Full-time assistant research fellow position – Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences

MTA KRTKThe Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences (http://www.krtk.mta.hu/english/) calls for applications to a full-time (100%) assistant research fellow position at the Institute for Regional Studies, Alföld Department, Békéscsaba group.

The conditions of employment (including salary, allowances and benefits, etc.)  are defined by the Act on Public Employment (Hungary, 1992. Act XXXIII. 20/A§). 

The position is available from the 1st of January, 2019; the duration of the employment is 36 months. The place of work: CERS HAS, Békéscsaba, Szabó Dezső str. 42.

The young research fellow’s primary tasks will be related to the international research project Agents of Change in Old Industrial Regions funded by the Volkswagen Stiftung. The project is focused on exploring how agents in old industrial regions outside major agglomerations respond the social and economic decline and create new development path to economic prosperity and well-being. The aims of the project are: 

  • to develop a better understanding of the emergence of new development paths in old industrial regions outside metropolitan areas, and the implications for socio-spatial development;
  • to strengthen academic collaboration among scholars in the EU and facilitate knowledge exchange between academia and policy makers;
  • utilising the results of international comparison and knowledge exchange to develop policy recommendations for discovering new development approaches to Europe’s old industrial regions in various social, historical, and cultural contexts.

The specific project-related duties of the fellow to be employed by CERS HAS are:

  • Collecting data (documents, statistics, conducting interviews) on the two fields of study (Tatabánya, Tiszaújváros), taking part in the processing, analysis, and the publication of the empirical results;
  • Supporting the organisation of workshops, conferences, project meetings related to the project; contributing to the dissemination of overall project results (WP2);
  • Helping the dissemination of the results of domestic case studies at academic public policy forums.

The language of the project is English.

The research fellow is expected to proceed with her/his PhD studies for which, the institute will provide support, such as time and the tuition fee for studies at a doctoral school.  

The fellow will also be part of the daily practices of the institute, such as organising and participating in events, meetings, dissemination and outreach activities, etc.

For the period of the 36-month full employment as an assistant research fellow, CERS HAS and its Békéscsaba group provide the conditions for developing research ideas and implementing empirical research, support publication activities and travelling to national and international conferences in the framework of the Agents of change project. The fellow will also get experience in international team work and project management. The supervision will be provided by the senior researchers of the Békéscsaba group. The Institute provides technical conditions for the research work such as office spaces, IT facilities, and access to the CERS HAS library and the databases. Moreover, we offer open and friendly atmosphere for work in Békéscsaba, as well as all advantages of an interdisciplinary, networked, multi-local academic institute.

Essential requirements:

  • Having a MA/MSC degree;
  • Proficiency in speaking, writing and listening in Hungarian (field work; analysis)
  • Proficiency in speaking, writing and listening in English (project communication; dissemination activities; giving conference papers; publication)
  • Personal qualities needed for academic work, such as being devoted to exploratory research, good communication skills, ability to work in team and keeping deadlines.

Desirable requirements

  • MA/MSc in any of the fields of geography, sociology or economics;
  • Being enrolled at a doctoral school;
  • Having experience in qualitative methods/field work, data management and analysis;
  • Experience in giving papers at conferences;
  • Experience in academic writing (published paper/s);
  • Experience of organising events;
  • Experience in managing websites.

For further information, you should contact Erika Nagy, CERS HAS IRS, Alföld Dept. Békéscsaba group (nagye@rkk.hu; +36-20-9149985).

The applications should be submitted electronically in Hungarian to mader.edit@krtk.mta.hu until the 16th of November 2018, including your detailed CV (with earlier projects and publications), copies of degrees, language certificates, signed declaration on accepting CERS HAS terms on data management, and a good-conduct certificate.

Selected candidates will be interviewed in the course of the last week of November 2018.