Selection procedure – Postdoctoral Researcher

The Director of the Institute of History of the CAS announces a selection procedure for a post-doc position within the research project entitled “Women experts and feminist knowledge production in post-war East Central Europe (1945–1989)”, under the supervision of Dr. Annina Gagyiova (Institute of History, Czech Academy of Sciences), in collaboration with Dr. Hab. Natalia Jarska (Institute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences). The project is funded by GAČR, the Czech Science Foundation, under the WEAVE grant scheme.

Abstract of the research project: Does knowledge production contribute to the development of gender equality activism? What knowledge about women’s problems in labor, housework, and health was created by women experts in post-war Central and Eastern Europe? How did their research uncover existing gender inequalities and stereotypes about women’s roles? Which solutions did female experts propose to improve the situation of women in society? Did the knowledge they created prompt them to participate in the public debate on women’s issues? How did the knowledge circulate among female experts from different countries? Who were the women who devoted their research careers to women’s issues? Did, under the conditions of the communist state, which restricted the possibility of association, networks of women experts play a role in feminist activism?

We want to seek answers to these questions by conducting historical research on the biographies and expertise of selected female experts in three communist countries of East Central Europe: Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Hungary. We are interested in those female experts whose research raised issues related to women’s work and health. Our research will focus on medicine, sociology, psychology, and law.

Our research focuses on three threads: 1. Expert discourses about women. 2. Women experts’ biographies and international and transnational contacts between female experts. 3. Knowledge dissemination and activism. As a result, the project will contribute significantly to the knowledge of women’s roles in science in post-war East Central Europe, which, in contrast to Western countries, is still understudied. The project will result in scientific articles and an online dictionary of female experts containing entries in English and national languages. An international team of scholars of the 20th-century social and cultural history of Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Hungary will conduct the research.

The tasks of the Postdoc-position will include:

• search, collection, and analysis of the source material for the Polish, international, and transnational part of the project
• writing and publishing scholarly articles
• preparing entries for an online biographical dictionary on women experts
• presenting papers at international conferences
• participation in team meetings with the Czech and Polish teams (online and in person)
• participation in public engagement activities
• supporting the PI in project management tasks

Required qualifications:

• doctoral degree in humanities or social sciences
• research experience and scientific achievements in 20th-century Polish social and cultural history and women’s history
• track record of relevant publications and conference presentations in the areas mentioned above
• proven advanced knowledge of spoken and written English

Employment:

from 01/01/2025 for 3 years, full-time (1,0 FTE).

The position is open to all persons regardless of their gender.

The place of employment is Czech Republic.

Candidates are requested to submit the following documents:

• letter of motivation
• structured CV (incl. list of publications)
• copy of the PhD.-diploma
• sample of one English language publication

Please send the application in pdf-form to the address zatopkova@hiu.cas.cz no later than 11 November 2024. Selected candidates will be invited for an interview (online).

The Institute of History of the CAS reserves the right to not fill the announced job posting.

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