The Department of Media and Culture Studies invites applications for an Assistant Professorship in Performance and Technology, starting 15 August 2024.
Your job
As an Assistant Professor in Performance and Technology, you will teach in the Dutch and English-language BA programme Media en cultuur/Media and Culture, the minor programme Brains & Bodies: Cognition for the Humanities, as well as in the MA Contemporary Theatre, Dance and Dramaturgy, MA Arts and Society and/or RMA Media, Art and Performance of the Department of Media and Culture Studies. You will also be involved in the supervision of individual student projects such as internships and BA and MA theses. Additionally, you will be expected to actively contribute to the research agenda of media and culture studies and participate in research collaboration within the department and beyond.
As a department, we are interested in research that engages with how technologies co-shape and transform ways of making and perceiving performance, and how their use in theatre and performance reflects and contributes to further social, cultural and technological developments. We aim to investigate questions such as:
How are technologies part of ways of collaborating, experiencing, appreciating, conceptualising, documenting, and investigating as they take shape in and around performance practice?
How do technologies change modes of perceiving, alter the experience of liveness and presence, reinforce or disrupt existing social structures, inform approaches to narrative and composition, and extend the frame of references and means of production, distribution and access for makers, audiences and researchers?
Your qualities
For this position we are looking for a candidate with a background in Theatre, Dance and Performance Studies, capable of teaching subjects across these fields, and with a special interest in technology and cognition. We seek a new colleague who is a dynamic researcher and teacher with a strong affinity with current developments of critical approaches and new research methods for the critical examination of subjects at the intersection of theatre/dance/performance, technology and cognition.
As a candidate you are committed to furthering new and innovative developments in academic research and teaching, and to participating in interdisciplinary collaborations and partnerships within and beyond the university, and meet several of the following requirements:
You hold a PhD in the Humanities with a research focus on performance/theatre/dance studies.
You have demonstrable expertise with regard to theatre/dance/performance and technology and an interest in cognition.
You have relevant teaching experience on BA and MA level (i.e. on topics such as performance and dance analysis, history of theatre, dance and performance, dramaturgy, scenography, choreography, embodied knowledge).
You have experience in supervising individual thesis projects on BA and MA level.
You are an active and ambitious researcher with output that reflects this.
You have demonstrable ability and ambition to obtain external research grants.
You have demonstrable ability and ambition in outreach, interprofessional collaboration, and challenge-driven education or research.
You have experience in setting up and coordinating courses.
You are a strong team worker and capable of multidisciplinary collaboration.
You have acquired the Dutch Basic Teaching Qualification, or are willing to acquire this within the first two years.
You are fluent in Dutch and English, preferably close to near-native standard; if you do not have a native command of Dutch, you are expected to obtain NT2-level spoken and written Dutch within two years of appointment.
Our offer
We offer:
an employment contract for 12 months with the prospect of a permanent employment contract;
a working week of 38 hours and a gross monthly salary between €4,332,- and €5,929,- in the case of full-time employment (salary scale 11 under the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU);
8% holiday pay and 8.3% year-end bonus;
a pension scheme, partially paid parental leave and flexible terms of employment based on the CAO NU.
The job’s allocation is set to 40% research and 60% teaching. Within the 60% for teaching, there is 10% of free space that will not be scheduled.
In addition to the terms of employment external link laid down in the CAO NU, Utrecht University has a number of schemes and facilities of its own for employees. This includes schemes facilitating professional development external link, leave schemes and schemes for sports and cultural activities external link, as well as discounts on software and other IT products. We also offer access to additional employee benefits through our Terms of Employment Options Model. In this way, we encourage our employees to continue to invest in their growth. For more information, please visit Working at Utrecht University external link.
About us
A better future for everyone. This ambition motivates our scientists in executing their leading research and inspiring teaching. At Utrecht University external link, the various disciplines collaborate intensively towards major strategic themes external link. Our focus is on Dynamics of Youth, Institutions for Open Societies, Life Sciences and Pathways to Sustainability. Shaping science, sharing tomorrow external link.
The Faculty of Humanities external link has around 7,000 students and 1,100 staff members. It comprises four knowledge domains: Philosophy and Religious Studies, History and Art History, Media and Culture Studies, and Languages, Literature and Communication. With its research and education in these fields, the Faculty aims to contribute to a better understanding of the Netherlands and Europe in a rapidly changing social and cultural context. The enthusiastic and committed colleagues and the excellent amenities in the historical city centre of Utrecht, where the faculty is located external link, contribute to an inspiring working environment.
Our department of Media and Culture Studies external link has a staff with a variety of backgrounds, skills, and views. As a department, we are committed to support our staff and their development and we foster various forms of interdisciplinary collaboration and team-based teaching and research. In our department, we study a wide range of media as well as cultural and artistic expressions, also in their intermedial relations. We interpret culture as a dynamic combination of artistic, creative, and everyday activities that people use to shape their identities, and within which social processes, structures and institutions are shaped. We welcome colleagues who can further strengthen the diversity of perspectives and backgrounds in our department.
More information
For more information, please contact professor Maaike Bleeker at m.a.bleeker@uu.nl.
The preliminary date for the first round of interviews is 19 April and will most likely take place online.
Candidates for this vacancy will be recruited by Utrecht University.
Apply now
As Utrecht University, we want to be a home external link for everyone. We value staff with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and identities, including cultural, religious or ethnic background, gender, sexual orientation, disability or age. We strive to create a safe and inclusive environment in which everyone can flourish and contribute.
To apply, please send your application via the ‘apply now’ button. We would like to receive the following information with your application:
your motivation letter;
your CV;
a teaching statement (1 page max.);
a research statement briefly describing current research interest and plans for future developments (1 to 2 pages).
The application deadline is 22 March 2024.
Kind regards,
Laura Karreman