PhD in Heritage and Tourism: Witch Hunts as a Gendered Traumascape Erasmus University Rotterdam in Netherlands

PhD opportunity in Heritage and Tourism at Erasmus University Rotterdam

This post announces a PhD candidate opening in Heritage and Tourism titled “Witch Hunts as a Gendered Traumascape” at Erasmus University Rotterdam, within the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication (ESHCC) and the broader Traumascapes research programme.

The project investigates how the history of early modern witch persecutions in the Netherlands is remembered, represented, and used today in heritage practices and tourism contexts. The research looks at museums, walking routes, local storytelling initiatives, digital platforms, and contemporary witch-identifying or pagan communities. It frames these contemporary engagements as a gendered traumascape, with attention to gender, value formation, and the cultural afterlives of traumatic histories.

The PhD candidate will conduct independent academic research and work toward a doctoral dissertation. Methods include discourse analysis, site-based observation, and interviews with actors in heritage, tourism, and civil society. The project also includes thematic comparison with other case studies in the Traumascapes programme and aims to contribute to broader methodological debates in heritage and tourism studies.

Eligibility highlights: a completed Master’s degree, preferably a Research Master’s, in Cultural Studies, Heritage Studies, History, Religious Studies, Anthropology, Media Studies, Tourism Studies, or a related field; strong English academic writing; good communication and collaboration skills; and Dutch at B2 level or willingness to learn Dutch.

Funding and employment: this is a paid PhD position with a salary of €3,059–€3,881 gross per month on a full-time basis, offered at 0.8–1.0 fte. The contract is for 1 year initially and can be extended by 3 more years.

Deadline: 7 May 2026.

How to apply: submit a motivation letter and CV, include GPA details and thesis grade, specify your Master’s degree type, and upload your Master’s thesis or a recent writing sample if the thesis is unfinished. Contact Stijn Reijnders at [email protected] for more information.