Home > Junior Chair in Political Science/Latin America

Junior Chair in Political Science/Latin America

GENERAL JOB DESCRIPTION

Status: Junior Chair
Profile: Latin America
Discipline: Political Science
Job starting date: December 2025

We are looking for a Latin American fieldwork specialist. We welcome applications from a variety of approaches, working at different scales, on one or more countries in the region, or in a comparative manner. Certain research themes, without being restrictive, will be given priority. These themes meet major needs in terms of teaching, supervision (Masters, PhD) and research: first and foremost environment and gender, but also violence, (de)democratisation, sociology of the State, religion and migration. Expertise in the Southern Cone or the Caribbean would be appreciated.

While the position is in political science, profiles in the social sciences (of politics) coming from or interacting with other disciplines, such as sociology, anthropology or history, would be highly appreciated for both teaching and research.

The successful candidate will be affiliated to the Center for International Studies (CERI), where he/she will develop his/her research programme. The successful candidate will be expected to participate actively in the development of Sciences Po's Latin America programme.

RESEARCH AND TEACHING DUTIES

Building upon his/her previous experience, the successful candidate will be expected to conduct innovative research leading to top-ranking publications and to the strengthening of his/her scientific networks, both national and international. He/she will also be expected to participate in the various research programmes led by CERI, and to cooperate with the Centre’s other specialists in the same geographic area of studies.

Annual teaching duties will consist of two courses (equivalent to 48 hours of lecture-based classes, LBC) and additional pedagogical obligations equivalent to 40 hours LBC.

One of the courses will be taught on the Paris campus, primarily at Master’s level at the Paris School of International Affairs; the other course, at Bachelor’s level, on the Latin-American campus of Sciences Po in Poitiers (First year or second year lecture-based class in Political science).

STATUS & SPECIAL CONDITIONS

Contract duration: three years, renewable up to a maximum total duration of six years. At the end of the six-year contract, the person recruited will be eligible for tenure as Full Professor.

As one of the main objectives of the Junior Chair programme is to foster research carried on by entry-level academic jobholders, a separate budget will be allocated to cover the following expenses:

- Three years of funding for a PhD student working on a dissertation related to the chair holder's field of expertise.

- A part-time contract for a research assistant in charge of data management and data processing.

- Travel expenses for fieldwork, participation in international congresses or for international participants in conferences organised at CERI.

RECRUITMENT PROCEDURE

Evaluation criteria

The committee will base its assessment on the following criteria:

  • A PhD in a social science discipline.

  • Applicants will be assessed primarily on the basis of the quality of their publications, and will be required to demonstrate their ability and potential to carry out innovative, high-quality research in Latin American fields.

  • Particular attention will be paid to experience in the context of international university networks.

  • Relevant teaching experience at all levels is expected.

  • Fluency in English and Spanish is required. Fluency in French is an additional asset.

Application

Candidates must enter their application on the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research's “Odyssée” portal no later than Tuesday, July 1, 2025, 4:00 pm (Paris time).

https://odyssee.enseignementsup-recherche.gouv.fr/accueil#iss=https://ss...

Guidelines are available to help you throughout the application process, with all the required information on how to create your account and log in to the application, how to search for vacancies and the application process.

https://www.galaxie.enseignementsup-recherche.gouv.fr/ensup/cand_recrute...

In parallel, applications must also be sent in electronic format no later than Tuesday, 1 July 2025, 4:00 pm (Paris time) to recrutement.ceri@sciencespo.fr with the subject line “Junior Chair AL - Candidate's first and last name.”

All applications will be reviewed by the Selection Committee to shortlist 3-4 people who will be invited to present their research work at a 'Job talk' at Sciences Po in front of the academic community on 02 October 2025.

The application must include the following documents:

  • A cover letter specifying how the application meets the selection criteria (max. 3 pages);

  • A CV and a full list of publications;

  • A photocopy of the doctoral diploma;

  • 4 outstanding publications;

  • A syllabus of two courses and, if possible, student evaluations of courses already taught;

  • A description of the proposed research programme (approximately 3,000 words).

AFFILIATION

The successful candidate will be affiliated to the Centre de Recherches Internationales/Center for International , CERI (UMR CNRS 7050), http://www.sciencespo.fr/ceri/fr .

Research at CERI encompasses both international/transnational relations and regional studies. The Centre’s faculty consists of about 60 social scientists, mainly in the field of political science, but also sociology, history, anthropology, and geography. Its members supervise doctoral students enrolled in Sciences Po’s School of Research and teach classes at the Bachelor’s and Master’s levels.

CONTACT

President of the selection committee
Hélène Combes, DR CNRS-CERI Sciences Po: helene.combes@sciencespo.fr

Administrative contact person
Quitterie Gadret, CERI executive director: quitterie.gadret@sciencespo.fr

Back to top