TAGS: IrelandPhDVacancy

Maynooth University / Ollscoil Mhá Nuad (Ireland)

Department of Law & ALL Institute

Funded PhD Opportunity (DANCING Project)

(48-months contract)

Application Procedure

Closing Date:     23:30hrs (local Irish time) on 6th November 2020

Applications with full CV, cover letter and qualifications are to be sent to hilary.hooks@mu.ie.

Applications must be submitted by the closing date and time specified above. Late applications will not be accepted.

Due to recent success in obtaining ERC Consolidator funding, we are seeking a PhD researcher to join the DANCING project team. The project titled DANCING – Protecting the Right to Culture of Persons with Disabilities and Enhancing Cultural Diversity through European Union Law: Exploring New Paths, is a 5-year project led by Prof. Delia Ferri. DANCING will investigate the extent to which the protection of the right to take part in culture of people with disabilities and the promotion of cultural diversity intersect and complement each other in the European Union (EU) legal order. It will disrupt the conventional approach adopted by EU law scholarship by using a combination of legal, empirical and arts-based research to pursue three complementary objectives; experiential, normative and theoretical respectively.

We are looking to appoint a candidate to conduct research related to the project. The PhD student will support the Principal Investigator, Prof. Delia Ferri and post-doctoral researchers in conducting the research linked to the experiential objective of the project. The focus of the PhD will be related in particular but not exclusively to Task 1.4 of the project, which will aim to advance understanding of the extent to which the lack of accessibility and lack of recognition of disability identities affects the cultural domain. The PhD project will entail qualitative and quantitative analysis, and will require interviews to be conducted with, inter alia, umbrella organisations of cultural producers, artists, and cultural industries active at the European level. The PhD student will also support the post-doctoral researcher in gathering data through interviews with national key informants on disability, and will contribute to the arts-based research.  The PhD researcher will be supervised by the P.I., Prof. Delia Ferri.

For this particular position, we are looking to appoint a candidate with basic knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods, and legal methods, and with an interest in cultural studies and/or disability studies. Experience of working in interdisciplinary research projects is desirable.

The scholarship will entail:

1. The scholarship will be for 4 years, subject to annual review with an anticipated commencement of January 2021
2. Full annual tuition fees support (approximately €6,500 per annum);
3. A fixed maintenance award of €18,000 per annum;
4. Participation in Departmental activities is encouraged.
5. The scholarship will be awarded to newly registered students only, for four years of study, subject to satisfactory annual review of progress in research.

For informal enquiries please contact hilary.hooks@mu.ie.

Overview of the DANCING project

 The right of people with disabilities to participate in cultural life – which encompasses the rights of access to, and to be involved in cultural activities, as well as the recognition of disability identities, such as Deaf culture – has been for long denied. The cultural exclusion of disabled people has engendered their marginalisation. It has also entailed a loss for society as a whole, because of the lack of cultural diversity resulting from an inaccessible and exclusionary cultural realm. DANCING will investigate the extent to which the protection of the right to take part in culture of people with disabilities and the promotion of cultural diversity intersect and complement each other in the European Union (EU) legal order. It will disrupt the conventional approach adopted by EU law scholarship by using a combination of legal, empirical and arts-based research to pursue three complementary objectives, experiential, normative and theoretical respectively. First, it will identify and categorise barriers and facilitators to cultural participation experienced by disabled people and how they affect the wider cultural domain. Secondly, it will provide a normative exploration of how the EU has used and can use its competence to combat discrimination and its supporting competence on cultural matters, in synergy with its wide internal market powers, to ensure the accessibility of cultural activities, to promote disability identities, while achieving cultural diversity. In doing so, it will bridge, in an unprecedented way, the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. Thirdly, it will advance the understanding of the legal concept of cultural diversity, which stems from the intersection of different sources of law, and will propose a new theorization of the promotion of cultural diversity within the EU legal order.

Principal Duties

Working under the supervision of principal investigator Prof. Delia Ferri, and in collaboration with a team of researchers in the Department of Law;

• Contributing to project tasks under the direction of Prof. Delia Ferri, in particular conducting research on Task 1.4 of the DANCING Project, in collaboration with the other project researchers;
• Conducting qualitative and doctrinal research;
• Conducting literature reviews and writing reports;
• Writing, and contributing to, academic papers for publication;
• Completing a PhD project as part of the broader DANCING project;
• Complying with all University policies.

 The ideal candidate must have:

 Essential

• A first degree in Law and Sociology, or a degree in cognate discipline;
• A master degree in a relevant social science discipline (including disability studies, cultural studies, law, human rights, social policy, sociology…);
• Basic knowledge of qualitative and quantitative methods;
• Ability to work with a great degree of autonomy, manage workloads, deadlines and responsibilities;
• Excellent computer skills, including proficiency in Excel, Word, and Adobe Acrobat;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and willingness to engage with complex material.

 Desirable

• Knowledge of issues related to cultural participation and/or disability studies;
• Working knowledge of one or more European languages other than English;
• Experience in academic publication;
• Previous experience in interdisciplinary research;
• Previous experience of team work.

Selection and Appointment

• Only shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend for interview;
• Candidates invited for interview will be required to make a brief presentation;
• The appointment is expected to be effective from 1^st January 2021.

Maynooth University is an equal opportunities employer

The position is subject to the Statutes of the University