CONTEXT

As part of the CNRS International Action programme, the Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics at Sciences Po is inviting applications for a doctoral contract in Sociology. This recruitment is part of a project entitled: ‘The logistics of semi-wholesale cocaine trafficking in France: analysis of the influence of French Guiana, the Antilles and Brazil on regional distribution networks’.

PRESENTATION OF THE CENTRE

Directed by Florence Faucher since September 2022, the CEE is a multidisciplinary research unit attached to Sciences Po and the CNRS. It is dedicated to the comparative analysis of politics in its many dimensions, against the backdrop of the European space, both geographical and institutional.

The centre's research focuses on four main areas:

• Transformations of capitalism
• Cities, borders, mobility
• The state and public policy
• Tensions in representative democracy

Two cross-cutting themes underpin these areas:

• Europe and the European Union
• Environmental transformations

The CEE brings together around forty permanent members (political scientists, sociologists, lawyers, urban planners, philosophers), as well as an equivalent number of doctoral students, post-doctoral researchers and associate researchers. It also welcomes many international visitors each year and regularly organises major scientific events.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

This project aims to deepen our understanding of the contemporary dynamics of cocaine trafficking between Latin America, the Caribbean and France. The focus will be on the link between large-scale transnational trafficking and semi-wholesale distribution in France, an area that has not yet been studied in depth.

Particular attention will be paid to:

• the logistical role of the Caribbean and the Antilles in transnational trafficking,
• the interactions between criminal groups active in these territories and those based in France, in both urban and rural areas.

THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK

The project is part of a reflection on the power structures linked to the control of coercion, protection markets and capital accumulation, based on an empirical approach to illegal markets.

The methodology combines:

• qualitative research (ethnography, interviews, documentary analysis),
• quantitative analysis (statistics, surveys),
• a mixed-methods approach.

The project will be conducted in collaboration with the IRL CNRS Mondes en Transition, from an interdisciplinary perspective. The doctoral student will actively participate in the intellectual life of the CEE and collaborate with an international network of researchers working on the links between crime and power regimes.

Travel in France and abroad is to be expected for field surveys.

DURATION AND CONDITIONS

• Full-time doctoral contract for 36 months
• Start date: September 2026
• Location: Paris, CEE Sciences Po Paris
• Supervisor: Professor Gabriel Feltran

DESIRED PROFILE

Required degree: Master's degree in humanities and social sciences (sociology, anthropology, geography, history, political science)

Required skills:

• Experience in research on value chains and the political economy of drugs
• Knowledge of informalities, illegal markets and regulations in France
• Proficiency in qualitative methods and interest in mixed approaches
• Ability to work in a team and contribute to a collective dynamic
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in French and English
• Autonomy, initiative and intellectual commitment

APPLICATION

To be submitted online in accordance with the procedures of the Sciences Po Research School. Applications may be written in French or English.

The application must include:

1. Cover letter detailing skills and motivations
2. CV (3 pages max.)
3. Research proposal (5,000 words) related to the project: issue, hypothesis, theoretical framework, methods and planned fieldwork

More information about admissions to the PhD programme in sociology at the School of Research

Once you have submitted your application, please notify us of your application using the form below:

CONTACTS

• For questions related to the application: ed.direction@sciencespo.fr
• For questions related to the project: gabriel.feltran@sciencespo.fr and recruitment.cee@sciencespo.fr