PhD Position in Political Science University of Amsterdam in Netherlands

The Department of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam is recruiting a PhD candidate for the Democratic Institutions and Violence Network in Europe (DIViNE), a Horizon Europe MSCA Doctoral Network project focused on political violence in democracies. The position is based at the Amsterdam Institute for Social Science Research (AISSR), within the programme group Political Institutions and Identities (PII), and involves collaboration with a network of scholars and institutions across Europe.

This PhD project sits in work package 2 on democratization and conflict resolution. The research examines why political violence can persist even after democratic transitions, with attention to how regime change alters rent-seeking incentives, decentralization bargains, and relationships between national incumbents and local elites. The project aims to explain why democratization may create new incentives for electoral, ethnic, or criminal violence depending on institutional reforms and elite-local configurations. Empirically, the work will combine cross-national statistical analysis, subnational mixed-methods research, survey and survey-experiment work, and fieldwork interviews, with a focus on Global South contexts.

The successful candidate will join a vibrant training environment that includes network-wide colloquia, research workshops, training modules, and secondments. A three-month secondment at Uppsala University and IDEA in Sweden is included, offering exposure to policy debates on democratization, institutional design, and violence prevention. The PhD researcher will also participate in AISSR and PII seminars and may teach Bachelor-level courses for up to 10% of the workload.

Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or equivalent in political science or a closely related discipline by the start of employment. Strong quantitative and methodological skills are essential, including experience with panel regression, large administrative datasets, survey data, causal inference, and statistical programming in Stata, R, or similar tools. The posting also emphasizes interest in fieldwork in the Global South, excellent English communication skills, independent analytical ability, and strong teamwork. Knowledge of South Asia or Sub-Saharan Africa, qualitative and mixed-methods expertise, and prior work on political violence are desirable.

The appointment is full-time (38 hours per week) and temporary, under MSCA Doctoral Network employment conditions. The initial contract is for one year, with a planned extension up to a maximum of three years in total. The position is intended to start in January 2027, and a one-year extension at the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science in Göttingen is envisioned. The project also requires compliance with MSCA mobility rules, meaning applicants must not have lived or carried out their main activity in the Netherlands for more than 12 months in the 36 months before recruitment.

Applications must be submitted as one combined PDF including a CV, cover letter, two-page research proposal, unofficial transcripts, two academic references, and a writing sample of up to 10 pages. The deadline is 11 November 2026, and interviews are expected online in the week of 23 November.