38 hours per week (1.0 fte) as a PhD candidate, initially for a period of 1 year, with the possibility of extension for 3 years after a positive evaluation. This contract falls under the CLA of Dutch Universities, and the starting date is 1 September 2025;
• A salary of a minimum of €2.901,- in the first year and increasing to €3.707,- gross per month in the final year, based on a full-time appointment (38 hours) (PhD scale January 2025);
• A holiday allowance (8%), an end-of-year bonus (8,3%), and an attractive pension scheme at ABP;
• Flexible working hours: as a standard, you are entitled to a minimum of 29 leave days on the basis of a full-time working week of 38 hours; you can also save for extra leave, for example by working 40 hours a week, and in this way accrue an extra 96 leave hours, or exchange 96 leave hours for a 36-hour week;
• Lots of options when it comes to secondary employment conditions; we can, for example, discuss options for a sabbatical or paid parental leave. Within our terms of employment individual choices model, you can exchange leave days and/or salary for benefits such as an advantageous sports subscription or bicycle scheme, and we also offer child-care options;
• If your work allows it, hybrid working is possible within the Netherlands;
• A home-working allowance (day and internet allowance) and attention for good workplaces. The University will also provide you with a laptop.